Life in the bubble that carries F1 around the world. PETER COSTER reports on the Austrian Grand Prix.
Emerging Melbourne F1 superstar Oscar Piastri might have won the Austrian Grand Prix on Sunday were it not for infringing track limits by a few millimetres.
It didn’t look that way. Nor did Piastri and his team think so. That’s how slim the margin was.
But instead of qualifying third behind Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and McLaren teammate Lando Norris, Piastri started seventh when the lap was deleted.
Towards the end of the race, he was fourth behind George Russell in the Mercedes when he suddenly found himself second with a chance of winning.
Norris and Verstappen were in an unforgiving battle for the lead, which Verstappen had held for most of the race.
It was inevitable they would make contact. Neither would yield. A slow pit stop had cut what had looked like a winning margin.
![Formula 1 driver stands on his car](https://sportshounds.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/02153043/george-russell-austria-1024x683.jpg)
The McLaren had briefly held the lead at the start and here was a second chance. Both drivers blamed each other for the tank slapper that then ruined both their races.
Both came into the pit with punctures, Norris with the remnants of a rear tyre thrashing wildly before the McLaren was wheeled into the garage. Race over.
Verstappen continued with a 10-second penalty for moving to block Norris under braking, but by then his chances of regaining the lead were also over.
The drama swung quickly to cars that had been 50 seconds behind them. Russell, third in the Mercedes, found himself in the lead but with Piastri closing fast.
The McLaren driver finished second, less than two seconds adrift. Carlos Sainz was third for Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton fourth for Mercedes.
The fallout after the race continued. Verstappen and Norris are mates if that is possible for two supremely competitive drivers in a sport where the best of the best are paid in tens of millions of dollars.
These two megastars attend rock concerts together, even sharing a private jet between races.
They’re buddies. Maybe not anymore.
McLaren is increasingly seen as the main rival to the success of Red Bull and as the margin shrinks between the two teams, their rivalry increases.
There is ego that demands as much recognition on the F1 grid as results. Little room for friendship. Drivers and teams circle the globe but it is life in a bubble.
The Austrian Grand Pix at the Red Bull Ring on Sunday was the second of a triple header in a record 24-race season.
It’s entertainment in the fastest show on earth.
Before Austria there was the Spanish Grand Prix. After the Austrian comes the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.
Former F1 driver David Coulthard got it wrong when he asked Piastri in the post-race interview in Austria if he was looking to his “home” Grand Prix at Silverstone this weekend.
Piastri pointed out the error, but in he nicest possible way.
No, it wasn’t his home Grand Prix, but having already won a sprint race this season and been on the podium a worldwide audience is becoming increasingly aware of a driver Australian F1 champion Alan Jones has declared a future champion.
Piastri, who is managed by nine-times Australian race winner Mark Webber, replaced another Australian in Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
The Perth driver lives in Monaco where he won the race around the streets of the principality in 2018.
He would have won in 2016 but for a long pit stop when Red Bull failed to have his tyres ready when he was in the lead. The race in 2018 was sweet redemption.
In Austria on Sunday, Ricciardo was back in the points after a run of outs that has seen him reportedly facing the sack.
He missed getting through to the top ten by milliseconds, a margin as frustrating as the supposed overrun on track limits by Piastri.
This was not just a case of Piastri and the team whinging over what could have been. Piastri and Webber went as far as arguing their case to the stewards.
Track limits, however, have become an unforgiving point of contention between the FIA and teams and drivers.
Austria on Sunday was a case in point. A strip of gravel was run alongside the white lines to discourage drivers from pushing the limits.
Supposedly in the interests of safety, the likelihood is that gravel sprayed from an overrun might injure following drivers.
![](https://sportshounds.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/george_russell_track-1024x678.jpg)
A stone destroyed the Formula One career of Red Bull senior consultant Helmut Marko back in the 70s when he was a driver and blinded in one eye.
Marko has been Ricciardo’s main critic in the Red Bull team, where the Australian drives for junior team, Visa RB.
Nevertheless, Marko says performance will drive any decision over Ricciardo, who finished ninth on Sunday and ahead of teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
The Japanese driver has consistently outpointed Ricciardo this season and has been given a contract for next year. Ricciardo is still waiting to hear if he is wanted.
The turnaround at top in F1, where Verstappen is a certainty to win a fourth successive world championship, sees Ferrari slipping behind Red Bull as McLaren and its drivers in Norris and Piastri surge to the front of the grid
Verstappen is left to face them alone as teammate Sergio Perez fails to find the form that saw him win two races in 2023.
In spite of his dismal results this year, finishing seventh in Austria, Red Bull has signed the Mexican to another year.
Ricciardo had been hoping for the seat alongside Verstappen but has only only himself to blame for being overlooked. He should never have left Red Bull where he scored most of his victories
What has been impressive about the Australian, however, has been his mental resilience.
He has continued to believe in himself and his ability to rebound at the age of 34, as teams look to younger drivers.
The toothy grin is still there after disappointments that would have broken lesser drivers and team principal Laurent Mekies is also a believer.
Meanwhile, the rumours continue to swirl that Red Bull’s Thai majority owners to replace Ricciardo with reserve driver Liam Lawson.
The New Zealander replaced Ricciardo when he hit the barriers at the Dutch Grand prix in Zandvoort last year.
Even that was an all-antipodean affair. Ricciardo crashed when avoiding Piastri.
Results of the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix
Sunday 30th June 2024
POS | DRIVER | CAR | TIME/RETIRED |
---|---|---|---|
1 | George Russell | MERCEDES | 24:22.8 |
2 | Oscar Piastri | MCLAREN MERCEDES | +1.906s |
3 | Carlos Sainz | FERRARI | +4.533s |
4 | Lewis Hamilton | MERCEDES | +23.142s |
5 | Max Verstappen | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | +37.253s |
6 | Nico Hulkenberg | HAAS FERRARI | +54.088s |
7 | Sergio Perez | RED BULL RACING HONDA RBPT | +54.672s |
8 | Kevin Magnussen | HAAS FERRARI | +60.355s |
9 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB HONDA RBPT | +61.169s |
10 | Pierre Gasly | ALPINE RENAULT | +61.766s |
11 | Charles Leclerc | FERRARI | +67.056s |
12 | Esteban Ocon | ALPINE RENAULT | +68.325s |
13 | Lance Stroll | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | +1 lap |
14 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB HONDA RBPT | +1 lap |
15 | Alexander Albon | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | +1 lap |
16 | Valtteri Bottas | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | +1 lap |
17 | Zhou Guanyu | KICK SAUBER FERRARI | +1 lap |
18 | Fernando Alonso | ASTON MARTIN ARAMCO MERCEDES | +1 lap |
19 | Logan Sargeant | WILLIAMS MERCEDES | +2 laps |
20 | Lando Norris | MCLAREN MERCEDES | +7 laps |
PETER COSTER is a former editor and foreign correspondent who has covered a range of international sports, including world championship fights and the Olympic Games.
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