F1 Today | Alonso speaks his truth on McLaren's pace, Russell narrowly avoids a penalty

Lando Norris stunned the field by taking pole position at the Austrian Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Charles Leclerc and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen found himself a full second off the pace—an unexpected result, especially at Red Bull’s home circuit. Despite multiple upgrades to the RB21 since the dominant season opener in Bahrain, Red Bull once again failed to match McLaren’s qualifying performance.

Fernando Alonso weighed in on the growing performance gap, warning that the difference could widen further during the race. Speaking to GPblog, Alonso highlighted Norris and McLaren's superior tyre management and race pace, saying they’re “in another category.”

While qualifying may allow others to get closer, he suggested McLaren’s dominance will become even more apparent on Sunday.

George Russell was called to the stewards after a pit lane incident in qualifying, where he was released into the path of Max Verstappen. The Mercedes driver failed to see Verstappen approaching and was summoned for a hearing at 17:45 to explain the situation.

Ultimately, Russell escaped any significant penalty, receiving only a reprimand from the stewards. Verstappen will therefore retain his P7 starting position. The stewards acknowledged that Russell’s visibility was limited and noted that a clutch slip caused his car to lurch forward unintentionally. Mercedes also admitted they could have handled the release more carefully.