Friday 13 June 2014

Red Bull Racing heading home - Austrian Grand Prix Preview

(Frederic Le Floc'h DPPI for Renault Sport F1)

Infiniti Red Bull Racing head to the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring next weekend off the back of a surprise victory for Daniel Ricciardo last time out at the Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal. The Australian finished the race just ahead of Mercedes driver and championship leader Nico Rosberg while his team mate and reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel.

Speaking ahead of the Grand Prix, Ricciardo said:

'It’s great to be going to Red Bull’s home race after an awesome weekend in Canada. I’ve only driven the Red Bull Ring on filming days, essentially a handful of laps without the out-and-out aggression that you’ll see at the Austrian Grand Prix weekend. It’s a tidy circuit, not the longest and not many corners, but what is there is good. Turn One is cool as it climbs up the hill. It looks tight, but actually isn’t. Turn Two is quite a tight right-hand corner, going uphill and off-camber as well. Then it drops back down all the way through the rest of the track. It’s very odd going to what, essentially, is a new race but in a place where the racing history is firmly established. It sounds as though there will be a massive crowd up in the mountains and I’m sure the return of the Austrian Grand Prix will get off to a really good start.

The result has put Ricciardo up to third in the Driver's championship 19 point's ahead of team mate Sebastian Vettel. The German will be hoping for another strong performance next weekend in Austria. He stated:

'I have great memories of the Red Bull Ring. I was 13 years old when I first drove around it. I had the chance to test a Formula car from the Auinger family. That is a huge step if you’re coming from a karting background. It was something completely new and it took me a while to get used to it. I’m really happy that we will race there. The circuit is actually very pretty, not only the track, but the whole area. The circuit’s set amid a beautiful natural landscape. There are not many distractions there – it’s just about racing. The Red Bull Ring is a short track, with only a few turns, but it’s very challenging. There are also a lot of elevation changes, which makes it interesting and fun. The fans will have a great time as every grandstand offers a great view of the circuit.'

The Milton Keynes outfit head to their own circuit in second place in the Constructors championship, 119 point's behind championship leaders Mercedes AMG Petronas. The team will be hoping to close the gap to the Silver Arrows next weekend. 

© Ben Johnston 2014

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