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F1 LIVE | Follow the first free practice for the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix
- Toby McLuskie
A home race awaits Red Bull Racing this weekend. In front of their own Austrian audience, Sergio Perez and, especially, Max Verstappen will be cheered on in Spielberg by tens of thousands of Dutch wanting to triumph twice, in the Sprint on Saturday and the Grand Prix a day later. Set-up development opportunities this weekend are limited, making the first and only free practice particularly important. GPblog will keep you updated on all the action in this live blog!
F1 LIVE | FP1: Austrian Grand Prix
The teams will have one hour to optimally prepare the cars for qualifying, which takes place later on Friday at 16:00 (BST). A look will additionally be on Red Bull Racing's garage. The big question is whether Sergio Perez will be fit enough to drive today. The Mexican had to skip his media obligations on Thursday because he was not feeling well.
On paper, Verstappen is the big favourite at the Red Bull Ring, where he has won four times before. Aston Martin, Fernando Alonso in particular, has expressed hopes of getting closer to Red Bull this weekend, but then of course everything depends on finding the right set-up for the car as soon as possible. An important sixty minutes, therefore, await the Spaniard and his men.