Oscar Piastri is facing a difficult Bahrain Grand Prix after qualifying seventh for McLaren, although a penalty for Isack Hadjar’s engine change will promote the Australian to sixth on the starting grid.
McLaren struggled for pace as Max Verstappen claimed his first pole position of the season, with Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton alongside him on the front row. Piastri’s team-mate and world champion, Lando Norris, qualified sixth.
The race has been moved to Malaysia’s Sepang International Circuit because of the conflict in the Middle East, but Piastri expects McLaren to face another testing challenge as it attempts to fight through the midfield.
“It was tricky out there for sure,” Piastri said, acknowledging that it would be “tough” for McLaren to make significant progress during the race.
Norris also conceded that the team was “struggling” in Bahrain, leaving Verstappen in a strong position to control the race from the front of the grid.
