Max Verstappen expressed his joy in securing first place in the Sprint race qualifying, to the delight of the enthusiastic crowd known as the ‘Orange Army’ at the Red Bull Ring. The team, fresh off a remarkable victory in Barcelona, faced strong competition from McLaren in their home race. However, Verstappen managed to clinch the pole position.
In the final stages of the session, it seemed like Verstappen wouldn’t be a match for the McLaren drivers, with Lando Norris and his teammate almost securing the front row. However, the reigning champion delivered an incredible lap that allowed him to claim the pole position. Verstappen was thrilled to achieve this result in front of the passionate Red Bull fans, who applauded him as if he were competing in the Dutch Grand Prix.
Verstappen expressed his joy in being able to compete in front of his home fans and at the team’s Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring. He mentioned that he was always excited to come to this circuit every year. Verstappen also praised the team’s performance, noting that the car was perfectly balanced for the conditions and that everything had gone well for them on Friday.
During the Sprint race qualifying session, the top teams fiercely battled for the pole position. Verstappen pushed his RB20 to the limit, while his teammate Sergio Perez struggled to keep up with the Dutch driver. Red Bull consistently outperformed Ferrari and Mercedes throughout the session.
Verstappen admitted that he may have pushed too hard during his out lap in the SQ3 race, which affected the performance of his tires for his fast lap. However, he was pleased that it didn’t prevent him from securing the pole position.
The impressive result of Verstappen is a positive sign for Red Bull, as he continues to extract maximum performance from the RB20, despite facing increasingly tough competition every weekend. It will be crucial for Verstappen and his team to convert this result into a victory in the Sprint race on Saturday.
