Never in 70 years in Formula 1 have two races been run on the same track in a week. This brings the teams valuable data – which Ferrari in particular can use.
On summer days like this, when it is as dark at four in the afternoon as it is at six in November in the evening, the mood in the Formula 1 paddock fluctuates. The continuing cloudbursts over the Mur valley had already prevented final training for the Grand Prix of Styria from taking place. and also the qualification had to be postponed by three quarters of an hour. In view of the aquaplaning on the mountain and valley railways, the squid of the swimming tires made the rounds.
Michael Masi, the race director, looks very serious in these situations. The Australian is responsible for security and he cannot be too careful. He bravely answered the question of how interesting qualifying would be in the constant rain: “I think the word interesting is an understatement.” Only the 20 racing drivers love such conditions in all complaints about the miserable view: the weaker ones because they sense a chance to get ahead in chaos. The strong ones because they can show how good they really are.
Masi then got the timing right for the start, and top drivers Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen fought for the pole position until the last lap. It went to the world champion in the Mercedes for the 89th time after the Dutchman had turned off the track with the Red Bull in the final bend. Hamilton’s physiotherapist Angela Cullen then began to stretch her elbow out – to congratulate her protégé’s pit crew on an anti-virus approach. (You can find the starting line-up here)
“Great”, congratulated the racing engineer over the radio, “brilliant” the praise came back to the mechanic team. Valtteri Bottas, winner of the first race in the same place a week ago, finished fourth this time. Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc finished tenth and eleventh and have to hope for racing luck once again. The racing lottery is going into a new draw on Sunday, because then dry weather conditions are again the order of the day. It seems that the premier class is accompanied by all elements of the drama in its late start to the season. The journey into the unknown is likely to continue.
Once is not a time, twice is again? For the first time in 70 years of Formula 1, two races will be held in succession on the same track. Between the Austrian Grand Prix and the Styrian Grand Prix, this allows direct conclusions to be drawn about who really stands where – and who has improved in the meantime. Once again, the same track characteristics, consistent parameters in the complex race car set-up, up-to-date data compared to the usually one-year-old values with which the supercomputers are fed.
The high failure rate was surprising at the start of the season
If you understand the vehicles better, they should get better and faster. Nice theory. At least the engineers know what didn’t work why. Redress or revenge are made possible by the emergency calendar in a hurry. That is also necessary, because at the start of the season only eleven out of 20 cars crossed the finish line, the highest failure rate since 2008. With every chance, fear is the main thing, even with host Red Bull, who delivered a zero number a week ago.
The capers result in completely new constellations, nothing is stuck – this increases the attractiveness for the spectators during the mountain race. But how can technical fear be possible in a meticulously timed world in which sophisticated technology supposedly makes the racing car expensive by a million euros? Failures were normal 30 years ago, but with the introduction of electronics, the failure rate dropped rapidly, most of the damage was just accident or racing bad luck. Last year, an average of 17 out of 20 drivers saw the checkered flag.
Vettel brings his standard rate
Now not only is the desire for better results growing, but also for more stability: “Two races in a row on one track is more unusual than anything else this summer. But there is a chance for me to do better than last Sunday” says Sebastian Vettel, “what we learned in the process could be useful.” In Maranello, at the instruction of Ferrari boss Louis Camilleri, the parts production was started up quickly: “We had to react immediately to last week’s bad starting positions. Therefore, we bring what was planned for tomorrow to the race track today.” The manager also promises: “Ferrari’s sleeves are rolled up. We face the situation and do not cry.” So far, the aerodynamic changes have not really had any effect. After qualifying, Vettel was able to access his standard sentence: “We just weren’t fast enough.”
Of the many welcome uncertainties in the ghost race, the vulnerability of the cars is of course an undesirable one. Suddenly the Austrian curbs are enough to put even the perfectionists at Mercedes in trouble. “We were lucky that we even crossed the finish line,” admits team boss Toto Wolff, looking back at the opening win of Valtteri Bottas, “the reliability has caused us some worries. In a shorter season with an undetermined number of races, it comes on every point. ” In order to prevent gears and sensors from going mad again due to the vibrations, new, stabilizing parts were manufactured in the racing factory in Brackley and brought to Austria. A wiring harness was identified as the biggest risk factor. Nevertheless, Wolff warns: “Since there are only a few days between the two races, there are still many unknowns.” General humility suits Formula 1 quite well.
The brakes at Haas, the engines from Honda, the aerodynamics from Ferrari – something crunches here, it still ticks, the temperatures and the air at 680 meters above sea level become unavailable. The short, hilly slope from Spielberg, with its 72 percent full throttle and brutal braking points, has always been considered material-killing, plus the long corona break in the racing factories. The processes are severely disrupted, many teams are in a technical catch-up hunt, but on the other hand are required to save. A tightrope walk. Add to that the nervousness that is growing under the coolness on display. So much nationwide pressure was rare at the start of a season.
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