text: Albert Park - Australian Grand Prix . Sepang - Malaysian Grand Prix . Shanghai - Chinese Grand Prix . Out of the Chinese swamp, where the Shanghai Circuit was built, and straight into the desert of Bahrain - only in a Formula One World Championship. But as the F1 circus quickly ends up in Bahrain after the Chinese Grand Prix, some things don't appear to have changed at all as, like Shanghai, Sakhir debuted in 2004 and is designed by Herman Tilke. It's also a trailblazer. Bahrain was the first country in the middle east to hold a Formula One world championship Grand Prix but it has been rocked by a number of issues in recent years. National protests led to the event being cancelled in 2011, with many questioning whether Sakhir should be holding a Grand Prix from a political stand point. The circuit itself hasn't quite delivered many spectacular races, and you will be hard pressed to create a top five Bahrain Grand Prix list. That doesn't mean we have had 10 years of Bahrain bores though as Sportsmail takes a look back at our favourite images through the Sakhir archives. There was still two months to go before the inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix in 2004 when this photo was taken, and you won't be surprised to know little has changed since in the desert. The in-field has had a cosmetic makeover, while after the tight turn to the right of your picture you can follow the extended endurance version of the track which was raced in 2010 to mark 50 years of the F1 world championship . There isn't much to look at for scenery in Sakhir, but the corporate building in the background near the paddock is the iconic construction at the circuit. It was certainly more attractive than the Williams 'walrus' nose as driven by Ralf Schumacher in 2004 . David Coulthard appears to have stumbled upon an idea on how to make the McLaren go faster in 2004, as he pushes his car following a spin in practice. The Scot would retire on race day with an engine problem after 50 laps - but he lasted 43 laps longer than team-mate Kimi Raikkonen who also suffered a Mercedes failure inside his McLaren . Form a line behind the great one. Michael Schumacher won the first race at Sakhir as he leads in front of Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello, Williams' Ralf Schumacher and the BAR duo of Takuma Sato and Jenson Button on the run up to turn three . It's all smiles at BAR in 2004 as Jenson Button celebrates a podium finish with his father John and team boss Dave Richards - who toasts the Brit's third-place finish with a cigar. Button's podium in Sakhir came straight after his first in Formula One at Sepang . Abdel Rouf, a member of the Bahrainian Royal Arab Studs, wasn't lacking horse power as he watched Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella pass by while sitting on Tuwasian during the fourth practice session ahead of the 2005 race . Health and safety folk would have a fit seeing scenes like this these days, as the Renault team hang off the pit fence to congratulate Fernando Alonso on his win in the 2005 Bahrain Grand Prix. The practice was soon banned with teams having to now remain behind the fence . One hundred wins for Fernando already? Not quite. Renault, along with Alonso, celebrate their 100th win over the course of their Formula One history which also included victories as an engine supplier to Williams and Benetton in the 1990s . Spot the new guy. The Schumacher brothers of Michael and Ralf stand in parc ferme alongside Williams' Nico Rosberg and Sauber's Nick Heidfeld as part of the German quartet waiting to speak to the country's TV feed. Rosberg, making his F1 debut, looks very nervous at the thought of it but would shatter all judgment by going on to post the fastest lap in the race - at 20 years-old he is the youngest ever to do so . Kimi Raikkonen is just a passenger as his McLaren suffers a rear wing and a suspension failure at high speed during qualifying in 2006 . Raikkonen wasn't hurt following the crash but it looks like McLaren's side pod sponsor has some wise words for the Finn as an alternate option to stepping back into a car, which would underperform throughout the 2006 season . Strike a pose, Fernando. Alonso celebrates back-to-back Bahrain victories in front of Renault team boss Flavio Briatore with a unique stance - something which would become a feature during the Spaniard's championship year in 2006 . It's the rundown to the first corner  and the leading drivers of 2007 duel it out as Felipe Massa (right) leads in his Ferrari. The McLarens of Lewis Hamilton (left), Fernando Alonso and Massa's team-mate Raikkonen follow into turn one in a race which left the trio locked on 22 points after the race. Only a point would separate them come the end of the season in the Finn's favour . That's quite a traffic jam behind the Super Aguri of Takuma Sato in 2007 but who are the Formula One stars desperately trying to get past the back marker? Answers are at the bottom of the page . Lewis Hamilton certainly made his mark the previous year by finishing on the podium, but he did it in