Piastri steals Sprint pole from Norris: "I'll try to win, obviously"

It's almost a surprise pole position for Oscar piastriboth Lando Norris was dominant in this Sprint qualifying. The Australian took the best time in SQ3 in the final moments, on his last attempt, by just 29 thousandths of a second ahead of his teammate. The double Grand Prix winner seemed to be behind the Briton, however, falling three to five tenths behind in each session. However, the 23-year-old driver put in a sensational, error-free lap to steal pole from Lando Norris, while the latter made a mistake in the first sector and aborted his final lap.

PIASTRI TAKES 1ST PLACE FROM NORRIS 🇧🇷

The Australian will start ahead of his teammate in the sprint race tomorrow! Will he help him? 💪

Max Verstappen will start 4th, surrounded by Ferrari ! Your prediction? #BrazilGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/H2aSaVixeA

— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) November 1, 2024

Oscar Piastri has secured his second Sprint pole of his career after the one obtained in Qatar last year. The Australian, who struggled in qualifying in Austin and Mexico, is therefore ideally making up for it in Brazil… but he knows that alongside him on the front row, Lando Norris will have priority in view of the Drivers' Championship. If the two McLaren come out ahead of Senna's S, the Australian will certainly have a little message on his radio to let his teammate pass. Nevertheless, Oscar Piastri does not have his head on that yet and his objective for the Sprint race is clear: to win.

Oscar Piastri (McLaren), poleman for the Sprint in Brazil : “It was a tough session. I felt good at the beginning, and then the grip was very variable throughout the session. With the new track this year, it’s quite difficult to see where you’re going, even more so when you’re on a fast lap. It’s a real challenge, but I’m happy to qualify on pole for the Sprint. My first lap wasn’t exceptional and I knew there were a few places I could improve. The second lap was good, the tyres held. Very, very happy and looking forward to starting from the top.”

“I’m going to try to win, obviously, that’s the first thing I think about. We’ll see. It’s going to be a very different Sprint compared to last year with the resurfacing, so we’ll see what the temperatures are, the weather… But I’m starting from the best possible position, so I’ll make sure it stays that way!”

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