The seven biggest talking points from the Austrian Grand Prix

It was only a matter of time, wasn’t it? Having established himself as the closest thing Max Verstappen has to a title challenger this season, Lando Norris has finally gone wheel to wheel in anger with the three-time champ. And it didn’t end well. For either of them.

For so long the Dutchman looked to have the race sewn up, but a slow final pit stop - at which Red Bull bolted on used tyres - allowed the McLaren driver to close in for a last gasp showdown for the win.

Cue drama. Lots of it. Numerous times Norris tried to muscle his way past under braking in Turn 3, and numerous times he was rebuffed. He later claimed Verstappen had been moving under braking; a big no no in F1.

Norris had a misdemeanour of his own: a late lunge in the same corner got him past his rival but a lock-up sent him off the track, earning him a five-second penalty as he’d already chalked up three strikes and a warning for the same offence earlier on.

Another effort saw Lando chop through in precisely the same manner Max had passed Charles Leclerc (at exactly the same corner) for the lead in 2019, but the Red Bull kept the power down off circuit and kept the place.

And then finally, they hit each other. This time Norris tried the outside line, and as Verstappen squeezed him to the edge of the track they banged wheels and each got a puncture for their troubles. Verstappen was handed a 10-second penalty for it but still finished P5; Norris was forced to retire.

Hoo boy. What did you make of all that then?

Wise words indeed from George Russell, who sensed that Max and Lando might tangle this weekend and was perfectly placed to capitalise when they did.

The Mercedes had been running an uneventful race in P3, but no sooner had the frontrunners hit each other did Toto Wolff leap onto the team radio to shout: “George! We can win this!” To which George asked if his boss wouldn’t mind letting him concentrate…

Full focus was required too: assuming the lead with only six laps to go, Russell still had to watch out for the McLaren of Oscar Piastri behind him, with the Aussie running a faster tyre compound for his final stint.

But Russell held on, taking the chequered flag and landing his second career win more than a year and a half after his first in Brazil. That’s now 2-0 to the Briton since becoming Lewis Hamilton’s teammate. Just sayin’.

… only some of it. Having had to rewind the tape on some 1,200 potential track limits violations last year, someone at the FIA decided that - rather than spend several hours watching replays after the race - it’d be a good idea to stick some gravel down at Turns 9 and 10.

It worked. Not perfectly, but it worked. With a natural punishment for running wide the drivers were much tidier throughout the weekend, although Piastri was dismayed to find that his fastest Q3 lap had been deleted, having somehow crossed the white line at Turn 6. That dropped him from P3 to P7 on the grid, and probably cost him a shot at the win on Sunday. Ouch.

Luckily, the 23-year-old saw the amusing side, remarking that his second place trophy - designed to look like the layout of the Red Bull Ring - would remind him where the edges of the track were for next time.

Haas has been lobbing Hail Marys lately; remember them fitting full wets on both cars for the start of the Canadian Grand Prix to brilliant (but brief) effect?

No leaving it to Lady Luck this time though: both Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen were in red hot form in Austria, with the pair emerging side by side and with a strong shout of points after the first pit stops.

For a nervous couple of laps it looked like they might drag each other out of the fight, but they kept it clean and their reward at the end was P6 and P8. Hulkenberg even managed to keep the Red Bull of Sergio Perez behind him. Super job, that.

Haas is now back up to seventh in the constructors’ championship, closing in on RB despite Daniel Ricciardo picking up P9.

This guy gets no luck, does he? Charles Leclerc was sensational when he won on this circuit two years ago - passing Max Verstappen multiple times en route to victory - but he was out of the running about nine seconds into the race after being sandwiched between Piastri and Perez into Turn 1.

That left him needing to pit for a new front wing, and from that point on the Ferrari driver spent the rest of the afternoon playing catch up.

Despite the Ferrari computer apparently suggesting otherwise, Leclerc had to settle for P11, and even that was only on account of Norris DNFing late on. Coupled with the anti-stall and engine shut-down that ruined his sprint race qualifying, yet another weekend to forget for the 26-year-old.

No surprises there, right? Once again Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly made the pit wall sweat it out as they raced tooth and nail for position around the half-way mark.

Ocon - as he always does - defended hard from his teammate, but after both had passed the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso it was Gasly who gained the upper hand as Ocon lost use of the DRS.

Eventually Gasly - whose extended contract with the team was announced in the build-up to the race - powered past, but not before Ocon had made life as difficult as possible through Turn 4 and Turn 5.

Gasly later finished P10, his fourth points finish in a row. Chapeaux.

The Japanese driver’s potty mouth is usually harmless fun, but in Austria he overstepped the line and paid the price for it. 40,000 euros (about £33,900), to be precise.

Frustrated at being held up in qualifying by Sauber’s Zhou Guanyu, the RB driver shouted something unrepeatable in English over the team radio, for which he was summoned to the stewards.

Apparently Tsunoda was very apologetic, having not understood the meaning behind his choice words. He fessed up on social media too and admitted: “This type of language has no place and not tolerated and for that I am sorry.”