Formula 1 sprints have been a hot topic in the last years, very often failing to deliver any additional emotions, and ruining the experience with racing on sleeper circuits. But Sprint and Austria seem like a perfect match, a weekend which may revive the image of F1 sprints and show all F1 fans, that this idea may not be as bad as many think.
Why Red Bull Ring is Made for Sprints
Red Bull Ring is one of the best tracks in terms of overtaking, racing wheel to wheel and keeping up with the faster cars thanks to DRS. And these 3 ingredients make perfect recipe for a good sprint format, as the name suggests, it should be a race, where everyone puts on softs and pushes 100% from lap 1 to the chequered flag, in order to score as many points as possible.
Red Bull Ring is a track, which hosted the most races since 2020, thanks to the double header held as “Austrian Grand Prix” and “Styrian Grand Prix” in the same year. Teams and drivers know this circuit very well, and it’s also a rather easy layout, where bravery and pushing the car to the track limits is rewarded the most.
Will The Sprint Format Deliver?
Let us wait and see, drivers will not have much time to get the set up right, and the new tiny gravel traps on the outside of some of the corners should force drivers to keep the cars inside the track limits. In 2023, track limits have been broken 1200 times over the weekend, which is an absurdly high amount for one weekend. Those, who will be able to keep the cars on the limit, but avoid slowing down in the gravel, should be able to set up quick times and compete for good points, even without the best car
Teams like Williams, Haas, Alpine and Sauber may have a good chance of scoring decent points during this weekend, as many qualifying times will be removed, and some drivers will be hesitant not to overstep the boundary.
Who Will Win the Sprint in Austrian Grand Prix?
Historically, Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull were the strongest on this circuit, especially Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc and Lando Norris. Currently, the 3 fasted F1 drivers on the grid have a great chance of showing they belong to another league, and leave the competitors behind. For the first time in a couple of years, there is no one strongest team that is expected to dominate, but as much as 4 teams can fight for the top step of the podium.
Here is the prediction for the weekend done by F1blast team
Sprint race:
1. Lando Norris
2. Max Verstappen
3. Charles Leclerc
4. Oscar Piastri
5. Lewis Hamilton
Main race:
1. Max Verstappen
2. Lando Norris
3. Sergio Perez
4. Charles Leclerc
5. Carlos Sainz
Other predictions by F1blast team
1. Williams/Haas to finish in points
2. Lap 1 chaos and safety car
3. Mercedes slow pit stop
4. Alpine engine gone
5. Aston Martin agony – both outside of points