Bahrain, April 12 (IANS) McLaren’s Oscar Piastri delivered a blistering lap to claim pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix, edging out Mercedes’ George Russell and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc in a tight and dramatic Qualifying 3 finale under the lights at the Bahrain International Circuit.
Piastri’s pole-clinching time of 1m 29.841s showcased his growing maturity and raw pace, as he outshone teammate and title contender Lando Norris, who could only manage sixth. The Australian had looked quick throughout the session but turned it up a notch in the dying stages, holding off a strong charge from Russell, who finished just a couple of tenths shy of the top spot.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc continued his consistent run in Qualifying with a solid third, just 0.150s adrift of the front, while Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli impressed again with a strong fourth-place effort. However, both Mercedes drivers are under post-session investigation for potential technical infringements, which could yet alter the starting order.
Pierre Gasly put in arguably his best lap of the season to snatch fifth for Alpine, capitalizing on a scruffy final run by Norris. Championship leader Norris, who had been dominant in practice, struggled to put together a clean lap in Q3 and will start on the third row alongside Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who himself was hampered by persistent brake issues and never looked fully at ease.
Carlos Sainz, driving for Williams after a mid-season switch, delivered his best Qualifying performance of the season with eighth, narrowly ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who had a lap deleted for exceeding track limits. Yuki Tsunoda, in the second Red Bull, rounded out the top ten.
Rising Alpine star Jack Doohan impressed again, showing strong pace in Q1 but just missing out on Q3 in 11th, ahead of Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar and the experienced Fernando Alonso, who couldn’t extract more from his Aston Martin.
The drama unfolded in Q2 when Esteban Ocon lost control of his Haas exiting Turn 2 and crashing heavily, triggering red flags and ending his session prematurely. He will start 14th, with Nico Hulkenberg in 15th after his lap time was reinstated post-session, knocking Alex Albon out of Q2 contention. Albon, who has been a consistent points scorer in 2025, was visibly frustrated after being outpaced by teammate Sainz for the first time this season.
Liam Lawson was left ruing DRS issues that saw him end up 17th in his Racing Bulls car, ahead of Kick Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto and Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll. At the back of the grid, Haas rookie Ollie Bearman suffered a tough outing after a promising run in Japan last weekend. A compromised Q1 lap with multiple errors left him languishing in 20th, rounding off a forgettable session for the young Briton.
–IANS
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