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Max Verstappen aims dig at Christian Horner amid row with father Jos at Austrian Grand Prix
Max Verstappen launched a thinly veiled dig at Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, claiming the latest row with his father, Jos, could have been avoided.
Jos Verstappen had been set to drive the Red Bull machine which carried Sebastian Vettel to the world championship in 2012 ahead of the team’s home race in Austria on Sunday.
But Jos Verstappen, 52, withdrew from the legends’ parade after he claimed that Horner did not want him to take part.
Horner denied he vetoed Jos Verstappen’s participation, although it is understood the team principal, 50, questioned internally why he was representing Red Bull.
Jos Verstappen is making only his second appearance in the paddock since he said at the season-opening round in Bahrain that Red Bull would “explode” if Horner remained in his post.
Max Verstappen held off Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris to win Saturday’s 23-lap sprint race in Spielberg, and was asked if the public spat between his father and boss was affecting him.
“It is not nice, not for myself, not for my dad, not for Christian, and not for the team,” said Verstappen, 26.
“You don’t want these things to happen. My dad has been quite clear about the reasons behind it and I can understand his opinion.
“He gets asked to drive the car and finds out he is not wanted. My dad doesn’t care about driving it, but he got asked if he could do it for the Dutch fans at Red Bull’s home track.
“So, I understand it, but I am here to focus on the performance. I want a good relationship with everyone. But this scenario could have been avoided.”
Max Verstappen is under contract at Red Bull until 2028, and, although Mercedes have made him their number one target to replace Ferrari-bound Lewis Hamilton, he insisted that he has no immediate plans to turn his back on the world champions.
Sprint race result
Max Verstappen 8pts
Oscar Piastri 7pts
Lando Norris 6pts
George Russell 5pts
Carlos Sainz 4pts
Lewis Hamilton 3pts
Charles Leclerc 2pts
Sergio Perez 1pt
Austrian Grand Prix sprint race: As it happened
12:05 PM BST
George Russell, who finished fourth, speaking to Sky
It was one of the more interesting Sprint races for me with the battle at the front and then Carlos. As soon as I passed Carlos, I couldn’t break the DRS for a few laps but it was OK.
McLaren are still ahead but nice to see we are ahead of Ferrari. We will be making a few changes but the car is in a good place. We seem to be a tenth-and-a-half behind Max and the McLarens.
11:59 AM BST
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella speaking to Sky
"A good day so far."
Andrea Stella reacts to a double McLaren podium in the sprint race 🟠🟠 pic.twitter.com/pnZCR80M6P— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 29, 2024
11:57 AM BST
Anthony Davidson on Sky
[Oscar] Piastri capitalised on [Lando] Norris’ defence against [Max] Verstappen. It was a brilliant move from Piastri around the outside at Turn Six.
But for our viewing pleasure, it wasn’t the best move because Norris had the speed and that cat and mouse could have continued without Piastri overtaking Norris.
I think the final area for Piastri to improve on is in the race. I think Lando has better tyre management and that came into play later in the race.
11:56 AM BST
Constructor standings after sprint
11:54 AM BST
Driver standings after the sprint
11:52 AM BST
Top eight who scored points in the sprint
Max Verstappen 8pts
Oscar Piastri 7pts
Lando Norris 6pts
George Russell 5pts
Carlos Sainz 4pts
Lewis Hamilton 3pts
Charles Leclerc 2pts
Sergio Perez 1pt
11:48 AM BST
Quotes from sprint winner Max Verstappen
It was a good first lap but once the DRS opens, it was very hard to get out of it. A few exciting battles as well but once we cleared the DRS, I could do my own race and it was better.
You could see they had two cars pushing flat-out trying to make it difficult for me.
A few things to think about we can do better for tomorrow because it’s a longer race and harder for the tyres. It will be interesting to see how that evolves.
11:45 AM BST
The thoughts of Oscar Piastri, who finished second
I finished one place higher than I started but just didn’t quite have the pace in the second half of that one.
I thought Max and Lando were going to pave the way for me to come through at one point, but not quite. There are things to look at for this afternoon and for tomorrow’s race but we’ll definitely take the points – a really good haul compared to the other teams around us.
I could see that they were battling quite hard and into Turn 4 I saw the move was quite late and I knew that there’d be an opportunity on the exit. I was hoping I would get both but just bided my time and tried my best.
I think I had probably one opportunity to try to get Max the lap after but just didn’t quite have the pace after that. Being patient at the start paid off a bit.
