Max Verstappen endured a troubled opening session to the Austrian Grand Prix on Friday, clocking the fourth-fastest time in first practice as Mercedes dominated the timing sheets in Spielberg. The Red Bull driver’s outing was marred by two separate technical stoppages in the pit exit, leaving him unable to mount a sustained challenge to the silver arrows. Meanwhile, 19-year-old Kimi Antonelli led a Mercedes one-two, underlining the team’s immediate competitiveness at the Red Bull Ring.

Antonelli set the pace in the 45-minute session, finishing ahead of teammate George Russell and McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, according to multiple reports filed on Friday [2026-06-26]. The Italian rookie, making his first appearance in Austria as a full-time Formula 1 driver, lapped in 1:04.321, a margin of 0.042 seconds over Russell. Verstappen, whose RB20 had shown promising straight-line speed in pre-season testing, managed only the fourth-best time despite the issues, with Lewis Hamilton fifth in his Mercedes .

Verstappen’s session was repeatedly interrupted. He returned to the pits after both technical stoppages, each time emerging to complete only a handful of laps before the car cut out again. His best effort of 1:04.567 left him 0.246 seconds adrift of Antonelli, a deficit that underscored the Mercedes W16’s immediate edge in high temperatures at the Red Bull Ring. Hamilton, winless since 2020, managed fifth fastest, two places behind his teammate, as the team sought to rediscover their 2025 form .

The session also offered a glimpse of Ferrari’s depth, with academy driver Dino Beganović stepping into Charles Leclerc’s seat and securing ninth fastest in his first outing for the Scuderia. Beganović, 22, finished ahead of Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and Williams’ Franco Colapinto, marking a promising debut in a competitive environment . Estonia’s Paul Aron, meanwhile, completed his second consecutive Friday in an Audi, ending 17th in the field.

With qualifying and the sprint shootout scheduled for Saturday, the early indications suggest Mercedes are ready to challenge Red Bull’s dominance. Verstappen’s reliability concerns, however, risk undermining his team’s race-day ambitions before the session has even begun. The Austrian Grand Prix remains finely poised, but Friday’s practice has already delivered a clear verdict: Antonelli and Russell are the men to beat.

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Dino Beganovic achieves Ninth fastest Time in the First Practice Session in Austria The Swedish driver of BiH roots and a member of the Ferrari drivers academy Dino Beganović got a new opportunity to perform in a Ferrari car in the first free practice for the Austrian Grand Prix, where he replaced Charles Leclerc. Beganović left a very good impression and finished the training session with the ninth […] The post Dino Beganovic achieves Ninth fastest Time in the First Practice Session in Austria appeared first on Sarajevo Times.

sarajevo times · 3 months ago

Live F1 | Verstappen en Hadjar nog niet tevreden met geüpdatete Red Bull Goedemiddag en welkom in dit liveblog. Hier houd ik (Patrick Moeke) je op de hoogte van alle ontwikkelingen tijdens de Grand Prix van Oostenrijk. Veel plezier!

nu.nl · 3 months ago

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nu.nl · 3 months ago

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der standard · 3 months ago

Antonelli leads Russell in Austrian first practice Kimi Antonelli leads George Russell in a Mercedes one-two in first practice at the Austrian Grand Prix.

bbc sport · 3 months ago

BLOGI ⟩ Paul Aroni F1 treening Austrias ei läinud nii sujuvalt kui loodeti Vormel 1 sari jõudis sel nädalal Austriasse, kus sõidetakse hooaja kaheksas etapp. Reedel toimunud esimesel vabatreeningul osales Eesti vormelisõitja Paul Aron, kes teist etappi järjest istus Audi vormelisse, ta näitas 17. aega. Postimees vahendas treeningut otseblogis.

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