Race Week in Austria

It's Race Weekend in Spielberg, Austria.

Austria GP History

Formula 1 stops in Spielberg, Austria, for the Austrian Grand Prix, hosted at the Red Bull Ring. Initially named Österreichring, the race circuit hosted the Austrian Grand Prix from 1970 to 1987. It was later rebuilt and renamed the A1-Ring hosted the Grand Prix again from 1997 to 2003.

The inaugural race was held in 1970 and won by Jacky Ickx with Ferrari; nine different winners have since won the race, including the 2000 winner. Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren are technically tied with six wins each in Austria. Max Verstappen leads all-time driver wins with four victories at the Austrian GP. The Austrian Grand Prix is contracted to remain on the Formula 1 calendar until 2030.

About the Circuit:

The Red Bull Ring is a ten-turn, 4.326 km (2.688 mi) racetrack that currently hosts Formula 1, F2, F3, and MotoGP races. The Grand Prix is seventy-one laps.

Purchased by Red Bull's Dietrich Mateschitz in 2004. It was rebuilt and renamed the Red Bull Ring, reopening in 2011. The Red Bull Ring officially hosted F1 in 2014 and has remained a constant fixture on the calendar. Red Bull Ring is considered the home race of the Red Bull Team, and there is never a shortage of orange smoke. With a sixty-eight-ton statue of a giant bull, it is not hard to tell which is the most popular team on the grid.  

One of the most picturesque circuits on the calendar, surrounded by mountains and green landscapes, It’s F1 at the Red Bull Ring

McLaren. Team McLaren has nearly double the points of second-place Mercedes in the constructors ' standings (374: 199) after ten rounds. This team is functioning at full capacity, and it's a two-car race for the title. Oscar leads Lando by 22 points in the driver's title, and Lando needs to apply pressure if he wants to keep Oscar from running away. Oscar is driving as consistently as they get this season, and every minor mistake has huge implications for Lando. The Red Bull Ring should favor McLaren, and a double podium is expected this weekend. However, let's see how the close battling of this circuit affects the race, potentially resulting in some more teammate drama. McLaren is red-hot this season.

Mercedes. Mercedes had a much-needed double-car podium weekend in Canada; George with the win, and Kimi with his first F1 podium in third. George is the most undervalued driver on the grid this season, and I have a hunch George might go back-to-back wins in Canada and Austria. I expect George right there at the front, as Mercedes has turned a bit of a corner in performance standards. Kimi is overcoming a streak of misfortunes and riding high after the podium. All he needs to do is try to stay right behind George and follow that teammate's wake. George is being an excellent teacher this season.

Ferrari. Ferrari can't seem to crack this top boundary around it. With only three podiums combined all season, the team remains in third place in the constructors' standings, demonstrating its consistency but also highlighting its inability to consistently catch up to the front pack—They're off the pace a little, but it's not detrimental just yet. Ferrari could go on a surge leading into summer break; the turnaround needs to happen immediately if they want to compete with Mercedes for second place in the constructors' championship, currently trailing by sixteen points. It feels like it could erupt at any moment, and we see a Ferrari on the top step. At least, that is what all the Tifosi want to see. We are entering a good stretch of familiar tracks for the two Ferrari drivers, both having won at the Red Bull Ring. Coming off the high of the new F1 movie release, co-producer Lewis Hamilton sure would like to have some success on the track to top this boost of momentum.

Red Bull. Max finished second in Canada, behind George and Yuki, who finished out of the points in twelfth. Red Bull has dropped to fourth in the constructors' standings, behind Ferrari, despite having more podiums and wins. This team desperately needs to get both cars back into the top 5 scoring points. A home race for the team, the Red Bull Ring, is owned by the late Dietrich Mateschitz, the founder of Red Bull and a Formula 1 enthusiast who passed away in 2022. This would be an excellent weekend for the team to shake this bad-luck streak. There will be plenty of orange smoke around the circuit this weekend, and expect Max to be fighting at the front. It's time for Yuki to make a statement.

Williams. Alex Albon is coming off back-to-back double DNFs; he's eager to get back to scoring good points. Carlos Sainz has been looking better and better each weekend in the Williams but hasn't had the best luck in the races, only able to get the final point in the last two of three races. We all want to see a double top 5 for Williams, or perhaps even a podium finish. Any weekend could be the Williams statement weekend.  

Haas. Haas is piecing together good race weekends, but it still feels like something is missing. Ollie needs a standout weekend; he showed some real race craft early in the season with three-points finishes but has not had a complete weekend in a few races. This is a good circuit for both drivers; Ollie has a sprint race victory in F2, but it will be his first time in a Formula 1 car. Esteban has quite a few points finishes, including a top 5 finish at the Red Bull Ring. Ollie needs a breakout performance. With no rain in the forecast, this is a straightforward race weekend; Haas will need to bring the heat to fend off a charging VCARB, Aston, and even Stake.

VCARB. VCARB and Haas are tied in the constructors at 28 points. The team is clicking at the moment, and it's scoring points nearly every single weekend. The Austrian GP is no different than any of the past few race weekends, with Isack and Liam both chipping away at the last few points positions. Teams sixth through tenth in the constructors' standings could go either way; whoever digs in and keeps the point streaks going will gradually start building some point cushions. Until then, it heads down for VCARB; they are right in the middle of a constructors' points battle.

Aston Martin. A lot of news has been circulating about Adrian Newey's impact on the Aston Martin program. Alonso is putting together more consistent weekends, while Lance hasn't quite managed a great weekend since his early-season points haul that has carried the team this season. I expect some significant results for Aston soon, very soon, in fact.  

Stake Sauber. Nico kept the pressure on with another eighth-place points finish. At this point, it's hard to describe Nico's ability to get the absolute most out of that car.  Never count out Nico at this point. Bortoleto just needs a bit of luck, and he will follow in his teammate's path. Stake F1 is a lot of fun to watch this season.

Alpine. Alpine feels stagnant at the moment. Entering the fifth race of a supposed five-race contract (unverified rumor), Franco needs a great weekend to silence the doubters. You can never really count out Pierre Gasly; he can score points any weekend the car is good enough. Alpine feels like a mystery at the moment; let's see how this plays out leading into the summer break.