Categories: FeatureFeatures

Chris Medland's Austrian Grand Prix preview

The hills are alive with the sound of V6 turbos this weekend as Formula One heads to Austria, racing at the Red Bull Ring which rejoined the calendar last season. A short, old-school circuit, last year’s race saw Williams spoil Mercedes’ party and lock out the front row before Nico Rosberg led home Lewis Hamilton at the end of a scruffy weekend for the pair. While teams will have last year’s data, it’s still a relatively new high-speed challenge for the drivers in a stunning setting, and will offer Ferrari an opportunity to prove Canada wasn’t a reflection of its true potential.

FORM GUIDE

This is probably the race which most closely resembles the previous one in terms of circuit demands on each car, with a number of long straights punctuated by medium to high-speed corners rather than the chicanes of Canada. The circuit may look very different, but the cars will run in very similar configurations which will suit Mercedes and Williams. Ferrari, however, says it didn’t get to show how much progress it has made with its updated power unit in Montreal, and as a result will be keen for a better performance in Austria. Red Bull and McLaren will again be fearing a circuit which will show up their respective power unit deficits, while Lotus and Force India will eye more points from a track suited to Mercedes power.

2014 RESULT

Pole position: Felipe Massa (Williams), 1:08.759

Top three: Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Valtteri Bottas (Williams)

Fastest lap: Sergio Perez (Force India), 1:12.142

SESSION TIMES (All times local)

FP1: 10:00 - 11:30

FP2: 14:00 - 15:30

FP3: 11:00 - 12:00

Qualifying: 14:00 - 15:00

Race: 1400

TYRE CHOICES

WEATHER FORECAST

The teams have one of their worst scenarios for a race weekend in terms of the weather, with rain predicted throughout Friday’s practice sessions which will limit race simulations and supersoft tyre running. There are also showers forecast on Saturday, so a potentially wet qualifying should see teams willing to get some laps in despite the rain, while Sunday is currently forecast to be a dry and relatively cool day with only a low risk of further wet weather.

PODIUM PREDICTION

1st - Lewis Hamilton

2nd - Sebastian Vettel

3rd - Valtteri Bottas

2014 WINNING SHOT

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.