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Formula 1
Austrian GP
F1 Austrian GP Live Commentary and Updates - FP1 & Qualifying
Friday's action from the ninth round of the 2023 Formula 1 season
F1 begins its ninth round this weekend and its second sprint race of the season at the Austrian GP.
It means Friday will see just one free practice session (12:30pm-1:30pm BST) followed by qualifying at 4pm BST that will set the grid for Sunday’s grand prix.
Saturday is effectively a standalone event, with sprint qualifying and then the sprint race.
Max Verstappen leads the drivers’ standings by 69 points from Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez after his fourth win in a row last time out in Canada.
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Summary
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Summary
- Max Verstappen takes fourth consecutive pole for Red Bull at F1's Austrian Grand Prix
- A late effort from Charles Leclerc puts him on the front row at the Red Bull Ring ahead of Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz and McLaren's Lando Norris
- George Russell, Esteban Ocon, Oscar Piastri, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez out in Q2
- Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou Guanyu, Logan Sargeant, Kevin Magnussen and Nyck de Vries out in Q1
- The Red Bull Ring is hosting F1's second sprint event of 2023
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Leaderboard
- Verstappen, Red Bull
- Leclerc, Ferrari
- Sainz, Ferrari
- Norris, McLaren
- Hamilton, Mercedes
- Stroll, Aston Martin
- Alonso, Aston Martin
- Hulkenberg, Haas
- Gasly, Alpine
- Albon, Williams
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Welcome to our live updates ahead of Formula 1's Austrian Grand Prix. It's almost time for FP1 at the Red Bull Ring
There is a sprint race this weekend, so the format is slightly different. Today will feature FP1 followed by qualifying for Sunday's race, with the standalone sprint shootout and race tomorrow
Several teams have upgrades this weekend - McLaren among them. It's hoping the revised floor and sidepod will finally kickstart its disappointing 2023 season. Check them out here: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/mclaren-unleashes-full-floor-revamp-in-first-f1-2023-upgrade-push/10489296/
Meanwhile, F1 chiefs have been urged to ramp up analysis about the true impact of new rules for 2026, amid fears from some teams they could spawn "Frankenstein cars". Read the full story: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/f1-chiefs-urged-to-avoid-risk-of-frankenstein-cars-in-2026/10489343/
Sergio Perez sat out Thursday's media day due to illness, but he's back today for on-track action
This is the second sprint weekend of the season so far - the first was in Baku, won by Sergio Perez
It's looking like a lovely day in Spielberg, with just a 10% chance of rain and an air temperature of 26.6 C
Right, it's time for this weekend's only practice session. Will engineers be able to nail the setups in just one hour? Who will come out on top? Let's find out.
Max Verstappen has led every lap for the last four F1 races. Can anyone beat him this weekend?
Green flag
Green light at the end of pitlane and we're away
Lots of cars straight out the garages to make the most of limited running this weekend
There are a lot of Verstappen fans here this weekend! The grandstands are looking pretty orange
Stopwatch
Speaking of Verstappen, that's his first lap on the board - a 1m08.094s
Stopwatch
Perez is first into the 1m07s, with a 1m07.595s to lead from his team-mate and Esteban Ocon
Everyone is now out on track, bar the two Williams
Stopwatch
Verstappen goes quickest again (quelle surprise!) with Alonso in second, 0.3s off the lead
Perez and Verstappen have traded the top spot several times now, with the Mexican driver now back in front. A familiar picture from this season so far...
Fernando Alonso will be looking for another strong weekend here in Austria. He first raced at what was then called the A1 Ring in International Formula 3000 in 2000
Stopwatch
The Aston Martin driver takes the top spot with a 1m06.656s
Stopwatch
...shortly before Verstappen goes top again, 0.058s ahead of the Spaniard
The Williams pair are still in the garage - Alex Albon has done just two laps, but Sargeant has yet to set any. Is everything okay down there?
Our man on the ground, Grand Prix Editor Alex Kalinauckas, says there is a flare on the grass approaching the final corner. Very sensible behaviour, that...
No need to worry about Albon and Sargeant - Williams says it's following its run plan
Stopwatch
Hamilton takes the top spot with a 1m06.416s
Here's a photo of the offending flare - let's try and behave a bit better for the rest of the weekend please!
We're almost at the halfway point of the session, and currently Hamilton leads from Verstappen and Alonso. Perez and Albon round off the top five
Verstappen says he's suffering from understeer due to his front tyres not gripping up
Whoops! Alonso runs a bit wide at Turn 1
Couple of cars running wide at Turn 3 there - Leclerc and Tsunoda
Turn 1 has also proved tricky - since Alonso's earlier wide running, Sainz and Bottas have done the same
15 minutes to go and the order hasn't changed much, with Hamilton still on top ahead of Verstappen
Stopwatch
Lance Stroll has slotted into second for Aston Martin with a 1m06.550s, 0.1s behind Hamilton
Leclerc topped the timesheet briefly before he was toppled by, you guessed it, Max Verstappen. He sets a 1m06.084s with seven minutes to go
Lots of drivers have switched onto the soft tyres now for some qualifying simulations
Stopwatch
Sainz is next to lead with a 1m05.983s, 0.1s ahead of Verstappen and 0.2s ahead of Leclerc
Alpine have had a tough session - Ocon and Gasly are down in 17th and 18th
Stopwatch
Verstappen goes quickest with a 1m05.742s, with Sainz and Leclerc in second and third
Checkered flag
That's our only practice session over for today. Next up this afternoon is qualifying to set the grid for Sunday's race
Qualifying starts at 4pm BST today - who do you think will be on pole?
Read the full FP1 report here: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/f1-austrian-grand-prix-fp1/10489393/
By: Autosport Staff
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