Antonelli Tops Austrian GP Practice Sessions as Mercedes Dominates Friday Running

Kimi Antonelli topped both Friday sessions for Mercedes at the Austrian Grand Prix, outpacing teammate George Russell on long-run pace. While the Silver Arrows look dominant, Ferrari and McLaren both suffered setbacks despite arriving with upgrades.

Why it matters:

Mercedes has established itself as the clear favorite at Spielberg, but its rivals failed to close the gap. Ferrari introduced a new power unit yet fell well off the pace, while McLaren's tyre degradation woes returned. With a heatwave forcing teams toward multi-stop strategies, Friday's order could reshape Sunday's race.

The details:

• Mercedes set the benchmark with Antonelli and Russell separated by just 0.06s per lap on long runs, while keeping tyre degradation to roughly one tenth per lap.
• Ferrari floundered despite upgrades. Hamilton was 0.597s adrift in FP2 with a 0.51s long-run deficit, while Leclerc lagged by nearly a full second after handing his car to Dino Beganovic in FP1.
• McLaren repeated its Barcelona struggles. Piastri lost 0.50s per lap to Mercedes through degradation, with Norris also trailing by 0.21s on long-run pace.
• Red Bull's upgrade produced no breakthrough. Verstappen trailed by 0.550s in qualifying trim and 0.27s on long runs, leaving the team third-fastest at best.
• Audi's Nico Hulkenberg led the midfield 0.80s back, while Williams and Aston Martin were well off the pace.
• Pirelli reported degradation of nearly two tenths per lap across the field, with motorsport director Dario Marrafuschi admitting a two-stop race is now the minimum expectation.

What's next:

Teams face a short window to fix setup issues before qualifying. Ferrari must diagnose whether its power unit or chassis is causing sector-specific deficits, while McLaren needs to curb its tyre-hungry tendencies. Saturday morning will be critical in determining whether anyone can halt Mercedes' momentum.