Renault's
Nico Hulkenberg was duly reminded on Sunday how close the midfield battle is and will be this year, as the German put in a good shift to end up sixth in Bahrain.
Hulk thinks he got everything he could out of his RS18, but still feels a bit underwhelmed by his inability to beat his midfield opponents.
"We got everything there was to get out of this race, which is a big positive," he said after the race on Sunday.
"We didn't have the pace to scrap with the cars ahead of us which is a bit disappointing, so it's clear that the midfield is very close.
"It was a busy race and our main focus was fuel saving whilst still trying to race other cars and I think we managed that quite well tonight."
Hulkenberg finished five places ahead of his teammate Carlos Sainz Jr, who had to do with a P11 finish after a slow start. As for Hulkenberg, he'll be looking to continue his good form and carry his momentum to China next weekend, when the Chinese Grand Prix takes place in Shanghai.