Karl Verghese finished second in Austria to claim a first IMS podium, holding the same position from the front row through the Season 6 D1 classification.
Jonno converted pole into victory for Williams, while piastrigoat completed the podium for VCARB after starting third.
A clean first reference point
The leading three finished in their grid order: Jonno first, Karl second and piastrigoat third. For Karl, the significance came from turning a front-row start into a result rather than surrendering it.
That result placed Karl second in the first D1 standings on 23 points. Jonno's win supplied 31, setting the initial gap at eight.
The chase begins without a buffer behind it
Austria offers no evidence yet about durability, but it does fix the opening order. Karl leaves as the nearest named challenger to a winner who started and finished first.
A first podium is the personal milestone. Its championship value is equally plain: McLaren begins D1 with a car already attached to the leader's first measurable gap.
