Austria Sprint Race: Verstappen v Norris for the win, the rest chase

Saturday, 29 June 2024 at 10:30

The scene is set for another round of Max Verstappen versus Lando Norris, the pair were the pick of the twenty who Qualified for the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix Sprint Race, a repeat of the Barcelona match-up is on the cards.

It was close at the end of Sprint Qualifying at Red Bull Ring. Less than a tenth of a second separated the Red Bull of Verstappen and Norris's McLaren, while the best of the rest the latter's teammate Oscar Piastri was P3, albeit three-tenths of a second down on the benchmark time. For a 65-second lap time that's a big gap.

So much so that Mercedes driver George Russell, who will line up P4 for Saturday's Sprint Race, remarked after the session at Red Bull Ring today: "My SQ3 lap felt really strong. I was surprised at the gap, probably over-egged it on my out lap and took too much life out of the tyres, taking that peak grip out of it.

"That's the only explanation I have because the lap felt strong, Probably the best lap of the session. It was quite a step backwards. P4 is still a great place to be for the fight," reckoned Russell.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff admitted a reality check despite a huge improvement with the W15: "We thought we could play for pole but Verstappen was just much too quick and the McLarens, like they have done in the past, were able to put a strong lap in.

"The Sprint is difficult to judge, but if you look at the pecking order in qualifying that's probably what it will be for the race," predicted Wolff, which means his lads chasing the front two or three.

Whether Russell can keep up with the top two remains to be seen. On today's evidence, Verstappen is likely to scuttle off into the lead with Norris in tow, gapping it from the chasing pack. Or the other way around if the McLaren gets off the line better than the Red Bull.

Hamilton: I don't think we had the pace to be on pole but very bad laps

A couple of tenths down on his Mercedes teammate, Hamilton was only good for P6 after a disappointing session for him: "I wasn't in the mix at all, the whole session was pretty disastrous from our point.

"Practice was good, the car felt good, I don't think we had the pace to be on pole, but very bad laps. I don't think overtaking is mega here, but we'll give our best," Hamilton insisted.

Current form suggests that Piastri will be the bug in the Mercedes ointment, the Australian looking to bounce back from a so-so (by his standards) weekend in Spain, he said of his effort: "The position is quite good but the last lap, a couple of corners I could have tidied up.

"I had a rough one last weekend but I think we are back on the pace. The new front wing was working well, so I'm excited for the rest of the weekend now. The gap to Max was not massive, so we are definitely in the mix," reckoned Piastri, whose only F1 win so far was victory at last year's Qatar Grand Prix Sprint Race.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella tipped his hat to the World Champion in his Sprint Qualy summary: "We gave our best, I think. In a way, it's been a tricky qualifying session because it wasn't easy to deliver the laps.

"We are happy with this kind of result and, like always, Max seems to find good performance. But it's good we are there and we have a good chance," added Stella, who will be chuffed that his team bettered their Merc-engine suppliers yet again.

Any good chance of beating Verstappen is rare

The triple F1 World Champion has the tendency to dig deeper than most when it matters and has become McLaren's nemesis. Without him in the cockpit, Norris and Piastri would probably be multiple F1 winners by now.

Throw into that a circuit painted Orange by his Army, making it as close to a home race as possible and we have a fired-up Verstappen who relished his pole effort and might just win the Sprint Race, put it on pole again later on Saturday and then win the Grand Prix on Sunday.

This time not because the Red Bull is the class car as was the case last year, but rather because Verstappen is in it, and the way he is driving, in that cloud where only a handful of F1 drivers have ever risen too, Max would probably win in anything!

Which leads to the final word for Red Bull team boss Christian Horner: "We saw three great laps put in from Max. Overall, it was a great showing from him but it’s getting close. McLaren were looking strong and Mercedes were edging closer too, so we are looking forward to seeing what Saturday brings.”

For the record and to sign off, Verstappen has led the F1 World Championship standings for a record 49 successive races dating back to Spain in May 2022. After ten rounds he is 69 points clear of Norris.

Big Question: Max Verstappen or Lando Norris to win 2024 Austrian Grand Prix Sprint Race?