Red Bull issue McLaren warning ahead of Chinese GP battle

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner played down the significance of pole position when it comes to prevailing at the Chinese Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri secured his first-ever career pole in Shanghai as he narrowly edged out George Russell to the top spot.

Max Verstappen was the lead driver at Red Bull as he took fourth place while team-mate Liam Lawson endured a disastrous session, ending up right at the back of the pack.

With tyre degradation playing a major factor in the 19-lap sprint race on Saturday, Horner is eyeing up a golden opportunity to move forward in the race after making changes to its car ahead of qualifying.

“It’s going to be fascinating,” Horner told Sky F1. “These tyres are so sensitive. 

“We saw it in the sprint race earlier. Different graining, different cars working in different ways.

“I don’t think pole position is essential for this race. It’s all going to be about strategy and it’s going to be about that front left tyre.

“It’s pretty tight at the front, we tried a few things to hopefully help in the race.

“A tenth and a half or so off pole, we were purple in the first sector but unfortunately, we didn’t quite have enough in the tyre at the end of the lap.”

Lawson's struggles in Australia and China have caused a stir, with Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko not ruling out the possibility of a driver swap down the line.

Reflecting on Lawson's performance, Horner stated: “It's been a tough day in the office for him. 

“We'll have a good look at it and go through it and obviously try and give him the best car we can.”