Jul 02, 2023 at 10:57Update: 4 minutes ago
In a weekend that is already extremely successful for Max Verstappen, the last task awaits on Sunday: winning the Austrian Grand Prix. The Dutchman failed to do that a year ago, despite stands full of Orange fans. Ferrari is again the only danger on Sunday.
That risk is relative. The Ferrari drivers are the first to admit that the gap to Red Bull is still large, despite a car that has performed significantly better since the Canadian Grand Prix. Verstappen already dealt with Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz and all his other competitors in both qualifying, the sprint race and, for form, also in the only free practice. From pole, the World Cup leader can try to make it the perfect weekend.
The fact that the Ferrari drivers are around Verstappen is mainly due to Sergio Pérez, who managed to fall outside the top ten for the fourth time in a row in qualifying on Friday.
The drivers are having a hard time with the track limits in Austria. Pérez saw three laps canceled and starts fifteenth this time. In Saturday’s sprint race, he was allowed to start next to Verstappen, who skillfully settled with his teammate after some skirmishes in the opening lap.
1:31 Play button
Race pace still unknown in sprint race weekend
Mercedes has not been doing well in Austria so far, a circuit that clearly does not suit the car of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell. Then we talk about the speed over one lap, because what the Mercedes can do at race pace is unknown.
That applies to all cars. The only free practice on Friday gave little insight into the race simulations. Normally a sprint race on Saturday is already a kind of dress rehearsal that gives enough insight into the relationships, but it started on a wet track on Saturday. On Sunday the chance of rain is small and on a dry track the proportions are probably different again.
Ferrari, for example, is also still in the dark about their race pace, which also applies to Lando Norris. The Briton has been flying high with his improved McLaren all weekend. The question is whether he can, for example, hold off Hamilton who starts right behind him in the race on Sunday, or whether he can fight with the Ferraris. In the wet sprint race, Norris did an excellent job against Leclerc.
Two stopper with hard and medium tyres
Strategy plays a major role in this. Pirelli only prescribes the use of medium and hard tyres. The possible two-stops are medium-hard-medium or medium-hard-hard.
A one-stopper is also possible with a start on medium and then a switch to hard around lap 27-37. The Red Bull, Ferrari and Mercedes drivers all have only one set of hard tires left, so they are strategically less flexible. Two drivers have a new set of soft, which can come in handy with a late safety car: Russell and Zhou Guanyu.
Sunday promises to be a better day in Spielberg than the wet Saturday. There is a 20 percent chance of rain, but normally sunny with some clouds. With a temperature of around 24 degrees, it will be pleasant in the stands for the many Orange fans. The umbrellas and ponchos can go, the sunglasses and sunscreen can appear again.
The Austrian Grand Prix starts at 3 p.m. Fifteen minutes before the race, a minute’s silence is held for Dilano van ‘t Hoff. The eighteen-year-old Dutch driver died in a tragic accident on Saturday at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
The starting lineup:
Max Verstappen (Red Bull) Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) Lando Norris (McLaren) Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) Nico Hülkenberg (Haas F1) Pierre Gasly (Alpine) Alexander Albon (Williams) George Russell (Mercedes) Esteban Ocon (Alpine) Oscar Piastri (McLaren) Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) Zhou Guanyu (Alfa Romeo) Logan Sargeant (Williams) Kevin Magnussen ( Haas F1) Nyck de Vries (AlphaTauri)
2023-07-02 08:57:00
#Preview #Austria #Verstappen #beat #Ferrari
