Verstappen ‘excited’ to debut new Red Bull upgrade in Austria.
Max Verstappen is heading into Red Bull’s home Grand Prix with a sense of anticipation and optimism, as the reigning world champion prepares to get his first taste of a significant new upgrade package at the Austrian Grand Prix.
24/06/2026
Phillip van Osten
F1i.com

Unsurprisingly, the Dutchman is excited to be back. "Austria is of course a home Grand Prix for the Team," Verstappen said. "It's been a great track for me in the past, and we have had really good memories there. It's a very interesting track, and all of the corners are quite different, so it's really important to get a good balance out of the car,” he added.

“You need both high-speed and low-speed performance, good traction, and now, with how energy-sensitive some tracks are, it is important to work to get on top of this. We have a new package we are bringing, so it is exciting to see how much this could look to give us in lap time. We are looking forward to see what we can do at the Red Bull Ring,” Verstappen concluded.

‘Excited’;

https://f1i.com/news/567278-verstapp...n-austria.html


Max Verstappen talks with Red Bull continue as Ferrari confirm power unit upgrade – RacingNews365 Review
Check out the biggest stories of the day with the RacingNews365 Review!
24 June 2026
Nick Golding
RacingNews365

Max Verstappen is set to continue talks this weekend at the Austrian Grand Prix as Red Bull seek a resolution over his F1 future. Verstappen currently has a deal in place until the 2028 season, however, performance-related exit clauses have left his whereabouts beyond the current season in doubt.

Ferrari has confirmed that it will introduce its first power unit upgrade at this weekend's Austrian Grand Prix, while Charles Leclerc will sit out first practice. The Scuderia is set to use its first Additional Development Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) token to upgrade its internal combustion engine at the Red Bull Ring.

‘Talks’;

https://racingnews365.com/max-versta...news365-review


Where Ferrari stands ahead of highly anticipated engine upgrade
25 Jun 2026
ROSARIO GIULIANA
The Race

Following confidential communications from the FIA between the Miami and Monaco Grands Prix regarding engine performance measurements across the field, Ferrari received confirmation that it qualifies for two in-season engine development tokens. According to information gathered by The Race, the performance deficit assessed by the FIA places Ferrari within a window believed to be between 6% and 8% off the benchmark, deemed to be Red Bull, granting Maranello additional development opportunities.

The significance of this goes beyond the two upgrade tokens themselves. Ferrari is also entitled to additional dyno hours and extra development budget, resources that can now be directed towards a more comprehensive engine evolution planned either immediately before or shortly after the summer break. The exact timing has not yet been finalised, as Ferrari now has greater flexibility to maximise the development programme following confirmation of the available concessions.

The specification introduced in Austria, internally referred to as "ICE ADUO 1", represents a different approach. Rather than spending both development tokens together later in the season, Ferrari has chosen to introduce an initial upgrade that has been under development since the winter months, while preserving scope for a more significant evolution later on. The revised combustion engine specification will also be accompanied by an updated Shell biofuel blend. The package will be introduced alongside Ferrari's third power unit allocation of the season, still within the four units permitted before grid penalties are triggered.

‘Engine upgrade’;

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/w...ngine-upgrade/


Ferrari downplays effect of 'minor' power unit update for the Austrian Grand Prix
24 Jun 2026
Kada Sarkozi
GPblog.com

Ferrari is set to introduce an updated version of its power unit at the Austrian Grand Prix following Lewis Hamilton’s victory in Barcelona. However, the Italian team underlined that the change is only a minor update. Looking ahead to next weekend, Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur stressed that the team is approaching the championship one race at a time.

He said: "We arrive in Austria encouraged by our positive showing over the past few races, even though we are fully aware that there is still a lot of work to do and that we must continue to focus on ourselves. We will approach this weekend with the same method and mindset that we have adopted since the start of the season aiming to put together clean sessions in every respect, from track execution to the strategic decisions taken on the pit wall. We know that every weekend has a different story to tell which is why we will continue to take the championship one race at a time."

‘Ferrari downplays effect’;

https://www.gpblog.com/en/news/ferra...ian-grand-prix


Austrian GP predictions: Hamilton title talk silenced, Mercedes engine disaster, Leclerc revival
25 Jun 2026
Editor
PlanetF1.com

Talk of a Lewis Hamilton world title to go silent - By Michelle Foster: Do you hear that? No? Nothing…? That’s because all the talk post-Barcelona about Lewis Hamilton winning the world title will go quiet come Sunday afternoon in Austria. Hamilton’s victory at the Barcelona Grand Prix was a momentous occasion as it showed the world, and perhaps Hamilton as well, that he can still win if – and it’s a big if – the chips fall in his favour. But after two weeks of listening to every pundit and former driver with a podcast saying Hamilton is the fight for the world title and that Ferrari should ‘wingman’ Charles Leclerc to back the Briton, those voices will go silent on Sunday.

At least three Mercedes-powered cars to retire - By Oliver Harden: How will the Mercedes power unit fare in a European heatwave? That is perhaps the key question entering this weekend. With Merc cars suffering a cluster of reliability problems over recent races – most recently Kimi Antonelli’s stoppage in the closing laps in Barcelona – HPP may be looking ahead to this weekend with some trepidation. There is every chance that reliability will shape this year’s title battle between Antonelli and George Russell, whose battery suffered heat damage in his retirement at a relatively cool Canada.

‘Predictions’;

https://www.planetf1.com/features/au...26-predictions