Oscar Piastri clinched the second pole position of his Formula 1 career under the intense heat of the Sakhir night. The McLaren driver’s fastest lap of 1’29″841 was the only one to dip below the 1’30” mark.
However, this time was still 0″662 slower than last year’s pole position, highlighting the significant impact of the higher temperatures on performance this weekend compared to 2024.
Mercedes’ George Russell, who initially qualified second with a time of 1’30″009 (equalling his best qualifying result of the season), received a one-place grid penalty and will now start from third. This promotes Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who qualified third in 1’30″175, to the front row alongside Piastri.
Rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, who impressively qualified fourth with a time of 1’30″213, also incurred a one-place grid penalty, moving him down to fifth on the starting grid. This elevates Alpine’s Pierre Gasly to fourth position.
The Pirelli Pole Position Award was presented to Piastri by renowned DJ and record producer R3HAB. R3HAB’s peak position in the Top100DJs list is twelfth, a testament to his successful collaborations with global music icons such as Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Calvin Harris, Taylor Swift, and Katy Perry. He entertained the Bahrain International Circuit crowd with a DJ set on Friday evening.
Analysis of Free Practice 3 revealed that five additional drivers utilized a set of Hard compound tires, leaving Max Verstappen as the sole driver who did not sample the C1 tire this weekend. During the qualifying session, all drivers opted for the C3 compound. Given the track conditions and surface, this tire provided optimal performance on the initial flying laps, with no opportunity for subsequent improvement.
Regarding the allocation of dry weather tire compounds for the race, there is a notable deviation from the typical pattern. Currently, eleven drivers have two sets of Medium tires and one set of Hard tires available. Eight drivers possess one set each of the Medium and Hard compounds. Verstappen stands out as the only driver with two sets of Hard tires and one set of Medium tires at his disposal.
Driver Quotes:
Oscar Piastri (Pole): “Pole! I’ve felt good out there pretty much all weekend. We’ve had good pace, and the car feels great, which is the most important thing. It’s a long race tomorrow, and lots can happen, but we’re starting in a strong position so I’m looking forward to it. There’s work to do tonight but I can’t thank the team enough for the car they’ve given me this weekend.”
Charles Leclerc (P2): “I didn’t expect this result in qualifying, but I think we have worked very well in the last few weeks and this is the reward. We explored quite a few set-ups and I think I’ve found a direction that enables me to better extract the potential from the car. In Q3 the lap on scrubbed tyres wasn’t great, but the feeling in the car was good and I knew I had the potential to do a much better lap although I didn’t expect it to be good enough for P3. It’s good to see that we are making progress and I want to thank the team for the great job done on track and in Maranello to bring the upgrade to this race. Everything worked as expected and now we have to focus on the race. It won’t be easy to keep this position but we will try and get a good result, as it would be a boost for the whole team.”
George Russell (P3): “It was a really strong Q3. I wasn’t really feeling the strongest through Qualifying. I didn’t have the confidence and Q1 and Q2 were a real challenge. In Q3 I got back into my normal rhythm, put in some strong laps and I was really surprised to be so close to pole, ahead of one of the McLarens with Charles [Leclerc] up there too. Whilst we will ultimately start P3, it is still a good place to be for tomorrow. This weekend is completely different to last weekend [in Japan]. I was really disappointed with P5 there. I felt we had the potential to qualify much higher up the order but this weekend I wasn’t expecting to be fighting for the front row – I thought P3 was going to be the maximum we could achieve today and we may have been down in P7 as the gaps have been so small. I don’t expect it to be a straightforward race tomorrow. I think Oscar [Piastri] is going to be very fast. The McLarens seem to be a long way ahead of the field when it comes to managing their tyres and we know that this will be key for tomorrow’s race. Let’s see what Sunday brings.”
Mario Isola – Pirelli Sporting Director: “We saw a far more uncertain and closely contested session than had been expected, proving just how unpredictable Formula 1 can be at times. From a race strategy perspective, the picture is actually more complex than it might seem at first glance. The first points is that all three tyre compounds can come into play and although a one-stop is clearly slower on paper, it cannot be ruled out completely, especially as eight drivers have one new set of each of the Hard and Medium. This group might consider starting on the Mediums and extending the first stint as much as possible, before switching to the Hards. If there is excessive degradation in the closing stages of the race then, switching to Softs, even new ones for those who did not take part in all three qualifying sessions, could offer a performance advantage, with no need for further stops. For a two-stop strategy, on paper the fastest route involves using two sets of Mediums and one of Hards, with pit stop windows between laps 14 and 20 and then again between laps 34 and 40. Those who want to make the most of having extra grip from the Soft for the start will need to pit earlier, between laps 10 and 16 to make the most of the potential undercut advantage, which is very effective at this track. Finally, there’s the option to use all three compounds, for example for those who only have one new set each of the Hard and Medium available.”
