McLaren drivers expect to be ‘a chunk behind’ two teams as they share pecking order predictions after testing

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both namechecked Ferrari as well as Red Bull when pondering where McLaren might slot into the initial 2024 pecking order, believing that those two teams are a step ahead as things stand.

Red Bull and Ferrari shared the top spot over three days of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit, with Max Verstappen starting the week fastest before pace-setting efforts from Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc.

TESTING DEBRIEF: How the field stack up after the final day of pre-season running in 2024

McLaren, meanwhile, had a quieter week amid some teething problems with the MCL38 that included a fuel system issue on the second day of running, albeit a world away from the pain they endured during the 2022 and 2023 testing periods.

Having placed seventh and 14th respectively on the final day timesheets, which again saw most teams split their drivers’ running between the hotter morning and the cooler, more representative twilight conditions, Piastri and Norris had their say on how the field is shaping up.

“I think it’s been a… not a perfect few days, we’ve definitely had our fair share of issues, which is not exactly what we would like, but better now than [at the Grand Prix] next week!” Norris smiled.