F1 Austrian Grand Prix LIVE: Sprint qualifying schedule, results and times

Formula One heads to the Red Bull Ring for round 11 of the 2024 season as Spielberg hosts the Austrian Grand Prix this weekend.

Max Verstappen won for the third time in four races to win last time out in Spain, holding off a late charge from Lando Norris to extend his lead in the F1 world championship standings. He now leads Norris, up to second ahead of Charles Leclerc, by 69 points.

Norris was frustrated with second place in a quick McLaren car in Barcelona, while Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton picked up his first podium of the season with a third-place finish.

Austria will host the third sprint race of the season this weekend. Verstappen won both races last year and is a four-time winner of Red Bull’s home race.

Follow live updates from the Austrian Grand Prix with The Independent

Table of Contents

F1 AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX – LATEST UPDATES

Max Verstappen on pole for the sprint race; Norris 2nd; Piastri 3rd
Click HERE for the top-10 in sprint qualifying
Fernando Alonso out in SQ2, also out: Magnussen, Stroll, Tsunoda, Sargeant
Daniel Ricciardo out in SQ1, also out: Hulkenberg, Bottas, Albon, Zhou
Max Verstappen fastest in first and only practice; Piastri 2nd; Leclerc 3rd
RED FLAG! Verstappen stops on track in practice
Verstappen leads the world championship by 69 points after 10 races

Max Verstappen puts row between father and Christian Horner aside to claim Austria sprint race pole

17:35 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen put his father Jos’ row with Christian Horner to one side to take pole position for Saturday’s sprint race in Austria.

Verstappen beat McLaren’s Lando Norris to top spot by just 0.093 seconds at the Red Bull Ring, with Oscar Piastri third.

George Russell qualified fourth for Mercedes, two places and two tenths clear of team-mate Lewis Hamilton.

Full report below:

Verstappen puts row between father and Horner aside to claim sprint race pole

Toto Wolff on sprint qualifying:

17:09 , Kieran Jackson

“Qualifying is a different game. Maybe a front row would be a great result, but everything to play.”
Toto Wolff reflects on Mercedes’ weekend so far and their targets for the rest of it 💬 pic.twitter.com/6rDs1FZYii
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 28, 2024

Lando Norris in second:

16:56 , Kieran Jackson

“Reasonably good to be honest, never got quite comfortable, I’m happy with that. It must have been a nice lap from Max, good position for the race tomorrow.”

Lewis Hamilton:

16:44 , Kieran Jackson

“I wasn’t in the mix at all, the whole session was pretty disastrous. Practice was good, car felt good, not in a position for pole but yeah, some very bad laps.”

“I don’t think overtaking is mega here, we’ll give it our best. It’s usually not such an eventful race, the focus is on a better qualifying tomorrow.”

A disappointing afternoon for Hamilton, who starts P6 in the sprint tomorrow.

Max Verstappen on sprint pole:

16:35 , Kieran Jackson

“It was great to be first here, in front of home fans and home grand prix! A good day, nice to drive the car, it was well balanced, everything has been working really. Good start to the weekend, a lot of things to do.

“I’m not too stressed about tomorrow, will just enjoy my evening!”

TOP-10 ON GRID FOR SPRINT RACE:

16:27 , Kieran Jackson

1. Max Verstappen

2. Lando Norris

3. Oscar Piastri

4. George Russell

5. Carlos Sainz

6. Lewis Hamilton

7. Sergio Perez

8. Esteban Ocon

9. Pierre Gasly

10. Charles Leclerc (no time)

Max Verstappen:

16:19 , Kieran Jackson

“Yeah not bad, that lap was a bit quick. All good!”

Calm as you like…

Max Verstappen on pole for the sprint race!

16:16 , Kieran Jackson

Huge cheers from the Dutch fans in the grandstands – Verstappen does is by 0.093 secs to Lando Norris in second!

Oscar Piastri in third for McLaren, with George Russell in fourth and Carlos Sainz in fifth.

And Charles Leclerc didn’t get over the line in time – he starts down in P10! What a screw up from Ferrari!

