Formula One Gradebook: Austrian Grand Prix
- Maham Mir
- 6 hours ago
- 10 min read
Formula One returned to the ever-exciting Red Bull Ring for an action-packed Austrian Grand Prix. Nestled amidst the Styrian hills, the track is a true test for both drivers and cars as the 10 high-speed corners and long straights all come together to create the shortest lap-time on the calendar.
For the first time since the season opener in Melbourne, George Russell took to the top step of the podium ahead of Max Verstappen in the upgraded Red Bull car. Converting his 11th career pole position into his seventh career Grand Prix win, the British driver returned to second place in the Drivers’ Championship standings and is now 40 points behind his teammate.
Across the grid, teams brought various upgrades to their car as they hoped to maximise points-scoring opportunities in Europe. Whilst teams like Cadillac struggled in the hotter conditions with this weekend being declared as a Heat Hazard by the FIA, talking points were dominated by the floundering Ferrari team and the resurgence of Red Bull at their home Grand Prix. Here’s how all 22 drivers performed on race day:
Mercedes
George Russell: A+
A race win that arrived just in time, Russell finally had the fairytale ending to a weekend that he was denied last time out in Barcelona. Having taken a controversial pole position on Saturday, with a significant gap to second place despite lifting to abide by the yellow flag regulations, the British driver looked completely in control even when being hunted down by the Red Bull behind.
Despite being beaten for pace in comparison to his teammate over the course of the 71 laps of the Grand Prix, Russell held onto his lead and crossed the line just over a second ahead of second place. There can be no doubt that one of this year’s championship hopefuls will be aiming to make this race win the start of a long trend to get him back in front.
Kimi Antonelli: A-
After enduring his worst qualifying of the season so far because of confusion over the yellow flags, Antonelli had a bit of work to do starting in fourth if he hoped to challenge for the lead of the race and the eventual win as well. When the five lights went out, the championship leader found it difficult to settle as he went off the track three times in the first few corners of the opening lap.
Although the timing of his pit stop was not opportune as the Virtual Safety Car (VSC) was called just as he exited the pits, Antonelli made the most of his fresh tyres. During his second stint, the Italian driver steadily made progress on the cars ahead and finished the weekend on the podium.
Ferrari
Charles Leclerc: B-
It wasn’t another weekend to forget for Charles Leclerc although it started on an optimistic note after an incredible qualifying performance where he fought for a front-row start after missing out on pole position. The Ferrari package was not meant to be competitive this weekend, however Leclerc was optimistic about what the team would be able to achieve in Sunday’s Grand Prix.
However, the story on Sunday was one of reality rather than optimism as Leclerc struggled off the line and never recovered due to the car’s limited pace. Struggling compared to the pace of his teammate, Leclerc was unable to do any better than eighth when he crossed the line. With the last few weekends not going his way, the gap between Leclerc and his teammate is at 46 points and the Monegasque driver languishes in sixth in the Drivers’ standings.
Lewis Hamilton: B+
After his first Grand Prix win in two seasons, there’s no doubt that Hamilton would’ve been hoping to replicate his success from last weekend but unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be on this occasion. Although he was in the mix at the race start, things settled quickly for the seven-time former world champion.
With a close battle with Verstappen, reminiscent of his 2021 championship battle, it became clear that Ferrari didn’t have the straight-line speed to challenge for any further ahead than what they were. Even with some alternative strategy choices, Hamilton and Ferrari weren’t able to bring themselves back into contention and crossed the line in fifth, no doubt the best they could do given the pace of the other cars around them.
McLaren
Lando Norris: B
It was another difficult weekend for the reigning world champion on a track that he has historically found plenty of success at. From the offset, it seemed clear that McLaren wouldn’t have the pace to battle with the front-runners despite an optimistic showing during FP2.
After a difficult start from sixth, Norris was overtaken by his teammate and from then onwards, it was a lonely race for the British driver as he was unable to make an impression on the faster cars ahead, and ultimately finished seventh.
