Hundreds of Dutchmen had traveled to Austria to see Verstappen win. And they got their money's worth. Not only did Verstappen take pole position for the third weekend in a row, he also finished first; with force majeure! The track was literally covered in orange smoke.
In addition to Red Bull Racing, team McLaren also enjoyed the partying orange fans. Of course that had everything to do with the orange house style of the British team. McLaren driver Lando Norris, who came in third – his third podium already this season – could count on a loud cheer from the enthusiastic Dutch. Orange top!

Many time penalties handed out

Also notable was the number of time penalties that were handed out this Sunday. From Tsunoda entering the pitlane just over the white line twice, Stroll speeding in the pitlane to Giovinazzi overtaking while the safety car was out on the first lap. Norris, Pérez and Räikkönen also had to take time penalties for racing incidents. And then there was a whole row of drivers who went off their gas way too late at the double yellow flag on the closing lap of the race. The race management was still busy after the race to handle the entire administration properly.

Austrian Grand Prix

On the front row a strong performing Norris took the place next to Verstappen. Pérez (Red Bull Racing) was in P3 with the first Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton, next to him in P4. Bottas had qualified fifth. During that qualifying session on Saturday, Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin) suffered another three-place grid penalty for hindering Fernando Alonso (Alpine). That was a stroke of luck for, among others, George Russell (Williams) who started a position higher, namely on P8.

Just like last week, Verstappen was well away and kept the lead. Norris tried to attack, but kept calm and settled behind Verstappen on P2, with Pérez and the two Mercedes behind him. At the back of the field, Esteban Ocon (Alpine) got trapped between Antonio Giovinazzi (Alfa Romeo) and Mick Schumacher (Haas). A blow to his right front tire damaged his front suspension. The car was out of control and the disappointed Frenchman had to leave the race again at a very early stage.

A safety car in the first lap, that was a while ago. The leader determines where and when he will hit the gas again after the safety car has left the circuit. How well does Verstappen do that. Because you have to have nerves of steel to keep that whole field behind you waiting and waiting and waiting… It wasn't until after turn ten that he took off like a rocket.

Perez outside

Pretty soon after the restart on lap four, Pérez attacked Norris. In turn four it had to happen, with the Mexican trying it from the outside. However, there was no room left for him and Norris in that corner, causing Pérez to end up on the gravel next to the tarmac. Moments later, this action gave Norris a time penalty of 5 seconds, to be redeemed at the next pit stop. Pérez stayed in the race but lost his third position. Now Norris had Hamilton behind him. It would take until lap 20 for the Mercedes to catch up with him. Norris received a nice compliment from the seven-time World Cup winner: 'What a good driver he is, that Lando.'

Norris dove in on the 31st lap for his pit stop and the payment of his 5 second penalty. There he had to watch as Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), who also came in, received his P3 as a gift. Hamilton and Verstappen made their pit stops in quick succession without losing position.

Damage to floor Mercedes

Pérez was in battle with Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) for P8 for several rounds. That would eventually put him on 10 penalty seconds, because he pushed Leclerc off the track twice. Another great fight was between Leclerc and Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren). Further back, George Russell tried to get Williams' first World Cup point in P10. He had to pull out all the stops to keep Alonso behind. Unfortunately, he couldn't.

At the front, after the pit stops, it was soon clear that Hamilton could not keep up with Verstappen's speed. His car had sustained significant damage to the floor. Bottas got closer every lap. What would the team do? Leave Bottas behind Hamilton so that the Brit could finish second and take important points for the championship? No, Bottas was allowed to overtake his teammate. Not long after, Norris followed and Hamilton was suddenly in P4.

Fastest race lap for Verstappen

The gap between Verstappen and Bottas was so big that the Dutchman did not have to be afraid of a manhunt. P1 was almost certainly in the pocket. So why not go for a 26-point win with the fastest lap of the race? There was plenty of time for a second pit stop and a set of new tires. Did his team dare to take that risk? Yes! That was a good thing, because after the pit stop, Verstappen heard that there was a cut in one of the old rear tires. That could have just resulted in another blowout…

Crash in last lap

While Verstappen finished after 71 laps and celebrated over the radio with his engineer, Kimi Räikkönen and Sebastian Vettel shot off the track after turn four. Kimi did not notice Vettel when he overtook him there. When turning in, the Finn hit the rear tire of Vettel's Aston Martin and together they flew off the track in a large cloud of dust. End race!

Verstappen, Bottas and Norris - driver of the day - reported on the podium for the ceremony. The drivers closed the three race weekends in a row with, of course, a nice champagne shower.
After a week of rest, the F1 circus moves to Great Britain. The first F1 sprint race will be held at Silverstone on Saturday to determine who will start from pole position in Sunday's race.

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