F1 Bahrain GP extended runs: Is Max Verstappen the frontrunner in Malaysia?

McLaren unexpectedly struggles in sector two

The situation at McLaren presents a different picture. Lando Norris concluded the long-run analysis in fourth place, trailing Verstappen by 0.43 seconds per lap. Oscar Piastri followed in sixth, 0.78 seconds behind the Red Bull driver. This indicates that McLaren is currently positioned as the fourth contender behind Red Bull, Mercedes, and Ferrari.

It was already evident during single lap runs that McLaren was particularly losing time in the second sector. This is noteworthy since the medium- and high-speed corners in that sector should theoretically suit the car's strengths. Instead, the team appeared more competitive in sectors one and three, where top speed is more prominent.

A possible explanation could be related to the car's setup. It’s plausible that McLaren opted for a relatively low downforce configuration, resulting in time loss in the faster corners. Whether this issue stems from the setup or if other factors are influencing performance will become clearer with further analysis.

Alpine heads tightly contested midfield

A tightly contested battle is forming in the midfield, involving Alpine, Racing Bulls, and Audi. Pierre Gasly emerged as the quickest driver in this contingent, with a gap of 1.28 seconds per lap. Liam Lawson (+1.63s) and Nico Hülkenberg (+1.75s) also delivered competitive long runs.

Therefore, Audi appears to be significantly more suited to the Malaysian circuit compared to their performance during the previous race weekend in Baku. While top speed was crucial on the street circuit in Azerbaijan, the demands in Malaysia are more reliant on cornering ability and tyre management, which may favor Audi's setup.

Aston Martin (+1.97s) also demonstrated improvements compared to the previous weekend in Baku. Similar to Audi, Aston Martin could benefit from the reduced emphasis on top speed relative to Baku.

On the other hand, the long runs were less promising for Haas (+2.04s), Williams (+2.58s), and Cadillac (+2.92s). The combination of high tyre degradation and medium-speed corners seems to pose a considerable challenge for these teams.

High tyre degradation indicates two-stop strategy

An important aspect during the second free practice session was the anticipated chance of rain. With precipitation expected towards the end of the session, many teams expedited their long runs to gather race data early. Ultimately, the rain held off, allowing for a notably high number of representative long-run laps to be completed.

This session further illustrated the significant stress on tyres in Malaysia. The abrasive surface, coupled with the numerous high- and medium-speed corners, imposes a considerable load on the tyres. With large corner radii, drivers experience prolonged periods under high lateral forces, which accelerates tyre wear.

Both the C4 soft and C3 medium tyres exhibited average degradation of around three-tenths of a second per lap. This is a relatively high figure and is likely to significantly influence the strategic decisions of the teams.

If tyre degradation does not notably decrease as the weekend progresses, a two-stop race strategy appears increasingly plausible. It is also significant that no team utilized the hard tyre during the second free practice session. Likely, teams are reserving the C2 compound for Sunday to ensure they have a sufficient number of fresh tyres available for the race.