6-10: Hamilton, Perez, Ocon, Gasly, Leclerc

George Russell:

16:12 , Kieran Jackson

“Let’s get cracking, everyone’s gonna go now!”

Only three minutes left and both the Mercedes cars out on track!

Big old queue in the pit-lane…

SQ3 underway!

16:07 , Kieran Jackson

Here we go then – eight minutes, probably time for two quickfire laps at the end of the session!

10 drivers involved: Verstappen, Perez, Sainz, Leclerc, Russell, Hamilton, Norris, Piastri, Gasly, Ocon

Interestingly, a lot of work going on at the back of Max Verstappen’s car prior to the start of SQ3!

It’s just not quite clicking for Aston Martin at the moment!

16:03 , Kieran Jackson

Fernando Alonso out in SQ2!

16:01 , Kieran Jackson

Another tricky session for Aston Martin, who both miss out to Alpine again!

Bottom-five (11-15) and out in SQ2: Magnussen, Stroll, Alonso, Tsunoda, Sargeant

Stroll: “I had a big slide in the last corner!” – and it cost him!

Magnussen misses out by 0.050 seconds to Pierre Gasly!

Top-3: Verstappen, Russell, Piastri

Now time for the quickfire top-10 shootout!

Half the grid set times early on in SQ2!

15:56 , Kieran Jackson

Eight out of 15 cars have set times in the first five minutes – Max Verstappen on top with a 1:05:186, 0.139 secs quicker than George Russell with Oscar Piastri in third.

Hamilton down in sixth.

But let’s see how the remaining five minutes pan out…

SQ2 underway!

15:52 , Kieran Jackson

This session just 10 minutes long… so this time they don’t waste any time to get out on track!

Again, medium tyres and again, we’ll lose the slowest five before the top-10 shootout!

Another session to forget for the under pressure Daniel Ricciardo!

15:46 , Kieran Jackson

Lewis Hamilton escapes in P13!

15:45 , Kieran Jackson

It wasn’t his cleanest lap ever – but Hamilton is through!

“Are we out?” he exclaims. “Looks like we are safe,” says Bono.

Bottom-five and out in SQ1: Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Albon, Zhou

Yuki Tsunoda squeezes through in 15th, while Logan Sargeant betters his team-mate to go P14!

Top-3: Verstappen, Russell, Sainz

Onto SQ2…

Lewis Hamilton out on track!

15:41 , Kieran Jackson

Big lap needed from the seven-time world champion then – and he’s got traffic on his out-lap!

Last flying laps to be set in SQ1 then…

Lewis Hamilton in danger!

15:40 , Kieran Jackson

Lewis Hamilton had an off into the gravel on his flying lap – and therefore he didn’t set a time!

He’s back in the pits with three minutes remaining and is down in P19!

Current bottom-five (16-20): Alonso, Albon, Ricciardo, Hamilton, Zhou

Top-3: Verstappen, Russell, Sainz

Hamilton will have to set a clean lap here!

Lewis Hamilton first out on track!

15:34 , Kieran Jackson

Nine minutes to go and most of the grid now charge out!

Finally, some action in SQ1!

SQ1 underway!

15:32 , Kieran Jackson

The first 12-minute session is underway – but no cars out on track straight away!

They’ll take their time to get their two laps in – expect traffic paradise out on the Red Bull Ring!

A reminder: all the cars will be on medium tyres and we’ll lose the slowest five drivers from the rest of the session.

F1 sprint qualifying in Austria!

15:28 , Kieran Jackson

Here we go then for sprint qualifying in Austria!

It’s a quickfire qualifying session at the Red Bull Ring which will decide the grid for tomorrow morning’s sprint race!

Can anyone beat Max Verstappen on the timesheets? The Red Bull driver has a terrific record here!

How does the sprint race weekend work?

15:23 , Kieran Jackson

The F1 Commission and the FIA approved another modification to the sprint format this year.

The new order of play sees the ‘sprint qualifying’ take place on Friday afternoon instead of a second practice session, with traditional qualifying in its usual spot on Saturday afternoon.

It means there will be just one practice session over the course of the weekend, while Saturday is no longer designated as a ‘sprint day’.

