Styrian Grand Prix: Race Recap

Uralkali Haas F1 Team drivers Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin finished 16th and 18th, respectively, at the Styrian Grand Prix, Round 8 of the 2021 FIA Formula 1 World Championship hosted at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.

Schumacher took the start from 19th position on Pirelli P Zero Yellow medium tires and avoided the trouble that befell some midfield cars to move into 16th. Schumacher extended his first stint on mediums before coming into the pit lane on lap 34 of 71 to switch to White hard tires. Schumacher preserved his VF-21 through to the checkered flag to maintain his 100 percent finish record in Formula 1, classifying 16th.

Mazepin slotted in behind his teammate on the grid, also starting on the medium rubber, and moved ahead on the opening lap, running in 15th position. Mazepin relinquished track position by coming in on lap 23, switching onto hard tires, which he conserved through to the end. Mazepin ceded track position to the recovering Williams of Nicholas Latifi but extended his race finishing streak to seven as he finished in 18th place.

Up front Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen recorded his fourth victory of the 2021 season, ahead of the Mercedes pairing of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas. 

Uralkali Haas F1 Team will return to action at the Austrian Grand Prix, which will be held again at the Red Bull Ring, from July 2 to 4.

 

Nikita Mazepin, Driver No. 9, Uralkali Haas F1 Team

“I think I had a very good opening lap. I was happy with my positioning as I prepared this morning where potentially there could be a bunch of cars and how to get past them. We really tried our best but there just wasn’t enough pace to fight with other teams today. I’m satisfied with myself – the balance wasn’t really there but I didn’t make any big mistakes. I think that was the maximum for today.”

 

Mick Schumacher, Driver No. 47, Uralkali Haas F1 Team

“There was a bit of action at the start and I tried to keep out of it - I chose the wrong line going in to T3 as it seemed like the outside line was faster. The pace on the C2 was very strong and that’s positive - we were matching the lap times of the midfield so I think we can be happy with that. Now we need to analyze what happened and how we can do it better. Nonetheless, I think we can be happy with what we did today.”

 

Guenther Steiner, Team Principal, Uralkali Haas F1 Team

“It was a very interesting and good race from us. Our guys fought on track, but it was all in the spirit of what they agreed and I’m very happy about that. It was respectful and that’s what I’m always looking for. Unfortunately, Nikita got into the blue flags and once you get into that with short tracks you get your tires dirty and you’re not going anywhere. Mick stayed out of quite a few and had very good pace to do this, so we need to look into where he got this pace from at the end of the race. Yes – we are 16th and 18th but I think the learning continues and it seems like we’re making progress, and that makes me happy.”

 

Today's Data

Event: Styrian Grand Prix – Sunday June 27
Location: Red Bull Ring, Spielberg, Austria
Layout: 4.318-kilometer (2.683-mile), 10-turn circuit
Weather: Partly Cloudy
Air Temps: 27 degrees Celsius (80.6 degrees Fahrenheit)
Track Temps: 54 degrees Celsius (129.2 degrees Fahrenheit)
Race Winner: Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing
Team Result: Mick Schumacher – Started 19th / Finished 16th (Running – completed 69/71 laps)
Nikita Mazepin – Started 20th / Finished 18th (Running – completed 68/71 laps)