Two weeks on from a double header of races in Monaco and Barcelona, the European leg of the 2026 F1 season continues with the Austrian Grand Prix, kicking off another back-to-back sequence.<\/p>\n
Free Practice 1 and 2 will take place on Friday, June 26, followed by Free Practice 3 and Qualifying on Saturday, June 27, and the Grand Prix itself on Sunday, June 28.<\/p>\n
Vital Statistics<\/p>\n
First Grand Prix \u2013 1964 (Zeltweg)
\nTrack Length \u2013 4.326km
\nLap record \u2013 1m 07.924s, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, 2025
\nMost pole positions \u2013 Max Verstappen (4)
\nMost wins \u2013 Max Verstappen (4)
\nTrivia \u2013 Austria\u2019s Red Bull Ring has the fewest corners on the F1 calendar, with just 10 turns making up the layout
\nPole run to Turn 1 braking point \u2013 243 metres
\nOvertakes completed in 2025 \u2013 81
\nSafety Car probability \u2013 50%*
\nVirtual Safety Car probability \u2013 40%*
\nPit stop time loss \u2013 20.02 seconds (includes 2.5s stop)<\/p>\n
*From the previous 10 races in Austria<\/p>\n
The driver\u2019s verdict<\/p>\n
Jolyon Palmer, former Renault F1 driver: Austria is a picturesque circuit, really undulating, which makes it nice to drive and characterful.<\/p>\n
You\u2019ve got to be careful with the kerbs as it\u2019s very easy to get straddling or to get over some more abrasive kerbs, which can inflict a bit of damage to your car. But beyond that, it\u2019s a short and relatively simple circuit with some hidden technicalities.<\/p>\n
Turn 1 is always quicker than you think it\u2019s going to be, but braking is the order of the day for the first sector. Turn 4, a downhill braking zone, is the easiest one to mess up \u2013 so many drivers end up in the gravel there on the exit.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s overtaking aplenty in Turns 3 and 4, and then the flow through the second half of the lap is really good as it just comes around so quickly. It\u2019s one of the fastest on the calendar and it really feels it at the wheel. You barely get a breath through this Grand Prix.<\/p>\n
Tyre and strategy insight<\/p>\n
\u201cAt Spielberg, Pirelli will bring the softest compounds in the range: C3, C4 and C5,\u201d reads Pirelli\u2019s weekend preview. \u201cWear is not a decisive factor in Austria, where degradation is mainly thermal in origin. The asphalt is several years old and therefore features high levels of micro- and macro-roughness which, in itself, generates heat in the tyres.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrip is good thanks to the rubber laid down by the numerous motorsport events hosted by the circuit throughout the year and improves over the course of the weekend, as the track evolves significantly and enhances car performance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe traction zones also place stress on the rear tyres, which are more prone to degradation. However, drivers will need to pay attention to the front axle under downhill braking. The Red Bull Ring has an elevation change of 63 metres, making it the second circuit for altitude variation. The new power units could deliver enough power to induce locking precisely under these downhill braking phases.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnother key aspect relates to the circuit\u2019s altitude. At over 600 metres, the thinner air results in lower downforce on the cars, which may lead to increased tyre slip.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast year, most teams completed the race with two pit stops and all three nominated compounds were used during the Grand Prix. With the greater consistency of the current tyres, a stronger trend towards a one-stop strategy could be expected.<\/p>\n
\u201cTemperatures will also be a factor. In late June they could be high, approaching Barcelona levels. However, the circuit is located in a mountainous area of Styria and the surrounding forests can sometimes create conditions for sudden changes in weather.\u201d<\/p>\n
Current form<\/p>\n
The Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix marked something of a milestone moment in the 2026 season, with it being the first time that a non-Mercedes<\/a> driver has taken victory. Lewis Hamilton<\/a>\u2019s triumph \u2013 his maiden Grand Prix win for Ferrari<\/a> \u2013 has strengthened his hold on second place in the Drivers\u2019 Championship<\/a>.<\/p>\n His deficit to leader Kimi Antonelli<\/a> has also been slashed from 66 points to 41 following Antonelli\u2019s retirement from the race, a turn of events that also brought the Italian\u2019s consecutive winning streak to an end.<\/p>\n Mercedes boss Toto Wolff<\/a> stated after the Grand Prix that he \u201cabsolutely\u201d sees Hamilton as a title threat<\/a>, adding that the Silver Arrows \u201ccan’t afford to not finish\u201d \u2013 meaning that the squad will be keen to pick up a solid result in Austria this weekend, a track that George Russell<\/a> claimed victory at two years ago.<\/p>\n Likewise, Hamilton and the Scuderia will be looking to continue their promising run \u2013 and with Charles Leclerc<\/a> experiencing back-to-back non-finishes in Monaco and Barcelona, the Monegasque is also likely to be seeking a strong outing.<\/p>\n Behind them, McLaren<\/a> still hold third place in the Teams’ Championship<\/a> following a decent showing in Barcelona that saw Lando Norris<\/a> claim the final spot on the podium, while Red Bull<\/a> faced what Team Principal Laurent Mekies<\/a> labelled a \u201creality check\u201d<\/a> after failing to match the pace of the three teams ahead. Can they enjoy a better weekend at their home event?<\/p>\n Meanwhile, in the midfield battle, Alpine<\/a> still lead the way in fifth \u2013 having scored with both cars last time out \u2013 but Racing Bulls<\/a> hold a solid sixth, the squad also taking home double points in Barcelona. Haas<\/a> are looking to make improvements in P7 \u2013 as are Williams<\/a> in P8 \u2013 while Audi<\/a>, Aston Martin<\/a> and Cadillac<\/a> are still on two, one and zero points respectively at the lower end of the standings.<\/p>\n Iconic moment<\/p>\n It was an already unusual weekend in Austria back in 1999, which marked the first race since Michael Schumacher<\/a> was sidelined by a broken leg, leaving it up to Eddie Irvine to lead Ferrari\u2019s charge and take the fight to the McLaren drivers.<\/p>\n Having been comfortably outpaced by Mika Hakkinen<\/a> and David Coulthard<\/a> in Qualifying, the Northern Irishman was handed a gift at Turn 3 when the leading pair dramatically collided \u2013 Coulthard nudging his team mate into a spin<\/a> to the dismay of those watching on in the McLaren garage.<\/p>\n From there, it got worse for Coulthard, who was reeled in by Irvine and overhauled as the strategies unfolded, giving the Ferrari man a boost in his quest for the title and leaving Coulthard to apologise as Hakkinen (that year\u2019s eventual champion<\/a>) salvaged third.<\/p>\n Watch the drama as it unfolded in the video player below…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two weeks on from a double header of races in Monaco and Barcelona, the European leg of the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":759386,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[572],"tags":[64,63,806,805,803,804,85],"class_list":["post-759385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-motosport","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-motor","tag-motor-sports","tag-motosport","tag-motosports","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/759385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=759385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/759385\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/759386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=759385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=759385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=759385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}