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The Austrian GP has become a staple on the F1 calendar during the Turbo-Hybrid era. Even before its return to the aforementioned era, the Austrian GP has been around since the very first edition in 1964 and holds historic significance in the sport as one of the oldest races on the calendar. The track's high-speed nature, with multiple overtaking spots, has produced some spectacular moments over the years.
In this feature for the 2022 F1 Austrian GP, the nostalgic quotient will run high as we look back at some of the most memorable moments in the history of the race.
#5 Felipe Massa's last career pole position (2014 F1 Austrian GP)
There aren't that many feel-good moments that are as warm as the day when Felipe Massa turned back the clock at the 2014 F1 Austrian GP. All of this was 6 years removed from the time when Massa was at the top of the sport fighting for the world title. This was also 5 years removed from the horrific accident suffered by the Brazilian at the 2009 F1 Hungarian GP.
Massa was no longer a Ferrari driver and was still trying to find his feet at Williams, that had a surprisingly strong car for the 2014 F1 season. That season featured nothing but Mercedes domination, a season where the German outfit was almost a second quicker than even its nearest challenger. Not at the Austrian GP though!
The Williams challenger had fantastic straight-line speed and the door opened for its drivers, with neither Nico Rosberg nor Lewis Hamilton nailing their final laps for Mercedes. Felipe Massa was the one that went through the door and scored a shock pole position.
Was it on merit? Entirely! The Brazilian was near the top of the timesheets throughout the weekend and when it was time, he nailed it. This was one of the best moments in the Brazilian's career, who was somewhat lost after his 2009 accident.
#4 Red Bull's first win at home (2018 F1 Austrian GP)
Red Bull's rise to prominence in F1 is arguably one of the reasons for the Austrian GP's return to the sport. The team was on a roll and had won four titles in a row from 2010 to 2013. The Austrian GP, however, came a year too late for it.
The Turbo-Hybrid era needed a strong power unit and Red Bull did not have that. Hence, success in that era was hard to come by in the beginning. By the 2018 season, however, Red Bull was there or thereabouts. Mercedes and Ferrari were still the clear #1 and #2 teams, but Red Bull would be there to pick up the pieces if anything went wrong.
At the 2018 F1 Austrian GP, Mercedes' pit strategy went wrong and Max Verstappen found himself in an unlikely position of leading the race. The Red Bull driver had just enough speed to hold on to the race lead as his competitors capitulated. Four years was the time it took for Red Bull to finally win its home race and, as we have seen since then, they haven't looked back!
#3 Lando Norris' first podium (2020 F1 Austrian GP)
Lando Norris was a bright young protege who had impressed everyone in his debut season with McLaren in 2019. He had shown that he possessed spectacular speed at times, that he had talent, and while some other pieces of his game needed to come together, he had shown that he belonged on the F1 grid.
The 2020 F1 season was off to a false start with the pandemic putting a halt to everything, including F1. When it all started, however, it began with the Austrian GP. Late in the race, Norris, running in 4th position, had an outside chance at a podium as Lewis Hamilton was given a 5-second time penalty. On the last lap of the race, he was 6.5 seconds ahead of Norris. With the kind of domination that Mercedes had shown all over the field, Norris wasn't expected to cut down the gap to Hamilton.
Yet, to the surprise of everyone, that was exactly what Norris did. Driving a McLaren, a car that was close to a second slower than Mercedes, Norris did the unthinkable on the last lap as he pulled out the fastest lap of the race and finished the race inside the 5-second margin to score his first-ever podium. Everyone knew Norris was good, but with this performance, he started to be looked at differently in the paddock.
#2 Ferrari's infamous team orders (2002 F1 Austrian GP)
Not all the memorable moments for the Austrian GP are fun to look back on. One of the more controversial moments was in 2002 when Ferrari issued team orders to Rubens Barrichello to give up a much-earned win and concede the position to Michael Schumacher.
Now, team orders were not anything new at the time and teams would issue them when required. This one, however, rubbed everyone the wrong way. That is because in 2002, Ferrari had a dominant car at its disposal, and by the time the F1 circus reached the Austrian GP, Schumacher had solidified his position as the runaway favorite in the championship.
Barrichello dominated the race, he was clearly the faster driver that day, and in those circumstances, even if the Brazilian won, it would not have had much of an impact on the title battle. Ferrari, however, was steadfast in its decision and was subsequently met with boos from all across the stands. Not a moment worth looking back on, but one that will go down as one of the most memorable moments of the Grand Prix.
#1 Max Verstappen scores Honda's first Turbo-Hybrid era win (2019 F1 Austrian GP)
It's well documented how poor Honda's journey was at the start of the turbo-hybrid era with a power unit that was lagging on all fronts. So much so that it left McLaren with no other option but to end their 3-year-long partnership. It was at this time that Red Bull extended an olive branch to the Japanese manufacturer and aligned Honda with its sister team.
This was 2018, a year Honda spent as the power unit supplier to Toro Rosso. In 2019, Red Bull extended the trust and signed a power unit deal for the senior team as well. In the eyes of many, the deal didn't make sense as Honda had by that time faced a lot of ridicule.
Red Bull, however, trusted Honda and the duo started building confidence race by race in 2019. There was the odd podium here and there as the Red Bull-Honda partnership became stronger by the day. It all, however, peaked at Red Bull's home race as Max Verstappen climbed his way through the field to secure a sensational win.
After the race, the Dutch driver pointed to the Honda sign on his overalls as this win marked the first-ever win for the Japanese manufacturer since its return to the sport. After that, the partnership never looked back as it all culminated with a title at the end of the 2021 F1 season.