The result of the Saturday morning sprint – a 100km dash, roughly a third of the distance of the grand prix – will not impact the grid for Sunday Points will be awarded to the top-eight, as was the case in 2023.

The sprint race result will not have any impact on the grand prix qualifying on Saturday nor the grand prix on Sunday.

Sprint qualifying will follow the same Q1-Q2-Q3 format but the session times will be shorter than traditional qualifying: SQ1 (medium tyres) will be 12 minutes, SQ2 (medium tyres) will be 10 minutes and SQ3 (soft tyres) will be eight minutes.

Christian Horner has said the following about Toto Wolff’s pursuit of Max Verstappen

15:20 , Kieran Jackson

Asked why Wolff continues to speak about Verstappen, Horner replied: “That’s a question you would have to ask Toto. Max was pretty resolute in what he said in this conference [on Thursday].

“He’s always been absolutely consistent with that with the team. I think it’s purely a tactic of distraction.

“If he does want a Verstappen for next year then I guess Jos is potentially available.”

Here are the Driver Standings heading into Austria!

15:15 , Kieran Jackson

1. Max Verstappen – 219 points

2. Lando Norris – 150 points

3. Charles Leclerc – 148 points

4. Carlos Sainz – 116 points

5. Sergio Perez – 111 points

6. Oscar Piastri – 87 points

7. George Russell – 81 points

8. Lewis Hamilton – 70 points

9. Fernando Alonso – 41 points

10. Yuki Tsunoda – 19 points

11. Lance Stroll – 17 points

12. Daniel Ricciardo – 9 points

13. Oliver Bearman – 6 points

14. Nico Hulkenberg – 6 points

15. Pierre Gasly – 5 points

16. Esteban Ocon – 3 points

17. Alex Albon – 2 points

18. Kevin Magnussen – 1 point

19. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points

20. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points

21. Logan Sargeant – 0 points

Red Bull boss Christian Horner on Daniel Ricciardo’s future:

15:03 , Kieran Jackson

“I think anything regarding drivers are going to be dealt with in-house before we talk to the media about it,” he said.

“They’re all Red Bull racing drivers and every Red Bull driver knows that there’s always a pressure, that there’s always a scrutiny but Daniel is in the seat and it’s down to him to make the most of that and then it’s always, as we see in Formula 1, things are always fluid.”

Charles Leclerc on his confrontation with Carlos Sainz in Spain:

14:54 , Kieran Jackson

And here are the Constructors’ Standings before this weekend:

14:40 , Kieran Jackson

1. Red Bull – 330 points

2. Ferrari – 270 points

3. McLaren – 237 points

4. Mercedes – 151 points

5. Aston Martin – 58 points

6. RB – 28 points

7. Alpine – 8 points

8. Haas – 7 points

9. Williams – 2 points

10. Sauber – 0 points

Max Verstappen reveals plans for next season amid Mercedes interest

14:21 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen has dealt a major blow to Mercedes’ hopes of capturing his signature after he insisted he will remain at Red Bull next season.

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has called Verstappen his primary target to replace Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton, while the Austrian’s co-shareholder, and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Ola Kallenius, this week said Verstappen “would look good in silver”.

But asked directly if he will be staying put next year, Verstappen – under contract with Red Bull until 2028 – said: “OK, yes. And that’s what I’ve already said. We’re working on next year’s car. When you’re very focused on that it means that you’re also driving for the team.

Full story below:

Max Verstappen reveals plans for next season amid Mercedes interest

Here are the Driver Standings heading into Austria!

14:08 , Kieran Jackson

1. Max Verstappen – 219 points

2. Lando Norris – 150 points

3. Charles Leclerc – 148 points

4. Carlos Sainz – 116 points

5. Sergio Perez – 111 points

6. Oscar Piastri – 87 points

7. George Russell – 81 points

8. Lewis Hamilton – 70 points

9. Fernando Alonso – 41 points

10. Yuki Tsunoda – 19 points

11. Lance Stroll – 17 points

12. Daniel Ricciardo – 9 points

13. Oliver Bearman – 6 points

14. Nico Hulkenberg – 6 points

15. Pierre Gasly – 5 points

16. Esteban Ocon – 3 points

17. Alex Albon – 2 points

18. Kevin Magnussen – 1 point

19. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points

20. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points

21. Logan Sargeant – 0 points

Mercedes told no criminal offence committed over Lewis Hamilton ‘sabotage’ email

13:52 , Kieran Jackson

Mercedes have been told no criminal offences were committed after the British-based Formula One team called on police to investigate an anonymous email which claimed Lewis Hamilton’s car was being “sabotaged”.

