Presentation of the Grand Prix of Austria

A stunning design

Reintroduced to the Formula 1 calendar in 2014, at the same time as the arrival of the era of hybrid-powered cars, the Austrian circuit is often a prime location for overtaking.

Indeed, the first three turns are almost right-angled and banked. And each time, a nice stretch of straight line (or almost) separates them. This allows drivers to attempt beautiful overtaking maneuvers.

Located next to the city of Spielberg in Styria in the heart of the Austrian Alps, this undulating, fast and technical track has been owned by the Red Bull group since 2013. After being removed from the Formula 1 calendar after the 2003 edition, the circuit was left abandoned. It was demolished and then rebuilt identically in order to be modernized and meet current standards of world motorsport. Since 2016, it has hosted a round of MotoGP.

The track can be divided into two parts. The first one consists of the start/finish line and two other straight lines interrupted by three tight turns that close very tightly. Then, there’s another more winding and technical part on the inside, leading back towards the end of the track. This track experiences the typical elevation changes of mountainous landscapes, so all the turns have a more or less pronounced bank.

This 4,318km carousel ultimately combines heavy braking, top speed, and technicality. Therefore, finding the perfect settings compromise is not necessarily easy to implement, and it enables different strategies based on each driver/car’s strengths and weaknesses.

The range of Pirelli tires

The layout of the Red Bull Ring is short, just over four kilometers, and consists mainly of heavy braking followed by strong acceleration. The Austrian tarmac is rather abrasive, but the tires do not undergo the greatest stresses of the calendar.

So, just like in Monaco, Pirelli brings its three softest compounds: C3, C4, and C5. C3 being the hardest tire, in white, C4 the intermediate compound in yellow, and C5 the softest compound in red.

Charging into the #AustrianGP! 🇦🇹🐂

📊 The softest compounds for Spielberg
📈 Fairly high micro and macro roughness
⏩ #F1Sprint is back#Fit4F1 #F1 pic.twitter.com/z6EJBc1c4i

— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) June 27, 2023