Temperatures in Europe have exceeded 40°C in the past few days, and the forecast for the race weekend in the Styrian mountains is over 31°C, so the FIA have declared a “heat hazard”. This means drivers can use a cooling system but those who don’t will have 0.5kg of ballast added to their cockpit to compensate.
Free Practice
- FP1: ANT (1:07.796), RUS, PIA, VER, HAM
Similar to Catalunya, a chance for rookie drivers to put in some laps – Aron (Audi), Beganovic (Ferrari), Browning (Williams), Crawford (Aston Martin), Hirakawa (Haas), and Iwasa (Red Bull)
NOR had a late start – McLaren’s mechanics working on a brake-related issue
HAM ran wide in Turn 3
GAS kicked up the gravel at Turn 4
VER’s Red Bull stopped in the pit lane; he reported anti-stall kicked in every time he released the clutch
HAD locked up into Turn 1 and ran very wide
ALO locked up at Turn 3 and also touched the gravel in Turn 8
PER had a couple of problems with his Cadillac losing power - FP2: ANT (1:07.014), PIA, NOR, VER, HAM
NOR spun in Turn 3
HAM locked up and went deep into Turn 3
VER and HAD reporting engine problems in Turn 3
LEC very deep in Turn 9
COL touched the gravel out of Turn 6 and almost lost the Alpine’s rear
PER reported power issues, and Cadillac teammate BOT had smoke in his cockpit - FP3: RUS (1:07.096), ANT, HAM, PIA, NOR
HAM locked up into Turn 3 and went deep
NOR ran wide in Turn 3
VER complained of radio interference
HAD is learning from his Red Bull teammate and seems to moan about everything
PER locked up into Turn 1 and ran wide
BOT kicked up the gravel out of Turn 9
Qualifying
Air temperature 33°C; track 53°C; humidity 26%
VER only has 3 sets of soft tyres, so he’s got to hope he times his quick laps to avoid traffic
Qualifying session 1 (Q1)
BOT needed help getting into the pit lane, cautiously avoiding the wall
OCO 1:09.083
HUL 1:09.509
RUS 1:07.811
VER 1:07.407
NOR 1:07.259
(HAD 0.001 sec slower than teammate VER)
ANT 1:07.083
HUL slides the Audi out of the final turn
5mins left; bottom 6 are SAI, PER, BOT, OCO, ALO, STR
Big snap as HAD accelerates
PER and BOT remain in the garage… no, they’re just very late to the final run
OCO P13 relegates ALB to P17
SAI P14, HUL P17
Chequered flag; bottom 6 are HUL, ALB, PER, BOT, ALO, STR
ALO P21
STR pits; P22
HUL P15, SAI P17
PER P19
BOT P20
OCO P16
Back of the grid: SAI, ALB, PER, BOT, ALO, STR
Qualifying session 2
McLaren confirm there was some floor damage on NOR’s car but they’ve repaired it and sent him out to check it’s OK
NOR 1:07.321
VER 1:07.183
LEC 1:07.030
(HAM P2)
GAS has a big snap in the final turn; P7
ANT 1:06.763
(PIA P2)
RUS struggling in Turn 3, runs wide; pits without setting a time
5mins left; bottom 6 are BOR, COL, BEA, HUL, OCO, RUS
RUS must have been complaining on the radio, because Toto says “George, just drive”
RUS P4, LIN P11
VER is still in the pits; he’s P8, so that’s risky
LAW P8
LIN P9
GAS P11
BEA P11
HUL P13
BOR P11
Chequered flag; bottom 6 are BOR, BEA, GAS, HUL, OCO, COL
GAS P11
Middle of the grid: GAS, BOR, BEA, HUL, OCO, COL
VER through to Q3 by only 0.040 secs
Top 10 shootout is between ANT, PIA, NOR, RUS, HAM, LEC, HAD, LAW, LIN, VER
Qualifying session 3
LIN noted for unsafe release
NOR 1:06.900
HAD P2
VER 1:06.475
PIA P2
LIN P5
LEC P3
ANT 1:06.414
LAW P7
RUS P2
HAM pits; he’s wheeled back into the garage without setting a time
Radio from HAM asking why he was told to pit rather than a second run to set a banker time
Order after the first run: ANT, RUS, VER, PIA, LEC, NOR, HAD, LAW, LIN, HAM
VER seems to be struggling out of the pit lane, or is he just leaving a gap?
