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F1 LIVE | Follow the Sprint Shootout at the 2023 Austrian Grand Prix
It is now time for the Sprint Shootout, to determine the starting grid for the sprint race later this Saturday. On a wet Red Bull Ring track, a qualifying session of just 44 minutes will determine who gets to start the 23-lap race in Austria from pole position. Can Max Verstappen set the fastest lap time as he did on Friday?
F1 LIVE | Sprint Shootout: Austrian Grand Prix
At least one thing seems certain: we are going to see intermediates and/or full wets in action today. It has been raining all night in the Spielberg circuit and the forecast says it won't get really dry for a while. Lap times will be a lot slower and that means less time to set the right lap, due to the conditions on track.
Speeds will be slower, so it is expected that we will probably see less of the drama of track limits and the frequent snatching of lap times today. Drivers will be driving on the limit, but on a wet track, nobody (especially with what else is on the programme this weekend) wants to put their car in the wall.
In Q1, we will see all 20 drivers on the track. Compared to a normal qualifying session, however, there are not 18 minutes, but 12 minutes to set a fast lap. Q2 lasts ten minutes, while the all-decisive Q3 lasts just eight minutes, so it is expected to be chaos at the Red Bull Ring.