British GT News: McLaren Duo Poised to Challenge Verstappen in Austrian GP Sprint
Spielberg, Austria – (British GT News, June 30th)
In an exciting turn of events ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix Sprint race, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have expressed confidence in their ability to take the fight to Red Bull’s reigning champion Max Verstappen.
Verstappen secured pole position for the Sprint race after out-qualifying Norris by a mere 0.098 seconds during Friday’s qualifying session. Piastri, the young Australian, secured the third spot on the grid, just three-tenths of a second adrift of his more experienced teammate.
Piastri, who had struggled with an “unnatural” feeling in his McLaren MCL38 at the previous race in Barcelona, showcased a marked improvement in performance on the Spielberg circuit. “The position is quite good obviously, but the last lap there were a couple of corners I could have tidied up,” he said. “I think we’re definitely in the mix.”
Norris, who has been Verstappen’s closest challenger all season, was narrowly beaten to the Sprint Pole but remained optimistic. “I think reasonably good to be honest,” he said. “Close as it has been all year so no difference but yeah, it must have been a nice lap by Max.”
With Verstappen and Norris sharing the front row once again, just as they did at the Spanish Grand Prix, the stage is set for an enthralling battle on Saturday morning. When asked if he can take the fight to the Dutchman, Norris replied, “From what we see at the minute, yes, but otherwise I’m not sure.”
Lights out for the Formula 1 Austrian Grand Prix Sprint commences at 12:00 local time, and the British GT community eagerly awaits the outcome of this thrilling contest.
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