Formula One heads to the Red Bull Ring for round 11 of the 2024 season as Spielberg hosts the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend.
Max Verstappen won for the third time in four races to win last time out in Spain, holding off a late charge from Lando Norris to extend his lead in the F1 world championship standings. He now leads Norris, up to second ahead of Charles Leclerc, by 69 points.
Norris was frustrated with second place in a quick McLaren car in Barcelona, while Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton picked up his first podium of the season with a third-place finish.
Austria will host the third sprint race of the season this weekend. Verstappen won both races last year and is a four-time winner of Red Bull’s home race.
Follow live updates from the Austrian Grand Prix with The Independent
Max Verstappen:
“Yeah not bad, that lap was a bit quick. All good!”
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:19
Max Verstappen on pole for the sprint race!
Huge cheers from the Dutch fans in the grandstands – Verstappen does is by 0.093 secs to Lando Norris in second!
Oscar Piastri in third for McLaren, with George Russell in fourth and Carlos Sainz in fifth.
And Charles Leclerc didn’t get over the line in time – he starts down in P10! What a screw up from Ferrari!
6-10: Hamilton, Perez, Ocon, Gasly, Leclerc
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:16
George Russell:
“Let’s get cracking, everyone’s gonna go now!”
Only three minutes left and both the Mercedes cars out on track!
Big old queue in the pit-lane…
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:12
SQ3 underway!
Here we go then – eight minutes, probably time for two quickfire laps at the end of the session!
10 drivers involved: Verstappen, Perez, Sainz, Leclerc, Russell, Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, Gasly, Ocon
Interestingly, a lot of work going on at the back of Max Verstappen’s car prior to the start of SQ3!
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:07
It’s just not quite clicking for Aston Martin at the moment!
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:03
Fernando Alonso out in SQ2!
Another tricky session for Aston Martin, who both miss out to Alpine again!
Bottom-five (11-15) and out in SQ2: Magnussen, Stroll, Alonso, Tsunoda, Sargeant
Stroll: “I had a big slide in the last corner!” – and it cost him!
Magnussen misses out by 0.050 seconds to Pierre Gasly!
Top-3: Verstappen, Russell, Piastri
Now time for the quickfire top-10 shootout!
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:01
Half the grid set times early on in SQ2!
Eight out of 15 cars have set times in the first five minutes – Max Verstappen on top with a 1:05:186, 0.139 secs quicker than George Russell with Oscar Piastri in third.
But let’s see how the remaining five minutes pan out…
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 15:56
SQ2 underway!
This session just 10 minutes long… so this time they don’t waste any time to get out on track!
Again, medium tyres and again, we’ll lose the slowest five before the top-10 shootout!
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 15:52
Another session to forget for the under pressure Daniel Ricciardo!
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 15:46
Lewis Hamilton escapes in P13!
It wasn’t his cleanest lap ever – but Hamilton is through!
“Are we out?” he exclaims. “Looks like we are safe,” says Bono.
Bottom-five and out in SQ1: Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Albon, Zhou
Yuki Tsunoda squeezes through in 15th, while Logan Sargeant betters his team-mate to go P14!
Top-3: Verstappen, Russell, Sainz
Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 15:45