Supreme Max Verstappen Glides to F1 Sprint Win in Austria

Max Verstappen’s charge to a third successive world title continued with a crushing display during Formula 1’s Sprint Race in Austria on Saturday.

Verstappen and teammate Sergio Perez dueled during an enthralling opening lap in wet conditions in which Verstappen briefly took to the grass after being edged wide by Perez. Verstappen fought back through the next sequence of corners while Perez dropped to third, behind a fast-starting Nico Hulkenberg.

Verstappen went on to pull clear of the rest of the field and crossed the line 21 seconds clear of Perez, who recovered to second, after 24 laps of racing in gradually drying conditions. He not been beaten since the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in April, earned the eight championship points for the win and now leads Perez in the F1 Drivers' Championship by 70 points.

And Verstappen has another golden opportunity to stride even further clear of Perez on Sunday. He will start from pole position while Perez will line up only 15th on the grid after being eliminated from Q2 on Friday.

The F1 Sprint Race on Saturday started in wet conditions in Austria.

Mark Thompson//Getty Images

“I didn’t have a great start, we had a lot of wheel spin, then you lose out,” said Verstappen. “Out of Turn 1 I had to go with two wheels on the grass, but got back on, braked later into Turn 3, then we settled into a rhythm.”

Verstappen assured that he and Perez swiftly cleared any misunderstanding over their first-lap battle.

“When the moment happens of course you don’t know why it gets to that [situation], but we talked about it, and it’s all good.”

Perez gave his side of the situation, explaining: “I had a good start, and went a bit deep into Turn 1, so at the exit I tried to protect my line, I didn’t realize Max was pretty much alongside me and he went into the grass; the visibility was quite poor on those first laps.

“When I realized Max was there it was a bit too late. I think that was just it, we spoke about it after the race, and was just a bit of a shame that I then lost a place to Nico, but other than that, maximum points for the team.”

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz was third while Aston Martin drivers Lance Stroll and Fernando Alonso pocketed useful points in fourth and fifth respectively.

Hulkenberg relinquished second mid-distance and had dropped behind Stroll when he was one of several drivers to gamble for slick tires as the circuit dried.

Hulkenberg slipped outside of the top 10 but charged through the field to collect sixth, just behind the Aston Martin drivers, to grab three valuable points for Haas.

The result elevates Haas back into seventh place in the constructors’ championship, in front of Alfa Romeo.

Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and Mercedes’ George Russell were the final drivers to score points.

McLaren’s Lando Norris lost out on a frantic opening lap, dropping from third to ninth, while Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton rounded out the top 10 after making a recovery from a poor 18th on the grid.