F1 cars run on the A1 Ring once again
F1 video
Red Bull brought F1 back to the A1 Ring last weekend to celebrate the re-opening of the track.
The circuit, which was originally known as the Osterreichring, has been renamed the Red Bull Ring. It hosted the Austrian Grand Prix in its original guide from 1970 to 1987 and in its later form from 1997 to 2003.
The circuit’s configuration remains unchanged from when it last held the Austrian Grand Prix eight years ago.
Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber were among the drivers present at the official opening ceremony.
The event also featured exhibition runs of classic F1 cars as well as demonstration laps by the Red Bull at Toro Rosso drivers.
Red Bull chief technical officer Adrian Newey took to the track in a BMW M3. Vettel left his mark in the wet cement at the circuit including an impression of his ‘number one’ finger gesture.
Bernie Ecclestone and Austrian former F1 drivers Niki Lauda, Gerhard Berger and Helmut Marko were also present.
However one driver at the wheel of an ex-Jochen Rindt Lotus 49 crashed into the pit wall in the wet conditions. See the second video below to see what happened.
F1 at the Red Bull Ring: Video
This video includes interviews with Vettel, Webber and Horner:
This video includes more footage of the track action including several classic F1 cars:
F1 at the Red Bull Ring: Pictures
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- Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Adrian Newey, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Mark Webber, Porsche 911 GT1 98, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Mark Webber, Christian Horner, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Adrian Newey, Christian Horner, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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- Sebastian Vettel, Mark Webber, Red Bull Ring, 2011
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Image © Red Bull/Getty images
Fixy (@fixy) said on 16th May 2011, 15:53
It’s awkward to see Horner and Newey in a racing suit!
I like how Red Bull do things in grand!
miko-g said on 16th May 2011, 16:17
I know Newey has driven the RB5 (or was it the 6) I’d love to see Christian Horner do the same! Or have all four of them on the grid at the same time haha
topdowntoedown (@topdowntoedown) said on 16th May 2011, 22:40
Newey’s an experienced racer and owns a number of classic racing cars :)
Valentino said on 16th May 2011, 16:00
Never liked the A1 Ring, it (was) is too simple and boring. I thought they changed it somehow, but no, they just renamed it to Red Bull Ring,..
But I guess RedBull needed a test track and that’s it,…
GeeMac (@geemac) said on 16th May 2011, 16:02
They had grand plans for the track but they fell through. See yesterdays round up comments for the details.
ajokay (@ajokay) said on 16th May 2011, 17:08
I like the simplicity of it. Not all of Tilke’s tracks should be 24-corner behemoths.
It was always great fun to drive in Grand Prix 4 too. Very fast, lots of elevation changes, and a few great corners.
gpcampbell (@gpcampbell) said on 16th May 2011, 17:14
Really? I found it quite boring on GP4 the first sector was cool with some difficult corners but the remainder just seemed a little pointless to me??
It is quite unique for a Tilke track i’ll give it that much however.
GeeMac (@geemac) said on 16th May 2011, 18:32
I agree actually, it was always great fun to drive in games…and variety is a great thing.
GeeMac (@geemac) said on 16th May 2011, 16:01
“Vettel left his mark in the wet cement at the circuit including an impression of his ‘number one’ finger gesture.”
Did anyone else groan out loud when they read that!? It’s bad enough that the image of the Seb finger is burned into my memory, now its immortalised in concrete too!
Fixy (@fixy) said on 16th May 2011, 16:24
Lol
Todfod (@todfod) said on 16th May 2011, 17:04
I saw that too.. it was hilarious!
NIck said on 16th May 2011, 17:20
better than alonsos antler dance.
Dizzy-A (@david-a) said on 17th May 2011, 0:44
Lol, so true.
Klaas said on 17th May 2011, 6:01
I can’t understand why people are so annoyed by his gesture.
BasCB (@bascb) said on 17th May 2011, 6:26
Yeah, that really got me. THAT finger thing in concrete.
Then they even topped it with getting Marko in there as well as a winner … at le Mans! So where Berger and Lauda already there? And what about Webber, he has certainly won at least as much as Marko, hasn’t he.
Gary Yogurt said on 17th May 2011, 13:51
That’s what I’m talking’bout!
BasCB (@bascb) said on 16th May 2011, 16:01
Nice footage of those vintage F1 cars. Seems it was pretty wet on track with all those cars spinning around.
Loved the sportscars.
Icthyes (@icthyes) said on 16th May 2011, 16:02
What a nice day out it must have been for the spectators.
