After a long 217 days since the last Formula One race took place in Abu Dhabi, and 102 days since the false start in Australia, finally, Grand Prix motor racing is back.
What would have been the 11th race of the 2020 season, now marked the beginning of the latest start to a Formula One campaign in history.
Austria hosts the shortest lap, timewise, of the season, with 10 corners, 3 DRS zones, plenty of elevation changes through the Styrian hills, and significantly punishing kerbing which would contribute to a challenging start to the season.
Last year’s Austrian Grand Prix saw an intense battle between two young game-changers on the grid, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, with Verstappen, ultimately taking victory after a vigorous overtaking manoeuvre on the Ferrari driver.
This year, Verstappen started from P2 after Hamilton was dealt a three-place penalty for ignoring a yellow flag during yesterday’s qualifying, while Leclerc was further down the order than usual in P7.
Mercedes had dominated the first weekend of Practice and Qualifying with Bottas beating Hamilton to the coveted pole position by just one-tenth of a second.
Race Report:
Pole sitter, Valtteri Bottas made a great start, as did Max Verstappen, but he faced a strong if somewhat unexpected challenge from Lando Norris, who was trying to make the most of his elevated grid position in the McLaren.
Bottas built up a three-second lead by the end of the ninth lap on the soft compound tires, followed by Max Verstappen who opted for the slightly slower medium compound.
Verstappen was set to have an incredible race and battle with the Mercedes pair, but the Dutch driver became the first of 9 drivers not to finish the race after his car suddenly lost power, with the anti-stall system deploying, meaning last year’s Austrian Grand Prix winner was the first to bow out of this year’s season opener.
Hamilton had an easy time getting by Norris and Albon, and with Verstappen out of the race, he was up to second place but still with a lot of ground to cover to catch his Finnish teammate.
Daniel Ricciardo became the next to suffer during today’s race, after 19 laps, an issue with his Renault’s cooling system sent the Australian into the pits and out of the race.
The first safety car was deployed after Kevin Magnussen experienced breaking issues, resulting in the Haas car spinning off the track into an unsafe position.
The safety car left the track at the end of the 30th lap, allowing the battle to resume. While Bottas and Hamilton continued to race flat out, a technical issue was raising concern in the Mercedes garage.
Both drivers were warned to take it easy on the raised kerbs as sensors on the car indicated they were beginning to take a toll on the gearbox.
The advice, initially ignored by Hamilton, led to a final warning from the pit suggesting the problem was critical and threatening a one-two finish for the team.
A second safety car period was required, when George Russell coasted to a halt in his Williams.
Red Bull decided to take a chance and summoned Alex Albon into the pits for a tire change, opting for the soft compound, in the hopes of gaining ground on Hamilton for a podium finish.
As the safety car pulled in again, a frantic race to the finish looked to be on the cards.
Alex Albon quickly passed Sergio Perez, moments before Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo lost its front wheel and the yellow flags were waved again.
When the safety car pulled in for the final time we were ready for a ten lap dash to the checkered flag.
Albon attacked Hamilton immediately but in his great haste to take second place from the world champion they made contact, the Red Bull coming off worse, as Albon spun into the gravel.
The 24-year-old did manage to rejoin but his chances of a podium were gone. Hamilton was deemed responsible for the incident and was handed a 5-second penalty.
Bottas drove an impeccable race and despite the early pressure from Hamilton, never put a foot wrong.
The Finnish driver deservedly took the checkered flag ahead of his teammate Hamilton, who would ultimately be demoted to fourth place.
Second place went to Leclerc, who made the most of others misfortune as he skilfully worked his way from P7 to a podium finish in a Ferrari that wasn’t expected to feature so prominently.
Of equal significance, was the performance of the McLaren in the hands of Lando Norris, who took the first podium position of his career coming in third, after a devastating final lap that saw him overtake his Spanish teammate.
Despite the high attrition rate, the first Grand Prix of the season provided no shortage of excitement.
Fans now only have just over four days to wait before the wheels turn in anger once again and if the second race at the Red Bull Ring proves even half as dramatic as today’s season opener, we’re in for a treat.
