Track: Red Bull Ring
Number of Laps: 71
Circuit Length: 2.7 miles (4.3km)
Race Length: 190.8 miles (307.1km)
Start Time: 13:00
Fastest Lap: 1:07.908 (Michael Schumacher, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2003)
Fastest Race Lap: 1:08.337 (Michael Schumacher, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2003)
2014 Pole Position: Felipe Massa, Williams Martini Mercedes, 1:08.759, Supersoft Tyres
2014 Race Winner: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG Petronas
Tyre Compounds: Supersoft, Soft, Intermediate, Wet
First F1 Grand Prix (Country): 1964
First F1 Grand Prix (Original Circuit, Current Circuit): 1970, 1997
Most Wins: Alain Prost (3)
A fourth Canadian Grand Prix win saw Lewis Hamilton put the horrors of Monaco behind him, as he extended his championship advantage to 17 points as we head back into Europe for the 8th round of the season, Austria.
Mercedes will have to be careful here. Valtteri Bottas took Williams first podium of the year last time out in Montreal, and it was at the Red Bull Ring last year that Williams took the only non Mercedes pole of the season. The FW37, like its predecessor, is extremely slippery in a straight line – and the Mercedes power plant in the back means the Grove based outfit are always high up in the speed traps.
Felipe Massa took pole here last year
They do not, however, normally edge the Ferraris. Sebastian Vettel came from the back of the grid to finish fifth in Canada, with Kimi Raikkonen dropping a place from his starting position to finish fourth. Ferrari have brought a lot of upgrades to races this season in their bid to catch the dominant Mercedes, and no doubt they will be there to pounce should Mercedes make a mess of things.
In the midfield, Force India will be a team to watch. One of three Mercedes customer teams, the Silverstone based squad are giving the launch spec car one final outing before a whole new model arrives at the British GP in three weeks time. Sergio Perez set the fastest lap of the race last year, whilst Nico Hulkenberg was one of three drivers to win last weekend’s 24 Hours of Le Mans – once again underlying his talent.
Despite this being their home track, Red Bull and Toro Rosso are expecting an awful race. The Renault power unit has plagued both teams throughout the year, and at least one of the four Red Bull ran cars will have to take a power unit penalty – on top of what is likely to be a lowly grid position due to the lack of power from their engines.
McLaren too are having power unit troubles, with the Honda partnership failing to live up to expectations. Fernando Alonso showed the first signs of frustration in his return to McLaren in Canada, choosing not to save fuel when told to by his engineer. With a long run of power dependant circuits throughout the European season (Canada, Austria, Britain, Belgium and Italy), their frustrations look set to continue for the forthcoming races.
Images courtesy of Williams Martini Racing
