Red Bull Ring or Max Verstappen Ring? Exploring the 4x F1 champion's splendid record at the Austrian GP

Max Verstappen is heading to the Red Bull Ring as he gets ready for the F1 Austrian GP. As is said by many, the track has been a fortress of sorts for the driver and the team, and a lot of it has to do with how dominant the partnership has been in the sport.

Red Bull took over the track and made it its own, and since then, the Dutch driver has made the team's home race an event worth looking forward to every time. The driver has a stellar record around this track and has won 5 times.

He missed out on a win last season when the battle with Lando Norris went haywire, but despite that, the driver has always had a soft spot for the track, and he's always stood out in terms of how he's performed here.

So how has his performance been around the Red Bull Ring over the years? Let's take a look.

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Max Verstappen's stellar record around Red Bull Ring

#1 2015 (Best Red Bull driver)

Max Verstappen made his debut in 2015, and in just his first appearance at the Red Bull Ring, the driver made an impact. Despite driving a Toro Rosso, he was the best-placed 'Red Bull' driver, as he qualified in P7 ahead of the likes of Daniel Ricciardo, Daniil Kvyat, and teammate Carlos Sainz.

Even in the race, Verstappen held on as he finished ahead of drivers who drove for Red Bull Racing.

#2 2016 (P2)

Max Verstappen's first appearance in Austria as a Red Bull Racing driver was as impressive as it could get. The driver finished second in the race after a collision between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg meant that the German lost a few places.

Bringing a podium for the team on its home track was just the boost that the team needed.

#3 2017 (DNF)

The race in 2017 ended early as the driver was involved in a first-lap incident involving Fernando Alonso and Daniil Kvyat.

#4 2018 (Win)

From 2018 onwards, as Red Bull's competitiveness improved, so did the performance of the Dutch driver. Taking advantage of a questionable call made by Mercedes to pit under a virtual safety car, Max Verstappen got into the lead, and once he did, there was no looking back. He managed the race from that point onwards and ended up clinching Red Bull's first win at the track.

#5 2019 (Win)

The race in 2019 was arguably Max Verstappen's best performance at the Austrian GP. The driver started the race in pole position, and a poor start meant that he fell through the field and was closer to P10 than P1 by the time the first lap ended. What followed from that point onwards was a stunning comeback where he made his way through the field, picking off drivers like Sebastian Vettel, Valtteri Bottas, Lewis Hamilton, and finally Charles Leclerc in the dying stages to win his first race with Honda as a power unit supplier.

#6 2020 (DNF)

Racing in a pandemic meant that Red Bull Ring had the chance to host not one but two F1 races in a season. The start to the season was not the best for Max Verstappen, however, as he suffered from a reliability issue that ended his first race in 2020 early and without any success.

#7 2020 (P3)

The second race of that season was a tad better, as Max Verstappen would finish in P3 behind the dominant Mercedes. The Dutch driver just had no shot against the duo as he finished the race a whopping 33 seconds behind.

#8 2021 (Win)

The 2021 F1 season was Max Verstappen's first attempt at fighting for a championship, and as expected, he turned the Red Bull Ring into his fortress. Just like in 2020, there were two races at the same track.

In the first race, the driver put together a driving clinic as nobody, including championship rival Lewis Hamilton, could get close to him.

In the end, he crossed the finish line almost half a minute ahead of the chasing pack.

#9 2021 (Win)

The second race of the 2021 season at the same track was more or less the same story. Verstappen this time around secured pole position from Lando Norris as championship rival Lewis Hamilton struggled.

The driver once again held on to the lead at the start, and from that point onwards, there was no stopping him as he cruised to another win.

#10 2022 (P2)

The race in 2022 was an interesting one for Max Verstappen, as he would lose out to Charles Leclerc. The Ferrari driver had impressive pace from start to finish, and while Verstappen tried to put together a resilient fight at times, he was just unable to hold him off until the end.

#11 2023 (Win)

The 2023 F1 season probably saw Max Verstappen at his dominant best. The Dutch driver won 19 races that season, and the Austrian GP was one of the many dominant drives he put together.

#12 2024 (P5)

Finally, we had the race last season where the Dutch driver was involved in an intense back-and-forth battle with Lando Norris for the lead. In the end, it all came undone when the duo made contact and ended up compromising both their races.