Stella « happy and proud » to manage the intense duel between Norris and Piastri

Andrea Stella covered his drivers with praise after a tense Austrian Grand Prix, as McLaren’s title contenders, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, fought for the victory, which was claimed by the Briton.

A close battle

The battle for first place quickly turned into a duel between the two McLarens once Oscar Piastri overtook Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari right from the start. The Australian then put pressure on Lando Norris, who started on pole, throughout the first stint.

In a breathless exchange at the start of the race, Lando Norris was unable to get Oscar Piastri out of the DRS zone, making him vulnerable lap after lap against his teammate, increasing the tension on the McLaren pit wall, especially after their collision at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Oscar Piastri briefly managed to take the lead in the race, but Lando Norris immediately regained the advantage. The championship leader then had another chance to overtake by braking later than Norris at turn 4 — but a wheel lock-up forced him to go wide, narrowly avoiding contact.

A good race management

McLaren then chose to bring Lando Norris in, with the strategies of the two drivers diverging from that point. Oscar Piastri stayed on track for a few more laps, but after his stop, he came out six seconds behind his teammate — a gap he was never able to close. Lando Norris was thus able to manage his race until achieving his third victory of the season.

« It was an intense race, but that’s why we’re here, to fight », explained Andrea Stella.

It was an open race today, and here in Austria, it’s a particular track: when you have the DRS, you stay attached to the car in front, as we saw in the first stint, because Lando and Oscar’s pace was very similar.

« They therefore stayed together throughout the relay and Oscar had a few opportunities. We are very happy and proud of the way they handled the situation. »

We had to give Oscar a little advice regarding his maneuver at turn 4, which he immediately acknowledged. I’m proud of him because he apologized as soon as the checkered flag was waved, admitting he went a bit too far. It’s not easy, it’s F1, he’s fighting hard, but it was a good day, said the McLaren boss.

McLaren consolidates its place in the constructors’ championship

Oscar Piastri remains at the top of the championship, but Lando Norris has reduced the gap to just 15 points thanks to his victory in Spielberg. Max Verstappen’s retirement allows both McLarens to break away significantly at the top of the standings, suggesting an internal duel for the title.

These are obviously stressful moments, but we have confidence in Oscar and Lando, continued Stella. And when we’re on the pit wall, we try to stay as calm as possible and rationally analyze what’s happening.

But for us, it was clear that both should have the opportunity to fight, as long as they did it the way they did today. It’s a great show for F1.

We are happy to entertain our fans, our viewers, and we hope to experience many more races like this one — even if, yes, it gave us a few cold sweats on the wall. But that’s why we’re here, he declares.

Thanks to this double in Austria, the McLaren team, based in Woking, further widens the gap in the constructors’ championship, with now a 207-point lead over Ferrari.