The first day of the Styrian Grand Prix 2021 is over. It was an interesting day for Formula 1 on and off the track. Max Verstappen completed Friday’s doubles at the top of the timesheet, but Mercedes is not far away. Here are the biggest stories in your daily F1 recap.
Turkish Grand Prix is coming back
The Turkish Grand Prix has returned to the Formula 1 calendar in 2021. Turkey had already been drafted as a replacement for the Canadian Grand Prix, but coronavirus lockdown procedures from England, where many F1 teams are based, made this impossible. The Turkish GP will replace the Singapore Grand Prix and the race will take place on Sunday 3rd October.
The Turkish Grand Prix is an event that many Formula 1 fans look forward to. In the years that the Istanbul Park Circuit was on the calendar, it has always had good races, and the race that was held in 2020 was also a real spectacle. Turkey was also due to return to replace Canada in 2021, but could not be organized due to coronavirus measures. Read the full story here and the reaction here.
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Marko: “Verstappen on hard tires as fast as Hamilton on soft tires”
Wolff on contract talks with Hamilton: “He is in a very good mood”
Botta’s three-place penalty
The weekend didn’t start so well for Valtteri Bottas. The Finn made a nasty spin in the pit lane and received a three-place penalty for it. Click here to read the full story and here to see the twist.
Aston Martin pinches a few Red Bull crews
Red Bull Racing has announced that their Head of Aerodynamics, Dan Fallows, will be leaving the team. He becomes the new technical director of the Aston Martin Formula 1 team.
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Wolff on rival Red Bull: “It can swing in both directions”
Red Bull Racing has confirmed the departure of Dan Fallows in a press release. After 15 years at Red Bull, he will be the new technical director at Aston Martin. Fallows joined the aerodynamics team in 2006 as team principal and has played a key role in leading the team to the top. He has been Head of Aerodynamics since 2014. Read the full story here.
New strict measure against Red Bull
The FIA is reportedly working to keep pit stops at minimum intervals. Red Bull Racing think Mercedes is behind the new guidelines to thwart its biggest competitor this season.
In the future, a time of 0.2 seconds should be set as standard between the newly installed wheels touching the ground and the green light. In addition, the FIA wants to put another 0.15 seconds between the signal that all four wheel nuts are properly tightened and the manual attachment of the corresponding mechanics to the impact wrench. That would mean the pit stops are at least 0.35 seconds longer. Read the whole story here.
analysis
Before the Grand Prix of Styria, Max Verstappen set the fastest time in both FP1 and FP2. The fastest lap of the championship leader in the second free practice session was almost 0.400 seconds faster than his title rival. Valtteri Bottas finished in P12, but the long runs show that Mercedes cannot be ruled out in Austria. The Mercedes team also seems to have more time in their pockets.
Overall, Hamilton recorded the average lap time on the long runs. He did this on the soft tire. While the Mercedes looked good on the soft tires, Red Bull Racing looked good on the hard tires. Verstappen and Perez were both within a few tenths of Hamilton’s average time. Click here to read the full analysis.
Reports
Max Verstappen exceeded the times of the first session of the race weekend in Austria before the Grand Prix of Styria. The Dutchman finished second and third, ahead of Pierre Gasly and Lewis Hamilton. At the Red Bull Ring he set a lap time of 1: 05.910. It was an excellent session for AlphaTauri and Alpine, who both put their drivers in the top 10 at the end of the hour. However, it was a different story for Sergio Perez, who failed to make it into the top 10. Click here for the full FP1 report.
Both Aston Martin and Alpine showed strong performances during the session, with Vettel and Ocon briefly leading the timekeeping. Verstappen then arrived at the scene and took the lead, holding three tenths ahead of Ricciardo & Ocon. Hamilton finished fourth, around 0.384 seconds behind the leaders. Antonio Giovinazzi also had a good time, finishing tenth with the fastest time on the speed camera. The Alpines took a comfortable third and fifth place for Ocon and Alonso. Click here for the full RP2 report.
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