McLaren dominates Austrian GP as Horner highlights rivals' unique edge
McLaren Dominates Austrian Grand Prix as Rivals Struggle
In a weekend defined by dominance, McLaren's powerful showing at the Austrian Grand Prix left rival teams scrambling to comprehend the gap between them and the papaya-liveried machines. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri set the pace early, engaging in a breathtaking intra-team battle for the lead, leaving no doubt about their supremacy.
Christian Horner Praises McLaren’s Tire Management
Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principal, was left in awe of McLaren’s performance, offering high praise and a colorful analogy for their car's unprecedented pace and precision.
“What’s truly impressive, and for me I can't see any other team being able to do it, is when you look at how close Oscar is able to run behind Lando with a car fat on fuel at the beginning of the race," Horner said. "He’s basically making love to his exhaust pipe for lap after lap after lap, and the tires are not dying. I mean, that to me is, you know, that is their advantage. They’ve managed to create a car that really protects its tires very well and obviously has a good balance. I can't see any other car that would be able to follow that closely and not grain the front tires or the rear tires. I don't really understand.”
Norris and Piastri controlled the race from the front, underscoring how far McLaren has progressed since the beginning of the season. Norris fended off Piastri’s relentless pressure during the opening stint, a spectacle that underscored the car's unmatched ability to maintain tire life and balance under stress.
Red Bull’s Nightmare Weekend
Meanwhile, Red Bull had a Grand Prix to forget at their home event. The race unraveled almost immediately when Max Verstappen was eliminated on the first lap following a collision with Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli. Verstappen, who had started from a compromised grid position after a yellow flag hampered his qualifying performance, found himself vulnerable in the midfield chaos at Turn 3.
"Kimi just lost it in spectacular fashion," Horner lamented. "Max was basically through the corner and getting back on the power, and just got wiped out. An unfortunate mistake by Kimi. He’s apologized to Max, but, you know, for us it killed our afternoon.”
Yuki Tsunoda’s struggles in the second Red Bull car compounded the team's woes. The Japanese driver finished 16th, last among the classified runners, capping a difficult day for the Milton Keynes-based outfit.
Missed Podium Opportunities
Horner admitted the team had hoped to fight for a podium place with Verstappen, given Ferrari and Mercedes did not appear unbeatable. Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton finished third and fourth, respectively, while George Russell’s fifth-place finishing Mercedes was off the pace.
“I think we’d have had the pace to race the Ferraris hard today,” Horner said. “George had no pace at all. When you’re out in Turn 3 there’s not much you can do about it. We just need to see what damage there is; hopefully it’s not too bad in terms of part quantities for Silverstone.”
McLaren Sets the Bar High
While McLaren is riding high, Christian Horner made it clear Red Bull’s focus remains on the long game.
“McLaren, you can see how they are racing each other—they’ve got a cushion to the rest of the field,” Horner noted. “For us, we just focus one race at a time. So we don’t even think about championships.”
As the Formula 1 juggernaut moves on to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix, all eyes will be on McLaren to see if their dominance continues and on Red Bull to see if they can recover from this bruising weekend. One thing is clear: McLaren has set the bar high, and the rest of the grid has much work to do.
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