Max Verstappen once again crushed the opposition at the Red Bull Ring to claim his fifth consecutive win in Formula One and, in doing so, moved himself up to fifth position in the all-time wins standings, above the great Ayrton Senna.
Behind the championship leader, though, there was plenty of action on the second of six sprint weekends in 2023, with rainfall on Saturday in Spielberg setting the stage for a thrilling sprint race.
There were also plenty of surprises too, with Verstappen’s under pressure teammate Sergio Perez eliminated in Q2 for the fourth straight race as well as the struggles of Mercedes after an improved showing in Montreal last time out.
But what else did we learn from the Austrian Grand Prix weekend? Let’s take a look.
Troubling track limits
It’s been a while since track limits was the dominant topic of a Formula One weekend, but the conversation of the dreaded white lines came roaring back with a vengeance in Austria.
Friday’s qualifying saw a staggering 47 lap times deleted for track limit infringements while eight drivers were given post-race penalties for the same offence after a protest from Aston Martin.
The Red Bull Ring has been notoriously difficult in the past for drivers to stay within the bounds of the track. This was the case even when track limit rules were more liberal and where drivers were allowed to stray beyond the white line and all the way out to the red and white kerb.
Nowadays, of course, track limit rules are the same at every circuit and while the drivers may complain, the onus is ultimately on them to make the necessary adjustments to keep their cars within the limits of the circuit.
Let’s hope we don’t have the same issues at Silverstone this weekend.
Promising upgrades for McLaren
McLaren have steadily improved since their desperate start to the season in the Middle East but the upgrades sported on Lando Norris’s car in Spielberg saw them rocket up the pecking order even more.
A fantastic weekend for the British driver saw him twice qualify in the top four for both the Sprint and the Grand Prix. He eventually finished fourth too, after his former teammate Carlos Sainz was demoted for track limit violations.
Perhaps more encouraging was how well the McLaren was able to keep up Ferrari and the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton during the first half of the race. Norris was able to finish well ahead of his British compatriot in the end.
Norris’s teammate Oscar Piastri struggled immensely in his non-upgraded McLaren but he will surely soon reap the benefits of clearly an effective package created by the men and women in the factory in Woking.
Perez’s troubles continue
It never rains but it pours for Sergio Perez at the moment who, in the last four race weekends, has seen his albeit slim chance of a surprise championship challenge evaporate at an alarming rate.
While it must be noted that the Mexican driver was ill for the first knockings of the weekend, Perez can only have himself to blame for his latest shortcomings. Checo qualified in 15th place for Sunday’s race, simply because he couldn’t keep the car on the circuit during Friday qualifying.
Red Bull boss Christian Horner was visibly frustrated with his driver after the session and it must be said that if the RB19 wasn’t so incredibly dominant, then Perez’s position with the team might be under serious threat.
Perez ultimately finished on the podium as he breezed through the pack, but anything less than a second place finish in the final standings come Abu Dhabi would represent a disastrous season for the Red Bull driver.
One step forward, two steps back for Mercedes
It looked as though Mercedes had finally turned a corner in Canada a fortnight ago with their upgrades bringing them right into contention with Aston Martin, who themselves appeared to have closed the gap to Red Bull.
However, the Red Bull Ring, which admittedly has always been a sticky circuit for the Silver Arrows, showed serious flaws with their car and surely will enforce a speedy rebuild ahead of the British Grand Prix this Sunday.
Lewis Hamilton and George Russell struggled from minute one in Austria with the former only going backwards in Sunday’s race despite a decent showing in qualifying.
There remains much work to do for the team from Brackley, and perhaps looking to 2024 might already be their best bet.
Formula One returns to Silverstone this weekend with the British Grand Prix.