Speaking at the recent Spanish Grand Prix, team principal Toto Wolff vowed to go “full force” in response to the correspondence – said to be sent by a disgruntled Mercedes staff member – titled “a potential death warrant for Lewis”.

The email, addressed to Wolff, F1 boss Stefano Domenicali, FIA president Mohammed ben Sulayem, as well as other major players in the paddock, arrived on June 10, a day after the Canadian Grand Prix – a race where Hamilton was overtaken by team-mate George Russell on the penultimate lap.

Mercedes reported the note to authorities 48 hours later.

Full story below:

Mercedes told no criminal offence committed over Lewis Hamilton ‘sabotage’ email

What are the start times this weekend in Austria?

13:37 , Kieran Jackson

(All times BST)

Friday 28 June

Saturday 29 June

Sprint race: 11am
Qualifying: 3pm

Sunday 30 June

Max Verstappen fires back at British Grand Prix chief: ‘It’s not my fault’

13:08 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen insists the promoters of the British Grand Prix need to “look at themselves” and not blame Red Bull for the slow uptake of tickets to this year’s race at Silverstone.

Verstappen won last year’s race – his first British GP triumph – and in total won 19 out of 22 grands prix in 2023, a record amount.

Silverstone managing director Stuart Pringle stated last week that Red Bull’s ultra-domination in 2023 has contributed to tickets not yet selling out for this year’s event on 5-7 July.

Max Verstappen fires back at British Grand Prix chief: ‘It’s not my fault’

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella:

12:56 , Kieran Jackson

“Exciting time for McLaren, many cars at the front and we’re one of those!

“Mercedes seem to be in great shape this morning!”

FP1 RESULTS IN FULL:

12:48 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen fastest!

12:34 , Kieran Jackson

After his mechanical issue, Max Verstappen still sets the quickest time on the meidums right at the end!

The Dutchman goes 0.276 secs quicker than Oscar Piastri (hards) in second with a 1:05:685, with Charles Leclerc (softs) a tenth further back and Carlos Sainz (softs) 0.443 secs off Verstappen.

Lewis Hamilton, in fifth, did not even run the soft tyres in the end!

6-10: Ocon, Stroll, Russell, Tsunoda, Alonso

Norris down in P13 after his error.

Lando Norris on the gravel!

12:30 , Kieran Jackson

The McLaren goes wide at turn 4 on a flying lap!

All fine, but a miscalculation from Norris!

Times tumbling now…

Lewis Hamilton fastest on hards!

12:21 , Kieran Jackson

Hamilton now back on top as Mercedes continue to dominate!

His table-topping time of 1:06:254 is a tenth quicker than Russell.

3-10: Verstappen, Perez, Norris, Leclerc, Sainz, Magnussen, Piastri, Ocon

10 to go. Most of the pack will switch to softs now…

Tsunoda almost crashes into Albon!

12:11 , Kieran Jackson

“F*** that was so scary, Albon, so dangerous!”

It was close!

Max Verstappen back out on track!

12:09 , Kieran Jackson

Well, I was wrong!

Verstappen straight back out on track! Looks like the problem is rectified…

Session resumes!

12:07 , Kieran Jackson

Verstappen’s Red Bull is safely in the garage – but I doubt he’ll be back out in this session!

Cars back out on track for the remaining 23 minutes…

12:05 , Kieran Jackson

“I only changed the high-speed diff,” he says on team radio.

But that wouldn’t be an engine issue!

His car is now being rolled to the pit lane access gate by the marshals!

Problems at Red Bull!

RED FLAG!

12:04 , Kieran Jackson

Wow.

Max Verstappen has stopped out on track!

