George Russell achieved a key victory this Sunday in the Austrian Grand Prix, held under an intense European heat wave. The Mercedes driver withstood attacks from Max Verstappen and his teammate Kimi Antonelli, despite the fact that his hydration system stopped working during the race.
It is his first victory – excluding sprint races – since the season-opening Australian GP. With this result, he cut Antonelli’s lead in the standings to 40 points.
“It’s been a tough couple of months with some really tough races, where I felt like everything was against me,” Russell said after the race.
Verstappen, with an improved Red Bull for his home race, pushed until the end. However, he was unable to get past Russell and had to fend off Antonelli. The first three crossed the finish line separated by just two seconds.
Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari failed to capitalize on the victory in Barcelona two weeks ago. Hamilton finished fifth and Charles Leclerc, eighth. The seven-time champion and the Dutchman engaged in a wheel-to-wheel duel in the first half, with Verstappen complaining that Hamilton forced him onto the gravel.
Antonelli regretted mistakes that cost him valuable seconds at the start. “It was a shame I joined the party a little too late,” said the 19-year-old driver.
Smart victory
Russell took pole on Saturday amid a yellow flag for a Verstappen crash. The stewards accepted that the British had reduced enough. On Sunday, he managed his pace without getting into trouble, while his rivals wasted time fighting.
Oscar Piastri finished fourth for McLaren, but team principal Andrea Stella warned: “We are not in a position to fight for wins and podiums on pure pace at the moment.”
Extreme heat
The heatwave triggered F1’s “heat danger” rules. The pilots wore cooling vests during the national anthem and carried umbrellas. Overheated brakes were a recurring problem; Antonelli had difficulty stopping the car. Both Cadillac drivers retired early, and the team put out a small fire in Valtteri Bottas’ car.
“We have made progress in pace, but we need to ensure reliability,” said Cadillac boss Graeme Lowdon.
