Max Verstappen is faster than Lewis Hamilton in first practice for the Styrian Grand Prix

Max Verstappen is faster than Lewis Hamilton in first AND second practice for the Styrian Grand Prix ahead of back-to-back races in Austria

  • Max Verstappen leads Lewis Hamilton by 12 points in the drivers’ standings
  • Mercedes have won the past seven drivers’ and constructors’ championships
  • However, they are in real danger of relinquishing both their titles this season  
  • Verstappen was more than 0.4 seconds ahead of Hamilton in first practice 
  • Hamilton came third in first practice before finishing fourth in second practice

Max Verstappen set the pace in both the first and second practice sessions for the Styrian Grand Prix.

The Red Bull driver, who leads the championship, finished the opening running in Spielberg ahead of AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly, with Lewis Hamilton third.

Following his triumph at the French Grand Prix week ago, Verstappen holds a 12-point advantage over Hamilton.

Max Verstappen leads the drivers’ standings and was fastest in the first two sessions in Austria

Lewis Hamilton was slightly off the pace and came third and fourth in P1 and P2 respectively

Lewis Hamilton was slightly off the pace and came third and fourth in P1 and P2 respectively

And on the evidence of the first running at the Red Bull Ring, the Dutchman remains the man to beat.

Verstappen ended the one-hour running two-tenths clear of Gasly, while Hamilton was 0.422 seconds adrift of his title rival.

Valtteri Bottas in the other Mercedes finished fourth, half a second back.

The Silver Arrows have dominated Formula One, winning the past seven drivers’ and constructors’ championships.

But they are facing a stern examination of their credentials with Verstappen’s triumph at Circuit Paul Ricard last Sunday, Red Bull’s third in succession.

For the start of two consecutive weekends in Austria, a number of drivers were caught out by the green conditions, with Carlos Sainz spinning his Ferrari on the main straight – and temporarily blocking the pit lane – while Verstappen’s Red Bull team-mate Sergio Perez also spun at Turn 4 but headed back to the pits without any damage.

The seven-time world champion will have some work to do ahead of this weekend's Grand Prix

The seven-time world champion will have some work to do ahead of this weekend’s Grand Prix

Verstappen got the better of Hamilton in France to open up a 12-point lead over the Briton

Verstappen got the better of Hamilton in France to open up a 12-point lead over the Briton

The Mexican finished only 13th in the standings, eight-tenths off Verstappen’s pace.

Elsewhere, rookie Yuki Tsunoda was fifth on an encouraging morning for AlphaTauri, one spot ahead of Alpine’s Fernando Alonso.

Lando Norris is fifth in the championship after a strong start to his third campaign on the grid. But the British driver finished only 16th for McLaren in the first running. Williams driver George Russell was one place ahead of his compatriot.

Lando Norris was one of the big improvers of the day as he jumped from 16th to seventh

Lando Norris was one of the big improvers of the day as he jumped from 16th to seventh

Sebastian Vettel also had a mid-afternoon resurgence as he moved from 14th to sixth

Sebastian Vettel also had a mid-afternoon resurgence as he moved from 14th to sixth

In P2, Hamilton posted an initial time that 0.285 seconds quicker than Verstappen as the pair both leapfrogged Alonso. 

However after 20 minutes, the leaderboard had an unfamiliar look to it, with Aston Martin drivers Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll first and second respectively, with Verstappen, Hamilton and Bottas just behind. 

Hamilton and Esteban Ocon then enjoyed spells on top before the session was yellow-flagged after Nikita Mazepin took a trip into the gravel.

Valtteri Bottas will need to visit the stewards later after his car took a spin in the pit lane

Valtteri Bottas will need to visit the stewards later after his car took a spin in the pit lane

Normal service was resumed after racing restarted as Verstappen reclaimed number one spot and former team-mate Daniel Ricciardo moved second. 

Bottas then took a spin in the pit lane, with the top two positions staying as they were until the end of the session and Ocon pipping Hamilton to third. 

One of the big movers from P1 to P2 was Norris as he jumped to seventh, while Vettel also improved significantly, moving from 14th to sixth. 

Neither Carlos Sainz nor Charles Leclerc made it into the top 10 of P2 after a frustrating day

Neither Carlos Sainz nor Charles Leclerc made it into the top 10 of P2 after a frustrating day

Bottas’ messy session means he went from fourth to 12th – and the Finn has a trip to the stewards later on Friday to discuss his pit-lane incident. 

After his superb P1, Gasly was the only driver not to register a time due to a power unit issue, while Tsunoda’s form earlier in the day was short-lived as he dropped back to 15th. 

After Ferrari’s poor first session, the next one was even worse as neither Sainz nor Leclerc made it into the top 10. 

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