Formula 1 heads to Spielberg, home for the Austrian Grand Prix, the second race of a triple header on European soil, featuring the third F1 Sprint weekend of the season.
The Red Bull Ring circuit, particularly challenging on the brakes and suspension, spans 4.318km (2.683 miles), one of the shortest on the calendar.
Boasting long straights, it encompasses ten corners, ranging from low to medium, and some very high-speed turns, such as Turns 2, 5, and 8, all taken at full throttle.
Moreover, due to its location in the Styrian mountains, the track features more pronounced elevation changes than Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, precisely 69 meters between the lowest and highest points.
Therefore, the compacted track layout is an invitation to a rollercoaster of a ride, where watching the cars fly with one wheel leaving the ground becomes an extra ingredient of this iconic circuit.
High performance and mechanical grip are key areas engineers work on in the search for the ideal car setup.
Opposite to what we saw last week at the Spanish GP, which poses completely different challenges to Formula One machinery and drivers, Pirelli will provide its softest compounds for the Australian Grand Prix (C3 as Hard, C4 as Medium, and C5 as Soft).
For the third consecutive season, the circuit will host an F1 Sprint weekend event.
On Friday morning, free practice will be followed by Sprint Qualifying, setting the grid for Saturday Sprint.
The format consists of three stages SQ1 (12 minutes), SQ2 (10 minutes), and SQ3, lasting 8 minutes.
The F1 Sprint race runs over 100 kilometers, awarding points to the first eight cars that cross the finish line.
Then, teams and drivers will shift their focus to grand prix qualifying, which shapes the Sunday grid.
On Sunday, the main venue takes place as usual in Spielberg over 71 laps.
Mercedes arrives in Red Bull territory off the back of a solid performance in Barcelona, where seven-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton finished in third place, behind race winner Max Verstappen with Red Bull Racing and Lando Norris, who crossed the finish line second with McLaren.
The Briton recorded his 198th podium finish at the pinnacle of motorsport, his first since the 2023 Mexico Grand Prix.
In that regard, Toto Wolff, CEO of Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 Team, commented: “Lewis scored a well-deserved podium, and George managed his final stint well to take P4. We came away from the weekend with solid points, but we know there is more work to do to be…
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