Andrea Stella was full of his praise for his drivers during a ‘tense’ Austrian Grand Prix, as McLaren title protagonists Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri battled for the lead with the Briton eventually sealing victory.
It was a two-horse race for the win at the Red Bull Ring once Piastri made his way past Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc at the start of the Grand Prix, the Australian then harrying and pushing polesitter Norris on in the first stint.
In a thrilling exchange in the early stages Norris was unable to break the DRS, and was vulnerable for lap after lap to his team mate, something that will have heightened the heart rates on the McLaren pit wall given the duo’s collision in the Canadian Grand Prix.
As the fight for the lead went on Piastri did manage to briefly overtake for first place, only to see Norris cut straight back past. Then came arguably the championship leader’s best opportunity as he out-braked Norris into Turn 4 – only to lock up, and narrowly avoid contact.
McLaren pitted Norris soon after, and then their strategies diverged – Piastri staying out before emerging from his own pit stop six seconds adrift of his team mate later on, with McLaren then able to enjoy a slightly less fraught race.
Piastri never got back into DRS for the remainder of the Grand Prix, with Norris going on to win his third race of the season.
“It was intense racing, but that is what we are here for, to race,” Stella explained.
“It was an open race today and here in Austria it is a special track as, when you get the DRS, you stay hooked to the car ahead and this is what happened in the first stint, as the pace between Lando and Oscar was very similar.
“So, this is what happened, they stayed together throughout the stint and Oscar had a couple of chances. We are very happy and proud of how they handled the situation.
“We needed to give Oscar a bit of advice in terms of the manoeuvre in Turn 4, which he once again acknowledged. So, I’m proud of him for how he said straight after the chequered flag that he was sorry for that manoeuvre, he went a little too far. It’s not easy, it is Formula 1, he is racing, he is racing hard but it is a good day.”
Piastri remains in the lead of the Championship, but Norris has closed the gap down to just 15 points following his Spielberg triumph. With Max Verstappen failing to finish, the McLaren pair have a commanding lead over the rest in what is shaping up to be a straight intra-team fight for the title.
“They are obviously stressful moments, but we trust, we rely on Oscar and Lando and also once we are on the pit wall you just try and stay as chilled as possible and analyse rationally what is going on,” Stella added, reflecting on the pairs on-track battles.
“But for us, it was clear that the guys needed to have the opportunity to give the race, both, as long as they do it in the way they have done it today. It is a great spectacle for Formula 1.
“We are happy that we entertain our fans, our spectators and we look forward to more races like this even if, yes, it gave us some nervousness on the pit wall. But that is what we are here for.”
Following McLaren’s 1-2 result in Austria, the Woking-based squad have an even more commanding lead in the Teams’ Championship, 207 points ahead of Ferrari.
