Pole position for Oscar Piastri in Spain! The Australian outperformed his teammate Lando Norris and reigning champion Max Verstappen in Barcelona. Moreover, the McLaren driver sent a clear message to all critics who had hoped that the papayas, thanks to the new technical regulations of the FIA, would slow down in Spain. The gap that Piastri pulled to the rest of the field was the largest of the season.
“I’m very satisfied,” said a beaming Piastri after the qualifying round. “It’s been a good weekend. It didn’t start off too well – especially on Friday I was struggling a bit with the car. Fortunately, we were able to find some more pace last night. Today was really great. I managed to drive a few very good laps, so I’m extremely grateful to the team for that. Last year, I had a disastrous qualifying here, so to be standing here now is a great result,” he grinned.
Winning Margin
Piastri pulled a significant gap to teammate Lando Norris with his pole lap. The difference eventually amounted to two-tenths – the largest winning margin of the current season. “I improved quite a bit in the first corner, and there were some points where I – maybe didn’t find a lot of extra time – but where I certainly improved a lot in the first half,” explained the 24-year-old Australian. “In the second half, it was just a matter of finishing the lap neatly. It certainly wasn’t perfect, but with the tyre degradation on this circuit, that’s also very difficult.”
“It’s going to be a very interesting race,” concluded Piastri, who knows that Lando Norris and Max Verstappen are breathing down his neck. “The distance to the first corner is large, so a good start will be very important. That being said, I’m very happy with pole position and I’m looking forward to tomorrow. Hopefully, we can make something beautiful out of it.”
