Formula One preview: Austrian Grand Prix

Rohan Brown
Jun 25
6 min read

Written by Rohan Brown, edited by Kashish Goel

This week, Formula One returns to the Red Bull Ring - home to the Red Bull Formula One team - for the 39th Austrian Grand Prix held at the Red Bull Ring. Last year’s race remains fresh in the minds of many fans, particularly the incident between Lando Norris and Max Verstappen at Turn Three.

After that, George Russell claimed victory after capitalising on the Norris-Verstappen incident, and maintained the gap to Oscar Piastri and Carlos Sainz behind to win with a few laps until the end of the race.

The circuit

Originally built in 1969 (then called the Österreichring) to replace the Zeltweg Airfield circuit, it was later transformed into the Red Bull Ring (called the A1-Ring until 2003) in the winter of 1995 to 1996 in order to become a more modern and shorter track. The Red Bull Ring then held its first F1 Grand Prix in 1997, which was won by the Williams driver, Jacques Villeneuve.

Measuring at a distance of 4.318 kilometres (2.683 miles), the Red Bull Ring comprises many fast corners and three DRS zones, of which the main overtaking zones will be turns three, four and the straights.

In terms of the tyre compounds at this week’s race, this has not been revealed - but last year, the C3, C4 and C5 compounds were used (these are the softer tyre compounds compared to C1 and C2 in supplier Pirelli’s lineup).

The 2024 Austrian Grand Prix was characterised by the battle between Norris and Verstappen across the weekend. In the sprint race, the McLaren driver briefly passed the reigning champion on lap three but lost it immediately, which in turn allowed his teammate, Oscar Piastri, to capitalise on the opportunity and seize second place.

Building on this, in the race, the battle between Verstappen and Norris began on lap 52, where the McLaren driver closed up to Verstappen after he suffered a slow six-second pit stop. Moving onto lap 59 out of 70, Norris overtook Verstappen off track but had to give the place back, he attempted the same on lap 63 but failed - a successive attempt on lap 64 led to the collision between the championship rivals.

The Dutch driver had a puncture and was later penalised by the stewards, whilst Norris had to retire from the race due to severe damage to the car stemming from the incident.

Storylines

1. Will George Russell secure back-to-back wins in Austria?

The Mercedes driver will enter this round off the back of a controlled victory in Canada, where he was able to effectively convert another pole position at Canada to his first victory at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. With the momentum he brings into this weekend, Russell could certainly win this weekend.

The driver with pole position has won five out of the seven recent Grands Prix at the Red Bull Ring (RBR), with the most recent being Verstappen in 2023. With a pole to victory conversion rate of 37% (14 wins from 38 races held), having pole position is a helpful ace, but not necessary to dominate.

Thus, Russell could achieve back-to-back wins, with or without starting first on the grid.

2. A turning point in the fight for the drivers’ championship?

There is currently a 22-point gap between Piastri and Norris in the drivers’ championship after the Canadian Grand Prix, with both McLaren drivers failing to appear for the first time in the 2025 season.

This has been a dominant teammate battle throughout the season, with Piastri winning five races and Norris twice. Despite this, Piastri is leading 6-4 against his teammate in both the qualifying and Grand Prix results.

Therefore, Austria could certainly be a turning point. If Norris fails to outscore his teammate, it could prove to be one of the nails in the coffin for his title charge, whereas if Piastri outscores Norris, his championship is not far away.

3. Could this be a record-breaking weekend for Max Verstappen [again]?

The RBR is one of many circuits on the 2025 calendar where Max Verstappen holds numerous records [which could be broken]. For example, he holds the record for the most wins (five), having won there consecutively in 2018 and 2019. Additionally, Verstappen is one of only two drivers (the other being Jo Stiffert) to have achieved a grand slam in Austria (winning from pole position, leading every lap of the race and setting the fastest lap) in 2021.

Building on this, if Verstappen is able to secure another Grand Slam at the RBR, he would be the first ever driver to do so, whilst potentially extending his record of fastest laps to five.

4. What does James Vowles’s new contract mean for Williams?

Williams Team Principal James Vowles signed a new contract which extends his time at the Grove-based team for a few more years. Since joining in January 2023, he has overseen the rebuilding of the most successful teams in F1 history.

Under his leadership this season, Williams currently find themselves in fifth place in the constructors’ championship with 55 points, which puts them on track to equal their best result (in 2016). So Vowles’s extended time at Williams means they are setting themselves up for the future and potentially increased success.

5. Will Mercedes build on their Canadian success?

Last round in Canada symbolised the team’s best result of the season, consolidating their position in second in the constructors’ championship. Despite a handful of podiums before, the Brackley-based team has proven that they are competitive, as they were last year at Canada amongst other venues.

Taking last year into account, it was in the races after that in which Mercedes had a string of strong performances, such as Lewis Hamilton’s ninth win at Silverstone. So Mercedes has a high chance of building on their success, granted they have a successful weekend.

Past winners

When the Austrian Grand Prix took place in the Österreichring, Alain Prost won three times (1983, 1985 and 1986). In 1986, Prost set the record for the longest gap to win a race in Austria, with Michele Alboreto in second, one lap behind.

Moving forward to more recent years, Nico Rosberg won the 2014 Austrian Grand Prix with a gap of 1.932 seconds to teammate Lewis Hamilton - but the weekend was more notable for Williams securing a front row lockout, with Felipe Massa in pole position and Valtteri Bottas in second place.

Winner picks

1. Lando Norris

Despite a severe setback Norris encountered with his incident with teammate Oscar Piastri, the British driver is down but not out. Furthermore, if Norris is able to secure pole (and convert it to his third win on Sunday), it would be his 12th pole position with McLaren, making him surpass Kimi Räikkönen for having the fifth most pole positions with McLaren.

Therefore, regardless of the last round’s setback, Norris has a high chance of rebuilding his drivers’ championship charge if he can produce a strong result this weekend.

2. Oscar Piastri

The Australian driver is in a prime position to capitalise on this week’s race, as he is leading the drivers’ championship, as well as building a reputation for being calm under pressure - a quality his McLaren teammate has struggled with so far.

If Piastri continues to lead the championship after Austria, he will be the first Australian driver to lead the drivers’ championship for as many as seven consecutive races since Jack Brabham between the 1966 French and South African Grands Prix - a feat that will almost certainly be replicated by the McLaren driver.

3. George Russell

George Russell could also win this week’s race as he brings the momentum after victory in Canada last week, and especially because Mercedes have shown historically that the RBR is a track they can dominate at under the right conditions.

Furthermore, the British driver has shown with multiple podiums and a race victory this season that he is a driver who can pick up the pieces of other drivers’ bad fortune (such as last year’s race) and convert it into a strong result for himself.