A McLaren one-two in qualifying, with Lando Norris ahead of his teammate Oscar Piastri by just a few hundredths.
McLaren‘s third sector left everyone in awe. In Melbourne, during qualifying, the Papaya team dominated the front row with Norris in pole position and Piastri second, while Max Verstappen was nearly four-tenths behind. A splendid performance from the two orange-clad drivers, who made the most of tire management in the final part of the circuit, gaining almost half a second on the competition.
Satisfaction from both drivers, starting with poleman Lando Norris. Here are the British driver’s comments: “It was very tough, the car is extremely fast, and when everything comes together, it’s truly incredible. But it’s hard to achieve that. So, it was a nice battle between me and Oscar today, especially in my first lap when I went wide and had the track limit. I knew that in the second lap I was in a difficult position because I had to take a lot of risks, but also make sure to complete a clean lap without making mistakes. So, it’s a mental approach to the lap, but I managed it, and I’m very happy.”
However, according to Norris, the race will be a whole different story, as it will likely be wet 90% of the time, a condition these cars have not yet encountered during the Australian weekend. Norris had this to say about it: “I don’t want to get ahead of myself; I’m happy that we’ve put the car in a great position. But we haven’t run in the wet yet, and we know how strong Max and Red Bull are. We’ll see, there will be plenty of opportunities for everyone.”
A stunning performance from Oscar Piastri, who, in his home Grand Prix, briefly tasted the pole position before his teammate took it away. The Australian is still satisfied with the front row start, and here’s what he had to say: “I’m very happy, it’s always nice to start from the front row at the beginning of the year. A great start to the season, it’s great to bring the whole team to the front row, but we’ll see how the race goes tomorrow. I’m pretty satisfied with my qualifying, even though I missed a bit in Q3. But it’s the start of a new season, and I’m happy with what we’ve done so far.”
Piastri then added: “Where did I lose that margin? I think in a couple of places. In the third sector, I lost a bit compared to my Q2 lap, and then I had a lock-up on my first attempt in Q3. I didn’t want to make a mistake, so I left something on the table. But it went well, so I’m happy with the front row and hope to make a good start tomorrow.”
Photo: X McLaren F1 Team
