15:29
Antonelli is all over Verstappen, but there is surely no more time
Red Bull has brought upgrades to its home race
LIVE
F1 Austrian GP LIVE: Russell wins from Verstappen at the Red Bull Ring
Live coverage of Sunday at the F1 Austrian Grand Prix
KEY MOMENTS
- Austrian weekend declared a 'Heat Hazard'
- Russell starts from pole position
- Verstappen crashed heavily in Q3
The eighth round of the 2026 Formula 1 season takes place at the Austrian Grand Prix.
The Red Bull Ring is a firm favourite among drivers and fans, with the long straights and heavy braking zones providing ample opportunities for overtaking action and, more importantly in the modern era, generating electrical energy back into the batteries.
Mercedes arrives in Austria looking to bounce back from a first defeat of the campaign, with Lewis Hamilton having toppled his former team in Barcelona with the assistance of a significant Ferrari upgrade package. However, Mercedes has been forced to remove some serrated edging on its diffuser in response to an FIA technical directive. While it is speculated that this will cost time, Mercedes believes the matter has been overplayed.
This weekend, it is Red Bull which brings the most new parts to the table, as the team attempts to pull closer to the top three outfits, having dropped back in recent weeks.
George Russell took pole position in dramatic fashion on Saturday, correctly identifying that single-waved yellow flags were being displayed after Max Verstappen had crashed in Q3. Despite lifting into Turn 9, he was still fast enough to deny Ferrari what had appeared to be a certain one-two for Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. Kimi Antonelli starts from fourth.
In the heat, tyre wear is expected to play a significant factor in the race, potentially creating some strategy variation, as was seen last time out in Spain.
2026 Austrian Grand Prix Sunday schedule
Grand Prix: 2:00pm BST - 4:00pm BST
28 Jun 2026
15:50
George Russell holds off Max Verstappen to claim Austrian GP win that boosts F1 title hopes
George Russell holds off Max Verstappen to claim Austrian GP win that boosts F1 title hopes
George Russell beat Max Verstappen to a timely victory at the Austrian Grand Prix to boost his F1 championship hopes as Mercedes returned to winning ways.
Having been handed its first defeat of the season by Ferrari and Lewis Hamilton last time out in Barcelona, Russell bounced back in style to convert a controversial pole position into just his second win of the season in Spielberg.
Russell celebrates his win in Austria
15:49
Full 2026 F1 Austrian Grand Prix race results
Full 2026 F1 Austrian Grand Prix race results
George Russell took his first Formula 1 victory since the season-opener, winning the Austrian Grand Prix.
While there may have been initial controversy surrounding his pole lap on Saturday, there was no debate about Russell's Red Bull Ring victory, as he controlled the race from lights to flag.
Verstappen and Antonelli in Austria
© XPB Images
15:32
Top 10
The top 10 at the Austrian Grand Prix were:
- Russell
- Verstappen
- Antonelli
- Piastri
- Hamilton
- Hadjar
- Norris
- Leclerc
- Lawson
- Lindblad
15:30
Chequered flag!
Russell converts pole to victory at the Red Bull Ring. Nothing controversial about that at all! Verstappen is second from Antonelli. A cracking race as 1.9s split the top three at the flag.
15:29
Alonso moves out of the way and lets the leaders through.
15:29
Last lap
One more lap to decide the podium!
15:28
Antonelli is within a second of Verstappen, and is setting personal best sectors. Onto the last lap we go!
15:27
3.1s is the gap at the front, and the game is up for Verstappen. Antonelli is only 1.3s back on the Red Bull driver, however, so there could yet be some action in the last two laps.
15:26
This could be embarrassing for Alonso here. He's very close to being lapped by the entire field. Talk about humiliation!
15:24
6 laps, 4.5s is the gap. Russell is likely just nursing his tyres now. Verstappen, on the other hand, will be giving it full beans.
15:21
Into the final few laps, and the top 10 is
- Russell
- Verstappen
- Antonelli
- Piastri
- Hamilton
- Hadjar
- Norris
- Leclerc
- Lawson
- Lindblad
15:17
Hold the phone...the gap is down to 5.7s. Maybe there is a chance.
15:13
Verstappen is slowly closing in on Russell, but it's not going to be enough. He's made a second in about five laps and remains 8.1s back.
15:08
VSC ending, and we're back to things.
For both of his stops, Antonelli was one lap out of luck with the VSC.
15:08
VSC! A bollard had gotten loose at Turn 3 after Albon gave it a whack.
15:07
Lap 52, into Turn 3, Hamilton pulls clear of Leclerc. A simple and perhaps orchestrated move.
15:07
In a moment of 'we're seen this one before;' Hamilton is back on the gearbox of Leclerc.
Pulling the pin, Antonelli stops for hard rubber. Let's see what you've got Kimi.
15:05
In comes Verstappen. New hard tyres for the Red Bull driver. He has a decent tyre delta, and has some clean air to close back in.
Antonelli's lead over Russell is 7.4s. He won't have enough pace to maintain the lead.
15:01
Stroll has been told to box the car to retire...anyway!
15:00
Russell has done the maths and has worked out that Antonelli could be on a one-stop strategy. Antonelli has pace in hand, and might be able to make this work.
14:57
At the end of Lap 43, Russell makes his final stop. He drops to P3. How much of a delta can Verstappen now build?
14:56
Piastri and Hamilton come back in. Three stops already for Hamilton, and he's back down to P7.
14:54
Verstappen is 1.3s back on Russell. Game. On.
14:53
A five-second penalty for Alonso for pit lane speeding.