Max Verstappen flattens field in qualifying to start pole in Austria
- Damian Hall
- Jun 29, 2024
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 20, 2024
29th June 2024
Exciting battle between the Red Bull driver and McLaren's Lando Norris sets the stage for a thrilling Grand Prix
Three-time world champion Max Verstappen is on track to take a clean sweep at the Grand Prix in Austria if he can continue this winning form through to the end of the weekend, reports Damian Hall.
On Saturday (June 29), he extended the record books for the most Formula 1 sprint wins before later claiming pole for the Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver now has 10 wins under his belt.
The sprint format, introduced to Formula 1 in 2021 and adopted from Formula 2, has delivered some thrilling spectacles. Unlike traditional races, sprints do not have a mandatory pit stop rule due to their shorter distance, allowing for all-out racing from start to finish. Drivers pit only if there is substantial damage.
The Sprint was off to a spicy start after McLaren’s Lando Norris launched several attacks in the early stages. However, Verstappen eventually broke out of Drag Reduction System (DRS) range. DRS is a system put in place to assist drivers with overtaking. It is activated in select zones only if a driver is within a second of the rival ahead.
The most notable attack came on lap 5 when Norris, with the assistance of DRS, moved up the inside of Verstappen at the uphill braking zone of turn 3.
Verstappen stayed on the racing line for a wider entry and smoother exit, while Norris’ tighter entry resulted in a slower one. Norris dished out another serving of DRS to compensate for this move. However, Verstappen charged after Norris within his slipstream and made a last minute dive for the inside at the tricky downhill braking zone of turn 4.
In a thrilling turn of events, the space left by Norris allowed his teammate Oscar Piastri to mount an attack of his own and take 2nd position. Piastri held on to the position to the end while Norris finished in 3rd.
Further back in the pack, on lap 8, George Russell regained 4th position from Carlos Sainz, which he had lost at the start of the race. Russell ultimately finished the race in 4th, with teammate Sir Lewis Hamilton finishing 6th, the same position he started in.
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finished in 5th, while his teammate Charles Leclerc had an uneventful race, ending in 7th place. Red Bull’s second driver, Sergio Perez, only managed 8th.
In sprint races, only the top 8 drivers gain points, with 8 points for 1st place down to 1 point for 8th.
In the qualifying session for the Grand Prix later in the day, Verstappen and Norris went at each other again, but Verstappen further asserted his dominance by setting a time of 1:04.314, a time Norris or anyone else could not replicate.
In a post-qualifying interview, Verstappen said: “It’s a great feeling, the team has been working hard. It’s always nice to race, hopefully it will be a tight battle tomorrow.”
Norris qualified 2nd, 0.404 seconds off the pace, with his teammate Piastri starting 7th after setting a time 0.734 seconds off the pace. He had a lap time deleted for exceeding track limits that would have initially seen him starting the Grand Prix in 3rd. McLaren appealed the decision, but as of the time of reporting, the time was not reinstated.
Russell starts 3rd after setting a time 0.526 seconds off pole and Hamilton starts 5th, 0.537 seconds off the pace.
The stage is set for a continuation of the battle between Verstappen and Norris during the Sprint. Fans can expect lots of action during the Grand Prix with three DRS zones available around this short circuit.
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