F1: 5 Things We Learned From the Austrian Grand Prix

Lando Norris returned to winning ways after finishing ahead of McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri at the Austrian Grand Prix.

The Briton started in pole position and kept the Australian at bay in a frenetic first stint. The championship leader Piastri almost collided with Norris on lap 20 when he locked up his brakes after attempting an overtake on the inside of Turn 4.

There was action on the first lap after Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli took out four-time world champion Max Verstappen. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finished third, and teammate Lewis Hamilton was fourth. Last year’s Austrian GP winner George Russell was fifth.

A few drivers impressed yesterday, scoring their first points of the season. We look at five things we’ve learned from this weekend’s race:

5 – Lawson and Borteleto impress with strong performances. Liam Lawson out-qualified Verstappen on Saturday to start on the third row and finished sixth to bag eight points. The New Zealand driver was demoted to the Racing Bulls team by Red Bull after two races and scored his best finish of the season so far. Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto registered his first points of the season with a sensational weekend. The rookie qualified eighth and finished in the same position to collect four points.

4 – Ferrari’s floor upgrades paid dividends. The Italian team registered third and fourth-place finishes in Austria. The SF-25 sported a revised floor, and according to reports, this helped the car run lower to the ground, a key area that helps performance. Leclerc was adamant after his impressive P2 performance in qualifying that the upgrades had a huge impact. “I rate our weekend as a team well. We brought some upgrades which helped us to take a step forward and start closing the gap to McLaren,” the Monegasque driver said. The team says more upgrades are on the way, good news if you’re a Ferrari fan and Lewis Hamilton.

3 – Red Bull needs to reassess the car’s setup. Yuki Tsunoda’s poor qualifying performance saw the Japanese driver bomb out in Q3 and qualify 18th. He struggled in the race and clashed with other drivers on two occasions, collecting time penalties and ultimately ending the race in last position. However, this isn’t new. Tsunoda’s predecessor, Liam Lawson, also struggled in the RB21. The reason? The team set up the car for Verstappen’s driving style. He prefers to turn in sharply and feel the car rotate early into a corner. Tsunoda isn’t at Max’s level, and that means he lacks the confidence to replicate the Dutch driver’s style to get more performance from the car. Red Bull needs to fundamentally change the car’s setup to suit Tsunoda more or clone their four-time world champion.

2 – Antonelli receives a three–place grid penalty. The Mercedes rookie qualified ninth and came roaring into Turn 3, and lost control of his car under braking. He plowed into Verstappen’s Red Bull, and both drivers’ afternoons came to a premature end. Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff told F1.com: “The rears blocked on the car. I’m not entirely sure it was his fault or a system. I haven’t seen any data or heard anything, because obviously, we were concentrating on the race. But that happens, you know.” The 18-year-old was found guilty by the stewards for causing a collision and was hit with a three-place grid drop for next weekend’s British GP.

1 – Piastri and Norris will have more epic battles. Norris’ win saw the British driver reduce the points lead in the championship to 15 ahead of his home race at Silverstone. The two McLaren drivers served up some tasty racing in the first stint of the race as Piastri overtook Leclerc at the start and immediately took on Norris for the lead. McLaren’s ‘papaya rules’ were engaged, which meant the pair were free to race, and it was incredible to watch. Ahead of the first round of pit stops, Piastri went down the inside of Norris at Turn 4 and locked up heavily. It resulted in Norris pitting first and controlling the race until the finish. What’s clear is both drivers aren’t prepared to sit on the second step, and we can’t wait to see the battle resume this weekend.