Sergio Perez admits expectations are low at Racing Point looking ahead to qualifying after a tough Friday in Bahrain.
The Silverstone outfit had a low-key pre-season but enjoyed a solid weekend in Australia as upgrades allowed the Mexican to make Q3 with Lance Stroll moving up to score points in the race.
However, the still somewhat underdeveloped RP19, at least compared to their midfield rivals, appears to be biting back in the desert.
“It's not the greatest day,” Perez was quoted by Motorsport.com. “I think probably the circuit is exposing more our limitations at the moment and we seem to be further away than we were in Melbourne.
"We are working hard and hopefully tonight we can pick up a couple of tenths, a good balance, and hopefully we can be a bit closer.”
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In fact, Checo was only 14th in both practices with the limitations seemingly in low-speed performance, one of the key characteristics of the Sakhir circuit.
As a result, his predictions for Saturday don't make good reading.
“I don't expect us to be in Q3 tomorrow, unless like in Melbourne most of the teams get it wrong and then we can be there,” he said. “But it is looking like a hard weekend.
“[Making Q2] will be difficult. We really need to put everything together already in Q1, if we want to make it into Q2, and then as well a perfect Q2 to be able to be there.”
As for teammate Stroll, the Canadian was one of the first caught out by the challenges of Bahrain after spinning at Turn 4 and hitting the inside wall.
“[I] just got on the power a little bit early,” he explained. “First run, but every run counts.
“It [the car] needs some work,” Stroll said. “It's very competitive in that midfield, so we'll look for some speed tonight and come back in better form tomorrow."
