Austrian F1 Grand Prix: How to Stream, TV Channels, Grid, Sprint Results, Best Bets, Weather & More – Yahoo Sports

The 2023 F1 season resumes this weekend at the home circuit of the team that has led the series for the past two or more seasons. The Austrian Grand Prix takes place at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg in Styria and is the second sprint weekend of the season.

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen is in commanding form after winning the last four straight races and holding a whopping 69-point lead over team-mate Sergio Perez in the Drivers’ Championship. That’s almost a full lead of three races. Verstappen has won four times in ten starts at the Red Bull Ring.

Here’s everything you need to know about the Austrian Grand Prix weekend:

Starting grid for the Austrian Grand Prix

Austrian Grand Prix TV/Streaming Schedule

Always east

Friday
7:25 – 8:30 am: Free Practice 1 (ESPN2, ESPN+)
10:55 am – 11 am: Qualification (ESPN2, ESPN+)

Saturday
6:25 – 7:30 am: Sprint Shootout (ESPN2, ESPN+)
10:25 – 11:30 am: Sprint (ESPN, ESPN+)

Sunday
7:30am – 8:55am: Pre-Race Show (ESPN)
8:55 am – 11 am: Austrian Grand Prix (ESPN, ESPN+)

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Verstappen wins the wet-dry sprint at the Austrian Grand Prix

Max Verstappen started the Austrian Grand Prix sprint from pole position and dominated the afternoon despite losing the lead to his Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez for two corners. Verstappen won by more than 21 seconds over Perez and completed all 24 laps on intermediate tyres. A total of 11 cars pitted towards the end of the race for slick tires as the track had dried sufficiently, making for some exciting races in the order.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was third, Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll edged out his strong teammate Fernando Alonso in fourth, Nico Hulkenberg surprisingly took three points for Haas in sixth, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon was seventh and Mercedes’ George Russell took the last point in the eighth.

Sprint results for the Austrian Grand Prix

Details of the Austrian Grand Prix

Rail: Red Bull Ring (Spielberg, Austria), 2.683 mile long 10 corner permanent circuit
race length: 71 laps for 190 miles
Lap record: 1:05.619 (Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, 2020)
Tire Compounds: C3 (hard), C4 (medium), C5 (soft)
Last year’s winner: Charles Leclerc, Ferrari

The Sprint weekend format returns

In 2021, Formula 1 introduced the sprint weekend format, which moved the traditional qualifying session to Friday and instead introduced a shortened race, awarding minimal points and setting the starting grid for the Grand Prix on Sunday. A few nominal changes later, we have our current format for the 2023 season, effectively making Saturday more of an exhibition.

The new format dispenses with the lame duck practice on Saturday morning and relies on a faster version of the traditional three-stage knockout qualifying format to set the starting grid for the sprint race later in the day. The top eight finishers in the sprint receive points in descending order (eight for P1, seven for P2, six for P3, etc.).

McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin bring upgrades

After being overtaken by Mercedes for second place in the world constructors’ ranking at the Canadian Grand Prix, Aston Martin are bringing with them an upgrade package they hope will allow them to ‘challenge’ the Silver Arrows. Fourth-placed Ferrari will debut new front wing elements, a new floor and a new rear wing which he hopes will make his racing performance more predictable. McLaren, sixth in the Constructors’ Championship, will introduce a number of significant changes to the car from Austria.

“I look forward to everything that’s new,” McLaren driver Lando Norris told Australia’s Speedcafe.

Norris currently sits 11th in the Drivers’ Championship, having finished sixth in 2022.

McLaren’s Lando Norris is hoping the car’s upgrades, which will begin in Austria, will propel the team further up the F1 Constructors Championship. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

Top drivers and best bets for the Austrian Grand Prix

Barring an unforeseen disaster, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen will be the favorite at every race weekend for the remainder of the season as he heads towards the inevitable third straight Drivers’ World Championship. He has a -275 lead over winning Austria at his team’s home circuit, according to BetMGM, and the next best moneyline is Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso at +700.

Best odds
• Max Verstappen -275
• Fernando Alonso +700
• Lewis Hamilton +800
• Sergio Perez +900

Yahoo Sports’ Nick Bromberg wrote earlier in the week about some props worth considering, including Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finishing on the podium (-225). He also likes that Fernando Alonso finishes on the podium in the sprint (-110), indicating the strength of the car in Montreal two weeks ago.

List of participants for the Austrian Grand Prix

Max Verstappen (1), Red Bull-Honda RBPT
Sergio Perez (11), Red Bull-Honda RBPT
Charles Leclerc (16), Ferrari
Carlos Sainz (55), Ferrari
Lewis Hamilton (44), Mercedes
George Russell (63), Mercedes
Pierre Gasly (10), Alpine Renault
Esteban Ocon (31), Alpine Renault
Lando Norris (4), McLaren Mercedes
Oscar Piastri (81), McLaren Mercedes
Zhou Guanyu (24), Alfa Romeo Ferrari
Valtteri Bottas (77), Alfa Romeo Ferrari
Fernando Alonso (14), Aston Martin Mercedes
Lance Stroll (18), Aston Martin Mercedes
Kevin Magnussen (20), Haas Ferrari
Nico Hulkenberg, (27), Haas Ferrari
Nyck De Vries (21), AlphaTauri-Honda RBPT
Yuki Tsunoda (22), AlphaTauri Honda RBPT
Logan Sargeant (2), Williams Mercedes
Alexander Albon (23), Williams Mercedes

Weather for the Austrian Grand Prix

Thunderstorms are expected to affect Friday afternoon’s qualifying as well as Saturday morning’s sprint shootout qualifying before conditions may improve. There’s only a 20% chance of rain forecast for race day, meaning the stronger cars like Red Bull, Aston Martin and Mercedes should be able to fight their way up the field, even if Friday’s grid is closed due to changing conditions the end of the Grand Prix.