11:43 AM BST
Third-place Lando Norris speaking post-race
"I had to make the most of my opportunity and then I messed it up" 😕
Lando on his early Sprint battle with Max ⚔ pic.twitter.com/C4wMEuEujE— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 29, 2024
11:34 AM BST
Top five
Max Verstappen
Oscar Piastri
Lando Norris
George Russell
Carlos Sainz
11:33 AM BST
Verstappen wins
The Dutchman comes across the line and wins the sprint in Austria to please the many Dutch fans in attendance. Piastri comes home in second and his teammate Norris finishes third.
MAX VERSTAPPEN WINS #F1SPRINT IN SPIELBERG!!! 🤩
Oscar Piastri holds on to finish P2 ahead of Lando Norris 👏#F1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/easKAgPAMj— Formula 1 (@F1) June 29, 2024
11:32 AM BST
Lap 23 of 23- Final lap
We have just begun the last lap and Verstappen’s lead out in front is over four seconds. Norris is right behind his teammate.
11:30 AM BST
Lap 20 of 23- Hamilton right behind Sainz
The Mercedes driver, who will be replacing Sainz at Ferrari next season, has DRS but has yet to get past the Spaniard. Sainz does not have DRS behind Russell.
11:28 AM BST
Lap 18 of 23- Track limits
Norris has had his second warning for track limits so he needs to be a little careful now.
11:26 AM BST
Lap 17 of 23- Verstappen pulling away
The Dutchman’s lead is up to nearly three seconds ahead of Piastri, who has Norris within a second of him.
11:23 AM BST
Lap 15 of 23- Norris closes up behind Piastri
Lando will still be annoyed that he dropped from first to third but he is now closing back up behind his teammate. Piastri does not have DRS to Verstappen but Norris does behind him. The two McLarens are considerably ahead of those behind. Verstappen is a couple of seconds ahead of Piastri.
11:19 AM BST
Lap 12 of 23- Piastri drops out of DRS range
Verstappen is now more than a second ahead of Piastri, which means the Australian has now lost the DRS to the Dutchman. Norris does not have DRS behind his teammate either.
11:17 AM BST
Lap 10 of 23- Top five
Verstappen
Piastri
Norris
Russell
Sainz
11:15 AM BST
Lap 8 of 23- Russell past Sainz
The Mercedes man has DRS behind the Ferrari and gets past him fairly easily before the entry into turn four to take fourth place, which is where he started.
11:13 AM BST
Lap 5 of 23- Big battle at the front
Norris sends it up the inside of turn three and takes first. But Verstappen retakes first place into turn four. As the top two battle, Norris’ teammate comes Piastri comes past Norris into second.
WHAT A BATTLE THIS 🤯⚔
Max, Lando and Oscar are all fighting for the lead of this Sprint! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/nIhvML7pYZ— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 29, 2024
11:10 AM BST
Lap 3 of 23- Norris in DRS range of Verstappen
Lando has kept within a second of Verstappen so he has DRS on the Dutchman.
11:09 AM BST
Lap 2 of 23- Alpines dropping
It has been a terrible start for the Alpines of Ocon and Gasly, who both started in the top ten but have dropped out.
11:08 AM BST
Lap 1 of 23- Verstappen keeps the lead
The Dutchman maintains his lead with a decent start. Piastri was fighting his teammate Norris up to turn three but the latter keeps second. Sainz has got ahead of Russell.
At the end of the second formation lap Albon came into the pits to avoid his car overheating.
IT'S LIGHTS OUT FOR THE SPRINT IN AUSTRIA 🚥⚡ pic.twitter.com/ORplg7MNuK
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 29, 2024
11:06 AM BST
Off we go
The lights go out and the sprint is go, go, go!
11:04 AM BST
Aborted start
The green flag is waved at the back but the start has been aborted so we have an extra formation lap. No-one seems to have an issue so that is a strange one.
11:00 AM BST
Formation lap
The drivers are making their way around the circuit on the formation lap. Everyone has opted for the medium tyres. No-one has decided to go rogue and buck the trend.
10:58 AM BST
Reminder of the sprint race
It is a 100km race (24 laps around this circuit) and you have free choice of tyre. There is no mandatory stop and points are awarded from first (eight points) down to eighth (one point).
10:54 AM BST
Max Verstappen speaking to Sky
We were quick over one lap. We don’t really know how quick we are over the race stint. I think what we see today will also be very important for tomorrow, so hopefully we have some pace against McLaren.
Mercedes looked good on their long runs, so it will be quite interesting. I’m not too worried about it. I will do my best and we will see where we end up.
10:52 AM BST
Sprint nearly upon us
It is just under ten minutes until we are under way in the sprint in the Austrian sunshine.
