Piastri takes Bahrain pole with Russell second
Bahrain Grand PrixVenue: Sakhir Dates: 11-13 April Race start: 16:00 BST on SundayCoverage: Race live on BBC Radio 5 Live. Live text updates on the BBC Sport website and app
McLaren's Oscar Piastri took pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix from Mercedes' George Russell with the second McLaren of Lando Norris down in sixth.Red Bull's Max Verstappen, just one point behind Norris at the head of the championship, was a further place behind the Briton in seventh.Lewis Hamilton was just ninth in the Ferrari, his team-mate Charles Leclerc third ahead of Mercedes' Andrea Kimi Antonelli.Pierre Gasly was an impressive fifth in the Alpine, while Williams' Carlos Sainz was eighth and the second Red Bull of Yuki Tsunoda completing the top 10.McLaren had always looked a certainty for pole, but what had been expected to be a private battle between Piastri and Norris fizzled out when the Briton's final lap fell away from him.Piastri's advantage over Russell was 0.168 seconds at the head of the field, and Leclerc 0.334secs off the Australian."I felt confident all weekend," Piastri said. "Qualifying the others were a little closer than we wanted but got the lap time when it mattered. Can't thank the team enough for the car they've given me."Norris was 0.426secs behind his team-mate and 0.156sec quicker than Verstappen.More to follow
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