Track: Red Bull Ring
Number of Laps: 71
Circuit Length: 2.7 miles (4.3km)
Race Length: 190.8 miles (307.146km)
Start Time: 13:00 BST
Fastest Lap: 1:07.908 (Michael Schumacher, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2003, Pre-Qualifying)
Fastest Race Lap: 1:08.337 (Michael Schumacher, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2003)
2015 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG Petronas, 1:08.455, Supersoft Tyres
2015 Race Winner: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG Petronas
Tyre Compounds: Ultrasoft, Supersoft, Soft, Intermediate, Wet
First F1 Championship Grand Prix (Country): 1964
First F1 Championship Grand Prix (Circuit): 1997
Most Wins (Country): Alain Prost (3)/McLaren (6)
Most Wins (Circuit): Mika Hakkinen, Michael Schumacher, Nico Rosberg (2)/McLaren, Ferrari (3)
By 2016 standards, the inaugural race in Azerbaijan a fortnight ago was poor. The track was too narrow, the straights too long and there weren’t enough overtaking opportunities.
Despite the Red Bull Ring featuring a mere eight corners and three long straights, we shouldn’t be hearing too many of those complaints here with past races around the circuit proving to be exciting.
Lewis Hamilton had a nightmare in qualifying for the European Grand Prix, qualifying tenth after crashing in Q3 without setting a hot lap. He will be hoping to get back on form at this race but that might not be so easy. The Brit started ninth in 2014 after running wide and spinning on his hot laps and although he did take pole here last year, he still spun on his final qualifying lap.
It’s ultrasofts a plenty for the tyre choices at this race. Only Haas brought less than seven sets of ultrasofts for either of their drivers, whilst Renault brought the most at nine each. Five teams have split their tyre selections. Lewis Hamilton has one more set of softs than his teammate Rosberg, as do Massa, Magnussen, Nasr and Grosjean at their respective teams. Each driver must use either a set of softs or supersofts in the race.
The Red Bull Ring has been resurfaced ahead of this year’s Grand Prix, giving the circuit a much rougher feel than in past years. This could affect tyre wear, meaning those extra sets of soft tyres – the hardest available at this race – come in very handy for the drivers that picked them.
