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1 – Lando NORRIS (McLaren)
2 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull Racing)
3 – Oscar PIASTRI (McLaren)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by Jolyon Palmer)
Q: Max Verstappen it’s second place today in Zandvoort, but what a show you
put on. There was a huge cheer from the crowd when you provisionally took
pole. Just wasn't quite to be today.
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, I think the whole qualifying we just lacked a bit of
pace. I tried the best I could. I'm still very happy, of course, to be on
the front row. It's very tricky out there with the wind. I mean, you know,
you have these gusts of wind coming in, so every single lap just feels
different. So you can't really go off a reference as well. But yeah, I'm
happy with second. I think after yesterday as well, this is a good result.
Q: How tricky was it with the balance? We saw your lap at the end fighting
the car in the chicane, 11 and 12, some understeer, some oversteer. Piecing
a lap together just looked very hard.
MV: Yeah, it's how it is at the moment. Not the easiest to drive, but the
rest of the lap was quite solid. I think, yeah, only 11, 12 was a bit
difficult. But yeah, we'll see. Hopefully the car is OK tomorrow in the
race.
Q: No one's ever beaten you at this circuit. Three wins on the bounce here.
You at least start from the front row. Can you win?
MV: We'll give it a good go. But of course, when you are more than three
tenths behind in qualifying, I think we have to be realistic. You know, I
just try to have a good race tomorrow.
Q: Alright. Well, you're on the front row at least. Well done, Max. Good
luck. Oscar, not quite the front row in the end. You were so close all the
way through qualifying, just slipped back to third. What went wrong on the
final lap?
Oscar PIASTRI: Yeah, I just didn't do a good enough job, really. I think the
first half lap was pretty solid and then the second half just wasn't quite
what I needed. So, yeah, clearly the car's been very quick this weekend and,
yeah, a little bit disappointing to not be a bit higher up, but we've still
got a good race car underneath us and we can get some really good points and
hopefully some trophies tomorrow. So, yeah, we'll give it a try.
Q: You've got upgrades on the car. Obviously, with the weather that we've
had this weekend, it's been very difficult to get too many great reads, I
imagine, from it. But they seem to be working well?
OP: Yeah, I think they're all doing what they expect, what we expect them to
do. And yeah, anything you can put on the car, especially when it's as tight
as it is, it's always a good thing. So yeah, not the easiest conditions to
see what it's like, but as long as it makes the car quicker, then I'm happy.
Q: And the car looked good on the long run as well. You think that should
give you a chance, bring you into play for a victory tomorrow, perhaps?
OP: Yeah, I think it's definitely not out of the question. Yeah, the pace
did look good in the long run. And yeah, we've been pretty quick the last
few weekends. So hopefully we can have a good day tomorrow, get a good start
and try and make up a couple of spots if I can. But yeah, some good things
on offer tomorrow.
Q: Alright, Oscar, well done. I hope you can get in the fight. Lando, what a
performance that was. We're back from the summer break and you're back with
a bang, pole by three and a half tenths today. Incredible.
Lando NORRIS: Thank you. Yeah, an amazing day. Nice to be back and start
with a pole. It was a nice lap. Honestly, the qualifying was always pretty
smooth and put in some good laps, especially the one at the end, which is
always the most important. So great job by the team and happy with today.
Q: And everyone's talking about these weather conditions, the wind, the
rain. You seem to be happy across the board. Every lap that you're doing is
wild at the front, rain or shine, wind or no wind.
LN: It's harder than it looks, I think! I mean, everyone's complaining of it
because it is tricky. It's not easy out there. And every lap, you have to
kind of... know what to expect and know how much more you can push, where
the limits are. But that's our job in the end of the day. So it's not easy,
but I felt comfortable out there. The car was feeling amazing. We've got
some upgrades on the car for the first time in a while and everything's
working very well. So a big thanks to the team too.
Q: And looking forward to tomorrow. It's a shorter run to the first corner
than Barcelona and Budapest. Can you hang on to it?
