|
1 – Max VERSTAPPEN (Red Bull
Racing)
2 – Oscar PIASTRI (McLaren)
3 – Lando NORRIS (McLaren)
TRACK INTERVIEWS
(Conducted by Alex Wurz)
Q: Well done. Third position. I'm pretty sure you would like to be a bit
higher than this. But nevertheless, it was a sensational Sprint for us to
watch. But please, talk us through the race?
Lando NORRIS: I mean, a good race. A good race between us, especially with
Max at the beginning, it was good fun. Yeah, probably some things I
definitely should have done a bit better in my battle, but I understand
that, and the pace of the car was very strong, especially the end of the
race and I had a good battle trying to get past Oscar, but I just didn't
have enough speed with how much you lose in the middle sector with the dirty
air. So it was a good race, a good load of points for us as McLaren, so a
good job to the team, and, of course, Max and Oscar for the podium.
Q: Yeah, you think as a team you could have played more together with Oscar
and you to get Max today?
LN: I don't think so, honestly. We’re fair to race, and, yeah, it was just
too difficult to get past. But the pace was good. I don't think we would
have had probably the pace to go with Max. I think he was maybe that little
bit too quick for us today. But tomorrow's another day, and we'll try again.
Q: Yeah, thank you. A quick one before the other colleagues are ready. I
think you've worn them out today with the pressure you applied. Lap 3,
fantastic divebomb. So, my hat's off to you. Maybe talk me through your
mindset in this aggressive move.
LN: Yeah, I think a little bit like I saw at the end. I think once things
settle in too much, it's difficult to... Once the tyres get too hot, it's
difficult to do too much. So I had to make the most of my opportunity. Yeah,
then I messed it up and left the door open like an amateur. So, yeah, like I
said, some things to improve, but we're there and we can definitely give
them a fight tomorrow.
Q: Thank you. Oscar Piastri, you are already a Sprint winner and today you
finished second. Are you happy with that position?
Oscar PIASTRI: Yes and no, I think. I obviously finished one spot higher
than I started but yeah, I just didn't quite have the pace in the in the
second half of that one. I thought Max and Lando were going to pave the way
for me to come through at one point but not quite. Some things to look at
for this afternoon and for tomorrow's race, but we'll definitely take the
points, a really good haul compared to the other teams around us.
Q: We still need to ask you, lap 5, an ice-cold, beautifully executed
manouevre. I mean, you just needed popcorn. You had the best seats in this
battle. Talk us through it, what did you think about when they battled? Did
you plan it and your execution?
OP: Yeah, I could see that they were battling quite hard. And into Turn 4 ,
I saw the move was quite late. And yeah, I knew that there'd be an
opportunity on the exit. I was hoping I would get both but I just bided my
time and tried my best. I think I had probably one opportunity to try and
get Max the lap after. But yeah, just didn't quite have the pace after that.
So yeah, in that one, being patient in the start paid off a bit.
Q: Thank you. And all the best for tomorrow. Max Verstappen, winner. Let's
not talk about football. Sorry to beat you. Austria won against Holland.
Unless you really want to talk about it? But well done for such a strong
comeback. Amazing start. Maybe the perception of the race for you?
Max VERSTAPPEN: Yeah, it was a good first lap, I would say. But then, yeah,
once the DRS opens, it's very hard to get out of it. Took a few laps, a few
exciting battles as well. But I think once we cleared the DRS, then I could
do a bit more of my own race, and then it looked all a bit better. But you
could see they have two cars, they are pushing flat out, trying to, of
course, make it difficult for me. And, yeah, we had to work for it in that
race. So, yeah, a few things to think about what we could do better for
tomorrow, especially, because I think tomorrow is going to be even longer
races and harder on the tyres, so it's going to be quite interesting to see
how that will evolve.
Q: Okay, Max, but you spoke about learning things for tomorrow. We've seen
around lap four, five, you had a lot of clipping. For those who don't know,
it's the energy recovery and that slowed you down on the straight. Is that
maybe your weak spot for tomorrow as well?
MV: I mean, it's just because they're in the DRS, so they use, of course, a
bit less energy because naturally they spend less time on the straight just
catching up to me. And I think, you know, once they were out, then I could
go back to my normal management and then everything was fine again.
Q: Okay, Max, so tomorrow you expect still a tough battle. Do you have
anyone else on the cards in your rearview mirror, as the McLarens, for
tomorrow?
MV: Yeah, I need to have a look at the whole race. Of course, I was very
busy with myself, so we have to look into the data about the others as well.
And, yeah, we'll see if we can do better tomorrow.
Q: Good. You love it in Austria? You're loving it in Austria?
MV: Yeah, it's always good to be here. Very good.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: Very well done, Max. That was a very exciting race in the early laps. How
hard was it to come out on top today?
