Austrian GP: Race - Re-Cap & Results

AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX - RACE

    Lewis Hamilton started off the race with a quick start, eager to try and win his third race in a row and close the gap in the Drivers' standings. Nico Hulkenberg, who started 2nd, had a less than perfect start and began dropping back spaces as other cars passed him during the first lap. Pascal Wehrlein, who had qualified 12th, also had a bad start when his car stalled on the grid. For Williams, there was problems before the race even started. Mechanics were still working on Massa's car on the grid and were forced to move the car to pit-lane to finish working on it, before he finally got out on track.

    Only 2 laps in, Daniil Kvyat was the first retirement due to a mechanical issue. Kvyat wasn't the only driver to have his race ended early. Many more retirements followed during the race. Sebastian Vettel, who had been running as high as 1st place, was suddenly sent spinning on the track after a sudden tyre failure. While Vettel emerged from the surprising accident without injury, it was clear he wasn't happy about the situation and loss of a potential win.

    It was also a disappointing day for Force India, who had their first double DNF of the season. Both Perez and Hulkenberg retired due to brake issues. Hulkenberg had been reporting odd vibrations and halfway through the race went in to the pits to retire the car. Perez didn't have an issue until the final laps of the race when his brakes suddenly failed and he crashed quite heavily into the barriers. Perez was OK after the accident but disappointed as he had been running in the points.

    Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso also retired from the race. Massa with a brake failure of his own and Alonso due to battery issues. Their team-mates, Valtteri Bottas and Jenson Button both finished in the points. 

    In the closing laps, Lewis Hamilton found himself chasing down Nico Rosberg, who was currently leading the race. Max Verstappen was close behind both Mercedes drivers and looking to score his second podium of the year. With one lap left, Lewis Hamilton took his only chance to pass Rosberg and managed to get around him. Rosberg quickly fought back but things ended up in a collision between the two and Rosberg was left with damage to the front of his Mercedes. Hamilton escaped without any damage and crossed the finish line in 1st. Verstappen finished 2nd, giving Red Bull a huge reason to celebrate their home race. Kimi Raikkonen finished 3rd while Rosberg dragged his Mercedes home in 4th.

    Rosberg was later penalized for the collision and given 10 seconds added to his final race time. He retained his 4th place finish despite this, but was also handed 2 penalty points to his license. Romain Grosjean was also a given a time penalty. 5 seconds added to his race time for speeding in the pit-lane.

    Pascal Wehrlein finished the race in 10th, scoring Manor's first point of the season and recording his best ever F1 finish. A huge reason for celebration in the Manor garage. Wehrlein has been tied to a potential Mercedes deal in 2018 and his race results with Manor are helping him prove he deserves to be placed in a higher team in upcoming years.

RESULTS: 

1. Lewis Hamilton / Mercedes-Mercedes / Great Britain / + 25 Points
2. Max Verstappen / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Netherlands / + 18 Points
3. Kimi Raikkonen / Ferrari-Ferrari / Finland / + 15 Points
4. Nico Rosberg / Mercedes-Mercedes / Germany / + 12 Points
5. Daniel Ricciardo / Red Bull-TAG-HEUER / Australia / + 10 Points
6. Jenson Button / McLaren-Honda / Great Britain / + 8 Points
7. Romain Grosjean / Haas-Ferrari / France / + 6 Points
8. Carlos Sainz / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Spain / + 4 Points
9. Valtteri Bottas / Williams-Mercedes / Finland / + 2 Points
10. Pascal Wehrlein / Manor-Mercedes / Germany / + 1 Point
11. Esteban Gutierrez / Haas-Ferrari / Mexico
12. Jolyon Palmer / Renault-Renault / Great Britain
13. Felipe Nasr / Sauber-Ferrari / Brazil
14. Kevin Magnussen / Renault-Renault / Denmark
15. Marcus Ericsson / Sauber-Ferrari / Sweden
16. Rio Haryanto / Manor-Mercedes / Indonesia
17. Sergio Perez* / Force India-Mercedes / Mexico / Brake Failure

RETIRED - Fernando Alonso / McLaren-Honda / Spain / Battery
RETIRED - Nico Hulkenberg / Force India-Mercedes / Germany / Brake Failure
RETIRED - Felipe Massa / Williams-Mercedes / Brazil / Brake Failure
RETIRED - Sebastian Vettel / Ferrari-Ferrari / Germany / Tyre Failure
RETIRED - Daniil Kvyat / Toro Rosso-Ferrari / Russia / Mechanical Issue

* - Driver qualified as finished

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Article Written By: Amy Hawk
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