\n<\/p>\n
The sense that McLaren were a step ahead of their rivals at Bahrain’s Sakhir track was founded on some eye-catching pace on race-simulation runs.<\/p>\n
These are always the most reliable indicators of true competitiveness in testing because a key variable is removed. Teams do a full grand prix distance so the level of fuel is known, even if other settings, such as engine modes, may still not be comparable from car to car.<\/p>\n
On the afternoon of the second day of testing, McLaren’s Lando Norris did a race-simulation run at the same time as Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The Briton’s pace was breathtaking.<\/p>\n
He would have won the ‘race’ by more than 30 seconds, and was on average more than 0.5secs a lap quicker than his rivals.<\/p>\n
Leclerc would have finished about two seconds ahead of Antonelli.<\/p>\n
On the final afternoon, Norris’ team-mate Oscar Piastri and Mercedes’ George Russell were out at the same time doing the same thing.<\/p>\n
Again, the McLaren was faster, although not by as much. Piastri was an average of 0.2secs a lap quicker than Russell. That would mean winning by just over 10 seconds.<\/p>\n
However, Piastri’s advantage was nearly all gained in the first stint, in which he was 0.5secs quicker than Russell. In the second and third stints, the McLaren’s advantage was just 0.05secs.<\/p>\n
It’s pointless comparing the times of Norris, Leclerc and Antonelli with those of Piastri, Russell from one day to the next, because Thursday was cooler and less windy than Friday. <\/p>\n
F1 cars are faster in cooler conditions because the higher air density increases both downforce and engine performance, and wind is bad news for the cars’ sensitive aerodynamics.<\/p>\n
Over one lap, the McLaren’s pace was less outstanding – but then it’s harder to tell that in testing. For what it’s worth, McLaren seem pretty level-pegging over a single lap with Ferrari, a Verstappen-driven Red Bull and Mercedes.<\/p>\n
McLaren were keen to play down any claims that they were ahead.<\/p>\n
Team principal Andrea Stella said he “would be very careful” about drawing conclusions from Norris’ run, suggesting the usually cool conditions in Bahrain “were in a sweet spot for our car – they were conditions our car enjoys, cool, not much wind”.<\/p>\n
Stella’s point is that the conditions perhaps masked some of the weaknesses McLaren have had in Bahrain in recent years – the track’s combination of mainly slow corners and traction-dominated layout do not play to the car’s strengths, especially in the heat that is normally typical in the desert.<\/p>\n
But there is another way of looking at that. If McLaren can be this quick on a circuit that does not suit their car, just how good could they be at Melbourne, which on paper is much more their kind of track?<\/p>\n
The McLaren excels in the sort of medium-speed corners and low-grip surface that are typical at Albert Park, where front-end performance is the main limitation for an F1 car, not rear as in Bahrain.<\/p>\n
Norris, sitting in a news conference with Verstappen and Leclerc, said: “If we want to improve anything at the moment, it’s the rear, but the rest of it feels correct and feels in the same ball park.<\/p>\n
“I don’t think we are expecting to be a big step ahead of everyone. We are expecting to be close to the guys to my right. If we are there from the off, that’s the main thing.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n