Norris Makes a Statement

Lando Norris is eager to prove himself. After a season start where his McLaren teammate, Oscar Piastri, has outshone him, and especially after the embarrassing crash in the last race, the Briton needs a morale boost in Austria before facing the final stretch before the summer break in the World Championship. The pole he secured yesterday at the Red Bull Ring, on a day to forget for Max Verstappen — the only one who had challenged McLaren in practice — feels doubly good, especially as Piastri will start third, with Charles Leclerc looking to make an impact among the orange cars.

For the Spaniards, it was a mixed day, grey for Fernando Alonso who will start eleventh, and bleak for Carlos Sainz who, for the third consecutive Grand Prix Saturday, didn't make it past Q1. The Williams driver needs to improve, no doubt.

The intense heat over Austria meant that good times were slow to come. It wasn't until just under five minutes remained that decent times began to appear. Before that, however, it was the same story: McLaren, with Norris ahead of Piastri, then Verstappen, and then the rest. No surprises beyond a few scares at the dreaded turn 3, which had already caused some spins in the morning practice.

It was this improvement that led to a surprise that, in this case, was unpleasant for the Spaniards. Specifically for Carlos Sainz. The Madrid native didn't choose the right moment to go out and was eliminated with an embarrassing 19th time. Alongside him, a frustrated Yuki Tsunoda — whom Verstappen continues to outshine — Stroll, Ocon, and Hulkenberg were also out. It's becoming worrying for Sainz, who has now been eliminated in Q1 three times in a row. This can't be explained by Williams' downturn.

Some drivers pushed so hard that, by stepping on the grass of the run-offs, they left grass debris on the track and forced a brief pause with a red flag. Nothing serious, as everyone quickly returned to the track to continue with the planned script.

And this included McLaren leading the charge once again, even taking the risk of not going out until well into the session. No surprise to see Norris, who seems on fire this weekend, ahead of Piastri.

The advantage of the track improvement at the end of each session brought unexpected joy for some, like Gabriel Bortoleto. The Brazilian's memorable fifth time with Sauber made it clear that no one could be complacent. Ironically, his representative and mentor, Fernando Alonso, was one of those eliminated in this second session of qualifying, with an 11th time that allows him to aim for his third race in the points. Others who fell were Albon, Hadjar, Colapinto, and Bearman.

The final session, which determined Sunday's pole, ended up being somewhat anticlimactic. Lando Norris set the best time at the start of the session and stayed there. A commanding pole, with almost half a second margin over a surprising Charles Leclerc, who took advantage of the final moments to show that Ferrari can be competitive. Notably, Lewis Hamilton, who still hasn't reached the podium in a real race with Ferrari, will start 4th, with Oscar Piastri just ahead.

However, this classification cannot be read without the final incident involving Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson. The Alpine driver went off at the last corner of the circuit with a spin that forced a double yellow flag. This mandatory pause ruined the chances of Max Verstappen, who had to settle for 7th place, and Kimi Antonelli, who barely managed to run, after aiming for much more following the podium in the last race. The beneficiary was the one who ended up in between, a Bortoleto who will start from an unexpected 8th position in a race that could be golden for his goals.