Austrian Grand Prix: Comments before the stage

Pirelli

Mario Isola: “The road surface at the Red Bull Ring provides low traction and the tire wear is low enough to apply the three softest compounds. Such a choice will add to an interesting show – in the past the Austrian circuit has hosted exciting races thanks to a short lap and a series of slow corners.

Efficient acceleration and deceleration are key elements at Spielberg. There is a risk of rubber blocking when braking hard on descents. To ensure adequate traction, it is critical to monitor the efficiency of the rear tires throughout the lap. Our selection of tires for the Austrian round offers a variety of strategic options.”

Ferrari

InterviewStory by: Iñake Rueda

Red Bull Racing

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Mercedes AMG Petronas

Toto Wolff: “Forward to Austria! Double podiums are great when you need time on the track to gather as much information about new products as possible.

We had a good weekend at Silverstone, felt fantastic support from the fans and were fast. Our competitiveness was the result of hard work on modernizing the car – and the characteristics of the track that suits us.

Lewis had a brilliant race, took part in several intense fights. If things had gone a little differently, he could have gotten a better result. The speed of George’s car allowed him to bounce back after starting from eighth. Unfortunately he was unable to race but we are proud of his personal qualities after the incident.

I look forward to returning to Austria. This is my home stage on the track, which I have many fond memories of. Spielberg has very different characteristics to Silverstone, previously this track was not always suitable for our car, but this year the cars have changed. We will not lower our heads, we will prepare well and try to build on the success achieved at Silverstone.”

McLaren

Lando Norris: “I am very happy to be back in Spielberg for the Austrian Grand Prix. We are waiting for the sprint at one of my favorite tracks on the calendar – all this promises an interesting weekend. Not the fact that we will fight for the podium like the previous two years, but we will certainly have a good chance of earning points and competing with rivals.

It was nice to see a lot of people in our papaya colors at Silverstone and I’m very happy that all the grandstands will be in orange this coming weekend as a sign of support for McLaren…

There is always a great atmosphere in Spielberg and I hope to build on the result achieved in the last stage. We have a lot of work to do, but we will keep fighting.”

Daniel Riccardo: “The Austrian Grand Prix is ​​always fun. Spielberg has a great track in beautiful surroundings and the races are usually exciting. The last few sprints have shown that any result is possible, so I’m ready to take the chances I have, and also to create my own.

Despite the incredible support from the fans, the result of the British stage was not what I wanted, so we have something to work on before the start of next weekend. We spend hours understanding why the car lacked speed and what needs to be done in the second half of the season. I hope we can take a few steps forward this weekend. We will not lower our heads and continue to work.”

Pierce TinnMcLaren’s production director: “We are almost halfway through the 2022 season, but the team is working harder than ever. Budget constraints are forcing all teams to act more efficiently and before the summer break we have three Grand Prix and tire tests. Everyone at the base and on the track does his best to earn points in the upcoming races and take advantage of the opportunities that may come in the sprint.

When preparing machines and spare parts for the weekend in Spielberg, we take many factors into account. On the track, a high degree of wear is possible due to high curbs that can damage cars. We need to make sure we have enough spare parts. This is especially important in a situation where there is a high risk of injury due to the sprint format. In addition, we are waiting for the second weekend of double events, but we have taken all these factors into account in preparation for the season. The squad is ready.

Speaking of the track, it has some interesting features such as a vertical drop, right turns on the hill and three fast straights. It will be interesting to see how the next generation of cars perform on the track.”

Hare F1

Interview: Gunther Steiner | Kevin Magnussen | Mick Schumacher

Alfa Romeo

Valtteri Bottas: “I have good memories of Spielberg – in 2014 I was on the podium here for the first time in Formula 1, after which I won this race twice. I always enjoy spending time in Austria, I like to race on a track surrounded by mountains and feel the support of really passionate fans.

Last weekend wasn’t easy for us, but we figured out what went wrong at Silverstone. I am sure this time we will be able to fight for points and win back what we lost last week. Everything depends, as always, on the small things, but we are confident in our abilities.”

Guanyu Zhou: “When I left Silverstone last Sunday, I was already looking forward to getting back in the car. The accident was serious, I would like to thank you again for the safety improvements in recent years, which have enabled me to manage without injury, but what happened has been left behind. Now I am fully focused on performing in Austria.

