15.09.2024

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Originally built in 1969 to replace the nearby Zeltweg airfield track, the Österreichring (5.911 km) track was situated in Spielberg, in the Styrian mountains and it was a visually spectacular and scenic circuit, which hosted the Austrian F.1 Grand Prix between 1970 to 1987.

The track was famous for its fast corners (notably, the Bosch-kurve and the Öst-kurve), and being narrow and dangerous, also because of the absence of large escape areas. It was instrumental in the expansion of Austrian motorsports and the careers of local champions such as Jochen Rindt,  Niki Lauda and later, Gerhard Berger or Alexander Wurz. Still, only Lauda (in 1984) has managed to win its national GP.

The track was entirely rebuilt in 1996, at the same location, shortened (4.326 km) and made safer by Hermann Tilke, taking the name of A1-Ring up to 2004. It regained F.1 GP status between 1997 and 2003, with J.Villeneuve, Häkkinen, Irvine, Coulthard and Schumacher taking wins.

The fortunes of the track dropped again before being bought by Red Bull in the first decade of the century and completing a complete and high-tech rebuilding of the venue, which hosted again international events in 2011. Formula 1 came back in 2014, sanctioning the definitive rebirth of an historic track that has kept its essence in its modern reincarnation. During the pandemic period (2020-21), the track even hosted a second F.1 race (labeled Styrian GP), with Verstappen (4 wins), Rosberg, Hamilton and Bottas (2) being particularly successful in this later stint of the track.

GT Sport first visited the Red Bull Ring in 2011 and since then the track has been a regular fixture in the calendar of the GT Open (which held there its 200^th race in 2019) and the Euroformula.