McLaren expects to suffer at main race in China

McLaren could hardly have hoped for better during qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix. Lando Norris et Oscar piastri were respectively ranked 4th and 5th on the grid, only the Red Bull drivers and the very experienced Fernando Alonso are ahead of them. Already yesterday (Friday), the Briton had set the best time during the Sprint qualification, in the rain, with 1″261 ahead of Lewis Hamilton, 2nd. Excuse me a little...

However, this Saturday morning, in the dry, the MCL38 could not compete with the RB20. On a qualifying lap, she appeared to be the best of the others, despite her deficit in top speed. Fernando Alonso decided to set a sensational time to fit between the two Red Bull and the two McLarens. Overall, this qualification appears to be a very good result for the team from Woking (England).

The Q3 streak continues… ⚡️#ChineseGP 🇨🇳 pic.twitter.com/02Y90TUEiE

- McLaren (@ McLarenF1) April 20, 2024

“I think we had a good qualification, Judge Lando Norris. Maybe we could claim third place, but we have to be happy with this result. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose in these very close sessions. The real challenge is tomorrow. We have to put our heads down and do our best tonight to prepare for the main race and get good points. »

A race pace below expectations

The pace over one lap is very good, the McLaren manages to fully use its tire but in the race, as we saw during the Sprint race this morning, the trend is clearly different. Stuck in the peloton, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were unable to hang on to the front. Which gives them bad hope for the race.

“We will do our best to stay ahead, which could be difficult because our race pace isn't quite there, as we saw in the Sprint this morning, but we will give it our all," underlines Oscar Piastri.

A feeling that is shared by his main team, Andrea Stella. The Italian engineer believes that the McLaren is struggling on long runs this weekend. Its drivers could then spend their race looking in their mirrors rather than ahead.

“4th and 5th place are a good starting point for tomorrow's race, with the hope of scoring important points, explains the 53-year-old. At the same time, we saw during the Sprint that the challenge becomes more difficult to meet on a race relay. We need to improve that, and we've already made some adjustments between the Sprint and qualifying today. We'll see tomorrow if they prove useful. »

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