Dunne 'grateful' for 'pretty special' McLaren outing in Austria after impressive fourth in FP1

Alex Dunne has hailed his Formula 1 practice debut as "something pretty special" after finishing only fractionally slower than the sister McLaren of Oscar Piastri during FP1 ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix.

The 19-year-old Irishman leads the Formula 2 standings after taking two Feature race wins so far this season, but got the chance to drive McLaren's MCL39 in his role as a development driver with the team.

Although Dunne previously sampled McLaren's 2023 challenger and underwent simulator running, this was his first time in an official F1 session.

Despite his relative lack of experience, Dunne posted the fourth fastest time at the Red Bull Ring in FP1, less than a tenth behind championship leader Piastri in the sister McLaren, and just over two tenths down on George Russell's session-best.

"I don't even know where to start," said Dunne after the session. "Super happy, I think it's safe to say it went pretty well.

"I think we knew going through the session that the goal wasn't necessarily for performance it was more to help out with the car, help Lando [Norris] and just help the team improve as much as they can for FP2, FP3 and then onwards into the weekend.

"So to have the pace that I had and show what I'm capable of on the F1 stage is something pretty special, so massive thank you to McLaren and everyone for the opportunity. I'm extremely grateful."

McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella was impressed by Dunne's performance, not only because of his speed but also that he was able to help the team develop the car, which featured a new suspension set-up.

This in turn helped regular driver Lando Norris once he got back behind the wheel of his car, before topping FP2 ahead of Piastri.

"I think we have to acknowledge that he [Dunne] has gone through quite an extensive plan of testing with some new parts, with some rake work, some adjustments on the steering wheel that we don't see on TV but definitely keeps the drivers very busy," Stella told Sky Sports F1.

"Alex has been quite diligent and impressive. Then he also had the chance to show some speed and no surprise, he's a fast driver.

"I think we need to be a bit careful looking at the lap times because his time came later on in the stint when the fuel was down but I think encouraging and impressive in terms of Alex himself and also I think a good session for McLaren."