Pundit explains McLaren's dominant start to F1 Bahrain GP race weekend

F1 pundit Mark Hughes felt that McLaren would have the edge over their competitors in Bahrain because of the cars' excellency in preserving tires. This was also the case in Australia, when the team was able to dominate competitors in the track's final sector.

McLaren clearly has the faster car on the grid. The team has been able to assert dominance on tracks that have required more tire conservation. Mark Hughes suggested that their performance based solely on tire cooling and conservation can give them the edge over their rivals.

"He’s [Lando Norris] understating the case of how dominant McLaren looks here. With the Sakhir track the toughest challenge the rear tires see all season, it’s perfect McLaren territory," Hughes wrote in his column for The Race.

During the qualifying session in Australia, the Papaya cars were particularly quick in the track's final sector. Apparently, there were major issues with overheating in that particular part, but the Woking-based team did not face that issue and was able to dominate the entire grid. This also proved that the team has an advantage with tire cooling and conservation.

"Recall how the McLarens pulled away from the others in the final sector of qualifying at Albert Park when everyone else’s tires overheated? Or how after about 10 laps in the race there, they pulled away from Max Verstappen’s Red Bull at almost 1s per lap for much the same reason?" Hughes reasoned further.

The team has the lead in the Constructors' Championship after winning two of the three races this season so far.

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McLaren's Lando Norris expects a "tricky" weekend at Bahrain

F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain - Practice - Source: Getty

Despite the data suggesting otherwise, Lando Norris did not sound too confident heading into the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend. The team was the quickest during the practice sessions on Friday, with Norris and his teammate Oscar Piastri taking the alternative leads in both sessions; moreover, their car looked much more stable.

However, Norris expected this to be a "tricky" weekend in competition with Max Verstappen, stating that a slow-speed circuit like Bahrain International was their weak point.

"We’ve had a great start to the season and I know a lot of things are amazing, but it’s a much slower speed circuit than the last few weekends," Norris said, via F1. "We still know that’s one of our weaker areas. I’m not expecting bad things, I’m just expecting a trickier weekend than the last few."

Lando Norris has the lead in the Drivers' World Championship, however, Max Verstappen inched closer to him after his victory in Japan last week. The two are expected to have a challenge for the title, however, Norris's car is seemingly stronger.