LN: I don't know why you're saying that, but I'm excited for tomorrow. I'm
sure it's going to be tough. Max has been quick all weekend. I know we got
him today, but he's still second and he's going to be putting up a good
fight, especially at his home race. So I'm looking forward to it.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: A dramatic qualifying session, Lando, and a brilliant final lap of Q3.
Just how good were you? How good was the car out there?
LN: Both. I think both were good. I mean, especially my last lap in Quali
Q3, Run 2 was by far my best lap. But I felt good all the way through
qualifying, honestly. The car's been strong all weekend. We felt
comfortable. We felt strong. And especially come today in qualifying, since
the first lap we did, I felt like always in a good rhythm. and It's just not
easy around here because it's not an easy track, first of all. But it's also
even more difficult with the wind and the conditions and stuff. So just
doing laps which are not mistake-free and not kind of locking up, not doing
anything which would make me lose a little bit of confidence. And I just
kept chipping away and improving every lap. So both were good, the car and I
think myself too.
Q: You mentioned earlier that you're very happy with the upgraded parts that
have come to this race, but are you surprised by the gap to Max?
LN: Maybe a little bit, but it all depends on wind and conditions. You know,
I feel like I did a very good lap, by far my best. But I think it's a track
where when you just hook everything up and it just flows a little bit
better. You catch a little bit of a headwind or a little bit less tailwind
in certain places, you can easily go one, two tenths quicker. But I don't
know if that's why or not. But the car was good and I felt good too. I mean,
whenever you're going to bring upgrades to a car, and I think especially for
us, we've been quite patient. We've not really brought many upgrades, or we
haven't brought any real performance-enhancing upgrades since Miami. We
brought always little bits, and there's always little things that we've
added, but this is our first, let's say, upgrade. We took our time because
we wanted to make sure it worked well and worked as soon as we put it on the
car and it does what it wants. And so far it's looked exactly that way. So
credits to the team for playing a big part in this too.
Q: Lando, it's been a stop-start weekend with very little dry practice. What
does it all mean for tomorrow? Are there lots of unknowns going into this
72-lap race?
LN: I mean, there are always some unknowns. I think we're in a pretty
reasonable place. Our long-run pace was pretty strong the other day, but
Max, Oscar, both the Mercs, especially George, in the position he is, are
quick and are going to be challenging. So I'm not expecting anything easy
for sure. Tomorrow is going to look the most calm from a weather and a wind
point of view, which is always a nicer thing to look forward to. I think
we're in a good way, so hopefully we can continue what we had today into
tomorrow.
Q: Alright, very well done. Thank you, Lando. Max, let's come to you now. A
mighty effort by you to split the McLarens. How good was that final lap of
Q3 from you?
MV: I don't know. I mean, I had a bit of a moment in 11-12, but that was
also a bit my qualifying in general. I never really felt... Every run, there
were always one or two corners where I felt like I was losing a lot of time
with just the gust of wind. And it seemed like it was very sensitive for us.
The car was really responding aggressively to it. And that's why I think
every single run that I did it was different. I just had a different balance
every time. Yeah, it just made it very difficult. Q3, I think the first lap
wasn't too bad. Then I tried to push it a bit more, but everything just
seems very snappy, very on the edge, I would say. But nevertheless, I mean,
I'm happy to be on the front row. I think after Q1 and Q2, I mean, I've
never really been in that top five region. Of course, I was trying to save
tyres a bit because I only had four sets, but I never really felt that I was
in the fight for pole. And then when you come out of qualifying on the front
row, I think that's OK.
Q: So, what about the race? I mean, you've talked about the one lap pace of
the car. Do you think you'll be more competitive relative to Lando in the
race?
MV: I mean, I would hope so, but I think when you see the gap, it's going to
be very tricky. Also, it just seems like Lando's a bit happier in general
with just the driving and how he feels. I'm a bit more all over the place
with the balance, so I don't know, maybe it stabilises a bit tomorrow, but I
guess we'll find out.
Q: Do you think this is going to be a strategic race, or do you think the
start is your best opportunity tomorrow to take the lead?
