Austrian Grand Prix Tag

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Vettel became the victim of a strategic gamble by Ferrari that has led to the four-time champ crashing out of the Austrian Grand Prix. The German, who turned 29-years-old today, started the race in ninth and made his way up to the lead after many of the frontrunners pitted. The extended tire strategy came to an end on lap 27 when, while coming down the front straightaway, Vettel’s right rear tire blew out and sent him into the inside wall before coming back across track andRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Felipe Massa will start the Austrian Grand Prix from the pit lane due to a damaged front wing. The Brazilian was set to start from 10th, but his Williams team discovered a crack in the front wing and decided to not risk it and change it out for a new one. Massa was running a new spec of front wing, but with the change he left with reverting to the older spec. Massa’s spot on the grid will remain empty. The Brazilian joins Toro Rosso driverRead More

Lewis Hamilton took his fifth pole position of 2016 and the 54th of his career in a topsy turvy wet final qualifying session that saw Nico Rosberg finish second ahead of Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg. Rain began to fall at the end of Q2 and increased in intensity in the run-up to the final 12-minute session, leading to the 10 drivers who made it through to the top-10 shootout taking to the track on intermediate tyres. The rain quickly abated, however, and the times began to drop rapidly. Vettel wasRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Nico Rosberg has received a five-place grid penalty after a crash in FP3 forced the Mercedes team to change his gearbox. Rosberg enjoyed a banner Friday after dominating both the first and second practice sessions, but halfway through Saturday’s final practice he suffered suspension failure that sent him into the wall off the Turn 2 exit. The team confirmed that the mechanical failure happened at full throttle under “an unusually high load” on the exit of the curb. The German currently leads defending Formula 1 championRead More

After topping the Friday morning times, Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg was again quickest at the Red Bull Ring, though team-mate Lewis Hamilton closed within two hundredths of a second of the championship leader in a rain disrupted FP2 in Spielberg. Rosberg’s best time of 1:07.967, almost sixth tenths slower than his best lap of the morning, was set early in the afternoon, just before heavy rain began to sweep across the circuit in Austria’s Styrian mountains. The downpour first affected the final two corners of the short nine-corner circuit, leading toRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Kimi Raikkonen remained unflappable in Thursday’s FIA press conference leading up to the Austrian Grand Prix, despite a mass of questions regarding rumors centering over his future at Ferrari. The 2007 Formula 1 champion’s contract with the Italian manufacturer expires at the end of the season. In the midst of a dogfight with Mercedes for F1 supremacy, neither Raikkonen or teammate Sebastian Vettel have won yet this season, with both amassing five runner-up finishes thus far. However, Ferrari president and CEO Sergio Marchionne warned that RaikkonenRead More

By Joey Barnes, Editor-in-Chief Alfonso Celis Jr. will reprise his role as Force India’s development driver by stepping in for an FP1 session during the Austian Grand Prix weekend. The Mexican will replace fellow countryman Sergio Perez for the Friday morning session – it will be third time this season Celis will appear in FP1. The 19-year-old also piloted the VJM09 during pre-season and in-season testing. In addition to his role at Force India, Celis also competes in the Formula V8 3.5 Series, collecting one podium in eight races soRead More

Nico Rosberg has finally beaten Lewis Hamilton in straight fight in 2015. After going at it like mad in qualifying where Hamilton came out on top, Nico drove the better race today and left his championship rival behind in what was otherwise a rather boring and uneventful race. Kimi Raikkonen lost traction in his Ferrari in a manner eerily similar to Canada and collected Fernando Alonso’s McLaren in a terrifying accident in the opening stages of the race. The McLaren ended up on top of the Ferrari, its tea trayRead More

The Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg put on the qualifying duel of the season from the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria today. Hamilton had the best time of Q3 going into the final runs of the session when he had a dramatic spin after locking up at the beginning of his hot lap. Rosberg who was very suddenly in the cat bird seat and through two sectors ahead of his team mate, cracked under the pressure and ran wide in the third sector, throwing away anRead More

It became known following a rough weekend at the Canadian Grand Prix, Red Bull Racing driver Daniel Ricciardo is expected to run a new chassis for the Austrian Grand Prix. Ricciardo started ninth in the Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, but struggled with pace, finishing out of the points and settling for a disappointing 13th place finish. In an interview with the media yesterday, Ricciardo revealed that he is receiving a new chassis for the upcoming Austrian Grand Prix at Red Bull Ring. “It was my worst race,”Read More