The Austrian Grand Prix unfolded exactly as expected from a strategic perspective, with both two-stop and three-stop races proving to be viable options. As predicted in our race morning analysis, Ferrari committed to a three-stop strategy, just as it had done successfully in Barcelona. This time, unfortunately, the outcome was very different.
The SF-26 showed competitive pace only on the Soft C5 compound, while struggling significantly on both the Medium C4 and Hard C3 tyres. Was it a setup issue? Or was it related to the design compromises surrounding Ferrari’s power unit? The answer is likely a combination of both. Racing at the Red Bull Ring, situated between 660 and 750 metres above sea level, certainly did not help the Scuderia’s cause.
Interestingly, Ferrari’s biggest concern after Sunday’s race is not the engine itself. Everyone inside the team already understood the performance limitations of the power unit heading into Austria. What proved far more worrying was the complete lack of race pace on the Medium and Hard compounds. We’ll examine that in more detail shortly, but first, here’s a quick overview of the strategies that shaped the Grand Prix.
Strategy recap
As anticipated before the race, the winning strategy was Medium-Hard-Hard (M-H-H), exactly the approach the leading teams had targeted following the final practice session. Every driver who still had two sets of Hard tyres available completed the race using that strategy, with the only exceptions being Ferrari drivers Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, who switched to a three-stop approach.
George Russell claimed his second victory of the 2026 Formula 1 season using the M-H-H strategy, finishing ahead of Max Verstappen, Andrea Kimi Antonelli and Oscar Piastri. Lando Norris crossed the line seventh with the same tyre sequence.
Lewis Hamilton completed the race on a Medium-Hard-Soft-Hard strategy, while Charles Leclerc followed Medium-Hard-Hard-Soft.
Isack Hadjar finished sixth as the highest-placed driver to use the Medium-Medium-Hard strategy. Nico Hulkenberg, Esteban Ocon and Alex Albon followed the same approach. Liam Lawson, Arvid Lindblad, Oliver Bearman and Franco Colapinto opted for Medium-Hard-Medium, while Gabriel Bortoleto ran Soft-Medium-Hard. Pierre Gasly completed Medium-Hard-Medium-Soft, Fernando Alonso chose Medium-Soft-Soft, and Lance Stroll, Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas all retired.
Ferrari on the back foot as strategy became a necessity rather than a weapon
Starting on the Medium C4 tyre, both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc immediately struggled to match the pace of their direct rivals. Leclerc fell behind the Mercedes drivers and Max Verstappen almost immediately, with McLaren appearing to be the only front-running team he could comfortably keep behind during the opening stint.
Hamilton initially displayed encouraging pace, but after several laps he encountered the same problems as his teammate. As a result, the seven-time world champion became the first Ferrari driver to abandon the Medium tyres in favour of the Hard compound, with Leclerc stopping just one lap later.
Despite the early pit stops, the expected improvement never arrived. Both Ferrari drivers continued to experience very similar limitations throughout the race. Leclerc’s overall race pace may also have been compromised by the heavier traffic he repeatedly encountered compared to Hamilton. That should not be considered an excuse, but rather one element within a broader analysis of everything that went wrong for Ferrari on Sunday.
Looking back at the available data, the pre-race predictions proved remarkably accurate. Both the strategic expectations and Friday’s long-run analysis reflected what ultimately happened during the Grand Prix. What dramatically raised expectations before Sunday’s race was the yellow flag during Q3. Without Max Verstappen’s qualifying accident, Ferrari likely would never have occupied the front row. George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli would probably have fought for pole position, while Verstappen would most likely have started third.
Qualifying created the illusion that Ferrari could repeat its Barcelona success. In reality, the ingredients for another victory simply were not there. Whereas Barcelona’s three-stop strategy allowed Hamilton to attack throughout the race, Spielberg forced Ferrari into the same approach merely to limit the damage and maintain even a basic level of competitiveness during each stint.
Under these setup conditions and with track temperatures remaining around 50°C throughout the afternoon, Ferrari simply did not possess the pace to compete with the front-runners.
Russell executes the perfect race as Verstappen maximises his opening stint
George Russell delivered an almost flawless drive, controlling the Austrian Grand Prix from start to finish without making any significant mistakes. Although Max Verstappen and Andrea Kimi Antonelli reduced the gap during the closing laps, Russell never truly looked in danger of losing the lead.
Verstappen secured second place thanks largely to an outstanding opening stint. He immediately capitalised on the battle between Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc to move into third position before quickly overtaking Hamilton and creating a valuable gap over the young Mercedes driver.
By stopping slightly earlier than Antonelli during each pit cycle, the Dutchman consistently maintained a comfortable advantage throughout the race. Only the final stint proved particularly demanding, with Red Bull timing the last undercut almost perfectly. Had Antonelli enjoyed even one extra lap before Max Verstappen’s final stop, he may well have mounted a successful challenge for second place.
In the end, seeing George Russell, Max Verstappen and Kimi Antonelli finish covered by just 1.9 seconds ensured that the Austrian Grand Prix remained entertaining right up to the chequered flag, providing an exciting conclusion despite Ferrari’s disappointing afternoon.
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