10:51 AM BST
Lando unwell
He starts from second for the sprint today but Lando Norris has admitted he is still feeling under the weather. He has just told Sky Sports he has been feeling unwell for a couple of weeks now but also said that he is not going to use it as an excuse.
10:45 AM BST
Former strategy engineer Bernie Collins on Sky
It’s one tyre for the session. Which tyre do you go on? Do you choose a soft to get a better getaway from the line? Or does that require too much management at turn one?
Medium probably overall is preferred. But I just spoke to someone and they said maybe the hard allows you to push harder and have less management, so everything is on the table during this Sprint.
10:41 AM BST
Sprint in 20 minutes!
A bustling grid bathed in sunshine 😎#F1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/W7fFyYJeDH
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 29, 2024
10:41 AM BST
Martin Brundle on Sky
On Pierre Gasly:
I think he wants to settle there and make it longer term. He’s a deep thinker and I’m really impressed with his logic and the way he calmly worked through.
And I think he’s an asset if Alpine can find him some downforce.
On who will be Gasly’s team-mate at Alpine:
There’s talk that Flavio is pushing hard to get Sainz there. I think Sainz has to sign for the best team he can find, with a one-year exit clause just in case something pops up at Red Bull or Mercedes.
Toto Wolff says he highly rates Sainz but doesn’t want to take him at the moment. If not I think Jack Doohan has a great chance there.
10:37 AM BST
Starting grid for the sprint
The starting line-up for Saturday's #F1Sprint 👀#F1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/kUideULh9M
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 28, 2024
10:33 AM BST
Constructor standings
10:29 AM BST
Driver standings ahead of the sprint
10:26 AM BST
Driver news
With still a number of seats for next year up for grabs, there is going to be plenty of driver news over the coming weeks and months. We are yet to find out where Carlos Sainz will be driving next season but we did have some news this week over the futures of two drivers. Pierre Gasly has re-signed at Alpine and unsurprisingly Lance Stroll has signed a new deal at Aston Martin. Flavio Briatore is back at Alpine so who might he want at the team to replace the outgoing Esteban Ocon? Could he look to lure Sainz to Alpine or will he give a shot to Jack Doohan, whose dad Mick has strong links to Briatore?
10:21 AM BST
Verstappen’s pole lap for the sprint
F1 ASMR 👂🔊
Relive Max's Sprint qualifying pole lap ⬇ pic.twitter.com/8IQCSu7SGw— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) June 29, 2024
10:18 AM BST
Drivers arriving
Who's ready for #F1Sprint day... AND qualifying day?! 😍#F1 #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/UGPB2lhp7V
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 29, 2024
10:15 AM BST
Sprint preview
It is sprint day in Austria as Max Verstappen starts from pole position. The Dutchman finished under a tenth clear of Lando Norris in an incredibly tight tussle. We have been treated to a number of great battles already this season between Verstappen and Norris and we are going to have another one in this sprint today. Verstappen was delighted to secure pole for the sprint ahead of Norris.
“It is great to be first here in front of basically my home fans my home grand prix, it has been a good day so far. It has been nice to drive the car. Immediately it was well balanced.
“Of course you make some small changes before spring qualifying and everything has been working really well.”
Despite qualifying for the sprint in second, Norris admitted he did not feel entirely comfortable in sprint qualifying.
“I never got quite comfortable probably until my final lap, so I’m happy with that.
“It’s close as it has been for the whole year, so no difference, but that must have been a nice lap by Max and it’s a good position for the race.”
Norris will have his teammate Oscar Piastri behind him in third. Mercedes’ George Russell will start from fourth with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz fifth. Sainz’s teammate Charles Leclerc had a disastrous sprint qualifying three (SQ3); as the drivers emerged from the pit-lane at the end of SQ3 for their one and only flying laps, Leclerc’s car went into anti-stall and the engine then stopped. He managed to get the car going again but failed to cross the line in time to set a flying lap.
Lewis Hamilton, who will start sixth, described the session as “pretty disastrous”.
“I wasn’t in the mix at all, the whole session was pretty disastrous from our point of view,” Hamilton said.
“Practice was good, the car felt good, I don’t think we had the pace to be on pole, but very bad laps. I don’t think overtaking is mega here, but we’ll give our best. It’s usually not such an eventful race, so I think the focus will be mostly on getting a better qualifying tomorrow.”
With the drivers leaving it late to set their times in SQ3, Red Bull’s Sergio Perez was one of those compromised on his out-lap as he fought with the two Alpines of Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly to get to the line in time before the chequered flag came out. Perez will start the sprint from seventh.
Strap yourselves in for an exciting sprint race in Austria.
