Max Verstappen, Sergio Perez (both Red Bull-Honda) and Lando Norris (McLaren-Mercedes) on the warm-up lap before the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring. Photo: Grand Prix Photo
Grand Prix Photo
The rampant Red Bulls are in no need of a home-field advantage in 2023, but Max Verstappen will nevertheless feel the full might of his Orange Army of fans during the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix this weekend, which includes this year’s second sprint race.
As the fourth shortest circuit on the calendar, the Red Bull Ring has become renowned for providing race-long on-track drama that is often shrouded in some form of controversy and orange smoke — thanks to the hordes of Verstappen supporters that travel to the Austrian Alps for the GP. This year’s race could be even more unpredictable than usual, with rain forecast throughout the weekend.
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Charles Leclerc triumphed in 2022, steaming past the Dutchman in Sunday’s race, but the Scuderia’s lack of top-end performance in 2023 means it’s unlikely Leclerc and Verstappen will lock horns again – the fight now coming from a resurgent Mercedes and Aston Martin. F1 veterans Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso completed a podium made up of multiple world champions last time out in Montreal, joining Verstappen who captured Red Bull’s eighth victory of the season and a 69-point lead in the drivers’ standings.
Although some teams have begun to make significant gains in performance, catching Verstappen’s RB19 is still a moving target – but will a sprint race weekend in Austria provide the first signs of a more equal fight at the front, even on the Dutchman’s most successful circuit?
Here’s how to watch the race.
The Austrian race weekend follows the new sprint race format, spread over three days. Friday is the only chance to practice ahead of qualifying for the Grand Prix. The sprint race ‘shootout’ qualifying takes place on Saturday morning, followed by the sprint race itself in the afternoon. The Grand Prix remains in its usual Sunday afternoon slot.
Live TV: All sessions will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1, starting with Free Practice on Friday at 12.30pm.
Live stream: Sky Sports F1 subscribers can watch all the running live on the Sky Go app. Now TV subscribers can also access live coverage of every session via Sky Sports F1. Live timigns are available through the F1 app.
Highlights: Channel 4 is sticking with two shows over the weekend: its Saturday night highlights package will round up Friday qualifying and the sprint race action; Sunday evening’s show will feature the Grand Prix.
All times in BST
| GP qualifying Friday 30 June |
Sprint shootout Saturday 1 July |
Sprint race Saturday 1 July |
Austrian GP Sunday 2 July |
|
| Session start time | 4pm | 11am | 3.30pm | 2pm |
| Live coverage Sky Sports, Sky Go, NowTV |
3.30pm | 10.30am | 2.30pm | 12.30pm |
| Highlights Channel 4 |
n/a | n/a | 7.30pm | 6.30pm |
The 2.6-mile Red Bull Ring is a ribbon of Austrian asphalt located underneath the picturesque Styrian mountain range. Hosting its first F1 grand prix in 1997, victory here has been claimed by many legendary drivers such as Jacques Villeneuve, Michael Schumacher and Alain Prost but none have been more successful than Verstappen – capturing the top step of the podium five times in nine visits.
Three back-to-back DRS zones means racing is kept close through the first two sectors, with major overtaking opportunities at Turn 1, Turn 3 and Turn 4, while the final sector is composed of high-speed corners and little room for mistakes.
The weekend forecast for the 23-lap sprint and 71-lap grand prix will see most of the circuit covered by heavy rain throughout – providing the perfect opportunity for a mixed grid to end Red Bull’s reign of success on its own turf.
On home soil and backed by an impressive track record, Red Bull and Verstappen are perhaps the obvious favourites to claim victory in Austria this weekend. But during last year’s grand prix, the RB18 was surprisingly off the pace, possibly due to the high altitude of the circuit – showing a possible kink in the armour.
Although the RB19 looks to be almost unbeatable on any circuit so far – especially when paired with a flying Dutchman – Mercedes and Aston Martin have begun to close the gap, with Alonso finishing within 9.5sec of Verstappen in Montreal. The combination of a sprint race and poor weather all weekend could provide many opportunities for the trailing field to fight at the front as well as opening the door for mistakes – placing on-track success firmly in the hands of the drivers.
Turn 4 is notorious for causing controversial moments between drivers who a battling wheel-to-wheel. In 2022, George Russell nudged Sergio Perez into a gravel trap after colliding with the Red Bull’s rear wheel – mirroring an almost identical incident between Lewis Hamilton and Alex Albon in 2020.
A similar mishap in 2023 that forces Verstappen into retirement could be the best hope for a patient Fernando Alonso or a lagging Ferrari to claim the first non-Red Bull victory of the season.
All times in BST
| Friday June 30 | Saturday July 1 | Sunday July 2 | |
| F1 | Free Practice 1 – 12.30pm Qualifying – 4pm |
Sprint race shootout – 11am Sprint race – 3.30pm |
Austrian Grand Prix – 2pm |
| F2 | Practice – 10am Qualifying – 2.50pm |
Sprint – 12.40pm | Feature race – 8.50am |
| F3 | Practice – 8.50am Qualifying – 1.55pm |
Sprint – 8.55am | Feature race – 7.20am |
