SPIELBERG.- JanSpielberg’s Red Bull Ringhome of the powerful team of Formula 1this Sunday’s victory went to a mercedes: the british George Russell kept at bay Max Verstappen to win the Austrian Grand Prix.
The 28-year-old driver added his second victory of the season, with which he regains his sensations after a disappointing streak and, in the process, closes the gap with respect to his teammate Kimi Antonellileader of the championship and third on Sunday.
In the general standings, Antonelli now leads Russell by 40 points, who places second, while the Englishman Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) is third, six behind the winner of this Sunday and 46 behind the first in the World Cup.
“It’s incredible to be back on the top step of the podium,” said 28-year-old Russell, whom all preseason bets placed as the favorite for the title.
“Max and Red Bull were incredibly fast this weekend, so good for them. I had to push every lap,” admitted Russell.
And his victory was played until the end: the difference between Russell and Vertappen was only 1.611 seconds, while the Dutchman managed to defend a margin of only 0.375 seconds with respect to Antonelli.
“It was a great race for us, the first laps were quite fun. We were just a few seconds away from victory, I’m very happy,” declared the Dutchman, four-time world champion.
The heat sneaks in as the protagonist
The Australian Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and Hamilton (Ferrari) completed the Top 5, ahead of the Frenchman’s Red Bull Isaac Hadjar and the McLaren of the current world champion Lando Norris.
Before the traffic lights went out, the Grand Prix seemed destined to be a fight between the Silver Arrows and the Ferraris, but it was Verstappen who got in between to liven up the race.
The Scuderia cars had a fateful day, with the Monegasque Charles Leclerc finishing in eighth position despite starting second.
Uneven, short and fast, the Spielberg circuit this Sunday presented temperatures of 50ºC on the track and 35ºC in the air, as a result of the heat wave that is hitting Europe central.
Conditions that put the drivers and cars to the test, and that gave extra value to the pit stop strategy.
Russell defended his starting pole, while behind him, Hamilton overtook Leclerc and Antonelli went off twice on the first lap while looking for overtakes.
“I was too excited in the first laps and I didn’t drive well, but after changing the wheels I reset and the pace was good. It’s a shame that I joined the party (for the victory) too late,” lamented the second of the Mercedes drivers.
Bortoleto and Colapinto out of points, Pérez abandons
Antonelli overtook Leclerc off the track on the second lap and had to return the position, a situation that Verstappen detected to take third position.
While everything was at stake ahead, the cadillac from Finnish Valtteri Bottas and from the Mexican Sergio Perez They gave up in the first turns, victims of overheating.
Verstappen went on to hunt for the next Ferrari, Hamilton’s. Both fought a tight fight and to the limit, which brought to mind their exciting duels in the 2021 season.
The pit dance then came into play, animated by a Virtual Safety Car after the abandonment of Williams of Carlos Sainz on the main straight.
With 21 laps remaining and after multiple stops, the first three positions were already defined, and despite the push of Verstappen and Antonelli, Russell secured the seventh victory of his career in Formula 1.
The Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto (Audi) was in 11th position, on the verge of points, while the Argentine Franco Colapinto (Alpine) was 15th.
The Spanish veteran Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) was the last of the drivers who did not abandon, crossing the line in 18th position.