MV: Yeah, definitely in the beginning was quite tricky. I mean, Lando stayed
in my DRS and I was just struggling a little bit for grip at that point as
well. And yeah, it's just very difficult to judge around here how much you
lose through the corners following and how much you gain with the DRS around
the lap, because of course it's a triple activation, which is a lot. So
yeah, we had to really fight for it. We had a few good close battles here
and there, defending, overtaking. And basically, once I could clear the DRS,
then you could settle in a bit more and you could drive around your own
pace. But the pace was high. It was really not looking after tyres much, I
think, and surviving a bit to the end because, of course, the tyres drop off
quite a bit the last few laps. But it was cool. It was fun.
Q: Well, I was going to say, how much fun was it? And can you talk us
through the battle with Lando in particular?
MV: Yeah, I think I didn't expect him to go up the inside in Turn 3. But
yeah, I was just struggling with clipping, grip. So he went for it. Then I
still had, of course, the tow, not the DRS. And yeah, I decided to go back
into Turn 4. And it was good fighting.
Q: Were you worried about Oscar as well?
MV: Yeah, I knew that Oscar was very close to the battle. And I knew that
once we were braking late into four on the exit, you know, you're looking
around, where is everyone? And then I could see Oscar in my mirror as well.
So then I had, you know, the two McLarens side by side behind me. So yeah,
they pushed me very hard today in the race.
Q: Max, the focus turns now to the Grand Prix itself, qualifying next, the
race tomorrow. What have you learned so far this weekend? that's going to
help you for the remainder?
MV: That it’s close. It's a tight battle. Ideally, you look in a few details
what you can do better. But I need to go back to the team, you know, and
look back at the race as well, as a whole. But, yeah, you always try to look
for improvements in the car when you can. And you can change the car around
then.
Q: Very well done. Thank you, Max. Oscar, let's come to you now. And can we
start by getting your take on those frenetic early laps? Did you think Max
was beatable at that point?
OP: I thought so, yes. Yeah, he obviously had quite a good start compared to
Lando and I. And then, I just managed to stay in the DRS and got to the back
of him. And yeah, Alex [Wurz] on the grid summed it up well, I was sitting
there with my popcorn waiting for whatever was going to unfold. And yeah,
obviously just stayed patient and I managed to get Lando and not quite
enough to get Max. I just struggled a little bit in the second half of it. I
think everyone was probably struggling with tyres a bit. Yeah, just didn't
quite have the pace to keep challenging in the second half of the sprint.
Q: So Max slips away and you spent the majority of that race protecting your
second place from your teammate. How tough was it to stay ahead of him
without DRS?
OP: It was tough at the start definitely I think. Once the car behind gets
into the DRS, you know, they have three shots at it. I think to be honest
the tyres at that point were so hot for everybody that the DRS wasn't having
anywhere near as much of an impact as it did at the start of the race, so in
the last few laps it was a little bit more comfortable but all it would take
was one mistake. So yeah, a difficult Sprint.
Q: Oscar, you came out of Barcelona last weekend feeling a little
frustrated. Is this result proof that you're in a happier place with the car
here in Austria?
OP: Yeah, definitely. I think we've got all the answers from Barcelona on
what we did wrong and what went wrong in the weekend. I think, yeah, I was
much happier with the car in practice straight away. And, yeah, obviously in
Sprint quali yesterday it was a good result and today as well. So, yeah, I'm
hoping Barcelona stays as a one-off.
Q: Alright. Thanks, Oscar. Lando, let's come to you now. You gave us plenty
of excitement during those early laps. Can you just give us your take on the
battle with Max?
LN: Yeah, I mean, it was a good battle. I knew there were not going to be
too many opportunities to try to do it. So yeah, I had to go for a bit of a
move into Turn 3. And then I was just pretty stupid into Turn 4 and left the
door open. So yeah, not a lot, to be honest. It was two corners we battled,
and that was it. And then Oscar managed to come past. I tried. Obviously it
didn't go to plan, but the pace in the car was pretty good and I think we
gave it a good shot, but it wasn't quite enough today. It's nice to have two
cars up there, nice to have two cars trying to fight against Max, and that's
what we need on Sunday.
Q: Have you come away from this feeling a little frustrated? Do you think
that was one that got away?
LN: I mean, we're saying this every weekend now, so I'm not going to say it
again, but I could have just, I should have done, I'm not going to say
should have done, but I needed to do a better job. And I just did something
pretty stupid and silly, which was not very smart of me. So, no, I think a
good amount of points, it could have been a lot worse. And for the team, it
was a good result, the result we wanted. So I'm happy. But yeah, I need to
do things better.
Q: Let's look at the positives, Lando. How much confidence does your pace
today and yesterday in the Sprint Qualifying give you for the remainder of
the weekend?
LN: A lot. I think we're in good shape. We're in good form. It's clear that
Max is still just a bit ahead of us. So, you know, if he doesn't make any
mistakes, he's kind of got it for the time being. So we just need to execute
what we're doing and do what we have been doing, which is a good job. But we
need that little bit more and we're going to try to find that over
lunchtime, into qualifying to try and give ourselves one step better
position than what I had today. But otherwise, yeah, we're just missing that
little bit. And we'll do as much as we can to find it.
