Rosberg wins Austrian GP
The stage was set for a dramatic return to Austria in the first Formula One grand prix in over a decade. This freshly refurbished Red Bull Ring provided a gripping qualifying session yesterday with Williams revealing the first chinks in the armor of Mercedes. This front row lockout from Massa and Bottas created a potential David VS Goliath start to the 2014 race. However, Rosberg wins Austrian GP.
As the lights went out and the 2014 F1 cars raced down to the first corner, it was the 9th place Lewis Hamilton who got an astonishing getaway. Hungry to make-up for his previous DNF, he quickly made his way up to 4th by the end of the first lap. The two Williams ran in formation and were genuinely faster than the cars of Mercedes during their first stint. Sebastian Vettel’s Red Bull temporarily ground to a halt before coming back to life, this was a bit late for the four times world champion as he was stone dead last by the end of the first lap.
Although the Williams had proven themselves contenders, after the first round of pit stops both Mercedes had leaped Massa. The Williams cars were nowhere near as fast on the harder compound of tyre and so after a bit of hunting the Mercedes were back where they “belong.” Bottas would go on to claim the third step on the podium with Massa 4th. As the laps counted down, this race would be decided in the final few moments. Both drivers made errors as they pushed each other to the limit. By a matter of car lengths, Rosberg claimed victory.
1. Nico Rosberg
2. Lewis Hamilton
3. Valtteri Bottas
4. Felipe Massa
5. Fernando Alonso
6. Sergio Perez
7. Kevin Magnussen
8. Daniel Ricciardo
9. Nico Hulkenberg
10. Kimi Raikkonen
11. Jenson Button
12. Pastor Maldonado
13. Adrian Sutil
14. Romain Grosjean
15. Jules Bianchi
16. Kamui Kobayashi
17. Max Chilton
18. Marcus Ericsson
19. Esteban Gutierrez
DNF. Jean-Eric Vergne
DNF. Sebastian Vettel
DNF. Daniil Kvyat