Watch emotional moment Alex Dunne reunites with family after living ‘little boy's dream' on Formula 1 debut in Austria
ALEX DUNNE shared a tender moment with his family after living "a little boy's dream" on his Formula 1 debut with McLaren.
The
GP
.
1
Alex Dunne made his F1 debut with McLaren at the Austrian GP
Credit: Alamy Live News
He more than lived up to the billing,
driving
fourth fastest in the session.
Dunne's finished less than a tenth of a second behind teammate and
Championship
leader
Oscar
Piastri.
After crossing the finish line at the Red Bull Ring, he sent an emotional message of thanks to the
He said: "'A little boy's dream came true, and this is definitely the best day of my life.
Read More on Alex Dunne
'Thank you everyone for letting me do this, and thanks to Lando as well for trusting me with his car.'
When he got back to the garage,
the Irishman
was greeted by his
family
, with hugs aplenty, while he was congratulated by his brother who was wearing an Offaly
jersey
.
By driving in
English-born Firman raced under an Irish licence for
Most read in Football
Dunne is also the first driver born on the island of
And he is the first born in the Republic since Tommy Byrne, who took part in two grands prix with backmarker Theodore in 1982.
Lando Norris punished by F1 bosses with five-second penalty after being snitched on by rival Max Verstappen
Lando Norris retook the
seat
from Dunne for FP2 and FP3.
Commenting after the session, Dunne said: "I don't even know where to start.
"Super, super happy. i think it is safe to say it went pretty well.
"We knew going through the session that the goal wasn't necessarily performance, it was more to help out with the car, help Lando, and just help the team improve as much as they can for FP2, FP3 and then onwards into the weekend.
"To have the pace and show what I am capable of on the F1 stage is something pretty special."
Dunne's
star
has been rising since making his F2 debut under the McLaren banner in March.
He made a dream start to the 2025 season by becoming the first Irish driver to win an F2
race
with victory at Bahrain in April.
And after being involved in a dramatic 11-car crash in Monaco last month, he bounced back by climbing 17 places in Barcelona's sprint race to finish second.
That podium finish alongside winner Richard Verschoor and third-placed Rafael Villagomez saw Dunne take the outright lead in the F2 standings, further growing his reputation within McLaren.
He will also take part in F2 in Austria, with qualifying starting just over two hours after stepping out of Lando's car.
Dunne then has the F2 sprint race on Saturday and Sunday's feature race.
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