The Austrian Grand Prix brought a lot of entertainment to F1 fans. The everchanging weather made the spectacle even more unpredictable (maybe except for the race winner). It was the second sprint race of the year, with the new sprint shootout format brought in Baku, we were hoping for some surprise results.
After the only free practice session early Friday afternoon, the drivers lined up to put in the all important laps that would set their places for Sunday’s race. Some shock eliminations saw George Russell and Sergio Perez eliminated in Q2 with the Red Bull driver missing out on Q3 for the fourth race running.
Verstappen beat Leclerc to pole by only 0.048s, a very tight qualifying session indeed. It looked good for Ferrari as Sainz lined up on the second row alongside Norris who looked super fast with their upgrades. Shoutouts went to Hulkenberg and Albon who qualified 8th and 10th respectively, putting their teams in good positions for Sunday’s race.
Saturday’s sprint shootout had trickier conditions with a damp/dry session. We had some more surprising eliminations again, with neither Mercedes driver making it to Q3. Hamilton was eliminated in Q1, while Russel was hampered with a hydraulic issue which cut his session short. Verstappen and Perez sealed a front row lockout for the team, but the stars of the show were Norris and Hulkenberg who qualified 3rd and 4th.
In the sprint, Verstappen showed his dominance by finishing 21 seconds ahead of second placed Perez. Sainz impressed as he clinched 3rd place and some important points for Ferrari. Leclerc was not as fortunate and finished 12th, behind a 10th placed Hamilton and 11th placed Piastri. A clever play of strategy, switching to slicks in good time, saw Hulkenberg take some points in P6.
Sunday’s race was a thrilling one as we were treated to lots of on track battles. Verstappen clinched his 5th victory in a row ahead of Leclerc who claimed Ferrari’s 800th podium. Perez had a stellar race, jumping from P15 all the way to a podium position. Sainz defended him for sometime, helping his Ferrari teammate but in the end the Red Bull was superior.
Track limits were a nightmare for many drivers, several 5 second penalties were given during the race and post race there were even more, changing the order of the results.
Aston Martin protested race results and the stewards post race review saw multiple penalties given: Sainz (10s) , Hamilton (10s), Ocon (30s), Gasly (10s), Tsunoda (5s), de Vries (5s), Albon (10s), Sargeant (5s)
Meaning that Sainz was demoted from 4th to 6th, Hamilton from 7th to 8th and Gasly from 9th to 10th. Top 10: Verstappen, Leclerc, Perez, Norris, Alonso, Sainz, Russell, Hamilton, Stroll, Gasly
The British GP this weekend is the second part of the double header, stay tuned!
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