“Engine fault!”

Red flag is out – Verstappen has turned the car off on the start-finish straight and his Red Bull is just rolling down the hill!

George Russell now quickest!

11:49 , Kieran Jackson

The younger Brit goes quicker than his team-mate on the hards with a 1:06:386, 0.006 secs quicker than Hamilton.

Verstappen now up to P3, two-tenths down, with Perez P4.

A bit of traffic out on track – but no particular flashpoints so far!

Some key changes in Austria!

11:43 , Kieran Jackson

Lewis Hamilton fastest on hard tyres!

11:40 , Kieran Jackson

After 10 minutes, it’s a Mercedes one-two – with Lewis Hamilton setting a time of 1:06:925, 0.088 secs quicker than team-mate George Russell! And that’s on hard tyres, with Sergio Perez in fourth on mediums.

Lando Norris is third, also on hards, with Oscar Piastri fifth and Max Verstappen sixth – within half-a-second of Hamilton.

7-10: Gasly, Leclerc, Albon, Hulkenberg

FP1 underway!

11:31 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen getting straight on with it as he leads a queue of cars out onto the track!

Verstappen is a four-time winner of this race and is the heavy favourite again this weekend, given his three wins from the last four races.

F1 practice at Austrian Grand Prix!

11:28 , Kieran Jackson

So a crucial one hour of practice this morning at the Red Bull Ring ahead of sprint qualifying later on!

It’s the shortest circuit on the calendar so there should be plenty of laps in Spielberg in the next hour!

Who will set the early benchmark?

Daniel Ricciardo on his future:

11:18 , Kieran Jackson

Look who’s back in the paddock!

11:10 , Kieran Jackson

For just the third time this season, Jos Verstappen is back in the paddock!

George Russell on Mercedes’ resurgence

11:01 , Kieran Jackson

“I don’t want him to continue this form for too much longer” 😅
George is itching to join Lando in the fight at the front! 👊 pic.twitter.com/vY5tt2a1Ru
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 27, 2024

Mercedes told no criminal offence committed over Lewis Hamilton ‘sabotage’ email

10:56 , Kieran Jackson

Mercedes reported the note to authorities 48 hours later.

Full story below:

Mercedes told no criminal offence committed over Lewis Hamilton ‘sabotage’ email

And here are the Constructors’ Standings before this weekend:

10:42 , Kieran Jackson

1. Red Bull – 330 points

2. Ferrari – 270 points

3. McLaren – 237 points

4. Mercedes – 151 points

5. Aston Martin – 58 points

6. RB – 28 points

7. Alpine – 8 points

8. Haas – 7 points

9. Williams – 2 points

10. Sauber – 0 points

Max Verstappen insists he will remain at Red Bull next season

10:26 , Kieran Jackson

Max Verstappen has dealt a major blow to Mercedes’ hopes of capturing his signature after he insisted he will remain at Red Bull next season.

Full quotes below:

Max Verstappen insists he will remain at Red Bull next season

A whole raft of upgrades this weekend in Spielberg!

10:15 , Kieran Jackson

Here are the Driver Standings heading into Austria!

10:10 , Kieran Jackson

1. Max Verstappen – 219 points

2. Lando Norris – 150 points

3. Charles Leclerc – 148 points

4. Carlos Sainz – 116 points

5. Sergio Perez – 111 points

6. Oscar Piastri – 87 points

7. George Russell – 81 points

8. Lewis Hamilton – 70 points

9. Fernando Alonso – 41 points

10. Yuki Tsunoda – 19 points

11. Lance Stroll – 17 points

12. Daniel Ricciardo – 9 points

13. Oliver Bearman – 6 points

14. Nico Hulkenberg – 6 points

15. Pierre Gasly – 5 points

16. Esteban Ocon – 3 points

17. Alex Albon – 2 points

18. Kevin Magnussen – 1 point

19. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points

20. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points

21. Logan Sargeant – 0 points

What are the start times this weekend in Austria?

10:09 , Kieran Jackson

(All times BST)

Friday 28 June

Saturday 29 June

Sprint race: 11am
Qualifying: 3pm

Sunday 30 June