F1 Austrian Grand Prix LIVE: Sprint race schedule and start time as Max Verstappen starts on pole

29/06/2024

Leclerc Voices Discontent With Ferrari Strategy Over Radio

Formula One heads to the Red Bull Ring for round 11 of the 2024 season as Spielberg hosts the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend.

Max Verstappen won for the third time in four races to win last time out in Spain, holding off a late charge from Lando Norris to extend his lead in the F1 world championship standings. He now leads Norris, up to second ahead of Charles Leclerc, by 69 points.

Norris was frustrated with second place in a quick McLaren car in Barcelona, while Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton picked up his first podium of the season with a third-place finish.

Austria will host the third sprint race of the season this weekend. Verstappen won both races last year and is a four-time winner of Red Bull’s home race.

Follow live updates from the Austrian Grand Prix with The Independent

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Here are the Driver Standings heading into Austria!

1. Max Verstappen - 219 points

2. Lando Norris - 150 points

3. Charles Leclerc - 148 points

4. Carlos Sainz - 116 points

5. Sergio Perez - 111 points

6. Oscar Piastri - 87 points

7. George Russell - 81 points

8. Lewis Hamilton - 70 points

9. Fernando Alonso - 41 points

10. Yuki Tsunoda - 19 points

11. Lance Stroll - 17 points

12. Daniel Ricciardo - 9 points

13. Oliver Bearman - 6 points

14. Nico Hulkenberg - 6 points

15. Pierre Gasly - 5 points

16. Esteban Ocon - 3 points

17. Alex Albon - 2 points

18. Kevin Magnussen - 1 point

19. Zhou Guanyu - 0 points

20. Valtteri Bottas - 0 points

21. Logan Sargeant - 0 points

Kieran Jackson29 June 2024 09:52

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How does the sprint race weekend work?

The F1 Commission and the FIA approved another modification to the sprint format this year.

The new order of play sees the ‘sprint qualifying’ take place on Friday afternoon instead of a second practice session, with traditional qualifying in its usual spot on Saturday afternoon.

It means there will be just one practice session over the course of the weekend, while Saturday is no longer designated as a ‘sprint day’.

The result of the Saturday morning sprint – a 100km dash, roughly a third of the distance of the grand prix – will not impact the grid for Sunday Points will be awarded to the top-eight, as was the case in 2023.

The sprint race result will not have any impact on the grand prix qualifying on Saturday nor the grand prix on Sunday.

Kieran Jackson29 June 2024 09:48

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Start times this weekend in Austria:

(All times BST)

Saturday 29 June

Sprint race: 11am
Qualifying: 3pm

Sunday 30 June

Race: 2pm

Kieran Jackson29 June 2024 09:45

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F1 SPRINT RACE IN AUSTRIA!

Good morning and welcome to live coverage of the Austrian Grand Prix with The Independent!

Max Verstappen starts on pole for the sprint at Red Bull’s home track with Lando Norris alongside him on the front row and Oscar Piastri in third.

Following the sprint at 11am, we have qualifying for tomorrow’s grand prix at 3pm - so a busy day in store at the Red Bull Ring!

(Getty Images)

Kieran Jackson29 June 2024 09:45

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Max Verstappen puts row between father and Christian Horner aside to claim Austria sprint race pole

Max Verstappen put his father Jos’ row with Christian Horner to one side to take pole position for Saturday’s sprint race in Austria.

Verstappen beat McLaren’s Lando Norris to top spot by just 0.093 seconds at the Red Bull Ring, with Oscar Piastri third.

George Russell qualified fourth for Mercedes, two places and two tenths clear of team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

Full report below:

Verstappen puts row between father and Horner aside to claim sprint race pole

Red Bull team principal Horner was forced to deny he stopped Verstappen Snr from taking part in a parade of former Formula One drivers ahead of Sunday’s Grand Prix

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 17:35

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Toto Wolff on sprint qualifying:

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 17:09

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Lando Norris in second:

“Reasonably good to be honest, never got quite comfortable, I’m happy with that. It must have been a nice lap from Max, good position for the race tomorrow.”

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:56

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Lewis Hamilton:

“I wasn’t in the mix at all, the whole session was pretty disastrous. Practice was good, car felt good, not in a position for pole but yeah, some very bad laps.”

“I don’t think overtaking is mega here, we’ll give it our best. It’s usually not such an eventful race, the focus is on a better qualifying tomorrow.”

A disappointing afternoon for Hamilton, who starts P6 in the sprint tomorrow.

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:44

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Max Verstappen on sprint pole:

“It was great to be first here, in front of home fans and home grand prix! A good day, nice to drive the car, it was well balanced, everything has been working really. Good start to the weekend, a lot of things to do.

“I’m not too stressed about tomorrow, will just enjoy my evening!”

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:35

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TOP-10 ON GRID FOR SPRINT RACE:

1. Max Verstappen

2. Lando Norris

3. Oscar Piastri

4. George Russell

5. Carlos Sainz

6. Lewis Hamilton

7. Sergio Perez

8. Esteban Ocon

9. Pierre Gasly

10. Charles Leclerc (no time)

Kieran Jackson28 June 2024 16:27

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