The roar of the Red Bull Ring crowd was almost deafening this past Sunday, but not for the reasons anyone expected. This race is particularly significant for Max Verstappen, with tens of thousands of fans in orange shirts cheering him on. Before this race, the points difference between Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc was 31 points. The race consisted of 71 laps. A late-race collision between championship contenders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris sent shockwaves through the grid, paving the way for a surprise victory and a major shakeup in the title race.
Let’s look at the Results of the Austrian Grand Prix 2024:
Austrian Grand Prix 2024 Race Standings
Position | Driver | Team | Time | Points |
1. | George Russell | Mercedes | 1:24:22:798 | 25 |
2. | Oscar Piastri | McClaren | +1.906s | 18 |
3. | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | +4.533s | 15 |
4. | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | +23.142s | 12 |
5. | Max Verstappen | Red Bull | +37.253s | 10 |
6. | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas | +54.068s | 8 |
7. | Sergio Perez | Red Bull | +54.672s | 6 |
8. | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | +60.365s | 4 |
9. | Daniel Ricciardo | RB | +61.169s | 2 |
10. | Pierre Gasly | Alpine | +61.766s | 1 |
11. | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | +67.056s | 0 |
12. | Esteban Ocon | Alpine | +68.325s | 0 |
13. | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin | +1 Lap | 0 |
14. | Yuki Tsonuda | RB | +1 Lap | 0 |
15. | Alex Albon | Williams | +1 Lap | 0 |
16. | Valteri Bottas | Kick Sauber | +1 Lap | 0 |
17. | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber | +1 Lap | 0 |
18. | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin | +1 Lap | 0 |
19. | Logan Sargeant | Williams | +2 Laps | 0 |
20. | Lando Norris | McClaren | +7 Laps | 0 |
Key Facts from The Race
This was the second ever Grand Prix win for George Russell km Formula 1.
This was the first race of the season that Lando Norris scored no points.
In the 11 Races this season Max Verstappen has had 9 Top 5 Finishes.
The second place finish for Oscar Piastri is his best finish in a Formula 1 race.
The next Grand Prix will be in Silverstone and it will take place on 5th – 7th July 2024.
Race as it happened:
The race starts and Max Verstappen retakes the lead of the race. Lando Norris is in P2 and George Russell is in P3. Both the Haas drivers have entered the Top 10 and Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen can get points. Lewis Hamilton is having a very good race as he gets past George Russell for P3 and Lando Norris is trying to get past Max Verstappen. A good battle ensues between the two Mercedes for P3 with George Russell ultimately taking it. Oscar Piastri was getting past Sergio Perez for P6 who was having a horrible race yet again. It was Lap 16 and Max Verstappen was ahead by 5.8 seconds of Lando Norris. At Lap 23, Fernando Alonso got a 10 second penalty for the collision with Zhou Guanyu.
By Lap 29 of the race it was looking like Max Verstappen was facing gear issues but he said Gear 7 is working. Sergio Perez having a bad day was given a 5 second penalty at Lap 32 for speeding on the pit lane. Lap 33 and Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon are having a race of their own for P11 and Alpine officials are unhappy. Charles Leclerc is P18 and by Lap 34 he had his 3rd pit stop of this race. At Lap 40, Max Verstappen suddenly tells his team that his tyres are in bad shape and there is 7.3 seconds between him and Lando Norris. In the long list of penalties the latest one is Esteban Ocon at Lap 45 as he was given a 5 second penalty for crossing the white line at the pit entry. By Lap 48, Max Verstappen is having a hard time and his tyres are giving up and the 2 Haas drivers are chasing him.
It was Lap 51 and from here the race got exciting for the fans. Max Verstappen and Lando Norris both got into the pits but Max Verstappen took 6.5 seconds and the gap between the Top 2 is 1.5 seconds. By Lap 54, Lando Norris is within DRA range and he is only 0.6 seconds behind. Lap 57, Max Verstappen gets angry and he says that the car is not working and something is wrong with it. By Lap 59, Lando Norris got the lead briefly but he gave it back to avoid punishment. Lando Norris is getting closer by Lap 61 and it will be a tight finish. At Turn 3 in Lap 63, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris are competing fiercely and an accident can happen. Lap 64 and again in Turn 3 they Collide and their rears are damaged. George Russell is in the lead of the race. By Lap 67, the tables have turned dramatically and it is now George Russell who is in the lead followed by Oscar Piastri at number 2. Max Verstappen is given a 10 second penalty for the collision with Lando Norris and this took any chance of winning that he had. Lap 71 is done and George Russell wins his second ever Grand Slam in Formula 1? Oscar Piastri stunningly finished in P2 followed by Carlos Sainz. This was one of the best and most dramatic races of the season.