MV: I don't know. I mean, anything can happen, right, in the race. So we'll
find out. All right.
Q: Very well done to you. Thank you. Oscar, let's come to you now. A little
bit off in Q3. Start by telling us about the positives that you take from
the session today.
OP: I didn't crash like last year, so that was good! No, I think until the
last lap, it was pretty good. Obviously, I think with the pace we had with
the car today, I think P3 is not exactly a result to be jumping up and down
about. But no, I think the rest of qualifying was pretty good. It all ran
smoothly and I think a lot of those things were positive, just didn't quite
nail it when I needed to at the end. So a bit disappointing there, but we've
still got a lot of opportunities starting from where we are.
Q: How much of this comes down to the upgrades? Are you less comfy in the
car at the minute than Lando?
OP: No. I mean, to be honest, the car feels very, very similar. I think, you
know, we've improved the car like a second and a half since last year or
something crazy, and it doesn't feel that different. So I don't think it's
anything to do with that. I think simply Lando did a good job in the last
run of Q3, and I didn't do as good a job as I should have. So, yeah, I think
it's just simply down to that.
Q: Alright. And what's your mentality going into the race tomorrow?
OP: I think try and, of course, get a good start. That would be the first
plan. And, yeah, strategy could be an interesting thing tomorrow. So we'll
see. I think Max has got slightly different options to us. So, yeah, let's
see what we've got. But I think we've got a very quick car underneath us,
and hopefully we can use that on my side to go a bit further forward.
QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR
Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsportmagazin.com) Question is for Lando and for
Max. Do you think McLaren is in a situation like Red Bull has been in at the
beginning of the season where it looked tight the whole weekend until Q3 and
then Max pulled the trigger because Max probably had this little bit in his
hands and he knew that. And now, Lando, you have it in your hands. Is that
the case?
LN: Nope. No, I had nothing in my hands. I just put a good lap in when I
needed to, but I tried to do the best lap I could at every single point of
qualifying. I didn't have anything spare come quali. But like they both
said, it's a difficult day and they didn't do their best laps. I felt like I
did a very strong lap. So today I just felt like I did the job I needed to
go out and do, come qualifying. And for whatever reason, they struggled a
bit more with their car, but it's not because I just had something in my
hand. I know what you mean, but I didn't.
MV: Yeah, I must have been watching a different weekend. I don't know. I
never felt close yesterday. I just try to do the best I can. Maybe I'm
trying to stay with something that is not achievable for us, but I'm pushing
to the limit like everyone else.
Q: (Fred Ferret – l’Equipe) A question to Lando. Do you have a special plan
to fight Max on the first corner? And Oscar, are you ready to help Lando to
be first at the end of the first lap?
LN: Yes. I mean, it's obvious. I know my starts have not been my forte over
the last probably... They've not been bad, honestly, I'm still up there with
being one of the best average starters. I've just missed out on a couple of
races and maybe slightly worse than what it's been over the course of a
season. There's a couple of times when they've not been quite where they
need to be have been a couple of times I've been on the front row. So like I
said, they've not been for any certain reason. They've been different things
each time. But I feel confident I put in a good amount of work to kind of
try and make my starts a bit better. And tomorrow's a new day.
OP: I mean, if I can get myself into the lead, then that works well for me.
But, yeah, I mean, I think the start is always a good opportunity to make up
ground if you can. Yeah, obviously I want to finish as high as I can. And,
yeah, if I can get into second, then obviously that makes life a little bit
more straightforward for the team. But... I mean, I'm not going to do
anything specific to try and make that happen. I want to try and win the
race myself. And let's see what I can try and do.
Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) It's a question to Max. You said Red
Bull just lacks some pace at the moment. Do you feel that's the reality
until new updates, new parts come to the car to maybe correct something? Or
did you already hope for a bit more than the three-and-a-half tenths this
weekend, maybe based on the ideas from the summer break?
MV: Well, I don't know. I mean, it's three tenths here or whatever it was. I
don't know what, of course, the upcoming races will be. But I think, yeah,
if you look at the last, what, seven races, it's just been a bit more
difficult for us. And we are trying to understand or try to just improve the
situation. But it's not a magic button or switch, you know, that you turn.
