Norris lost time at the first corner to Piastri in Q3 in Bahrain

4 tenths of a second is the gap between the pole position time and Piastres to that of a Norris too far back after a missed Q3. More consistent throughout the lap, the Australian driver appeared much more comfortable than the rest of the grid from the start of the first qualifying session, becoming in the process the first man of the season to build a gap of more than a tenth of a second between pole position and the second fastest time (in this case, 168 thousandths separated Piastri and Russell before the driver's disqualification) Mercedes).

At the end of the last qualifying lap of the two drivers McLarenThere are three areas where Lando Norris lost significant time to his teammate. Right from the first corner, the Briton lost more than two tenths of a second, making it impossible for him to challenge for first place in the race. The cause was understeer, which he observed right from the first chicane, despite maintaining a significant lead until the braking zone.

In cooler conditions at the end of Q3, the number 4 driver then adopted a more aggressive attitude entering corners, causing oversteer from Turn 6, forcing him to ease off more than Oscar Piastri to avoid suffering rear-end slide.

Slow corners better managed by Piastri

In the final two sectors, two more downforce corners also cost the Englishman dearly. The hairpin at Turn 10 and Turn 13, which leads to the final straight before the DRS zone at the start/finish line, allowed the poleman to extend his lead by almost two tenths over the entire lap.

Current world championship leader after three Grand Prix weekends, Lando Norris admitted to having been "slow all weekend" after qualifying. Although his direct rival, Max Verstappen, will launch 7^e on the starting grid this Sunday, the threat of his Australian teammate's return seems very real at this stage. Despite the clear superiority of the MCL39, the Briton's delicacy remains at the wheel of a car which seems difficult for the person concerned to handle.

In the race, Norris will be able to rely on the fact that he was the fastest in the first simulations of long runs, particularly on soft tires, on which he held a lead of more than two tenths over George Russell, second in the exercise. In the middle of the field, however, this advantage could quickly disappear.

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