Updated

Updated · Sky Sports · Jun 26

Antonelli Tops Austrian GP FP1 by 0.040s as Verstappen, Norris Lose Time to Car Issues

Updated

Updated · Sky Sports · Jun 26

Antonelli Tops Austrian GP FP1 by 0.040s as Verstappen, Norris Lose Time to Car Issues

Q: After ditching the simulator and winning, has Lewis Hamilton found the secret to toppling Mercedes' overwhelming 2026 dominance?

Not yet. Hamilton’s decision to skip Ferrari’s simulator appears to have helped his comfort and execution, but there is not enough evidence to call it the decisive formula for beating Mercedes over a season. The strongest case for the change is practical. Hamilton has said Ferrari’s simulator work carried “too many risks,” and his best 2026 weekends have come without it. He finished on the podium in China and Canada and then won in Barcelona, where Ferrari and Hamilton executed well with strategy and benefited from a late Virtual Safety Car and Antonelli’s retirement. That suggests the no-simulator approach may be improving his feel for the car and reducing preparation that was not translating on track. But Austria practice underlined the bigger reality: Mercedes still has the benchmark package. Antonelli led a Mercedes one-two in FP1, and the team has won six of the first seven races. Antonelli has taken five straight victories and built a substantial championship lead, while Russell remains a threat. Hamilton was only fifth in the session, 0.665sec off Antonelli, despite arriving with momentum from Barcelona. So Hamilton may have found a better personal method, not a magic answer. To truly topple Mercedes, Ferrari still needs more outright pace, cleaner weekends, and sustained reliability. Hamilton’s revised preparation can help unlock his side of the garage, but on current evidence it is a useful tool rather than the secret that ends Mercedes’ 2026 advantage.

3 articles · Updated · Sky Sports · Jun 26

Mercedes set the pace at the Red Bull Ring with Kimi Antonelli leading George Russell in FP1, edging him by 0.040s while Oscar Piastri finished third, a tenth off the top time.
Hydraulics, software and engine problems disrupted key rivals: Lando Norris lost 45 minutes to a leak, Max Verstappen twice stopped in the pit lane, and Isack Hadjar gave up about half the session for an engine change.
Verstappen still finished fourth, 0.281s back, but said Red Bull's heavily updated car was "shaking under braking" at its home race, limiting early data gathering on the new package.
Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton was fifth and more than six tenths adrift before the team introduces an upgraded engine on Saturday, while rookie stand-ins also featured with Dino Beganovic ninth and Arvid Lindblad sixth.