Lewis Hamilton described Ferrari's performance at the Austrian Grand Prix as a "reality check" for the team, following the euphoria of his first win with the Scuderia at the previous round in Spain. The seven-time world champion finished fifth at the Red Bull Ring, while Mercedes' George Russell claimed victory from pole position, holding off a rapid Max Verstappen whose Red Bull benefitted from significant upgrades.
Hamilton drops to third in standings
Hamilton had moved to second in the drivers' championship after his Spain victory and was being touted as a potential title contender. However, he has now slipped to third, behind Russell and championship leader Kimi Antonelli. Speaking after the race, Hamilton admitted the team still has much to learn about maximizing performance.
"It's more of a reality check," Hamilton said. "We don't know why we were so competitive on Sunday in Barcelona. That's a very strong track for me, I chose a strategy that from experience I knew would work, with the deg that we had, it was like 2021. Then today we were hit more with reality, which is we do still have a good car but we are down compared to Mercedes just on pace. They just are quicker and we have to keep developing."
Pace, tyre degradation, and strategy issues
Hamilton's car suffered from a lack of pace, high tyre degradation, and overheating, prompting the team to adopt a three-stop strategy that ultimately did not pay off. He acknowledged the gap to Mercedes and emphasized the need for continued development. "It doesn't mean we can't close that gap [but] that one win doesn't mean we are going to be beating them all the time, it's the opposite, we've got a lot of work to do," he said. "We still have to just continue to add performance to the car, particularly power is where we're going to keep working."
Spirited battle with Verstappen
Hamilton, who started third on the grid, engaged in a spirited early-race duel with Verstappen. The Dutchman suggested Hamilton should have received a penalty for squeezing him wide at turn six, but the stewards deemed the racing fair. Hamilton relished the contest: "It was great, it was a good run, good fun. He went off the outside. You don't expect to go around the outside of a champion. I wouldn't expect to go around the outside of him there and hold the line. He was behind at the apex and therefore he should have backed out but he didn't."
Ferrari team principal: 'A good lesson'
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur acknowledged the team's struggles in Austria, where Charles Leclerc could only manage eighth after starting second on the grid. "We didn't have the pace to fight with the Mercedes and Max and we overpushed the first couple of laps," Vasseur said. "We had to change the strategy and everything went in the wrong direction but it's a good lesson."
Austrian GP results and standings
George Russell won the Austrian Grand Prix with a time of 1hr 26min 37.979sec. Max Verstappen finished second, 1.611 seconds behind, and Kimi Antonelli took third. In the drivers' standings, Antonelli leads with 171 points, followed by Russell (131) and Hamilton (125). Mercedes tops the constructors' championship with 302 points, ahead of Ferrari (204) and McLaren (159).
