A chance for Mercedes to equal the record for most consecutive wins, Stroll’s 50th appearance and will Raikkonen equal Schumacher’s tally of classified finishes? Here are the records which are up for grabs over the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix weekend!
THE NUMBERS AND MILESTONES
This will be the 1006th F1 Grand Prix. It will be the 33rd running of the Austrian Grand Prix, the 32nd time it has been held as a round of the F1 championship and the 31st F1 race at the Spielberg track.
The ninth lap of the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix will be the 1800th racing lap of the Spielberg circuit in F1’s history.
This weekend will mark Lance Stroll’s 50th Grand Prix appearance.
Haas will equal Copersucar’s number of Grand Prix appearances at the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix.
THE RECORDS TO BEAT
A victory for Mercedes will see them equal the record of eleven consecutive Grand Prix wins. The existing record was set by McLaren in the 1988 season. If Lewis Hamilton takes victory, he equal his personal best of most consecutive win. He previously took five back-to-back wins between the 2014 Italian and US Grands Prix.
If Ferrari win this weekend, they’ll equal McLaren’s record tally of six Austrian Grand Prix victories.
If Valtteri Bottas takes pole for the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix, he’ll become only the second driver to have taken pole in three consecutive seasons in Austria. The only other driver to do this is Rene Arnoux, who took pole here in 1979, 1980 and 1981.
A pole position for either Lewis Hamilton or Valtteri Bottas will see them equal the record number of three poles at the Austrian Grand Prix, joining Niki Lauda, Rene Arnoux and Nelson Piquet as the fourth driver to take three poles in the country.
If Lewis Hamilton sets the fastest lap of the race, he’ll equal David Coulthard as the driver with the most fastest laps at the Austrian Grand Prix. Coulthard set the Sunday pace three times at Austria during his career. Hamilton has done so twice so far.
If Max Verstappen wins this weekend, he’ll become only the fourth driver, after Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg to take consecutive wins at the track.
Ferrari and Mercedes have powered the exact same number of pole positions at the Austrian Grand Prix, with seven apiece. A pole for either engine manufacturer would see them set a new outright record this weekend.
If Mercedes score a 1-2 or 1-3 finish, they’ll become only the second team, after Ferrari, to have scored 200 points at the Austrian Grand Prix.
If Kimi Raikkonen is classified in the Austrian Grand Prix, this will be the 241st race which he’s been in the classified result of. That would see him equal Michael Schumacher’s total of classified finishes during his career and put him equal third in the all-time list, behind Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button.
If Kimi Raikkonen finishes in the top ten on Sunday, he’ll equal David Coulthard’s record of seven points scoring appearances at the Austrian Grand Prix.
Sebastian Vettel has won at 21 different Grands Prix so far in his career. A victory this weekend would make Austria the 22nd different Grands Prix which he’s won. If he does win, he’ll equal Michael Schumacher’s tally of victories at 22 different Grands Prix, and he’ll be one behind Lewis Hamilton’s record of wins at 23 different Grands Prix. Meanwhile, if he wins at the Red Bull Ring, Vettel will equal Alain Prost’s number of different circuits at which he has taken victory.
If Sebastian Vettel finishes on the podium, it will mark his 50th podium appearance as a Ferrari driver.
Lewis Hamilton holds the record for the most different Grands Prix at which a driver has taken pole position. He’s taken pole at 24 different events; a number which Sebastian Vettel could equal this weekend. The Austrian Grand Prix marks his last opportunity to equal Hamilton’s record this season.
