Find the main reactions to the sprint outcome organized as part of the Austrian Grand Prix, which saw Max Verstappen win Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jr.
Max Verstappen (PBS/Red Bull Racing) – Winner
“We had a good rhythm from the start. It was good, as a sprint race should go. Thoroughly from start to finish. The first lap allowed me to manage my gap. Then I took care of the pace in the following laps. But tomorrow (Sunday) it will be very interesting, a great battle between us. It will of course be much longer, so it will be complicated in terms of tire degradation and performance. I’m confident the car is fine, but you have to find your settings. But we are still very competitive this weekend. »
Charles Leclerc (MCO/Ferrari) – 2nd
“It was tricky, obviously. The first part of the race is all about management, but Max Verstappen was very quick, he was pushing a lot at the start, so I was just trying to control my tires to attack at the end. Then we had a little fight with Carlos Sainz Jr and yeah I started to push, I was winning a bit but it was really close overall. For the race, I hope to put more pressure on Max Verstappen. I count on the help of Carlos Sainz Jr for that. »
Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Ferrari) – 3rd
“I had a good start, then I got involved in a few fights with Charles Leclerc at turn 3. It was nice, it was fun, as it should be! It was fun competition. I probably overheated my tires driving in the wake of Charles Leclerc. It forced me to slow my pace. We need to improve our pace in the race, because Max Verstappen seemed better than us today (Saturday) at the start of the effort. Then we somewhat caught up with it. The race will be longer and we will use both types of rubber. Everything can happen. »
George Russell (GBR/Mercedes) – 4th
“I could have watched television and seen Lewis Hamilton fight with the Haas I was so lonely. It was quite strange. I thank the whole team who did an incredible job to restore the two cars. They were given a lot of work yesterday (Friday). The performance was not what we thought we were getting. You have to understand where you can improve for tomorrow (Sunday). Sergio Pérez, from what we are currently seeing, he is on a similar pace to ours. He was very fast and before the race we thought he would finish 10th and he is much closer to the front four. I think we may have our chance against him but it will be a great day to understand and progress. »
Sergio Pérez (MEX/Red Bull Racing) – 5th
“I would have already been happy with sixth place, fifth place is a good result and I even hoped to be able to finish fourth! I think I will be able to fight tomorrow (Sunday) starting from this position. There are things that we can take away from this sprint in view of the race. »
Esteban Ocon (FRA / Alpine) – 6th
“It’s a satisfying result. I think we had a great race. We were a bit alone because, inevitably, things were going too fast in front. We were a little faster than those behind me so we were able to dig a hole straight away. It’s just because we stop in the deceleration lap due to a small problem. We have to look at what happened. It was hot, not much was missing. Reliability is tough for everyone right now. With these new cars, everyone has pushed the regulations to the limit, so have we. So far, we haven’t had too many problems. We have a very fast car. I trust the team to solve the problem
Pierre Gasly (FRA/AlphaTauri) – 15th
“I didn’t hurt myself. Afterwards, the flat bottom was broken on the left of the car. I haven’t seen the footage yet so I don’t know exactly what happened. I simply had a contact, I found myself in the opposite direction of the track. It is clear that sprint races have never worked for us. After all, it’s not a matter of bad luck. We’ll have to see what happened but I don’t have an answer. Race direction said it was a race fact. It is extremely unfortunate. We started in the Top 10 and, from the first corner, my race was over. »
Sources: official Formula 1 interviews, Canal+
