Lando Norris wants to keep Ferrari and Racing Point in his mirrors after his best qualifying in Formula 1 at the Austrian Grand Prix.
The McLaren driver would clinch fourth on the grid at the Red Bull Ring, beating the Red Bull of Alex Albon on his final timed lap in Q3.
And that position could yet become third with Lewis Hamilton under investigation for failing to slow under yellow flags and track limits, though only the former would likely see a grid drop.
But while Norris might find himself hanging out amongst the top three teams, he admits the main focus for himself and McLaren has been on the ‘Pink Mercedes’.
“We had our expectations of where we thought we want to be, and from the very beginning the Racing Points have been extremely quick,” he told Sky Sports post-session.
“We never thought we would be in with a chance of beating them or getting close to them, but in qualifying the car started to come alive and I felt much better.
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“This track last year was really good for us, we had confidence in the car and it suits us, so hopefully the race tomorrow goes well,” Lando added.
“We have two weekends of this, so hopefully we can repeat ourselves.”
The other big takeaway from qualifying is McLaren, Racing Point and Renault all have caught Ferrari at the start of the season, with Charles Leclerc only seventh and Sebastian Vettel 11th.
Norris though does feel they will be stronger and Sunday and that’s why his focus may be on consolidation rather than progress.
“They were definitely quicker than us on Friday, which is why we weren’t expecting this at all,” he said initially, still on Racing Point.
“I 100% take it for now, but as much as I’ll be looking ahead in the race and trying to go forward I think there are a lot of [fast] cars behind, Ferrari especially, their race pace is very strong.
“For some reason, their qualifying pace is a long way off, but so was Racing Point’s. They have a good car, a lot of downforce, so I think they can look after their tyres slightly better than us.
“It’s going to be a difficult job but if I can stay around Ferrari then I will be happy.
“The car feels nice, I have good confidence, it’s our best position for many years in qualifying, but the race is another story.”