Oscar Piastri: B+
In the other McLaren garage, Piastri had a slightly easier time of things. Although he qualified behind Norris, the Australian driver was able to get a better start off the line and overtake his teammate. As a result, he put himself in the mix of all the action as he battled with the Ferraris for position.
He recorded his best result since the Miami Grand Prix earlier this season, with a fourth placed finish. Utilising the upgrades to the Mercedes engine designed to improve reliability which his teammate was not able to run, Piastri proved that when he is able to go racing in 2026, he maximises the opportunities given to him.
Red Bull
Max Verstappen: A
Driving the heavily upgraded Red Bull for their home Grand Prix, Verstappen had a much better weekend compared to his previous races so far in this new regulatory era. There can be no doubt that the new Red Bull had unlocked some performance and pace, however the chance for a potential front-row start was lost when Verstappen found the wall at Turn 9.
On race day, a potential race win was on the cards for the Dutch driver and he finished the race less than two seconds behind Russell.
Isack Hadjar: B+
Having qualified eighth, despite feeling uncomfortable in the car even until his final timed lap in Q3 on Saturday, Isack Hadjar had yet another excellent recovery drive. Although unable to match the pace of Verstappen ahead, the French driver has been able to put in solid performances so far in his first season at the senior team, as he secured sixth place in Austria.
Haas
Oliver Bearman: B
Despite the excellent start to the season, Austria became Oliver Bearman’s sixth points-less finish of 2026 so far. Having qualified in 13th, Bearman and Haas had it all to do on Sunday if they hoped to move themselves into the points positions but this was not meant to be.
Compared to the upgraded cars behind including the Audis, Bearman’s Haas simply did not have the performance needed to move forward. Despite good timing with the VSC, Bearman was still not able to make an impression and crossed the line one position down from where he started in 14th.
Esteban Ocon: B-
In a similar vein to his teammate, Esteban Ocon also had another lacklustre weekend in Austria as he failed to qualify and finish in the top 10. But Ocon’s showing in Austria also revealed how much more on the backfoot he is compared to his teammate again this weekend.
Despite an impressive launch and briefly moving into the top 10 in the first few laps, Ocon was not able to hang onto the position and found himself slipping further down the field as he got overtaken by the faster cars around him. Similar to the story of Bearman’s Grand Prix, Ocon finished one position lower from where he started and crossed the line in 16th.
Racing Bulls
Arvid Lindblad: A
2026’s only rookie was disappointed with the performance he showcased during qualifying having been the slowest of the 10 cars on that occasion. But, there can be no doubt that he more than made up for his own disappointment after a great performance during the race.
Like many other drivers on the grid, Arvid Lindblad reported issues with his brakes, however this did not stop him battling with his teammate for position. In the end, after having not “the easiest race inside the car”, the rookie driver came home in 10th for his fifth points-finish of 2026 so far.
Liam Lawson: A
In difficult conditions with the heat and managing brake temperatures from the offset, Liam Lawson managed to put together a commendable drive. During the opening laps, Lawson reported that his brakes were on fire however the issue was not terminal and he was able to continue racing.
Lawson was able to hang on to his position despite the pressure applied from his teammate and the Audi pair behind to cross the line where he started in ninth.
Audi
Gabriel Bortoleto: B
The upgraded Audi put on an impressive performance however fell short of scoring points again as Gabriel Bortoleto was forced to settle for an 11th place finish. Despite an impressive getaway on the soft compound tyre, tyre degradation and a lack of pace compared to the fast cars behind meant that the Brazilian driver was quickly overtaken.
Nico Hülkenberg - B
Like Bortoleto, Nico Hülkenberg made the most of his upgraded Audi but had to accept another point-less finish. Contrastingly to his teammate, the German driver had good race pace but stated that “starting further back made it difficult to convert that into a result”.
