Austrian GP: Toto Wolff optimistic Mercedes will make further improvements; Fernando Alonso says Sprint ‘not ideal’ for Aston Martin

Mercedes have secured podium finishes at the last two races – will that continue at the Austrian GP this weekend?

Toto Wolff is optimistic Mercedes’ W14 will continue to show progress at this weekend’s Austrian GP.

Since introducing a revised concept and major upgrades at the Monaco GP, the Silver Arrows have picked up a double podium finish at the Spanish GP, while Lewis Hamilton finished third at the Canadian GP last time out.

Mercedes had not expected to be as competitive as they were in Canada, given the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve’s slow-speed corners and the inherent weakness of the W14 and its lack of rear grip at low speed.

Mercedes will be introducing another “larger” upgrade at next weekend’s British GP at Silverstone, but Wolff hopes his team will show more improvement in Austria as they seek to be Red Bull’s closest challengers once again.

“There were plenty of positives to take from the last race in Canada,” Wolff said.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Look back at some of the most dramatic moments through the years at the Austrian Grand Prix

“Although we didn’t get both cars to the chequered flag, a podium was a solid result and we saw encouraging signs from our updated package.

“It’s a short lap in Spielberg and looks straightforward on paper; several long straights broken up by a range of slow, medium-speed and fast corners. But it’s a challenging one to put together and get right.

“We will aim to build on the momentum we have generated over the past two races and continue our positive trajectory with the car.

“It’s a venue where the W14 should perform better than in Canada, but we won’t take anything for granted. As always, we will be working hard to maximise our performance and deliver strong results.”

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

David Croft and Craig Slater head to the pub to discuss when Lewis Hamilton will announce his contract, how long will Fernando Alonso be in F1 and the chances of Mercedes taking a win at Silverstone

Alonso: Sprint weekend not ideal for Aston Martin

Mercedes found themselves behind Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin again in Montreal after the Spaniard prevailed over Hamilton in a race-long battle for second place.

Aston Martin introduced a major upgrade of their own in Canada but the reduced running due to CCTV problems in practice and then wet running on the Saturday means the team are still seeking more data on the performance of their updates.

This weekend’s Austrian GP sees the Sprint return for the second time this season and, with the teams limited to just one hour of practice in the format, Alonso conceded that could put Aston Martin at a bit more of a disadvantage in the battle at the front.

“I think the Sprint weekend will not be ideal for us,” he said.

“We still have more time maybe of free practice with our new upgraded car. We still need to understand and optimise the package a little bit and in Austria, obviously with the Sprint, we will have only FP1 to do that. But yeah, it is what it is.

“The circuit will be good and maybe better for the package as well, this one with a strange layout, let’s say. Maybe good for Ferrari, historically here as well with a long straight and short corners so maybe Austria we have a little bit more pace.”

How new F1 Sprint format works in 2023 ahead of Austria return

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

Sky Sports F1’s Rachel Brookes explains how this season’s new Sprint format will work and what fans can expect

F1’s Sprint has a new format for 2023 after changes were approved earlier in the year.

The key change is that the result of Saturday’s shorter race will no longer set the grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix, with that now being decided by Friday’s qualifying session.

Whoever is fastest on Friday evening will now start from pole on Sunday.

A new, separate shorter qualifying session – the Sprint Shootout – will now take place on Saturday morning, with Practice Two removed from the weekend schedule.

The Sprint, along with its own qualifying Shootout, is now essentially a separate entity from the main Grand Prix.

With the Sprint no longer setting the Grand Prix grid, the hope is that it will encourage the drivers to be more attacking and take more risks during the 100km event, given an incident would not compromise them on Sunday.

It also brings more meaning to Saturday morning. Under the old format, Saturday’s Practice Two session had essentially become redundant due to F1’s parc ferme rules – once cars leave the garage in qualifying on Friday, teams are unable to make any changes to their set-ups.

The reduction to just one 60-minute practice session ahead of qualifying on Friday could also bring more jeopardy to the weekend, with teams having less time to understand tyre behaviour and set-up.

Sky Sports F1’s live Austrian GP schedule

Thursday June 29
2pm: Drivers’ Press Conference

Friday June 30
8.50am: F3 Practice
10am: F2 Practice
12pm: Austrian GP Practice (session starts 12.30)
1.55pm: F3 Qualifying
2.50pm: F2 Qualifying
3.30pm: Austrian GP Qualifying build-up
4pm: Austrian GP Qualifying
6pm: Ted’s Qualifying Notebook

Saturday July 1
8.55am: F3 Sprint
10.30am: Austrian GP Sprint Shootout build-up
11am: Austrian GP Sprint Shootout
12.40pm: F2 Sprint
2.30pm: Austrian GP Sprint build-up
3.30pm: Austrian GP Sprint
5pm: Ted’s Sprint Notebook

Sunday July 2
7.20am: F3 Feature Race
8.50am: F2 Feature Race
12.30pm: Grand Prix Sunday Austrian GP build-up
2pm: The AUSTRIAN GRAND PRIX
4pm: Chequered Flag: Austrian GP reaction
5pm: Ted’s Notebook

Red Bull seek to continue their winning run in 2023 as they return to their home track for the Austrian GP – watch live on Sky Sports F1 from June 30-July 2. Get Sky Sports