Verstappen dominates Austrian GP after he fought Ferrari to seal victory

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen secured his 42nd career victory, and fifth win at the Red Bull Ring, after a teasing fight with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc during the Austrian Grand Prix.

How the race unfolded…

It was a great launch from Verstappen who managed to maintain his track position ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz who were in second and third respectively. However, further back contact was made between Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon who left a small portion of debris on the track. 

Tsunoda’s trouble continued later on in the lap as he outbroke himself into turn four and skipped across the gravel. At the same time, at the front of the pack, Leclerc looked to try a move onto Verstappen into turn four but this was to no avail as the Dutch driver continued out in front. 

Due to the debris across the circuit, of carbon fibre at T1, the safety car was deployed at the end of the first lap. 

During the first safety car intervention, Verstappen led ahead of Leclerc and Sainz who occupied second and third. After lap three, the race finally resumed and Verstappen bolted on the exit of turn eight to get the race back up to speed. When overtaking was allowed once more, the Dutchman was able to enter turn one unchallenged from those behind. 

On the exit of turn three, on lap 14, Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg retired from the race with an engine failure. As a result, the Virtual Safety Car was deployed. A number of drivers pitted for the hard compound tyres such as both: Mercedes, McLarens, Alpines and Williams.

The race finally resumed on lap 16, and only the Red Bulls of Verstappen and Sergio Perez were yet to pit. At the same time, Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton, who was in fourth, was slapped with a five-second time penalty for track limits. This was soon followed by Tsunoda who was slapped with his own track limit penalty.

On lap 21 of 71, there was a pit lane incident noted between Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Williams’ Logan Sargeant. As Alpine pitted for a change of tyres, the French driver was released into the path of Sargeant who was forced to slow down in the fast lane to enter his pit box. 

Ocon was soon given a five-second time penalty for an unsafe release, on lap 25. 

On the same lap, Verstappen finally pitted from the race and yielded the race lead to Leclerc. Verstappen returned to the circuit in third. However, it wasn’t long before the defending world champion made a move for second place on the exit of turn three. 

Alpha Tauri’s Nyck De Vries was given a five-second time penalty for forcing another driver off the track, on lap the driver in question: Magnussen. A few laps prior, the two drivers curled around turn six but as the two battled De Vries failed to give Magnussen enough racing room and the Dane was forced to skip across the gravel trap.  

On lap 42, Sainz, Hamilton, Ocon, Williams’ Alexander Albon and De Vries were yet to serve their five-second time penalty. Alpine’s Pierre Gasly soon joined that list for a track limit violation. However, Hamilton and Sainz soon pitted for new tyres to serve their penalties.

At the end of the 49th lap, Verstappen pitted for fresh medium tyres. Due to the Dutchman’s advantage over second-placed Perez, Verstappen’s pit stop allowed him to return to the circuit in the same position he left it: in first. 

This was soon followed by Perez, a lap later. While Verstappen left and returned in first, Perez pitted from the race and found himself down in fifth, behind both Ferrari’s and McLaren’s Lando Norris. It wasn’t long before Perez dispatched Norris for fourth, but he still had to contend with the Spanish Ferrari driver, Sainz.

After a tough tussle with Sainz, with a number of failed overtakes, Perez finally found a way past Sainz on the exit of turn four to take third place. Due to the limited amount of laps left, the Mexican could threaten Leclerc for second and, ultimately, had to settle for third on the podium. 

At the end of lap 69, Verstappen once again peeled into the pit lane but for a set of soft compound tyres this time around. With an out lap to come, the Red Bulls star man only had one lap to secure the fastest lap – and the additional championship point. Unsurprisingly, he got the fastest lap. 

Podium:

1. Max Verstappen, Red Bull
2. Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
3. Sergio Perez, Red Bull

That’s all for the article: Verstappen dominates Austrian GP after he fought Ferrari to seal victory!

Read more Formula 1 here:

• Verstappen dominates Austrian 2023 Sprint after fight with Perez
• Verstappen pips Leclerc to pole position ahead of 2023 F1 Austrian Grand Prix
• Red Bull’s Verstappen fastest man in Austria GP sole practice
• Alpha Tauri expected to change F1 team name ahead of 2024
• Red Bull head home for 2023 F1 Austrian Grand Prix
• Verstappen victorious in Canada GP to give Red Bull 100th win

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Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.