HAM 1:06.408
Chequered flag; order is HAM, ANT, RUS, VER, PIA, LEC, NOR, HAD, LAW, LIN
LEC 1:06.349
NOR P6
PIA P7
VER loses the rear out of Turn 9, slides off into the gravel trap
Yellow flag
LIN P10
ANT P3
RUS 1:06.113 but did he lift for the yellow flag?
Front of the grid: RUS, LEC, HAM, ANT, VER, NOR, PIA, HAD, LAW, LIN
Double waved yellow flags, so RUS’ time will be deleted
The onboard shows RUS lifted but if it’s confirmed it’s a double yellow then all lap times are deleted
Provisional grid: RUS, LEC, HAM, ANT, VER, NOR, PIA, HAD, LAW, LIN, GAS, BOR, BEA, HUL, OCO, COL, SAI, ALB, PER, BOT, ALO, STR
RUS under investigation for (potential) yellow flag infringement, as expected
In the interview, RUS said it was only single yellow and he lifted, but it’s going to be down to the stewards
No further investigation for RUS
SkySports say the official data feed (after showing no further investigation) now says RUS’ lap time has been deleted
Hours later, the starting grid is posted – there’s no mention of a penalty for RUS
In fact there were no penalties so the provisional grid is unchaged
Race
Pit lane is open; drivers can make their way to the grid
Grid: RUS, LEC, HAM, ANT, VER, NOR, PIA, HAD, LAW, LIN, GAS, BOR, BEA, HUL, OCO, COL, SAI, ALB, PER, BOT, ALO, STR
Air temperature 34°C; track 45°C; humidity 28%
NOR reporting brake problems
RUS leads everyone away on the formation lap
LEC a bit slow to leave the grid – actually about half the field have yellow flags waved as they’re slow off to get going
Everyone’s starting on medium compound tyres except BOR and SAI on softs
They’re so spread out, RUS is going to have a long wait for everyone to take their place
01/71: RUS leads into Turn 1
ANT runs wide in Turn 1… and again in T3
HAM takes P2 from teammate LEC
02: RUS, HAM, LEC, ANT, VER, PIA, NOR, LAW, HAD, LIN
VER past LEC for P3
Radio from BOT reporting his brakes are on fire
03: BOT pits; extinguishers used on his front-right
04: Radio from LAW, “fire in my car”!
HAD and LAW battle over P8; HAD comes out ahead
05/71: RUS, HAM, VER, LEC, ANT, PIA, NOR, HAD, LAW, LIN
LAW reports he’s still on fire
PER also says he’s got smoke in the cockpit
06: HAM still about 1.2sec behind RUS
PER pits; retires
07: ANT closing on LEC
It takes a few corners, but ANT takes P4
08: HAM must have made a mistake – he’s suddenly lost 1sec and VER is closing on him
09: HAM a bit loose out of the final turn
10/71: RUS, HAM, VER, ANT, LEC, PIA, NOR, HAD, LAW, LIN, BOR, OCO, GAS, HUL, BEA, SAI, ALB, COL, OCO, STR; out: PER, BOT
11: VER dives inside HAM and takes P2
HAM fights back; VER locks up; HAM reclaims P2
Radio from VER claiming HAM deserves a penalty, as you’d expect from the whiner
13: HAM pits from P2; hards go on; rejoins P11
HAM takes P10 from BOR
14: LEC pits; hards; P11
15/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, NOR, HAD, LAW, LIN, HAM, BOR
16: HAM inside LIN for P8
HUL and OCO fight over P12
18: HAM is on LAW’s tail; dives inside to take P7
19: VER pits from P2; hards; P6
HAD and LIN pit too
20/71: RUS pits from P1; hards; P3
PIA pits; hards; P7
Radio for NOR telling him they’re extending the stint to give him clear air; NOR says he has no more pace
