For the eighth round of the 2014 FIA Formula One World Championship, the sport’s teams return to a country last visited by F1 11 years ago – Austria.
The last incarnation of the Austrian Grand Prix was held from 1997 to 2003 at the circuit known as the A1 Ring and it is to that venue that F1 heads once again, though the rechristened Red Bull Ring has seen major trackside updates since.
The track, however, remains much as it was in 2003. One of the shortest on the calendar at 4.326km, the Red Bull Ring features just nine corners. It is a circuit of fast straights and slow- and medium-speed corners with, historically, just the first three taken in low gear. As such, lap times were low – with sub-1m10s laps the norm. Average speeds were high, with the 2003 event seeing Michael Schumacher win with an average speed of 213km/h.
Historic data will matter little this weekend, however, as F1’s teams brings their cutting-edge 1.6-litre, hybrid, turbocharged 2014 cars to the circuit. The best teams can hope for is that their simulations prove accurate. What can’t be modelled, however, is how the circuit will stack up in terms of surface characteristics and how it will evolve as sessions unfold. All this will have to factored into team preparations on Friday and Saturday morning.
Last time out, in Canada, Red Bull Racing’s Daniel Ricciardo scored a memorable maiden win. Capitalising on a troubled race for previously dominant Mercedes, the result was a major step forward for the Austrian-licensed team and it will be looking to continue that good form at its home track.
Even though the last Austrian Grand Prix was 11 years ago, there are four drivers on the grid who have F1 racing experience at this circuit in its A1 Ring guise. Jenson Button has made four appearances here – from 2000-2003. His best result here came at the most recent race in 2003 when he qualified seventh and finished fourth for BAR/Honda.
The current circuit configuration largely mirrors that of the A1 Ring, where the race was won from pole position three times in seven events. Jacques Villeneuve won from the front of the grid in 1997, as did Häkkinen in 2000 and Michael Schumacher in 2003. The A1 Ring race was only won from further back than third on the grid once, in 2001, when David Coulthard started in seventh position.
In the Drivers’ Championship, second place in Montreal allowed Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg to extend his title lead over team-mate Lewis Hamilton to 22 points. The Briton will be keen to redress the balance in Spielberg, but on a circuit unfamiliar to the bulk of the current field, this latest iteration of the Austrian GP could turn out to be one of the most unpredictable of the season so far.
Check out our Friday practice report here. Practice resumes on Saturday at 10:00, followed by qualifying at 13:00 and the race on Sunday at 13:00. (UTC+1)
Sources: Getty/Red Bull, Wikipedia Commons, FIA
