© Getty ImagesFree Practice Update - Styrian Grand Prix 2021Round eight is underway at the Red Bull Ring, Austria.
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We love coming back to the Red Bull Ring every year, although admittedly we might be biased, for obvious Austrian reasons. So when we get to come here for back-to-back races, we get that extra bit more excited. Much like 2020, the Red Bull Ring will see 71 laps of the 10 cornered, 4.318km circuit for a total race distance of 306.452km.
Styrian Pre-Race Programme© Red Bull Racing Honda
Our two weeks stint in Styria got underway on Friday morning for Free Practice One, with both Max and Checo sporting new styles on their helmets.
The Friday morning session, FP1, saw Max carry on where he left off from in France, as he topped the timesheet. The Dutchman posted a 1:05.910 with a total of 34 laps. Checo brought his Bull back in P13 with a best time of 1:06.696. He managed 33 laps.
In the afternoon session, Free Practice Two, Max continued on from the morning and finished P1. He set a fastest time of 1:05.412 with a total of 37 laps. Checo ended his Friday in P9 with his best time a 1:06.089. He completed 36 laps.
The final practice session of the weekend, Free Practice Three, saw another productive time on track for the Bulls. Max finished P2 with a best time of 1:04.573. He completed 16 laps of the Red Bull Ring. Checo was P4 when the chequered flag was waved. The Mexican managed a lap time of 1:05.026 and 21 laps.
Styrian Grand Prix 2021: Free Practice
In Case You Didn't Know Where We Were...© Getty Images
Heading Down The Mountains© Getty Images
Trying Out A Different Part Of The Track© Getty Images
Checo's New Look Lid© Getty Images
Hitting The Home Straight© Getty Images
The Man In The Spotlight© Getty Images
Having A Look At That New Lion© Getty Images
Seeing Dou-Bull At Home© Getty Images
Creating Some Styrian Sparks© Getty Images
Sending It Into Saturday© Getty Images
“Overall it’s been quite a good day for us and although there are a few things to look into, which is very normal for a Friday, I am quite happy with where the car is at the moment. In the second practice Lewis had a faster lap time that was deleted so it looks a bit different to what is shown at the moment on the timesheets but we expect to see both teams at the top.
Let’s see what the weather is like tomorrow, but I think it will be a very tight battle again.
"The weather forecast looks like it is changing all the time, so let’s see what it is actually like tomorrow, but I think it will be a very tight battle again.”
“Track conditions were tricky at the start of FP2 but they improved throughout the session. From our side we need to do a bit of fine tuning as there’s definitely some more potential in the car and finding a few tenths here makes a huge difference. I’m still learning the best set-up adjustments for the car and as usual, taking my time with the engineers to get that right.
"I think we do have good pace and the long runs seem to be promising. So, if we’re able to find a couple of tenths overnight then we should be in the fight tomorrow and hopefully we can put a good lap together in Q3.”
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | … | 13 |
| Max Verstappen | Pierre Gasly | Lewis Hamilton | Valtteri Bottas | Yuki Tsunoda | Fernando Alonso | Esteban Ocon | Lance Stroll | Antonio Giovinazzi | Charles Leclerc | … | Sergio Pérez |
| Red Bull Racing Honda | AlphaTauri | Mercedes | Mercedes | AlphaTauri | Alpine | Alpine | Aston Martin | Alfa Romeo Racing | Ferrari | … | Red Bull Racing Honda |
| 1.05.910 | 1.06.166 | 1.06.332 | 1.06.386 | 1.06.397 | 1.06.519 | 1.06.551 | 1.06.584 | 1.06.614 | 1.06.629 | … | 1.06.696 |
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Max Verstappen | Daniel Ricciardo | Esteban Ocon | Lewis Hamilton | Fernando Alonso | Sebastian Vettel | Lando Norris | Lance Stroll | Sergio Pérez | Antonio Giovinazzi |
| Red Bull Racing Honda | McLaren | Alpine | Mercedes | Alpine | Aston Martin | McLaren | Aston Martin | Red Bull Racing Honda | Alfa Romeo Racing |
| 1.05.412 | 1.05.748 | 1.05.790 | 1.05.796 | 1.05.827 | 1.05.934 | 1.05.994 | 1.06.079 | 1.06.089 | 1.06.145 |
| Position | Driver | Team | Time | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Lewis Hamilton | Max Verstappen | Valtteri Bottas | Sergio Pérez | Yuki Tsunoda | Pierre Gasly | Charles Leclerc | Fernando Alonso | Lance Stroll | Sebastian Vettel |
| Mercedes | Red Bull Racing Honda | Mercedes | Red Bull Racing Honda | AlphaTauri | AlphaTauri | Ferrari | Alpine | Aston Martin | Aston Martin |
| 1.04.369 | 1.04.573 | 1.04.832 | 1.05.026 | 1.05.150 | 1.05.298 | 1.05.340 | 1.05.400 | 1.05.445 | 1.05.492 |
