McLaren has had a strong start to the year and finds itself in a comfortable third in the constructors’ championship behind Red Bull Racing and Ferrari but well clear of Mercedes.

It has proved competitive at all four events thus far, but Piastri suggests this weekend will be more difficult.

The MCL38 has proved a well-rounded machine, but weaknesses prominent in the MCL60 last year remain.

While the 2024 car remains strong in sharp changes of direction and medium-speed content, it is less competitive in longer, loaded corners, slow-speed content, and a straight line—qualities Shanghai boasts in abundance.

“It’ll be one of the toughest circuits for us so far,” Piastri reasoned.

“Bahrain has a lot of low-speed corners as well and we were, let’s say, not as competitive as some of the more recent circuits.

“So I think it’ll be a tough weekend for us, to be honest.

“I think there’s still opportunities for us given it’s a Sprint, things we can try and capitalise if others get it wrong.

“But yes, if we could draw a track for McLaren, it probably wouldn’t look like this.”

This weekend’s event is the first time F1 has returned to China since 2019, with an unusual racing surface greeting teams upon arrival.

The FIA confirmed to Speedcafe that bitumen paint was applied to the racing surface in 2023.

The governing body states the paint is expected to increase grip while protecting the tarmac longer term.

Tyre supplier Pirelli has been unable to visit the track ahead of time to investigate the surface to validate that, while teams have relied on old simulator models of the track in their preparation for the event.

“Obviously, we’ve not been here in these cars, or with 18-inch tyres before,” Piastri observed.

“I think if the weather’s like this [sunny], which is not going to be, then just the normal kind of thermal limit is probably going to be a factor – I’m sure it still will be even if there is graining, but I don’t think we can rule it out, especially if it gets a bit colder.

“But it’s a bit of an unknown what the track state is like at the moment.

“Some parts look very rough, some parts are very smooth and kind of ground away and then painted on top, so we could have quite a few different levels of grip.”

Practice for the Chinese GP begins today at 13:30 AEST with Sprint Qualifying to follow at 17:30.