I always thought the A1 Ring was the naffest name for a track, though.
LookingSpiffy said on 16th May 2011, 17:06
Maybe they were trying to be the first name in the phone book.
ed24f1 (@ed24f1) said on 16th May 2011, 17:31
It is named after a sponsor, I assume you know?
james_mc said on 16th May 2011, 21:45
No I didn’t! I’ve looked it up and I recognise the logo used now. I like the idea of a “Bullring”…. hopefully where the bulls go to get slaughtered by Spanish matadors :-D
SamS said on 16th May 2011, 16:05
you got to give them their due, they put on a good show!! i would love for this circuit to come back
Zazeems said on 16th May 2011, 16:42
I’d love this circuit to get back on the calendar.
It’s small and short, with a simple layout and beautiful surroundings. It’s SOMETHING DIFFERENT :D
Besides, anything that can halt the Tilke onslaught and bring F1 back to a european nation with F1 heritage has to be a good thing.
Joey-Poey (@joey-poey) said on 16th May 2011, 17:09
I thought this track’s redesign was Tilke’s doing, though.
Regardless, I do agree that I’d like to see them race here again.
Klaas said on 16th May 2011, 17:21
Knowing Bernie it’s more probable to have a GP in Cuba or Vietnam then at A1 Ring.
Fixy (@fixy) said on 16th May 2011, 18:28
Now Red Bull Ring.
Pinball said on 17th May 2011, 9:26
Yeah the redesign was done by Tilke.
Dan Thorn (@dan-thorn) said on 16th May 2011, 16:50
A beautiful circuit with a nice, simple layout. Would make a nice, refreshing re-addition to the calendar, but is there room for it?
ed24f1 (@ed24f1) said on 16th May 2011, 17:33
Maybe for a couple of years, but I can’t see it having a long term future.
If one or more of Bahrain, Valencia and Turkey don’t make it on for 2012, there could be an opportunity there.
I think that once Russia comes in, and Mexico will probably follow soon after, there won’t be any chance – so it’s now or never.
ads said on 16th May 2011, 17:36
yeah i agree. When the whole Bahrain Endurance circuit experiment was happening, there was a lot of discussion on this site about which of Bahrain’s layouts should be used for a GP. If i remember rightly, the outer-ring configuration was by far the most popular with fans, because we felt it would offer a unique spectacle with high speeds and lots of overtaking. The layout of the A1 is not dissimilar to Bahrain’s outer circuit at all, though much better due to the inclusion of a few high speed corners as well.
Cacarella said on 16th May 2011, 16:52
eewwwwww!!!!
Helmut Marko’s Feet!! *vomiting sounds*
Fixy (@fixy) said on 16th May 2011, 18:29
Lol!
Mouse_Nightshirt said on 16th May 2011, 20:26
Honestly though, *what* is he doing there?
Wificats said on 16th May 2011, 23:26
He did win the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1971, so he’s not without racing pedigree.
kateafan said on 16th May 2011, 16:55
Marko’s feet… why did it have to be Marko’s feet. *yuk*
They didn’t want Webber’s feet then?
SupaSix-1 said on 16th May 2011, 17:19
We need more circuits like the A1 (sorry but it will always be the A1 to me)…long straights going into tight slow corners.
The A1 track has always held eventful GPs in the past &
RedBull did the right thing in investing into it (rather than seeing another classic circuit decompose to a sorry state).
However its for that very same reason why I would not like to see it on the calendar Im sad to say – it would be like having a GP at the Fiorana track.
DaveW said on 16th May 2011, 17:36
The immortalization of Vettelfinger is bizarre and I think Vettel will be embarasseda about, eventually. A generation from now people will wonder why on earth some guy imprinted the back of his hand with forefinger extended, and the explanation will not be credible. Because who does that? Is it an ironic homage to the American-style giant foam finger once popular at football games? Is it typical of an obsucure Kung-Fu fighting style?
topdowntoedown (@topdowntoedown) said on 16th May 2011, 22:42
It’s because he’s
number one, baby!a colossal donkey.Atticus said on 16th May 2011, 18:57
I always liked the old Österreichring more. Fast and sweeping corners like a roller coaster.
I know, I know, security above all so it’s impossible to race on it again.
MVEilenstein (@mveilenstein) said on 16th May 2011, 18:59
What I wouldn’t give to hustle that Sprint Cup car around the track.
Dutch_Alex said on 16th May 2011, 19:18
Those old (well, not really that old but hey) GT1 cars are beautys. But I vagely remember an interview from mark webber stating he would never get into one again after flipping one at le mans.