21: ANT, NOR, RUS, HAM, VER, LEC, PIA, HAD, HUL, LAW
22: NOR pits; hards; P8
VER dives inside HAM for P3, but HAM reclaims it; VER chops across and hangs on to P3
ANT reports his brake pedal is long
23: NOR runs wide in Turn 1
24: SAI has stopped on the main straight; yellow flags
25/71: ANT pits; hards; P5
VSC deployed
SAI out of his car and walking back to the Williams garage
26[VSC]: HAM pits; softs(!); P7
VSC ending
28: ANT closing on LEC
Both Aston Martins are a lap down
30/71: RUS, VER, LEC, ANT, PIA, HAD, HAM, NOR, LIN, LAW, BOR, GAS, HUL, BEA, OCO, ALB, COL, ALO, STR; out: SAI, PER, BOT
ANT easily past LEC to take P3
HAM takes P6 from HAD
32: Radio for HAM telling him to change to mode TS but he questions why (he’s told “temperature”) because “I already have no power”
34: Radio from HAM asking if the car’s cooled down so he can go back to race more; yes
35/71: RUS, VER, ANT, LEC, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LIN, LAW
ALO noted for speeding in the pit lane
36: VER has gained about 0.8sec on RUS – replay: RUS ran wide
37: PIA dives inside LEC for P4; minor contact?
HAM sees his teammate is a bit vulnerable and takes P5
38: LEC pits; hards; P8
39: HAM on PIA’s tail… but he makes a big save as the Ferrari squirms in Turn 9
40/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LEC, LIN, LAW
41: HAD pits from P6; hards; P8
ALO given 5sec penalty for speeding in the pit lane
43: PIA pits from P4; hards; P6
HAM makes his 3rd pit stop; hards; P7
44: RUS pits from P1; hards; P3
45/71: VER, ANT, RUS, NOR, LEC, PIA, HAM, HAD, LIN, LAW
46: LAW pits, as does HUL
47: Radio for STR telling him to pit and retire
LIN pits
48: STR pits
NOR pits from P4; hards; P8
PIA inside LEC for P4
49: Replay of NOR entering the pit lane and passing STR at the pit entrance, and then he’s released from the box alongside COL
50/71: VER pits; hards; P3
51: ANT, RUS, VER, PIA, LEC, HAM, HAD, NOR, LAW, LIN, BOR, GAS, HUL, BEA, OCO, COL, ALB, ALO; out: STR, SAI, PER, BOT
HAM takes P5 from teammate LEC
52: ANT pits; hards; P3
VSC deployed – debris on track
VSC ending
54: SkySports report there’s rain in the distance, approaching Turn 3
55/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, LEC, HAD, NOR, LAW, LIN
56: HAD inside LEC for P6; LEC tries to fight back but HAD takes P6
No further investigation for NOR passing STR in the pit lane
57: RUS wide on the entry to Turn 1 and runs wide
59: (Adverts so I missed HAD and NOR passing LEC)
60/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LEC, LAW, LIN, BOR, COL, OCO, ALB, ALO
LEC pits from P8; softs; P8
64: NOR catching HAD, and VER is slowly closing on RUS
65/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LEC, LAW, LIN (LAW is 1 lap down)
68: RUS 3.5sec clear of VER
ANT is closing on VER
70/71: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LEC, LAW, LIN
ANT under 1sec behind VER
71: ANT right on VER’s tail
RUS takes the chequered flag
Provisional result: RUS, VER, ANT, PIA, HAM, HAD, NOR, LEC, LAW, LIN; BOR, HUL, GAS, BEA, COL, OCO, ALB, ALO
DNF: STR, SAI, PER, BOT
Penalties
None.
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