Verstappen triumphs in thrilling Austria sprint race
Red Bull's Max Verstappen showcased his class once again by converting pole position into a sensational victory in Saturday afternoon's Sprint at the Austrian Grand Prix. He outpaced the McLaren duo of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, who put up a spirited fight in an electrifying display of wheel-to-wheel racing.
At the start, Verstappen managed to hold onto his lead, but Norris quickly closed the gap and momentarily took P1 with an audacious overtake. The reigning world champion, however, reclaimed his position almost immediately in a tussle that allowed Piastri to pass his teammate Norris.
Despite several thrilling moments, the top three—Verstappen, Piastri, and Norris—maintained their positions until the chequered flag. Behind the leading trio, George Russell and Lewis Hamilton sandwiched Carlos Sainz, with Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez completing the top eight in a tightly contested race.
The 2024 season features a revamped format where Friday's Sprint Qualifying determines the grid for the 100km sprint race. Points are awarded to the top eight finishers, ranging from eight points for P1 down to one point for P8.
In Sprint Qualifying, Verstappen narrowly edged out Norris for pole position, with Piastri starting third. Russell, Sainz, and Hamilton followed, though Hamilton described his session as "pretty disastrous" due to a mistake on his final timed run.
A last-minute adjustment saw Alex Albon moved from 19th on the grid to the pit lane following setup modifications to his Williams.
All 20 drivers started on medium C4 tyres, the middle choice between the hard C3 and soft C5 compounds for the weekend. An aborted start didn't faze Verstappen, who got away cleanly at the second attempt to keep Norris at bay into the first corner. Piastri launched an early attack on his teammate before settling into third.
Carlos Sainz overtook Russell with a stunning outside move at Turn 4. Hamilton held his sixth position over a fast-starting Leclerc, followed by Perez, Kevin Magnussen, and Lance Stroll. The Alpine cars of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly dropped out of the top 10 after the start.
Norris, showing impressive pace, executed a daring overtake on Verstappen at Turn 3 on Lap 5, only for Verstappen to reclaim the lead moments later at Turn 4. Piastri seized the opportunity to pass Norris during the skirmish.
"I’m clipping way too much," Verstappen reported over the radio but managed to edge away from Piastri and put himself out of the DRS zone. Russell reclaimed P4 from Sainz, while Verstappen started to pull away, leaving Piastri and Norris to battle amongst themselves for the remaining podium spots.
With a comfortable gap over the McLarens, Verstappen crossed the line 4.6 seconds ahead of Piastri. Norris finished third, seven-tenths behind his teammate despite a late push.
Read next ❯ Ferrari to reveal Hamilton's debut F1 car on February 19 at MaranelloHamilton and Russell secured P4 and P6 around Sainz, while Leclerc recovered from his Sprint Qualifying issues to finish seventh. Perez clinched the last point in eighth position.
Magnussen put in a gritty performance for Haas to secure ninth, followed by Stroll and the Alpines of Ocon and Gasly, who underperformed relative to their qualifying positions.
Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo of Red Bull finished 13th and 15th respectively, with Nico Hulkenberg separating them. Fernando Alonso, after a tussle with Hulkenberg at Turn 3, had to settle for 16th in his Aston Martin.
The Williams and Alfa Romeo drivers had a quiet race, with Logan Sargeant leading home Albon and Valtteri Bottas beating teammate Zhou Guanyu to the line.
Verstappen's Sprint win extends his championship lead to 71 points over Norris, with Leclerc trailing six points further back in third.
Verstappen continues to demonstrate his dominance, while McLaren's resurgence adds an exciting dimension to the ongoing battle for supremacy in the 2024 season.
