There have been 15 Safety Car outings at the Red Bull Ring since the first at the track – then called the A1-Ring – in 1998. 13 of those have been full Safety Car periods, while four have been VSC periods. Here’s a list of every time that the Safety Car has been deployed at the Austrian Grand Prix!
1998 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
In 1998, three separate incidents on the opening lap led to the Safety Car being called out for the first time in Austria – Olivier Panis stalled on the grid, Toranosuke Takagi was out at Turn 1 and David Coulthard lost his front wing at Turn 2.
2000 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
Ricardo Zonta sent Michael Schumacher into a spin at Turn 1 of the 2000 Austrian Grand Prix, causing an incident which eliminated three drivers. The Safety Car was called while the mess was cleared away.
2001 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
No fewer than four cars suffered launch control issues at the start of the race, failing to get away on the grid. They were pushed into the pit lane, but the Safety Car was required while marshals pushed the cars away.
2002 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 25
This Safety Car call out – on Lap 25 of the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix – marked the first time that the Safety Car had been called out after the first lap of the race in Austria. It was called due to an odd stoppage for Olivier Panis, who spun – with his car alight – on the main straight.
2002 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 28
Just after the Safety Car came in for Olivier Panis’ incident, Nick Heidfeld spectacularly crashed into the side of Takuma Sato at Turn 3, leading to another caution period.
2003 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 2
Jos Verstappen’s launch control broke at the start of the 2003 Austrian Grand Prix and he stopped just before Turn 1 on the first lap. The following lap, the Safety Car was called while his car was removed.
2015 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
There was a first lap collision at the 2015 Austrian Grand Prix between Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen, which resulted in the McLaren being mounted on top of the Ferrari.
2016 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 27
An unhappy birthday for Sebastian Vettel at the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix, who suffered a tyre failure on the main straight.
2018 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 15
A mechanical issue for Valtteri Bottas left him stopped at the side of the track leading to the VSC being deployed for just over two minutes at the 2018 Austrian Grand Prix.
2020 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 26
A braking issue for Kevin Magnussen caused him to spin off the circuit at Turn 3 just after being passed by Esteban Ocon. The Safety Car was called while the Haas was removed from the run off area.
2020 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 51
In two separate incidents, Romain Grosjean suffered a brake failure, while George Russell stopped trackside, causing the Safety Car to be deployed. At ten laps long, this is the longest Safety Car deployment in Austrian Grand Prix history.
2020 Styrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
An opening lap collision between the two Ferrari drivers left debris across the track at Turn 3. Vettel retired, while Leclerc was able to continue. This is the only time that the Safety Car made an appearance in the Styrian Grand Prix, which was held in both 2020 and 2021.
2021 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
Esteban Ocon stopped on track between Turns 3 and 4 on the opening lap of the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix after being caught between Mick Schumacher and Antonio Giovinazzi, breaking his front suspension.
2022 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 58
Carlos Sainz stopped in the run off area with engine issues, leading to a fire at the rear of his car. Sainz was initially unable to exit his car. Having stopped on a slope, the car rolled backwards while the Spaniard tried to make a swift exit. The VSC was out for just under 3 minutes while his car was pushed away.
2023 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 1
For the first time since 2021, the Safety Car was called out on the opening lap of the Austrian Grand Prix in 2023. Yuki Tsunoda damaged his front wing in a collision with Esteban Ocon, leaving debris on the track. The race restarted at the start of Lap 4.
2023 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 14
The Virtual Safety Car was called on Lap 14 when Nico Hulkenberg came to a stop with a loss of power. The VSC period ended on Lap 16.
2024 Austrian Grand Prix, Lap 66
Following a collision at Turn 3 between race leaders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris in the closing stages of the race, the Virtual Safety Car was briefly called to clear debris from the track.
