Piastri warns Verstappen ahead of race: 'We will be smart'

F1 News

Piastri reaction after qualifying in Hungary
20 July at 16:46
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  • Estéban den Toom

Oscar Piastri is the lucky number two in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Australian was narrowly slower than teammate Lando Norris, but he and his McLaren were faster than Max Verstappen, who has to start Sunday's race from P3. Piastri reacted after qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix, and was very happy.

Piastri on qualifying

The battle for pole position at the Hungaroring was blood-curdling, as Norris, Piastri and Verstappen were all within five hundredths. "It’s the first one-two in qualifying for McLaren for a very long time, so I’m very happy. Of course when I miss out by two hundredths you think of all the little things you can do a bit better but it’s an amazing result for the team," Piastri began after qualifying.

"We had a bit of a tricky day on my side yesterday so it was nice to bounce back this morning. This afternoon in qualy wasn’t easy, there was a lot of decisions on the fly and to end up with both cars on the front row was an amazing result. The second lap was honestly pretty good. I’ve already seen where I was a little bit slower and you think I could have done this or that a little better. It’s still a good lap and I’m happy with my day’s work," Piastri continued.

Piastri on Sunday's race

Asked about Sunday's race, Piastri explained. "It’s a long run down to Turn One so it’s everything to play for. A lot of points are on the table. Of course I want to get into the lead, but we have both cars on the front row and we have a big task ahead of us trying to win this championship as a team"

Sunday afternoon's race will feature an all-orange front row of the grid. It is up to Piastri to stay ahead of Verstappen at the first corner at the Hungaroring. The Dutchman will start the race from third place. Piastri warns him in advance. " We’ll be smart. We’ve got a very quick car that’s been working extremely well this weekend. We want to keep it one-two."