Formula 1: Verstappen with a safe start-finish victory – sport

Only at the very end of this race day in Spielberg does it become clear that it had its climax right from the start. Even before the lights went out, the bard Andreas Gabalier, dressed in the finest costume and in the presence of the Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, performed the Styrian national anthem. With a dedication that stood out from the usual singsong that is usually trumpeted before the Formula 1 races. And, of course, it was completely appropriate considering the fact that the Dutchman Max Verstappen would roll out as the leader of the overall standings for the first time at his Red Bull racing team’s home game in Austria.

Unfortunately, it turned out that the action interwoven in the national anthem (“Where the chamois leaps cheekily from the rock face and the hunter dares his life boldly, where the dairymaid sings happy yodels …”) clearly overshadows that of the following race would ask. Because Verstappen achieved a sparkling clean start-finish victory on the wonderful racetrack in Spielberg, which had provided all kinds of spectacles in the past, which at no time was even remotely in danger. He was a chamois and a hunter in one. And Hamilton didn’t sing happy yodels like the dairymaid on the radio.

It is true that Verstappen complained here and there on the radio about difficulties with unpredictable brakes. But shortly before half past four he shot across the finish line as the winner in front of the Silver Arrows from Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. Verstappen’s team-mate Sergio Perez was fourth. Hamilton at least grabbed the fastest race lap, but in the overall standings, Verstappen has now expanded his lead to a whopping 18 points. “The car was a rocket today,” enthused Verstappen. “We need some upgrade,” complained Hamilton.

The days leading up to the race had been the greatest excitement. Bottas had set the second-best time in the qualification, but was moved three places to fifth due to a strange driving error in Friday practice, which the Austrian boulevard excellently described as “Bottas Hoppala”: He had only just left the parking space in his box when he lost control of his Silver Arrow and began spinning in close proximity to the McLaren technicians.

The stewards judged the situation “potentially dangerous”, “mainly because there were team members in the pit lane”. Bottas’ justification for the accident allowed deep insights into the psychological tension at Mercedes: He drove into second gear on a trial basis to see whether the time of the pit stop could be shortened. Hamilton had lost the previous race at Le Castellet to Verstappen because he lost three seconds somewhere while changing his tires.

Vettel and Schumacher finish the race in nowhere

The closer the championship fight, the more crisp the verbal battles. In Spielberg, the world automobile association Fia has sent out a new regulation according to which the individual work processes during pit stops are to be subdivided with temporal safety buffers. Because changing tires has been a Red Bull specialty for years, the lemonade racing team suspected a Mercedes conspiracy behind the new rules. Shortly before the start, Red Bull’s motorsport advisor Helmut Marko told SZ: “The pit stops are an essential part of our show. And it is completely counterproductive to argue with the safety when Mercedes is practicing a new start in the pit lane, and almost that half a thing mowed. “

Verstappen started in front of Hamilton, behind them the once again amazing Lando Norris parked in the McLaren, ahead of Perez in the second Red Bull. Sebastian Vettel only started from parking lot number 14, Mick Schumacher was penultimate at the beginning. They finished the race in nowhere – 12th and 16th.

The lights went out and the hunters started from the second row. They both had soft tires on – Verstappen and Hamilton the medium hard tires. Perez pushed past Norris, who countered and defended third place. Charles Leclerc demolished the front wing of his Ferrari on Pierre Gasly’s Alpha Tauri – in the process, he slit the Frenchman’s rear tire. Both headed for the pits. Before Gasly got there, he shot Antonio Giovinazzi’s Alfa Romeo. After that, the race was over for Gasly. And Leclerc started a remarkable race to catch up, which allowed him to advance from the bottom of the field to seventh place. Otherwise it started slowly on the Red Bull Ring.

Thanks to the power of his engine, Verstappen can manage the lead in a relaxed manner

“Argh, something hit my right front tire,” shouted Hamilton. “Something heavy must have fallen off Verstappen’s car.” But sometimes you have the feeling that Hamilton is watching things in the race that no one else sees. In any case, Verstappen quickly pulled away and drove consistently two tenths faster than Hamilton. These are worlds. Norris couldn’t keep up the pace. Perez overtook him on the tenth lap and Bottas on the eleventh.

Now Verstappen and Hamilton created a larger gap in third place – after 20 of 71 laps he was already 13 seconds behind Hamilton. He in turn complained that his tires were beginning to show signs of wear. And then the big change orgy began. After 27 laps it was Perez, after 28 Bottas, after 29 Hamilton, and after 30 laps, then Verstappen. The Dutchman, who had previously created a buffer of almost five seconds on Hamilton, stayed in front of him after the rest. Also because his team succeeded in a lightning service that lasted exactly two seconds – two tenths faster than Hamilton. But Bottas now swapped positions with Perez, whose stop had taken an unusually long time.

The two Silver Arrows now circled behind Verstappen in twos. Hamilton asked his team if he should take care of the tires. Oh no, on the contrary, it radioed back. He should try to close the gap. The gap temporarily shrank to 3.9 seconds – but then Verstappen briefly pressed the gas a little more – thanks to the power of his engine, he was able to manage the lead in a relaxed manner. Not good news for Mercedes before a race in the same place in seven days.