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After a brief
Canadian interlude, Formula 1 is back in Europe for four races in the space
of six weeks leading up to the summer break. It kicks off this weekend with
the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring, the facility owned by the
eponymous Austrian energy drink company.
For the past three years,
this event has been run to the Sprint format, but now it returns to the
standard one, with three free practice sessions, two on Friday and one on
Saturday, followed by qualifying on Saturday evening and the race on Sunday.
The compounds
The choice of compounds the teams can use is the same as last year’s, namely
C3 as Hard, C4 as Medium, and C5 as Soft. The track surface at the Red Bull
Ring is rather old and is highly abrasive, but wear is not a key factor.
With very few corners, the track is not very severe in terms of the lateral
forces exerted on the tyres, while degradation is mainly thermal in origin,
which is down to the track layout with several hard braking and acceleration
points. Managing tyre overheating, particularly on the rear axle, is a
significant challenge. Furthermore, air and track temperatures can be quite
high at this time of year.
In 2024
Last year’s race was very linear, at least over the first two thirds of the
race. As expected, the most effective strategy was a two-stop: those who did
three or more – Verstappen, Leclerc, Alonso and Sargeant – did so for
unforeseen circumstances, not by choice. All the drivers lined up on the
grid on Medium tyres while, starting from pit lane, Zhou went with the Hard.
The C4 and the C3 were the undoubted protagonists of this race, with the C5
only putting in an appearance at the end, used by Verstappen for the last
seven laps after his enforced stop and by Alonso, who was trying for the
race fastest lap, which he did indeed set. Daniel Ricciardo drove the
longest stint of the race, completing a 34 lap third and final stint on the
Hard tyre. The prize on Mediums went to Pierre Gasly who did 29 laps and, in
this case too, the French Alpine driver did it in his final stint.
The
track
Of those tracks on the current calendar, the Red Bull Ring has the fewest
corners (ten) with the shortest lap time (1’02”939, set by Valtteri Bottas
in a Mercedes in 2020). It ranks second overall after Spa-Francorchamps in
terms of elevation change, with a 63.5 metre difference between the highest
and lowest points on the track. The three sectors are very different from
one another: the first is all uphill, with two straights, while the second
begins with heavy braking for turn 3, before running downhill to the entry
for turn 7. From there the track again climbs slightly, followed by another
descent to the longest straight and the final two high-speed corners. There
are three DRS zones, which makes this race one of the most action-packed on
the calendar.
The venue gets plenty of use, with racing on both four
and two wheels, therefore the track is pretty well rubbered-in right from
the start of the weekend. Early summer can bring high temperatures, but the
Styrian mountain location and surrounding forests often cause rapid changes
in the weather with rain clouds building up quickly.
Keyword: porosity
Formula 1 tyres develop
surface porosity as a result of the intense mechanical and thermal stress to
which they are subjected. The tyre deforms, especially under acceleration
and braking, more so on rough surfaces and this causes energy and heat to
build up in the compound. If temperatures exceed the optimal operating
window, microcavities and surface irregularities can form and this surface
porosity can lead to premature degradation. Microcavities can also lead to
the formation and expansion of gas or vapour bubbles, known as blisters,
between the carcass and the tread. Excessive hear can partially separate the
rubber layers and these bubbles can evolve into craters or holes on the
tread surface. This is known as blistering, visible usually as dark streaks
or damaged areas on the tread. This phenomenon is more common on a track
that is not rubbered-in much, with high surface temperatures and with a very
aggressive driving style.
Statistics Corner
This year’s race is the 38th edition of the Austrian Grand Prix, while
Formula 1 celebrates its 40th appearance in Styria. The first was in 1964 on
a track that made use of the Zeltweg military airfield, a stone’s throw from
the current venue. The race moved to Spielberg in 1970 when the track was
known as the Österreichring, its home until 1987. After a ten year break,
the event was run for a further six years on a shortened track, known as the
A1-Ring. In 2014, it was renamed Red Bull Ring. In 2020 and 2021, the track
also hosted the Styrian Grand Prix, back-to-back with the Austrian race, as
part of the special calendars in the Covid years.
Max Verstappen is
the most successful driver in Austria, with four wins in the eponymous Grand
Prix and one in the 2021 Styrian GP. The Dutchman also heads the standings
for pole positions (5) and podium finishes (8). 26 drivers have won at least
once in Austria, eleven of them world champions – the aforementioned
Verstappen, Alain Prost, Alan Jones, Mika Hakkinen, Michael Schumacher, Nico
Rosberg, Emerson Fittipaldi, Niki Lauda, Nigel Mansell, Jacques Villeneuve
and Lewis Hamilton. Last year’s winner was George Russell.
The most
successful team in Austria is Mercedes, with a total of seven wins, although
in the actual Austrian Grand Prix, the marque with the three-pointed star
shares the top slot with Ferrari and McLaren. Making the difference is Lewis
Hamilton’s victory in the 2020 Styrian Grand Prix. Ferrari leads the way for
poles with eight and also has the most podium finishes on 29. |