PRESS CONFERENCE
Q: (Scott Mitchell-Malm – The Race) It's a question to Max. This is another
race that you've made a difference in yourself in a close battle with the
McLarens or other cars. I know that races that you've won in the past by 20
seconds or more still obviously require an immense performance level from
yourself. But how much satisfaction do you take from these ones? Do you feel
at the moment that you're in a good run of making the difference as a driver
in these key races that you could otherwise lose?
MV: Well, I think, you know, I feel good with the car. I think I'm working
well with the team, you know, to really extract everything out of the car.
As you can see, it's very tight and, you know, it's really like little
details that can define a weekend nowadays between teams, which, of course,
is very exciting. I mean, of course, I would like to win by 20 seconds, 30
seconds. Because naturally, you still do the best you can. You're still
optimising your performance. But now that it's a lot closer, then it
requires you to be really on top form. And even today, I got challenged. I
got passed. I went for it, got my place back, and we won the race. Is that
then a guaranteed win for tomorrow? Absolutely not, because it's still going
to be very close. So we do need to find little improvements for tomorrow to
probably stay on top. And again, qualifying now in the afternoon will define
a lot, anyway, what's going to happen in the first stint tomorrow. But yeah,
I'm happy. Of course, there are always things I look at and will look back
at that I want to work on or try and be better at. Of course, after a
weekend, it's always easy to comment on these kind of things. But I think
naturally, as a driver, that's how it should be. I mean, you should never be
saying, I'm happy and that's it. I'm going to go home and not think about
anything and rock up the next race. That's not how it works.
Q: (Carlo Platella – FormulaPassion.it) Max, yesterday you said that the
balance was good from the beginning. Has anything changed from the last
races where you and the team seemed to struggle to find the right set-up
until Saturday?
MV: I mean, we tried to, of course, work on it, try to be better at it. But
I think we had a good preparation going into the weekend. And luckily then,
of course, it paid off as soon as the car hit the ground. It was in a
sensible window and it was just tiny adjustments to make it better. But
that's positive. I mean, of course, you try to learn from difficult weekends
and how to be better prepared for the next one.
Q: (Andrew Benson – BBC Sport) Max, this is for you. The dispute between
your dad and Christian Horner has broken out into the open again this
weekend. How do you feel about that and does it affect you in any way?
MV: Well, I mean, actually, of course, it's not nice. I think not for
myself, not for my dad, not for Christian, not for the team. Of course, you
know, you don't want these things to happen. I think, yeah, my dad has been
quite clear about the reason behind it. And of course, I can understand his
opinion on that, because at the end of the day he gets asked to drive the
car, finds out that he's not wanted to drive the car. Well, my dad,
actually, he doesn't care about driving the car, but he got asked and they
said, please, you know, do it for the fans, the Dutch fans, blah, blah,
blah. Red Bull, we have a great relationship with, you know, home track. So
I understand. And the other hand, you know, I'm here, of course, to focus on
the performance side of things. So I want a good relationship with everyone.
But of course, this scenario could have been avoided.
Q: (Jake Boxall-Legge – Autosport) Lando, you sound pretty self-deprecating
about your first few laps of your race. Turn 4 aside, what kind of do you
feel like you need to get out of yourself to start beating Max on a slightly
more regular basis?
LN: No, not much. Yeah, it's tiny, tiny things. But I think as a race car,
we're still missing a tiny bit. But that's not my excuse. Like, for today, I
think nothing more than Turn 4. I think if I just defended and didn't leave
the door open, a different story would have happened. But yeah, that might
have been just one corner and Max probably would have attacked me in the
next lap. So I don't know. There's nothing in particular. I'm not... I'm
just yeah, I mean, I'm not feeling great and there are still those little
opportunities that I feel like I just miss out on. In hindsight I think
‘well, how stupid was I to do some of the things that I've done?’ But at the
same time I'm doing the best I can when I’m on the track, so I don't
necessarily think about what people are thinking on the outside. I know I've
done a things that aren't good enough and things that aren't at the level
that they need to be. And I'm doing my best to improve on them. And that's
all I can do for now.
Q: (Ben Hunt – Autosport) Lando, I was just going to ask about your illness.
Just wondered how much it is affecting you this weekend. You sound pretty
run down. I wonder if it's a combination of all these races in a row,
perhaps. But just how are you feeling?
LN: I don't know. I can't say how much it's affecting me. It's not helping.
That's probably the main thing. But I wouldn't say anything that's changing
my performance on track. It's not to that level. So just... Yeah, just
talking. So stop asking me stuff and I'll be happy! Yeah, nothing that's
affecting me, I don't think. But small things away from the track and just
being tired and not sleeping good and that kind of stuff. So I'm sure a
little bit, but nothing that I would use as an excuse to help me on track. |
