“This 100th victory is a pleasant basis for us to come to Austria. Of course we want to be successful again in Austria. But the opponents are getting closer,” said the Red Bull consultant. “There is also a sprint race. That means a certain amount of uncertainty because there is only one training session for vehicle set-up. Then it’s straight into the qualifications. It’s not that easy, but we’re still optimistic.”
Adding to the uncertainty is the rain expected around Spielberg on Friday, Saturday and, to a lesser extent, Sunday. Already two weeks ago in Canada, heavy showers at the beginning of the weekend caused nerves fluttering among the team officials and turbulent scenes in practice and qualifying.
APA/AFP/Timothy A. Clary Scenes like the ones in Canada could also exist in Styria
Sprints “more and more hectic and complex”
In a sprint race, the flow of a race weekend is even more fragmented. After qualifying on Friday (5:00 p.m.), the sprint shootout continues on Saturday (12:00 p.m.), the sprint itself follows in the afternoon (4:30 p.m.). The Grand Prix takes place on Sunday (3 p.m.). There is only one practice session on Friday (1.30 p.m., all sessions live on ORF1) to set up the cars. “This is the second sprint race of the season and they are always more hectic and complex than a normal race. The weather also looks a bit unpredictable, so it will definitely add some variety,” said Verstappen.
TV
ORF program at the Spielberg GP
In any case, these uncertainties offer the potential for surprises, which should not least please neutral viewers. Red Bull’s Achilles’ heel in the past three races has been the team’s dependence on double world champion Verstappen. While the Dutchman celebrated four wins in a row, teammate Sergio Perez messed up three qualifying sessions and had to roll up the field from behind in the races. He missed the podium three times in a row and is already 69 points behind Verstappen. Aston Martin veteran Fernando Alonso is only nine points behind the Mexican in the World Championship standings. When asked if he could outperform Perez in the World Cup, Alonso said succinctly: “Yes.”
Perez hopes for a repeat
After all, Perez won the first sprint of the season in Baku months ago. “I want to do the same thing again, but I know I have to improve to do it,” said the 33-year-old. “’Checo’ has to catch himself and deliver in qualifying and the corresponding races so that he can secure his second place. That is the focus,” emphasized Marko.
GEPA/XPB Images/Batchelor In the first sprint of the year, Perez (center) was ahead
Perez has two more years under contract but is still under pressure. Red Bull’s chance of winning would be greatly reduced given the current starting position, should Verstappen ever have a mechanical or other problem. Especially given that Aston Martin, Mercedes and Ferrari are making progress with their upgrade packages.
Mercedes sees itself on the right track
“I think we’re making slow progress,” was the assessment of Mercedes star Lewis Hamilton. “Max was still a bit far away, but we’re going in the right direction.” Mercedes boss Toto Wolff said before his home race: “We want to build on the momentum that we’ve picked up in the past two races and our positive development continue by car. At this track the W14 should work better than in Canada, but we will not take anything for granted.”
The F1 Grand Prix in Austria live on ORF
Verstappen is a record winner in Spielberg with four wins, including a success at the Styrian Grand Prix during the double events in the Corona period. The 36th Austrian Grand Prix in the Formula 1 World Championship is also the first race at the Red Bull Ring after the death of long-standing company boss Dietrich Mateschitz, who died last year.
“He would be incredibly proud because we’ve never had such a series, such a successful run,” said Marko. “But life goes on. We work at high pressure and full of energy, that’s what he wants. We can be sure that he would be completely satisfied.” According to Marko, a curve should not be named after the Red Bull founder: “That would not be in his interest.”