In a small way, but still in the lead. On the grounds of his Red Bull team, Dutchman Max Verstappen dominated the first day of the Austrian F1 Grand Prix by being the fastest in free practice, before snatching pole position in the sprint race.
The reigning triple world champion has to work harder to hold off his rivals but he managed to do so again at the start of the weekend at the Red Bull Ring.
On Saturday lunchtime, he will start in the lead of the sprint race, the third of the season, ahead of the two McLarens of Briton Lando Norris and Australian Oscar Piastri, and will once again be the big favourite.
During a very tactical qualifying session in which the teams tried as much as possible to preserve their tyres in view of a busy programme, Verstappen managed to pull out all the stops in extremis by getting the better of Norris by just 93 thousandths of a second at the very end of Q3.
“The car was fun to drive”
“I am very happy to take first place in the sprint qualifying in front of my fans for our home race. Everything went very well today. The car was pleasant to drive and we immediately found the right settings. It’s a great start to the weekend.”savored the leader of the world championship.
Ferrari, under pressure after two disappointing weekends in Canada and Spain, did not really get back on track as Spaniard Carlos Sainz took 5the place while Charles Leclerc will only start in 10e position.
Victim of an anti-stall problem when leaving his garage, the Monegasque was unable to complete a fast lap in Q3, which provoked his anger. “Obviously I’m not happy, but the weekend is still long. I’ll try to gain a few places during the sprint race and then start from scratch to prepare for the Grand Prix qualifying.”said Leclerc.
Mercedes confirms
Mercedes, on the other hand, confirmed its revival by winning the 4e et 6e qualifying places and could join the fight for the podium.
Once is not customary, the Mexican Sergio Pérez has reached Q3 and will start on 7e rank, in front of the two Alpines of the French Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly.
“In the right direction”
As in Barcelona last weekend, the French team managed to get its two cars into Q3 and seems to be continuing the recovery observed in recent weeks after a catastrophic start to the season.
“The positive thing is that we performed well and are well placed for the sprint. We still have work and things to understand, but it’s nice to be moving in the right direction.”a souligné Ocon.
“We managed SQ1 and SQ2 well, showing good speed to reach the following sessions. On the other hand, we clearly did not maximize the SQ3. It was complicated and I couldn’t really do an attacking lap”however, Gasly deplored.
Ricciardo still struggling
Conversely, Aston Martin is struggling more and more to get into the Top 10. On Saturday, the Canadian Lance Stroll and the Spanish veteran Fernando Alonso will only start in 12e et 13e positions after being overtaken by the modest Haas of the Dane Kevin Magnussen (11e).
Australian Daniel Ricciardo (Racing Bulls), threatened with losing his drive after poor performances recently, only managed 16e chrono, a result which does not help matters. He will absolutely have to do better on Saturday during qualifying for the Grand Prix.
