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The Spaniard retired from his first race since
2018 after the car's rear brakes overheated.
"After the second stop, a sandwich wrap paper got stuck inside
the rear brake duct of Fernando’s car, which led to high
temperatures and caused some damage to the brake system," said
team executive director Marcin Budkowski.
"So we retired him for safety reasons."
Alonso had qualified ninth for the race at Sakhir but retired on
lap 32.
"The start was fun, we gained some places and I had some
enjoyable battles with old colleagues. However, it was
disappointing to not see the chequered flag in the end," said
the 39-year-old.
Sunday's season-opener had fans in attendance after organisers
made tickets available to those fully vaccinated against
COVID-19 or who had recovered from the virus. Most of last
year's grands prix were behind closed doors.
"It's the first time we have seen fans in a long time and it's
so good to see people out here and everyone keeping their
distance and staying safe," seven-times world champion Lewis
Hamilton said after winning the race for Mercedes.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Christian
Radnedge)
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