After the previous round of the 2023 Formula 1 championship, which was held at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montréal, the sport returns to Europe, and the upcoming Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring will shed more light on the teams’ hierarchy, particularly in comparison to the distinct characteristics of the Canadian circuit.
In the previous season, it was Charles Leclerc who emerged victorious for the Maranello team in Spielberg, marking Ferrari’s last triumph. However, this time, the team finds itself in a considerably worse condition than twelve months ago as they revisit the same track. Max Verstappen, on the other hand, aims to secure his fifth consecutive victory and the fifth win at the Red Bull Ring. It will be intriguing and significant to observe which team comes closest to challenging Red Bull on a circuit that better reflects true performance.
Further down the grid, Alpine seeks redemption as the A523s have lost several tenths to their competitors who introduced significant upgrades during the last few weeks. At the Red Bull Ring, the French team will introduce new components to their car, as will McLaren with the MCL60.
The ‘Sprint’ format makes its return after a two-month absence. In Azerbaijan, Scuderia Ferrari claimed pole position in both races, making it their best-scoring weekend of the 2023 Formula One campaign. With only a single free practice session, teams will have just 60 minutes to optimize the setups they have studied in the simulator during these days prior to the Spielberg event.
Out of the ten official corners at the Red Bull circuit, the first turn will be approached at around 150 km/h, while the two hairpins in the middle sector will be navigated by the cars at lower speeds. From the sixth corner to the end of the second sector, the minimum speeds will not drop below 200 kilometers per hour per flying lap. In this type of corner, the Red Bull RB19 is unfortunately unmatched and it will be this part of the track that will make the difference in the fight for second place between Ferrari, Mercedes and Aston Martin.
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McLaren emerges as the closest competitor for Red Bull in this area of the circuit, closely followed by Mercedes and Aston Martin, while the Maranello team and Alpine lag behind due to their downforce deficiency, a problem that however was not that clear two weeks ago in Montreal.
Mercedes will need to validate the progress made in medium and low-speed corners, as observed at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, while also capitalizing on the characteristics of the W14 that align with the curves in the final part of the lap. Efficient DRS usage on the three main straights will be crucial in Austria. And as expected Red Bull also excels in this aspect, but Aston Martin has shown signs of narrowing the gap to RB19, especially after introducing the new rear wing in Azerbaijan.
Friday and Saturday will provide crucial insights into the evolution of this gap, similar to what we witnessed in Canada. A strong rear end will be vital in the various traction zones across the 4.3km track, and effectively utilizing the curbs will also play a significant role.
Pirelli has confirmed the tire compounds for 2022, with the C3 and C4 designated as the race tires. The C5 compound will likely be reserved for the two qualifying sessions.
In the previous year, all teams struggled with tire degradation over the 71 laps of the race. Although this year’s cars generally manage the tires better, a two or even three-stop strategy cannot be ruled out.
Temperatures for the Austrian Grand Prix weekend are not expected to be excessively high, with peaks of 24°C on Friday and Sunday. There is also a moderate chance of rain, exceeding 80%, particularly during the initial two days of the weekend.
The Power Units will face their first test this season, taking into consideration the higher altitude of the Styrian circuit which results in thinner air, impacting the engines’ cooling capacity.
To mitigate this issue, we anticipate seeing less extreme solutions on the engine bonnets compared to usual. However, even with these adjustments, Scuderia Ferrari faced challenges last year: we still remember that with fifteen laps remaining, Carlos Sainz’s weakened F1-75 engine suffered a failure, compromising the Maranello team’s chance of securing a memorabile one-two finish at the Red Bull Ring.
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