The Styrian hills are alive with the sound of F1 engines.

Remember in the Azerbaijan Grand Prix preview where we called on all of our intrepid papaya explorers? Well, after the home comforts of the British Grand Prix, it's time to swap those slippers back for walking boots.

F1 makes it return to the gloriously picturesque mountain-backdropped location this weekend, but all is not quite normal. That's right, it's the return of the Sprint race format, meaning we get two races instead of one this weekend.

We've gathered the thoughts of Lando Norris, Daniel Ricciardo and Executive Director, Operations, Piers Thynne, to take you through it. We've also got you a survival kit full of key timings, important stats, and all the things to watch out for.

Key info

Round	11
Where	Red Bull Ring
When	8-10 July
Follow	TEAMStream and the McLaren App for LIVE commentary and team radio

What they say

“I’m really excited to be back in Spielberg for the Austrian Grand Prix. It’s a Sprint and it’s one of my favourites on the calendar so it's shaping up to be a nice weekend. Whilst we may not necessarily be fighting for podiums like in the last two years, there is definitely an opportunity for some good points and to have some fun battles.

“It was great to see so many people in papaya this past weekend and I’m buzzing to see all the orange in the crowd this weekend, clearly there supporting McLaren... There’s always a great atmosphere and I’m hoping to build on my solid performance at Silverstone. We do still have a lot of work to do but we keep pushing forward and we keep fighting.”

“The Austrian Grand Prix is always a fun one. It’s a great track in a beautiful location and it’s always an exciting race. The past few Sprint races have proven anything is possible so I’m ready to pounce on any opportunities that come my way, as well as creating a few of my own.

“Whilst the fans were sensational, the British Grand Prix result wasn’t what I wanted it to be, and we’ve got some work to do before this weekend. We’re putting in the hours to figure out why we lacked pace and are doing everything we can to get further up the grid in the second half of this season. Hopefully, we will make some improvements this weekend and move forward. Let’s keep our heads high and keep going.”

Piers Thynne, Executive Director, Operations

“We’ve hit the halfway point of the 2022 season and the team is working harder than ever. Working within the cost cap forces teams to work efficiently, and with three grands prix and a tyre test to go before the summer break, everyone both at MTC and at track is working hard to give us the best possible chance to score good points over the coming races, particularly with opportunities that may present themselves within the sprint format in Spielberg.

“There are many elements at play at the Red Bull Ring that we will take into consideration when preparing the cars and all of the parts for the weekend. There are high levels of attrition possible with the harsh curbs that can easily damage components, so we have to ensure we have enough spare parts available for all key areas of the car. This is particularly important from a production perspective when taking into consideration the increased risk of damage that comes with the sprint format, and it being the second half of a double header, but it is something we work into our long-term plans when preparing for the season, so the team are ready to go. The track itself has lots of great features, from the changing gradient and the uphill right-handers to the three fast straights, it will be interesting to see how the new iteration of cars handle at the circuit.”

What the stats say

We've had a lot of practice at the Red Bull Ring in the last few years, with four grands prix held at the track in the previous two seasons alone.

We took seven points finishes from a possible eight in those, including two podiums from Lando, who finished fifth in both Styrian Grand Prix and third in both Austrian Grand Prix, funnily enough. The first of those podiums was Lando's first, making him F1's third-youngest podium-sitter. In addition, Lando also has a podium in Spielberg from his time in Formula 2.

As well as having six top 10 finishes at Spielberg to his name, Daniel's got some silverware of his own from the track, scoring a podium in 2017.

We're tied with Ferrari on six for Austrian Grand Prix wins. Turn 1 is named after the late Niki Lauda, who claimed our first in 1984, becoming the first Austrian driver to win a Formula 1 Grand Prix on home soil. Alain Prost followed that up with two in a row in '85 and '86. Mika Häkkinen (1998 and 2000) and David Coulthard (2001) then split the other three wins between them.

Session times

Free Practice 1	13:30 local / 11:30 UTC / 12:30 BST
Qualifying	17:00 local / 15:00 UTC / 16:00 BST
Free Practice 2	12:30 local / 10:30 UTC / 11.30 BST
Sprint	16:30 local / 14:30 UTC / 15:30 BST
Race	15:00 local / 13:00 UTC / 14:00 BST

What to watch out for

The Red Bull Ring may have the shortest lap time on the calendar, but fans won't be getting short-changed. The Austrian Grand Prix always produces action-packed races, and the addition of a Sprint means even more bang for your buck.

The 4.318km circuit is short, but don't let that fool you, as it packs a lot in. Lengthy, high-speed corners and several gravel traps mean that mistakes are punished, while low drag in the first half of the lap and high downforce in the second is rewarded – not that it's possible to have both.

With elevation changes measuring up to 63.3 metres from the lowest to the highest point, the grip can sometimes be a little unpredictable – especially if the weather is erratic, which in Spielberg it often can be. No matter what the forecast tells you, blistering heat and heavy rainfall are always a possibility.

There's plenty of room for overtaking, too, with opportunities off the back of a DRS zone at Turns 2, 3 and even 4, meaning a back-and-forth can often take place as a driver battles to recover a lost position.

What to wear

As we said above, blistering heat and heavy rainfall are both a distinct possibility in Austria, as is everything in between, so you'll want to be prepared for all eventualities.

It's Austria, so orange will almost certainly be the catwalk colour of choice. That makes our papaya-coloured hats, tees and polos bang on-trend.

If luck shines in our favour and the sun comes out, then you'll want a matching pair of sunnies from SunGod, and it just so has it that Lando recently released a new pair, which you can get your hands on here.

But 'what if it rains', we hear you cry… Well, then you'll be wanting one of our trusty jackets and a dependable McLaren umbrella to keep yourself dry.

McLaren Creators

Every week, our social channels and the McLaren Technology Centre post room are chock-a-block with amazing art pieces that our fans have created and sent to us. Going through them always warms our hearts, and so we wanted to share the love.

Whether you're a skilled sketcher, a budding paper mache artist, or prefer to paint by numbers, our new McLaren Creators segment will highlight our favourite pieces from our inspired fanbase.

This week we're spotlighting a piece of awesome McLaren artwork from Daniella Bally. Daniella is a self-taught artist and economics student from Hungary, who loves to create digital paintings of her favourite racing drivers, and in particular, close-up helmet shots.

Want to have your works of art featured in our preview and on our channels? Send us your creations by tagging McLaren and using the hashtag #McLarenCreators.

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