Will it be all in at Austria? - Predictions for the first Austrian Race 2021

Austria last year was a race to remember with all the action that occurred throughout the entirety of the race weekend. Only 11 drivers completed the Austrian Grand Prix in 2020 with Valtteri Bottas topping the table, closely followed by Charles Leclerc and then Lando Norris who achieved his first podium in Formula One, taking 3rd.

Valtterri Bottas (Mercedes) celebrating his win alongside Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and Lando Norris (McLaren), 2020

At the beginning of the race, Max Verstappen had an engine failure and was the first of 9 drivers to retire, with Daniil Kvyat being the last, claiming 12th. Hamilton and Perez were given penalties; Hamilton for causing a collision and Perez for speeding in the pit lane, whilst Norris gained an extra point for achieving the fastest lap of the race.

Charles Leclerc also claimed 2nd in 2019 in his Ferrari - could he claim 2nd again or will he sink under the pressure? The Ferraris did well last year at Austria despite their struggles in the majority of the 2020 season and their poor performance in the cars. With Leclerc and Sainz improving Ferrari's position this season, they could have a better race as they fight with McLaren for 3rd in the Constructor's Championship, after being dropped down to 4th proceeding their lack of points in France.

Friday Practice looks forward to a promising race full of twists and curveballs. Perez did not manage to make it into the top 10, whilst his teammate Verstappen topped the table. Norris received a shockingly slow 16th behind both his current and former teammates and Russell once again shocked us, claiming 15th - high up in the table for a Williams.

My predictions for the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix grid

The intense battle between Hamilton and Verstappen will most certainly continue into the 8th round as we enter Red Bull territory where both Verstappen and Perez are eager to continue their streak of podiums and widen their win over Mercedes in the Constructor's Standings. However, after Hamilton's narrow defeat at Paul Ricard, he'll definitely be out for revenge to try and bridge the gap between them in both the Driver's and Constructor's Standings. However, Hamilton has not won a race at Austria (not classed as Styria on F1 website) since 2016 so this could be an entertaining challenge for us all as we watch the top 2 battle it out. Verstappen was also very open minded though, despite his race win and the rivalry between himself and Hamilton, saying in an interview ,"every single weekend is different", clearly highlighting that he's not going to let his guard down despite his victory.

It is expected that the bottom 3 will stay the same on Sunday, however, like in France, George Russell could surprise us with another higher grid place and again prove that he could be inching more and more towards Bottas' seat. Although he may not be ready, much like James Wells said in my podcast 'Cutting The Chicane' , he certainly has the potential to snatch a Mercedes seat from Bottas' fingers, even if it's further in the future. Hopefully Antonio Giovinazzi and Kimi Räikkönen will produce a better result than their 15th and 17th at France last Sunday and will try and battle the Aston Martins and Alpines for places in the points.

Predicted final standings for the race on Sunday

The AlphaTauris had a very strong drive in France with Pierre Gasly claiming 7th just behind Daniel Ricciardo, and Yuki Tsunoda pushing himself from 20th all the way to 13th - a very strong drive for such a young rookie. They were also strong at Austria, especially Gasly who achieved a 7th in the 2020 season, another challenger for the McLarens. The drivers also highly regard the Red Bull Ring as a fun track rather than just a circuit to race and gain points and this could be because of the 3 DRS zones placed around the track, along with a speed trap between turns 3 and 4.

Even without the battles between teams, Austria is sure to give us a few unexpected surprises, after all, Verstappen didn't even finish Austria last year so all is to play for. Can Norris claim a 3rd podium ? Can Charles Leclerc claim another 2nd? Can Bottas outdrive his teammate and his rival like last year? So many unanswered questions and one amazing race ahead of us over the weekend.