Oscar Piastri took pole position in a dramatic end to qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix as championship leader Lando Norris was only sixth.
Piastri made the most of his McLaren team-mate Norris’ scruffy final lap in Q3 to record his second career F1 pole by less than two tenths from George Russell, but the Mercedes was later demoted to third by a one-place grid penalty for being prematurely released from his garage ahead of a restart during Q2.
That ruling promoted Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc from third to the front row, while Russell’s Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli was punished for the same offence and dropped from fourth to fifth, with Alpine’s Pierre Gasly the other beneficiary.
McLaren were expected to lock out the front row after dominating practice but a poor last lap from Norris as the track ramped up left him facing a fight through the field on Sunday.
Norris leads the championship by just one point from Max Verstappen, who will start right behind the McLaren driver as he struggled with his Red Bull’s braking throughout qualifying.
With Piastri only 13 points behind Norris in the standings, he has an opportunity to make inroads into his deficit after the Bahrain Grand Prix, which begins at 4pm live on Sky Sports F1 on Sunday.
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McLaren’s Oscar Piastri joins Karun Chandhok in the Sky Pad to analyse his pole lap
Lewis Hamilton endured another disappointing qualifying session as he was ninth behind Carlos Sainz, with the Spaniard delivering his best showing yet for Williams after being replaced by the seven-time world champion at Ferrari.
Yuki Tsunoda ensured Red Bull had two drivers in Q3 for the first time this season but could only manage 10th.
Haas’ Esteban Ocon crashed heavily into the barriers during Q2, which resulted in the red flag and restart that led to the Mercedes penalties, but managed to walk away from the accident.
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Esteban Ocon spins off the track and crashes into the barrier, bringing out the red flag in qualifying at the Bahrain Grand Prix
Bahrain GP Qualifying: Top 10 (after grid penalties)
1) Oscar Piastri, McLaren2) Charles Leclerc, Ferrari3) George Russell, Mercedes*4) Pierre Gasly, Alpine5) Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes*6) Lando Norris, McLaren7) Max Verstappen, Red Bull8) Carlos Sainz, Williams9) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari10) Yuki Tsunoda, Red Bull
*Demoted one place by grid penalty
Piastri delivers as Norris throws chance away
Throughout practice, McLaren were clearly ahead of the field but Piastri has been setting the pace since second practice on Friday.
Having topped Q2 and gone fastest after the first Q3 runs, Piastri faced serious pressure when Russell delivered a great lap on the evolving track to take provisional pole.
The Australian delivered with a 1:29.841 to beat Russell’s time by 0.168s, so attention turned to Norris, who was behind on the circuit.
Norris was third following the opening Q3 laps but made an error at Turn One on his last run and shredded more time over the remainder of the lap to end up 0.426s adrift of pole in sixth.
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A despondent Lando Norris felt he just was not quick enough after qualifying sixth for the Bahrain GP in his McLaren
Antonelli and Gasly jumped the British driver with their best qualifying performances of the season, both within four tenths of Piastri.
“I’ve felt confident out there pretty much all weekend. FP1 was an experience for us all I think, it felt more like a rally car than an F1 car,” said Piastri.
“But from then on, I’ve felt really comfortable with the car. FP3 we had good pace. In qualifying, the others caught up a little bit closer than what I wanted but I still delivered the laps when it mattered, which was the most important thing at the end. So very happy.”
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Oscar Piastri secured pole position for the Bahrain Grand Prix, with George Russell originally second and Charles Leclerc third
Verstappen rescued a frustrating session in seventh having suffered from brake issues which may have been created by a set-up change.
It looked like Tsunoda was going to outqualify the Dutchman but the Japanese driver had to settle for 10th, although will be relieved to reach Q3, which is the first time Verstappen’s team-mate has done so in 2025.
Hamilton had another disappointing qualifying for the second weekend running as he trailed team-mate Leclerc by 0.597s. Ferrari brought a new floor to Bahrain but it does not seem to have given Hamilton the same confidence Leclerc has.
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Following a disappointing Bahrain Grand Prix qualifying, Lewis Hamilton says that he believes he is ‘not doing the job’ and apologises to Ferrari engineers and fans
Elsewhere, there was controversy when the stewards announced Nico Hulkenberg’s lap from Q1 had been deleted for track limits after the Sauber driver had already finished and been knocked out in Q2.
Had the lap deletion been confirmed before Q2, Alex Albon would have competed in the second part of Qualifying instead of being eliminated in Q1 in 16th.
The stewards later admitted they did not deem Turn 11, where Hulkenberg breached track limits, “to be an area of focus” and “got it wrong” to not delete the lap earlier.
Driver Team Time 1) Oscar Piastri McLaren 1:29.841 2) George Russell* Mercedes +0.168 3) Charles Leclerc Ferrari +0.234 4) Kimi Antonelli** Mercedes +0.272 5) Pierre Gasly Alpine +0.275 6) Lando Norris McLaren +0.426 7) Max Verstappen Red Bull +0.582 8) Carlos Sainz Williams +0.839 9) Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +0.931 10) Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull +1.462 Knocked out in Q2 11) Jack Doohan Alpine 1:31.228 12) Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls 1:31.245 13) Fernando Alonso Aston Martin 1:31.271 14) Esteban Ocon Haas 1:31.886 15) Nico Hulkenberg*** Sauber No lap time Knocked out in Q1 16) Alex Albon**** Williams 1:32.040 17) Liam Lawson Racing Bulls 1:32.165 18) Gabriel Bortoleto Sauber 1:32.186 19) Lance Stroll Aston Martin 1:32.283 20) Oliver Bearman Haas 1:32.373 *starts 3rd after one-place grid penalty **starts 5th after one-place grid penalty ***starts 16th after lap from Q1 was later deleted ****starts 15th after Hulkenberg’s lap deletion
Sky Sports F1’s Bahrain GP schedule
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Sky Sports F1’s Martin Brundle breaks down the best chances of winning the Bahrain Grand Prix
Sunday April 13
- 10.50am: F3 Feature Race
- 12.20pm: F2 Feature Race
- 2.30pm: Bahrain GP build-up: Grand Prix Sunday
- 4pm: THE BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX
- 6pm: Bahrain GP reaction: Chequered Flag
- 7pm: Ted’s Notebook
Formula 1 continues its triple-header in Sakhir at the Bahrain Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – no contract, cancel anytime.
