Toto Talks Austria
There were plenty of positives to take from the last race in Canada. Although we didn’t get both cars to the chequered flag, a podium was a solid result and we saw encouraging signs from our updated package.
Austria is always a special weekend, as it’s my home race and I have good memories from the track; both with the team but also from my early years racing there and teaching as an instructor. It’s also the second Sprint of the season so it will be interesting to see the impact it has on the weekend, at a more traditional circuit.
It’s a short lap in Spielberg and looks straightforward on paper; several long straights broken up by a range of slow, medium-speed and fast corners. But it’s a challenging one to put together and get right.
We will aim to build on the momentum we have generated over the past two races and continue our positive trajectory with the car. It’s a venue where the W14 should perform better than in Canada, but we won’t take anything for granted. As always, we will be working hard to maximise our performance and deliver strong results.
Fact File: Austrian Grand Prix
With a lap record of just 1:02.939, set by Valtteri Bottas in 2020, the circuit in Spielberg is the shortest in terms of time on the 2023 calendar.
Despite that, it ranks fifth in terms of shortest distance, clocking in at 4.318 km. Only Monaco, Zandvoort, Mexico City, and Interlagos are shorter.
With just 10 corners, the Ring has the fewest of any track of the current F1 circuits. At the same time, Turns 2, 5 and 8 are taken at full throttle and are therefore not considered to be corners in an engineering sense.
Unsurprisingly given the nature of the track, we see the fewest amount of gear changes of any lap across the season at just 32.
There are large demands placed on a car’s handling in Austria, whilst at the same time the circuit demands good mechanical grip at low speed (Turns 1, 3, and 4) and strong performance at high speed (Turns 6-7 and 9-10). Engineers have to find the best compromise with set-up in order to achieve the best lap time.
This weekend sees the second running of the new Sprint weekend format – teams will partake in FP1 on Friday before Qualifying takes place that afternoon. Saturday sees the Sprint Shootout followed by the F1 Sprint, with the Austrian Grand Prix taking place on Sunday.
The difference in elevation of 69 metres between the lowest and highest points at the circuit is one of the largest of the season. That is unsurprising given the track’s location in the Styrian mountains.
It also has a steep gradient from track edge-to-edge in places, as exemplified by Turns 3 and 4. The circuit here slopes up towards the apex as the car drives over the crest while accelerating out of the corner. This can result in one wheel leaving the ground, causing challenges with braking, stability, and traction.
The track has three very hard braking zones in succession on the approaches to Turns 1, 3, and 4. As the brakes are unable to cool down sufficiently over the rest of the track, as the lap is relatively short, it has an impact on the maximum pressures and general wear and tear experienced.
For that reason, teams must apply as much cooling as possible to the brakes. That poses a challenge in warming up the front tyres. With a short out-lap, it is difficult to get them in the right operating window for a qualifying lap.
The Ring is notorious for its aggressive kerbs and is considered to be one of the toughest tests for vehicle suspension. This especially applies to the kerbs at the exit of T1, T6, and T7, which take a high toll on the cars due to their amplitude (i.e. the gap between the highest and lowest points of the kerbs) and the frequency (speed effect) at which they are taken.
