Max Verstappen Dominates 2024 Austrian Sprint Race

Sprint winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrates in parc ferme during the Sprint ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on June 29, 2024 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

SPIELBERG, Austria – A week after Max Verstappen’s Spanish Grand Prix victory over Lando Norris, Formula 1 now heads to its second stop on their European Triple Header, this time to Austria’s Red Bull Ring for a Sprint Weekend where the Red Bull driver hopes to continues his dominant form as McLaren looks to keep things close.

As it was a Sprint Weekend, there was only one practice team, and drivers could gather data ahead of the two qualifying sessions and the Sprint race. While the session drama was punctuated by Verstappen coming to a halt on the front stretch in an apparent engine issue, his car roared back to life. He ended the session at the top of the timing charts, ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, the two Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz plus the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton.

While the start of the Sprint Qualifying was quiet, three minutes in, a large batch of cars took to the track sporting the mandatory Medium compound tires. While Mercedes started quickly, Verstappen soon took the top spot. By the time the session expired, the Visa Cash App RB of Daniel Ricciardo, the Haas of Nico Hulkenberg and the Kick Saubers of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu surrounded the Williams of Alex Albon.

When the second round of qualifying started, Verstappen once again controlled the field while teams tried to save their tires for later to get the best performance. No true dramatics occurred as the other Haas of Kevin Magnussen, the Aston Martin pair of Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll, the Visa Cash App RB of Yuki Tsunoda and the Williams of Logan Sargeant all were eliminated from the Top 10 shootout.

As teams prepared for the final round, it was clear that most teams would only be running a singular lap to set their times. Mercedes once again set a benchmark, and while it looked like there may be issues for Lerclerc, who stalled on pit lane and ultimately could not complete a lap, everyone else worked on getting their one-timed lap in.

Norri was looking quick in his McLaren. However, Verstappen’s Red Bull looked faster as he quipped the fastest time, just 0.093 seconds over the McLaren. With that, the field was set for the Sprint Race.

A day later, teams were ready to prepare for the third Sprit Race of the season, with the only change from the Sprint Qualifying the day prior being Albon starting from pit lane; when teams removed the tire covers before the formation lap, all teams had the Medium compound tires on their cars.

Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 on track during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on June 29, 2024 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Clive Rose/Getty Images)

Verstappen led the field away for the formation lap, and even with the delay of an aborted start and a second formation lap, the field was ready; with the lights going out, the Sprint race was underway, with an easy lead retained from the Red Bull driver and a clean trip through Turn 1.

Norris, having held off his quick teammate Oscar Piastri, set his sights on the lead of the race. By Lap 5, with the help of DRS, he completed the pass into Turn 3 with the hopes of using the double dosage of DRS before Turn 4. However, his lead was short-lived as the Red Bull hung close to the rear wing of the McLaren, and the reigning world champion blazed past the McLaren, bringing along Piastri, too.

Verstappen then started rebuilding his lead as Piastri worked around his teammate to take second place.

As the race made its way into the double digits in the lap counter and down a lap due to the aborted start, Verstappen was able to get out of DRS range from the McLarens and built up a four-second lead as he looked for his 10th Sprint victory.

Finally, at the end of the race, with Norris attempting to get around his teammate in the final moments of the Sprint race, Verstappen grabbed another Sprint victory ahead of Piastri and Norris, closing out the podium. George Russell brought his Mercedes home fourth, ahead of Sainz, rounding out the Top 5.

As it was a Sprint Race, only the Top 8 handed out points. Hamilton led Leclerc and Sergio Perez’s other Red Bull in the points-paying positions. Magnussen and Lance Stroll rounded out the Top 10 outside of the points.

With the Sprint race done, teams are now focused on qualifying for the Austria Grand Prix.

Verstappen was eager to continue the pace that he had been setting as he was the first one out to the track once the pit lights turned green. However, he was soon bested by Sainz, who set an even quicker time. Piastri slotted between the Ferrari and the Red Bull with razor-thin margins between the three.

However, it was the end of the round for Albon, Stroll, Bottas, Sargeant, and Zhou as they could not pick up a faster time as the clock wound down. The first qualifying round is now the closest qualifying round from first to last, at 0.798 between the field.

Verstappen looked to fight back in the second round, which he did as soon as the round began. Verstappen put in an even faster time a second time to bring home the point of his strength around the Red Bull Ring. He was quickest in the first session but became more worried in the second as Sainz reported to his crew that increased bouncing would not give him a better chance for faster times.

At the cusp of not making it out of the second round, Alonso was on the verge of being eliminated, and as much as he tried, he was not enough as he was eliminated from competing for pole position. Ricciardo, Tsunoda, Magnussen, and the Alpine of Pierre Gasly joined him.

As the final round started, with a bit of a peculiar incident as Hamilton almost brought a pit jack with him out to the track, Verstappen once again set a quick benchmark of a fast time to beat in the opening round of runs ahead of Norris and Russell behind.

Pole position qualifier Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrates in parc ferme during qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on June 29, 2024 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

Teams soon prepared for their second and final attempt to set a lap, and it was once again a test to see who could beat the benchmark set by Verstappen, who once again bested his own time to solidify his 40th career pole. Norris and Russell held onto their second and third, while Sainz and Hamilton rounded out the Top 5.

Leclerc and Piastri ran into some trouble. The Ferrari driver went off track in his final run, leaving him in sixth, while the McLaren driver was hit with a lapped time deleted, dropping him to seventh. The other Red Bull of Perez finished in eight, ahead of Hulkenberg and the Alpine of Esteban Ocon to round out the Top 10.

Teams now turn their attention to the Austrian Grand Prix, where Max Verstappen hopes to continue his reign of dominance, but the McLaren pair look to take the fight to him as the margin for error keeps dropping.