Austrian GP 2024, strategies – Yesterday was a day without too many shocks, except for the errors of Piastri and Leclerc which affected their respective performances. Beyond this, the values expressed by the teams are in line with what has been observed since Friday's work.
Red Bull, back in great form (with Verstappen, given that Perez continues in his unjustifiable sporting catatonia), obtains the pole position with the reigning world champion who imposes significant gaps on a very short track. Behind Max values closer but more clearly defined: McLaren second in strength, Mercedes battling it out with a constantly braking Ferrari.
On paper, what rewards Spielberg is a two-stop tactic. However, before launching into more detailed strategic forecasts, let's look at the sets of tires available to the drivers with the help of the infographic released by Formula 1 on its official channels.
Austrian GP 2024: double pit stop, rewarding strategy
As happened last year, a race in which Verstappen was the star, the double stop is the ideal model to finish the Austrian GP in less time. It should be noted that for the occasion Pirelli has brought the softest range of its range: C3 Hard, C4 Medium, C5 Soft.
The reward scheme should be medium>hard>medium or medium>hard>hard. The medium>hard>medium race suggests pit stop windows between laps 18-24 and 45-52, while the medium>hard>medium moves the first stop to laps 16-21 and the second to 42-48.
Almost everyone can opt for the medium>hard>medium tactic, but not everyone can do medium>hard>hard. McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine and Aston Martin all keep just one set of C3 (hard), so they should do two stint on yellow stripe tyres.
“On paper, the difference between these two strategies is minimal,” explained Mario Isola, Pirelli Motorsport Director. “The medium>hard>hard strategy is one second faster than the medium>hard>medium strategy. It's not a significant difference. There were no surprises in the Sprint, just confirmation that the strategy is probably medium>hard>hard for the five teams with a second set of hard tires and medium>hard>medium for those without“.
Will the soft rubber be completely cut out? The medium>hard>soft strategy could be taken into consideration for those who, having a margin, want to aim for the fastest lap to win the additional point up for grabs. Other than this there are no real advantages because the soft C5 is not suitable for long distances stint.
In Spielberg it is degradation rather than wear that is the problem, which is why red should not be the most popular choice. As usually happens in high degradation circuits, the undercut is likely to be very powerful. For the riders in the middle of the group it could be an idea to proceed with medium>medium>hard (stops between laps 17-22 and second between 38-44) to get rid of the rivals in front.
Someone could risk the three stops with a set of medium and three of soft, but the teams are not inclined to stop so many times. This would be the move of desperation. The weather says good with high temperatures which would put the C5 at a disadvantage.
To close and summarize, therefore, the Austrian GP should be held on the two stops with theundercut to play a decisive role in freeing ourselves from DRS trains which, as seen in the Sprint Race, are typical in these parts. This, clearly, in the absence of the Safety Car.
Crediti foto: Pirelli Motorsport