Bottas triumphant in chaotic Austrian Grand Prix

Image credits: Formula One

After 217 days, Formula One returned, and in grand fashion. The race at the Red Bull Ring in Austria was all about the survival of the fittest, and Mercedes's Valteri Bottas claimed victory, taking full advantage of his pole position start. The race was a thriller, reminding everyone what they were missing during the hiatus of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Mercedes, as most would have expected, dominated the weekend but that's hardly the whole story. Commencing with the drivers standing in unity against racism, the grid observed a moment of silence.

Even before the first lap, the weekend had a fair share of controversies, with Red Bull's protest of the Mercede's dual-axis steering (DAS) and a last-minute grid penalty being awarded by the stewards to six-time world champion Lewis Hamilton after footage proved that he failed to slow his car around the yellow flags during the third qualifying session. The race scenarios seemed a bit familiar for Mercedes as they faced reliability concerns on the same track as the past two years. The Racing Points have had smoke coming out of their car throughout the weekend, and the race saw Lance Stroll retire his car.

Red Bull took its chance by fitting Max Verstappen on the medium compound tires, holding the strategic advantage over the Mercedes (well, at least on paper). The Red Bull Ring has seen dominant Max Verstappen performances in the past couple of years, but this year, it would prove to be a nightmare race for the team. After just 11 laps, Max was denied a third straight win in Austria when his car lost drive and went into anti-stall multiple times. The scenario was described by the team as a problem in the car settings and adjustments – while teammate Albon appeared to suffer a similar problem just two laps from the end.

Alex Albon, another young Briton, found himself in contention for a remarkable maiden podium finish (perhaps a race win too) after being fitted with fresh soft tires under the second of the three safety cars. But his hopes were short-lived after crashing with Lewis Hamilton in the closing stages of the race, with Red Bull's boss Christian Horner demanding an apology from Hamilton. The reigning world champion was later awarded a five-second time penalty, demoting him to the fourth position. "It's not been a great weekend for me," Hamilton said, calling the collision an "unfortunate scenario". He conlcuded: "it felt like a racing incident but I'll take whatever penalty they feel I deserve and move forward.''

With 10 laps to go, the race exploded into life, where late surges from Charles LeClerc saw him finish in P2 and Lando Norris claim his maiden podium finish at P3. It was all joy at the McLaren garage, as they finished with both cars in the points. Sebastian Vettel in his Ferrari SF1000 was able to finish in the tenth position, in what was an underwhelming week for him and his team. Chances for redemption are aplenty. Both Red Bulls will look to compete for a win the coming race week, and Hamilton will be looking to gather himself and finish on the top spot of the podium. While Sunday’s race took place behind closed doors, millions wathjing the race were treated to a thrilling spectacle, and the adrenaline rush is something that racing fans would have missed.

Bonus feature:

The action-packed race is discussed further on the 'Ek Dum Karam' podcast, with host Aawez Hashmi and myself, along with our guest Dwayne DeSouza, the founder of @f1grandprix_essentials

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