FORMULA 1 GROSSER PREIS VON ÖSTERREICH 2019
 

I do hope that some of you watched todays race.

After a frankly boring French Grand Pix with a predictable result the Austrian race was an exciting breathe of fresh air.

To see Mad Max passing the Mercedes and Ferraris was a delight.

Ferrari newbie Charle Leclerc started on pole and kept it until the last lap.
Vettel and Hamilton, didn't really figure.

The youngest pole sitters ever made for a great show, and ew want more!

British Grand Prix in two weeks time!

Great GP.
Got to feel a little sorry for Leclerc but Max did drive superbly after his poor start off the line and earned the win.

I am on the fence regarding the stewards' ruling on the Verstappen/LeClerc incident, but the battle between the two did make for a very exciting race. :up:

It was hard racing, that's all. Senna, Schumacher, Hamilton would all do the same. LeClerc will need to harden up, and he will - he's young and has plenty of talent.

Pity Max won in a way: that may negate his contract clause that allows him to move teams if he hadn't won by Hungary. Who wouldn't want to see him in a Mercedes against Hamilton directly?

Cheers,
Steve

I understand, however such aggressive driving was accepted in the recent past, and, personally, I think that Vettel should be allowed his victory in Canada.

Someone on Sky sports quoted the "rules" and it was ridiculously complex with sub sections and such, and still wasn't clear.

Verstappen has grown and matured remarkably in the last two/three seasons, and has had a hard road to hoe, Le Clerc has a good track (sic) record and WILL succeed, (certainly whilst Vettel in in a funk), and it is great that there are indications that Mercedes dominance isn't as certain as it was.

Also remarkable that temperatures were so problematic when one considers that they also race in Bahrain, Mexico, Spain, Texas Abu Dhabi etc.

mmm, In July last year Mercs announced that both Hamilton and Bottas would be with them at least until the 2021 regulations changed, but ...who knows?
Anyway gotta go change strings on my 12 string!

The incident is unrelated to the one in Canada. In the present case, Verstappen had the corner; there's no doubt about that. But, you still have to give the other driver somewhere to go. LeClerc rightly assumed he had a car width on the outside. Verstappen turned in late, drifted outside and pushed LeClerc off the track. If there had been a wall on the outside of that turn, there would have been a catastrophic crash. It wasn't just 'hard racing'. It was unnecessarily dangerous, and it used the car as a weapon. You can't have that.

It was a great race, but if the Canada incident had not happened I think the steward's decision would have gone the other way.

They played Max’s radio traffic complaining that he was loosing power... The pit gave him some buttons to push, and as he said after the race, “My car came alive”....
Great race!

IIRC, it was a problem with a sensor (providing an incorrect reading, perhaps?), maybe, Max was able to disable or reset it.

Regarding the steards' decision, there seems to have been a lack of consistency in their decision making process over the past season or two (at least).

Yes, I heard that too. Somewhat through gritted teeth as I drive a Honda and they charged me a fortune for "resting" a sensor which instantly came back on, then another pile of cash to find a loose connector and plug it back together. I bet Max didn't have to pay!

'course my CRV probably (!) has a different engine !!

Overall, an exciting race, today.:)

Now, if we get rid of the stewards, F1 will improve a whole bunch. :D