McLaren made a dominant start to the Bahrain Grand Prix weekend with Oscar Piastri leading Lando Norris to a one-two finish in Friday practice.
Piastri was 0.154 seconds quicker than his teammate, while Mercedes' George Russell finished third, a significant 0.527 seconds behind the Australian.
The papaya cars showed impressive pace throughout the day, with Norris also topping the first practice session.
Ferrari's Charles Leclerc finished fourth, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen down in seventh, 0.825 seconds off the pace.
Lando Norris issued a warning to his McLaren team-mates
Reuters
Despite McLaren's impressive showing, Norris was quick to downplay the team's apparent advantage.
"I don't think they turned up [their engines]," Norris said, referring to rival teams.
"Everyone just looks at the timesheets, they have no information on who turns [it] up and who doesn't."
The Briton suggested the engine mode differences could be worth around "0.35secs around here."
"That immediately puts us back in the same position as the Mercedes, so at the minute I wouldn't say we're any quicker," he added.
Mercedes driver George Russell offered a contrasting view to Norris's assessment of McLaren's performance.
"They are a big step ahead," Russell said of the McLaren team.
"They are a long way ahead in the middle sector, where the tyres are overheating."
Lando Norris is the favourite to become world champion this season
Reuters
Russell believes the battle behind McLaren will be tight between several teams.
"I think we're fighting for next best. I think it's going to be close between us, Ferrari and Max," he added.
Unlike previous races, Russell suggested tyre management would be crucial on Sunday.
Red Bull appeared to struggle with Max Verstappen expressing frustration with his car's performance.
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
McLaren pairing Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have started the weekend in dominating fashion
Reuters
"The gap was quite massive. I'm not entirely happy, just struggling a lot with grip," Verstappen said.
"A bit of work to do also in the long run, just too slow every lap basically, not a lot of fun out there."
Ferrari brought a revised floor to Bahrain which Charles Leclerc said performed as expected.
Lewis Hamilton, who finished eighth in his Ferrari, was positive about the upgrade, saying it was "definitely working" and that the team was "taking steps forward".