So, yeah, we keep trying.
Q: (Ben Hunt – Autosport) Oscar, I noticed a little wry smile when Fred
asked you about helping Lando out at the first lap. To the McLaren drivers,
are you clear on the rules engagement, what you're allowed to do, what
aren't you, and are you confident you'll be allowed to race each other for
the win if you're in contention?
OP: Yeah, the rules are very, very clear and haven't changed. And yeah,
we're free to race each other to try and win. Of course, we're in a
Constructors' Championship fight and we know that there's a lot at stake for
the team. But we've shown time and time again that we can race each other
well, race each other cleanly. And yeah, we're free to try and both win the
race. And that's not changed.
LN: Hello? No, the question was for Oscar. For both? Oscar said it well.
We're free to race. There's never been any rules apart from don't crash into
each other. That's literally the only rule. Otherwise, we've always been
free to race. We've raced well in the past. So that's all good for us.
Q: (Rodrigo França – Car Magazine, Brazil) Question to Lando. Lando you used
to joke about the support of the Orange Army. And being now the biggest
rival to Max Verstappen, do you feel a different approach from the Dutch
fans now?
LN: No, not at the minute. I think we've always joked about it, but
honestly, I've always had a lot of support from Dutch fans since I've
started, since I've been in Formula 1. My mum's from Belgium, so it kind of
puts me half into that bubble. So they've always supported me well, and I
appreciate that. I always enjoy coming to a race like this, and the Red Bull
Ring as well. They're kind of two home races for Max, with the amount of
fans that he has there. So it's fun. It's nice that I have a lot of support
from many different countries wherever I go. Some are more crazy than
others, and I think the Dutch are one of the biggest players in this. But
the more the merrier, and I appreciate that.
Q: (Hamzah Khalique-Loonat – The Times) A question for you, Max. Lando's
boss said yesterday that he's performing at world champion level. Do you
think he is? And what qualities do you think make him a potential world
champion if he is?
MV: Lando is very, very fast. I think that's what you need to be. And that's
why he's also in Formula 1, and that's why he's performing at the level that
he's at. And it will only get better with experience as well, right? I mean,
of course, I've been fighting for championships probably a bit longer, so
you're probably a bit more experienced with that. But at the end of the day,
when the team is working well, the car is working well, you're driving well,
then it just comes to you as well. So, yeah, I never doubted that anyway.
Q: (Joost Smedema – NOS) Question to Max. Yesterday, Toto talked about a
meeting this summer between Mercedes, between him and your management, and
you over signing maybe for 2025. With what intention did you go into that
meeting, and how do you reflect on it?
MV: Which meeting?
Q: (Joost Smedema – NOS) Did you engage that meeting, or was it only your
management?
MV: I don't remember.
Q: (Rene de Boer – Track Commentary) A question to Max and Lando. You both
mentioned the influence of the wind, the sensitivity of the car to the wind.
Are there any corners or which section of the track do you notice that in
most particular?
LN: Kind of any corner, which is 180 degrees, especially because the
corners, Turn 1 is probably the best example. You have a big tailwind in and
a big headwind out, so the car feels shocking on the way in and pretty
lovely on the way out. So you kind of get both worlds, and then obviously
you have the middle phase where the wind's blowing the side of the car, so
you experience it there. And probably like 9 and 10, Turn 10 being the one
where it's, what's probably felt the worst on the track the whole weekend.
Again, simply going from like 20 kph tailwind in to 20 kph tailwind out.
Vice versa, or similar to Turn 1, that you go in, the car doesn't respond,
doesn't do anything you want. And it might not seem like 20, but when you
see the numbers of the car in terms of kilograms of force, of downforce
gained and lost, it's pretty extreme and probably more than what people
realise on the outside. So everyone's dealing with the same thing, not just
us three here, but everyone on the grid, and that's the challenge of what we
have.
MV: Yeah, he explained it very well.
Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Lando, this obviously feels like another very good
opportunity to win and to close the gap to Max. How desperate are you to get
this win tomorrow, and how important could that be in terms of the
championship?
LN: You said the same words the other time. Yeah, I'm not desperate. I want
to win, but I'm not desperate. I know you want that little headline right
there, but I'm not going to give it to you. I want to win. I'm working hard
to win. We all do as a team. All of us here want to win, but not desperate,
because desperation doesn't succeed to anything. So it makes no difference.
I'm trying very hard. And if you want to kind of put that into the headline,
then that's fine. I had places to work on over the winter. I worked hard
over the summer. I've worked hard on them. Little bits are paying off
already, but tomorrow is obviously the biggest place of it all to show. So
working hard for a win, but not desperate.
Q: (Christian Menath – Motorsportmagazin.com) Another one for you, Max. I
think you questioned whether I'm watching the same race weekend as you do.
Hopefully, I'm not listening to a different team radio. But compared to
previous races, you sound pretty calm on the radio nowadays. Is it because
you accepted the new situation you're in, or is there a different approach
from your side?
MV: I do a lot of yoga and meditation lately (laughs). Yeah, I don't know. I
mean, I think Hungary was just a very frustrating weekend in general, but it
doesn't always need to be like that. And I know that also. So I'm just
trying as hard as I can, you know, to be competitive. I know the team does
that as well, every single person within the team. So we, yeah, we stick
together and try to improve the situation.
Q: (Ben Hunt – Autosport) Max, just sorry, just to bring you back to the
meeting with Toto, is it time that he stops talking about you? Do you think
he just needs to move on?
MV: No, I mean, everyone can say what they want. And I get on very well with
Toto. I think he's very open about what's happening within his team, right?
Also, I think with the driver line-up and stuff. So there's nothing wrong
with that. And at the same time, also, I just focus on my job. There's a lot
to do anyway. So, yeah, we just focus on that.
Q: (Nate Saunders – ESPN) Lando, one for you. You mentioned about the
starts. When you've looked back at that this year, has there been any kind
of pattern you've noticed? Has it been procedural? Has there been anything
like that? And how important is tomorrow to just kind of get stats like that
out of the way so you're not kind of carrying that into the rest of the
season?
LN: Honestly, stats to me don't mean a lot. Yeah, I mean, you kind of get
respect with stats and you lose respect maybe with certain stats, but just
numbers on the screen, honestly, don't mean a lot from that perspective to
me. Of course, I care, but they don't mean a lot. They don't impact me. So
what people write and come up with and those kind of things are different.
It's like the overtaking awards and stuff. You're always going to get more
overtakes when you qualify terribly. You're going to have more chances to go
forward. I've started on towards the front a lot of times. I know my stats
are not the best for that. And more often than not, I've kind of gone
backwards rather than holding positions. But that's just what I've done so
far. And I've worked hard and working hard to try and change that. But it's
not something that affects me. I'm not going to go out tomorrow to try and
suddenly prove people wrong or something. I'm just going to crack on and do
what I got to do. So yeah, people can write what they want. They can have
their own opinions. A lot of these things are true and are facts to people.
But yeah, it's more just use them to my advantage and improve on my
weaknesses. Simple as that.
Q: (Ronald Vording – Motorsport.com) It's a bit of a different one to Max
this time. I know that you know Nyck De Vries quite well. And he's taking on
a new challenge from this weekend onwards in Super Formula. I was just
wondering, did you talk about it with him? And what's your thought about a
new challenge that he's going at in Japan?
MV: Yeah, it was actually quite funny because he asked me if he could jump
on my simulator quickly to do a few laps around Motegi. But unfortunately, I
wasn't at home at the time. Otherwise, I would have set it up for him. But
yeah, it's exciting. I mean, I've never driven the car myself, but they look
amazing to drive. It's, of course, very, very different. And I think, of
course, a big learning curve for him as well. But I'm looking forward to see
how he does in the championship. He's a good friend of mine. He deserves it.
And, yeah, wish him all the best. |
