Austrian Grand Prix

From WOI Encyclopedia Italia

Austrian Grand Prix
Flag
Circuit	A1-Ring
Laps	69
Circuit length km	4.326
Circuit length mi
Race length km	298.494
Race length mi
Most wins driver	Alain Prost (3)
Most wins constructor	McLaren (6)
Current year	2003
Winner	Michael Schumacher
Winning team	Ferrari
Winning time	1:24:04.888
Pole driver	Michael Schumacher
Pole team	Ferrari
Pole time	1:09.150
Fastest lap driver	Michael Schumacher
Fastest lap team	Ferrari
Fastest lap	1:08.337

The Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One race.

The first event, in 1964, was held at a race track on the Zeltweg Airfield. The race was a success, but the track was deemed too dangerous; it was narrow and very bumpy, and spectators complained of poor viewing areas. The FIA removed the race from the F1 calendar until a suitable track was built.

From 1970 until 1987, the event was held at the Österreichring (also located near Zeltweg). These events were moderately successful, but in 1987, this track was also deemed too dangerous, by FIA standards, whereupon the event disappeared for a decade.

In 1995 and 1996, the track was refurbished and brought up to date, which allowed the race to run again in 1997. Since the larger portion of the modernized track, which was renamed A1-Ring after a sponsor, is located on the municipal territory of Spielberg, Spielberg was now given as the site of the Grand Prix. It was a mainstay on the calendar until hosting its final race in 2003.

The 2002 Austrian Grand Prix received negative publicity after Ferrari instructed Rubens Barrichello to cede his victory to Michael Schumacher.

The grandstands and pit buildings were demolished in 2004, rendering the track unusable for any motorsport category. In later 2004 and early 2005, there were intense discussions whether the owner, Red Bull, would find another use for the site or actually bring back motor sports to it. However, as of January 2005, this seems more unlikely than ever, as Dietrich Mateschitz publicly announced that he had no intention to waste money on a deficitary circuit. This failure of the project, which was of considerable importance for the surrounding municipalities, may even have serious political repercussions, as Styrian governor Waltraud Klasnic had strongly supported the project.

However, in April 2008 the current owners of the track , Red Bull, have decided to restore the track as a racing venue and DTM Chief are considering to return there for a race in 2009.

Contents 1 Records 2 Winners of the Austrian Grand Prix 2.1 Repeat Winners 2.2 Year by Year

Records

• Driver
  • Most wins - Alain Prost, 3
  • Most podiums - David Coulthard, 5
  • Most points - David Coulthard, 39
  • Most poles - René Arnoux, Nelson Piquet & Niki Lauda, 3 (tied)
  • Most grands prix - Jacques Laffite, 12
• Team
  • Most wins - McLaren, 6
  • Most podiums - Ferrari, 20
  • Most points - Ferrari, 142.5
  • Most poles - Ferrari, 7
  • Most grands prix - Ferrari & McLaren, 25 (tied)

Winners of the Austrian Grand Prix

Repeat Winners

Only includes World Championship events

Number of wins	Driver	Achieved
3	Alain Prost	1986
2	Ronnie Peterson	1978
	Alan Jones	1979
	Mika Häkkinen	2000
	Michael Schumacher	2003

Year by Year

A light gray background indicates an event which was not part of the Formula One World Championship.

Year	Driver	Constructor	Location	Report
2003	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	A1-Ring	Report
2002	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	A1-Ring	Report
2001	David Coulthard	McLaren-Mercedes	A1-Ring	Report
2000	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren-Mercedes	A1-Ring	Report
1999	Eddie Irvine	Ferrari	A1-Ring	Report
1998	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren-Mercedes	A1-Ring	Report
1997	Jacques Villeneuve	Williams-Renault	A1-Ring	Report
1996 - 1988	Not held
1987	Nigel Mansell	Williams-Honda	Österreichring	Report
1986	Alain Prost	McLaren-TAG Porsche	Österreichring	Report
1985	Alain Prost	McLaren-TAG Porsche	Österreichring	Report
1984	Niki Lauda	McLaren-TAG Porsche	Österreichring	Report
1983	Alain Prost	Renault	Österreichring	Report
1982	Elio de Angelis	Lotus-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1981	Jacques Laffite	Ligier-Matra	Österreichring	Report
1980	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	Österreichring	Report
1979	Alan Jones	Williams-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1978	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1977	Alan Jones	Shadow-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1976	John Watson	Penske-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1975	Vittorio Brambilla	March-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1974	Carlos Reutemann	Brabham-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1973	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1972	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus-Ford	Österreichring	Report
1971	Jo Siffert	BRM	Österreichring	Report
1970	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	Österreichring	Report
1969 - 1965	Not held
1964	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari	Zeltweg Airfield	Report
1963	Jack Brabham	Brabham-Climax	Zeltweg Airfield	Report

Races in the Formula One championship:
2007 championship Grand Prix events:
Australian | Malaysian | Bahrain | Spanish | Monaco | Canadian | U.S. | French | British German | European| Hungarian | Turkish | Italian | Belgian | Japanese | Chinese | Brazilian
Past championship Grand Prix events:
Argentine | Austrian | Dutch | Indy 500 | Las Vegas | Luxembourg | Mexican | Morocco Pacific | Pescara | Portuguese | San Marino | South African | Swedish | Swiss | USA East | USA West
Confirmed future Grand Prix events:
Abu Dhabi | Korean | European | Singapore