different circumstances in 2008 after crashing during second free practice. Hamilton observes his wreck of a McLaren as the yellow flags are waved . Massa and BMW's Robert Kubica vie for the lead at the start of the race - albeit via the scenic route - as the Ferrari star recorded back-to-back victories in 2008. For those wondering how the majority of the sand stays off the track at Sakhir, it is sprayed with an adhesive to prevent it blowing onto the asphalt. Kubica's sand spray in the run-off area shows what the Bahrain Grand Prix might look like without it . Being so far in front of everyone was a common feature of Jenson Button's early 2009 season, and as the Brawn driver celebrates on top of his car to mark his third win in four races, Red Bull's Sebastian Vettel (centre) and Toyota's Jarno Trulli have only just come to a halt in parc ferme . It was a dream Ferrari debut for Fernando Alonso who won the 2010 Bahrain Grand Prix which used the one-off full endurance version of the Sakhir track. Around the first two corners, the Spaniard leads team-mate Felipe Massa, McLaren's Lewis Hamilton and the Mercedes duo of Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher. It's Mark Webber whose smokey Red Bull makes life rather difficult for those behind him . The 2010 race was Schumacher's first in the sport following a sensational return after a three-season absence but the German struggled as he holds up Webber, Button and the Force India of Viantonio Liuzzi before going on to finish sixth in his Mercedes . Was this the start of Hamilton's split from McLaren? The team failing to get the basics right as they struggle with the left rear wheel in a pit-stop cost the Brit in 2012 and led to Hamilton shaking his head in disappointment. In the background you can see TV pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz having a perfect view of the carnage in process as he relays the info into his microphone and back to millions of TV screens . But where is the alcohol? The 2012 race winner Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull pours rosewater over second-placed Lotus driver Kimi Raikkonen who seems keen on drinking in the non-alcoholic celebratory drink. With alcohol banned from the region, the traditional champagne celebration is barred from the podium at Bahrain . It's 2012 all over again as Vettel (right) wins in 2013 in front of Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. The most striking element of this picture though is Ferrari's Fernando Alonso getting out the car in the blurred forefront after finishing eighth and having to watch the celebrations unfold. The former double world champion is very much on the outside looking into the room of success . To mark the tenth anniversary of the Bahrain Grand Prix the 2014 event was held as a night race as the Mercedes duo in typical fashion lead the grid into the first corner with Rosberg (right) and Hamilton neck-and-neck . Sauber's Esteban Gutierrez is just about in every wrong position a Formula One driver would want to be in as facing the wrong way and upside down in the air, he looks straight into the eyes (or visor) of Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado in 2014 following a crash between the pair . Maldonado had clipped the Mexican heading into the first corner which sent the Sauber driver into a spin he would have hardly had time to process what had happened before the crash had come to a halt . Thankfully Gutierrez was unhurt following the crash which ended with four wheels on the ground and the Mexican the right way up - albeit with wrecked suspension, broken front and rear wings and a race retirement. Maldonado served a five-place grid penalty for causing the incident . Other than Maldonado and Gutierrez's crash, 2014 will also be remembered for a tremendous scrap up front as Hamilton just about held off a rampaging Rosberg to win for the first time at Sakhir . 2004: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) 2005: Fernando Alonso (Renault) 2006: Fernando Alonso (Renault) 2007: Feliep Massa (Ferrari) 2008: Felipe Massa (Ferrari) 2009: Jenson Button (Brawn) 2010: Fernando Alonso (Ferrari) 2012: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 2013: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull) 2014: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) Bold indicates driver still active on Formula One grid . Quiz answer - Who is in the traffic jam behind Super Aguri's Takuma Sato in 2007? Left to right crash helmet order: Ralf Schumacher (Toyota), David Coulthard (Red Bull), Rubens Barrichello (Honda), Viantonio Liuzzi (Toro Rosso)
target: Round four of the 2015 Formula One season takes place at the Sakhir Circuit for the Bahrain Grand Prix .
  Bahrain was the first country from the middle-east to hold a world championship grand prix in 2004 .
  Fernando Alonso is the most successful driver in Sakhir having won three times in the desert .
  Lewis Hamilton looks for second win in Bahrain in bid to make it three out of four victories in 2015 season .
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