Austrian Grand Prix

The 2026 Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring starts at 14:00 CEST (UTC+2) on Sunday 28 June. The circuit is 4.326 km long with 10 corners, sitting at approximately 700 metres above sea level in the Styrian hills.

This is not a sprint weekend. Practice, qualifying, and the race run across the standard three-day format.

The Red Bull Ring is short, fast, and surprisingly dramatic. At just over 4.3 km, it is one of the shortest laps on the calendar, but what it lacks in length it makes up for in elevation change and overtaking opportunity. The circuit climbs steeply from Turn 1 up through the Styrian hills, then plunges back down through a series of braking zones that consistently produce wheel-to-wheel action. Turns 3 and 4 are the overtaking hotspots, with long straights uphill into heavy braking.

The Austrian Grand Prix has a storied history at this venue. Niki Lauda won here in 1984, a special victory on home soil. The circuit returned to the calendar in 2014 after a decade away, and Max Verstappen has dominated in the modern era, winning multiple editions for Red Bull Racing on the team's home track. The 2024 race saw Verstappen and Lando Norris collide while battling for the lead, handing George Russell an unexpected victory and sparking one of the season's biggest controversies.

For European fans, the 14:00 CEST start is a perfect Sunday afternoon watch. UK viewers tune in at 13:00 BST and 12:00 GMT. North American audiences get a morning slot at 08:00 Eastern and 05:00 Pacific. Australian fans face a late evening at 22:00 AEST, while Asian viewers watch at 20:00 JST and 20:00 CST. Check Austria time for the exact start in your location.

The Alpine setting is genuinely stunning, with the circuit sitting in a valley surrounded by green hills. Tens of thousands of Dutch fans make the short trip south to support Verstappen, creating one of the most vibrant atmospheres of the season. For the 2026 cars, the combination of high altitude (around 700 meters above sea level), steep gradients, and strong braking zones will test the new power units thoroughly.