Having crossed the line in 12th, two positions up from where he started in 14th, there was plenty for the team to learn from the 71 laps around the Red Bull Ring.
Alpine
Pierre Gasly: B-
Pierre Gasly’s streak of scoring in every Grand Prix he has finished so far this season came to an end in Austria after his self-proclaimed “toughest [race] of the season”. Starting on the fringes of the points in 11th, Gasly had no answer to Bortoleto on the soft tyres and was unable to make up the position that he lost.
Dealing with higher levels of tyre degradation compared to those around him, Gasly further lost out when he committed to a three-stop strategy which cost him additional time in the pit-lane. In the final stages of the Grand Prix, the French driver found himself overtaken by an Audi yet again but this time it was Hülkenberg, to cross the line in 13th.
Franco Colapinto: B
Like his teammate, the overall lack of pace in the Alpine this weekend meant that Franco Colapinto was already starting on the backfoot compared to those around him. Starting in 16th after a less than ideal qualifying session, an additional Boost issue on the opening lap meant that it was always going to be an uphill battle.
In the end, Colapinto finished the race in 15th and a position higher than he qualified but there’s no doubt that the team will have a lot of learning to do ahead of the next race in this double header.
Williams
Carlos Sainz: C
Carlos Sainz’s weekend was brought to a premature end after he suffered his first mechanical retirement of the season due to a suspected power unit issue. However even before this, it was far from smooth sailing for the Spaniard who was not able to make an impression in the practice or qualifying sessions either.
Alex Albon: C
After being unable to progress into Q2 and starting behind his teammate in 17th, Alex Albon was set for a difficult Sunday which was exacerbated by the struggles of the FW48 in the hot weather conditions. With the car being particularly vulnerable to tyre degradation issues, Albon spoke about issues with the car sliding and a lack of grip over his radio.
For the most part, the Williams driver was running his own race and the team quickly turned to using this as another learning opportunity as points were clearly out of reach. In the closing stages of the Grand Prix, Albon hit a bollard onto the track but he continued in the race and ultimately finished in 17th.
Cadillac
Sergio Pérez: C-
In a string of disappointing results, the Mexican driver suffered his second mechanical retirement of the season so far after an issue with his brakes meant he was forced to come into the pits. As the second retirement of the race, only behind his teammate, this marked the team’s first double DNF result of the season so far.
Cadillac arrived this weekend with an extensive upgrade package, no doubt hoping to make progress into the midfield battle. However, far from solving their reliability issues, both cars were in-fact still struggling on Friday. The American outfit will no doubt hope that Silverstone will yield better results on both sides of their garage.
Valtteri Bottas: C-
On an unfortunate weekend, Valtteri Bottas struggled with his third-consecutive DNF and his fourth of the season overall. Although it was a weekend full of issues for Cadillac, the silver lining is that Bottas demonstrated flashes of pace when he was able to put together laps across all three days of running.
Aston Martin
Fernando Alonso: C-
Only one of the Aston Martin cars took the chequered flag at the Red Bull Ring in 2026 but Alonso did not have an easy time getting to that point. Having started only ahead of his teammate in 21st, the writing was on the wall for the two-time former world champion even before the lights went out on Sunday.
After a lonely race for Alonso, made even worse after the retirement of his teammate, his only moment of notice was the five-second time penalty that he was given after speeding in the pitlane. In the end, Alonso crossed the line three laps down on the race leader and in 18th.
Lance Stroll: C-
On the other side of the garage, Aston Martin’s woes continued as Stroll became the third retirement of the Grand Prix. This is the Canadian driver’s third-consecutive DNF and his fifth of the season so far.
Looking Ahead
For the second race in this second double-header in Europe, F1 will be returning to the iconic and historic Silverstone circuit. With five British drivers on the grid, the most since 2002, the home race spirits will no doubt be high, especially with it being a sprint weekend.
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