Austrian GP: George Russell holds off Max Verstappen to end winless streak and reinvigorate title bid
George Russell claims first grand prix victory since opening race of season; Max Verstappen holds off championship leader Kimi Antonelli for second; Russell reduces his Mercedes team-mate's title battle lead to 40 points
Sunday 28 June 2026 17:05, UK
George Russell held off Max Verstappen at the Austrian Grand Prix to reinvigorate his championship challenge with a first victory since the opening round of the season.
Mercedes' Russell produced a composed display to convert pole position to victory in Spielberg, holding off pressure from Verstappen over the second half of the race to take the chequered flag 1.6 seconds clear of the Red Bull.
Verstappen went from hunter to hunted over the final laps at the Red Bull Ring as Russell's Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli, the world championship leader, almost snatched second, closing to within four tenths at the conclusion of the last of the 71 laps.
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Russell's victory reduces his championship deficit to Antonelli to 40 points and moves the Brit back up to second in the standings ahead of Ferrari's Lewis Hamilton, who falls 51 points off the lead after finishing fifth behind McLaren's Oscar Piastri.
Russell's win, at the eighth of the season's 22 scheduled rounds, was his first in a grand prix since the season opener in Australia, after which he appeared to be an overwhelming title favourite.
Russell said: "Incredible to be back on the top step. It's been a little while, so I will definitely enjoy this one this evening. A lot of hard work with my team to get us back on track. Obviously, it was a tricky run of form at one point.
"Max and Red Bull were incredibly quick this weekend, so kudos to them. I had to push every single lap and I knew how quick the guys were behind. Kimi has been extraordinarily quick this season, so every lap I was looking at the timing board."
Verstappen's team-mate Isack Hadjar claimed sixth to cap an improved weekend for Red Bull after the team brought a major upgrade package to its home race.
Lando Norris was seventh for McLaren, finishing ahead of Ferrari's Leclerc, who struggled to make his tyres last in the testing hot conditions as he dropped back from second on the grid.
Liam Lawson finished in ninth, a place ahead of his Racing Bulls team-mate Arvid Lindblad, as the pair took the final positions in the points.
Russell ends winless streak
Russell was starting from the front of the grid after snatching pole on Saturday with a "magic" qualifying lap that came after another weekend where he appeared to be in danger of being outperformed by Antonelli.
Since the 28-year-old won the season's opening race in Melbourne and the Sprint that followed in China, he has been surprisingly overwhelmed by the consistency of Antonelli, along with some poor luck.
While Russell has suffered technical issues, most notably one that caused a retirement in Canada - which was later levelled out by Antonelli suffering a similar terminal issue in Barcelona - he has also seemed to find it difficult to match the Italian teenager for pure pace.
Having been helped to pole by his knowledge of the rules on Saturday, as he expertly reacted to yellow flags waved following a Verstappen clash, Russell calmly managed the main job on Sunday.
He held off Leclerc in the first few corners and then was able to pull clear as rivals battled for position behind, with the potential threat of Antonelli from fourth on the grid reduced by an erratic start for the Italian that saw him go off track several times and lose a position in the opening stages.
A threat emerged from elsewhere as Russell came under pressure from a flying Verstappen on the second stint, but Mercedes' decision to bring him in for his second stop at the end of lap 43 - before Verstappen had the chance to attempt an undercut - gave the Brit the chance to rebuild an advantage.
While Red Bull might have altered the outcome with a different approach, Russell was about 11 seconds clear of Verstappen when the Dutchman made his final stops with 20 laps remaining, and with six-lap fresher tyres than the leader.
The gap gradually closed, but Russell managed his tyres sensibly to ensure he never came under serious threat from Verstappen.
There was clear relief in his jubilant celebrations at the chequered flag, but the manner with which Antonelli closed on the top two in the final stages offered a reminder that Russell might need to go to an even higher level if he is to take the championship fight to his team-mate.
Did strategy call cost Verstappen win?
Verstappen had flashed the potential of his heavily upgraded Red Bull in qualifying before a high-speed crash limited him to fifth on the grid, but few believed he could be a genuine contender for victory from that position on Sunday.
He pounced upon an early opportunity to pass Antonelli and Leclerc in quick succession, and then set about chasing Hamilton before engaging in an epic two-part battle with his old foe.
Hamilton survived the first duel, producing some fierce defensive driving on lap 11 to stay ahead, with one manoeuvre that pushed Verstappen onto the gravel at Turn 6 leading the Dutchman to demand a penalty over the radio.
Verstappen's request was denied by the stewards, but the battle would resume after the first round of pit stops, and Hamilton was this time unable to stay in front as Verstappen made an audacious dart up the inside of Turn 6.
Verstappen's next target was Russell, and he appeared to have a major chance of victory when he closed to within a couple of seconds of the Mercedes with more than 30 laps remaining.
However, Red Bull opted not to trigger an attempt at an undercut, and then when Russell stopped, decided to stay out and build a tyre-life advantage for the final stint rather than pit at the same time, or a lap later, and stay on his tail.
Verstappen's tyres went off towards the end of the six extra laps he stayed out, and he then had more than 10 seconds to make up to catch Russell over the remaining 22 laps after stopping.
While there was strong early progress, the task turned out to be too big. Red Bull might also argue the fact that Antonelli almost caught Verstappen at the end showed making his second stop any earlier might have left him exposed.
Ultimately, it was a positive weekend for Verstappen on a weekend where his future with the team was a major talking point after reports emerged that his camp have held meetings with McLaren over a possible switch.
Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies has always maintained that he thinks Verstappen will stay with the team if they give him a car capable of challenging for victories, and this was a step in the right direction as he claimed a second podium of the season.
Next up in the 2026 Formula 1 season is the big one, a Sprint weekend at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix - live on Sky Sports F1 and Sky One with coverage from Thursday to Sunday's race at 3pm. Stream Sky Sports with NOW - no contract, cancel anytime