At Silverstone we were in good shape and we are looking forward to continuing to work and showing our pace on track. Ahead of the second of my career, after Imola, Saturday’s sprint round is our chance to get a good result on Sunday.”

alpine

Interview: Otmar Safnauer | Fernando Alonso | Esteban Ocon

AlphaTauri

Pierre Gasly: “After seeing the British Grand Prix we can safely say that it was a great day for racing fans and we have received further proof of what has been done in Formula 1 to improve safety. I am very pleased that no one was seriously injured in such a terrible incident.

As for our team, we did well in qualifying and then I was seventh in the race, so we missed another chance. Partners should not clash – on Sunday evening we got together with the whole team, discussed what happened and immediately started preparing for the Austrian Grand Prix.

Ahead of Red Bull’s home race. Despite the lack of pressure, everyone on the team wants to perform well. I’ve earned points on the Red Bull Ring three times. The track is very fast, especially the second and third sectors, and this year such tracks are not particularly suitable for our car. On the other hand, we have learned a lot in the past races, we can try to improve the car under such conditions and make progress.

Since the start of the season we have had regular problems, so we should have a perfect weekend. It’s important that the car was fast on tracks that in theory don’t suit us. If we do our best, we can seize opportunities as they arise.”

Yuki Tsunoda: “I’m glad we’ll be back on track in a few days and can leave behind what happened at Silverstone. The only good thing about this weekend was the wet qualifying, which we did better than expected based on Friday’s pace. I couldn’t do anything during the launch incident and then we unfortunately ran into Pierre. We have discussed this with the team and now we are ready to move forward.

I love all the fun things Red Bull is asking us to do in preparation for the weekend. This is the company’s home race, but as far as I know nothing special is planned for this year as the race in Austria is the second in a double series.

We are fully focused on overtaking Silverstone. I loved last year’s stage – I reached the final of qualifying and earned a point for tenth place, and in Formula 2 I finished second.

There’s a short lap in Spielberg and I’m not sure if the high-speed track suits the car. Our competitive position varies from track to track, so it’s hard to predict what to expect from the weekend ahead.

On the Red Bull Ring it is not easy to choose the settings of the car, which should be average in terms of downforce. However, based on our performance last year, I expect we will be competitive.”

Aston Martin

Lance Walk: “Spielberg is a compact and interesting track, fast and relentless, where you have to attack constantly to improve your lap times. In recent years I have been able to show good results and if we have a clean weekend we can get positive results.

It’s easier to overtake in Spielberg than in Imola, where the previous sprint took place, so I expect to see more battles on Saturday.

Sebastian Vettel: “The Austrian circuit is really unrelenting – driving outside immediately comes with a penalty, but this just makes it more interesting. The curbs are very aggressive and on new ground effect machines you need to be extra careful. However, I hope we will be more competitive this weekend.

Usually the races in Austria are very eventful and the sprint will be another factor this weekend. I am looking forward to these two races!”

Williams

Dave Robson, Chief Race Engineer: “Alex Albon’s car was damaged at the start of the race last weekend so it was logistically difficult for us to get straight to the sprint stage, but the team managed to repair most of Alex’s parts or replace. car. This allows us to continue testing new products on Friday during the first training.

The team will have very little time to change the car’s configuration and settings before the “closed park” mode kicks in, so we need to take a bold approach in the first practice if we want to keep making progress.

The track is harder than it looks, based on the configuration. Slow corners contrast clearly with the fast set of the sixth-seventh corners. A noticeable difference in height complicates the task, as does hard braking. Finally, the curbs look very tempting to attack, but they can damage the car if you overdo it.

The weather forecast promises relatively cool weather, making it easier to cool the car compared to normally warmer conditions. However, on Friday it is not easy to choose a cooling configuration for the race – the risk of mistakes is there, but all teams have to deal with it.

Nicholas Latific: “I am looking forward to returning to Austria for the second sprint weekend of the season. I like this format – it’s always great to change the usual course of the weekend.

The team picked up a good pace after a positive weekend at Silverstone. Can’t wait to get back on track. The first training will be crucial. We’ve gathered a lot of information about this track, so I expect we’ll be in good shape. Hopefully we can take advantage of the sprint format and have a strong weekend.”

Alex Albon: “Of course we are disappointed that we were not able to fully test the updates last week, but now we are waiting for the stage in Austria. I know the team has worked hard to restore my car, so we are ready to continue testing new products and gathering information.

Due to the sprint format, we have limited time to work in practice, but I’m excited to get back behind the wheel and see what we can do with the car.”