Rand Norris says his victory at the Austrian Grand Prix allows Canadian errors to be placed behind him despite the stressful nature of his fight with teammate Oscar Piastri.
McLaren allowed the two drivers to race each other in the Red Bull Ring, and Piastri put pressure on Norris throughout the first stint.
“Back the line at the end – it was awesome!” Norris said. “But there was a lot of fun along the way, especially with Oscar in the first stint. Some close moments, some good fights. I looked in the mirror from turn 1 and rapped all the way through turn 3 and three. It certainly was stressful.
“It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but it was a good fight between us. It was a pretty long race from that point on. I didn’t have a nice gap, so Oscar continued on with the next two stints.
“We just had a good fight. We had a couple in the past. We were allowed. They probably didn’t last as long as this weekend.
“I think we both knew what to expect from each other. We both want to race hard. It goes in both directions and of course we have to put Montreal behind us and behind me.
“There have been some close moments, but I hope Andrea (Stella) and the pit walls are just too sweaty.”
Norris says the victory – the third victory of the season is the result of a no-fault weekend and a lot of hard work behind the scenes.
“It certainly is fulfilling for me. It gives me confidence,” he said. “To be honest, you don’t have to prove anything or prove anything to anyone. I like to prove things to myself. Perhaps more than anything, it was a good, clean weekend after FP2. I was very comfortable, very comfortable on the car and performed as needed.
“I had a beautiful weekend. …I couldn’t do it before, and the pace was always there at certain points. There were several different reasons for different things, but today and yesterday certainly came to do the work I did and I’m pretty pleased.
“But it’s not easy. It’s not coming just because things get better this weekend. I’m doing a lot of work, I do more work with my simulator team and my own team than I’ve been off the track.
“I’m trying to improve everything I can. I’m off track. I think it’s a more positive thing to see a lot of them pay off right away. It’s a good step in the right direction (but) I still need more.
