2016 F1 Round 9 Austrian Grand Prix – Hamilton passes Rosberg on final lap to win, Verstappen and Räikkönen on podium

The Austrian Grand Prix took place over 71 laps at the Red Bull Ring on July 3. Hamilton led after starting from pole, while Button held his position early on until Räikkönen passed him around lap eight. Rosberg started sixth.

Archive photograph from the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, showing Felipe Massa and Rob Smedley talking in the Williams paddock.

Rosberg pitted on lap 10, while Hamilton extended his stint on ultrasoft tyres to lap 21. A slight delay changing Hamilton’s left-rear wheel allowed Rosberg to take the lead after his team-mate stopped. Räikkönen briefly led for a lap before pitting, handing the lead to Vettel.

On lap 27, Vettel’s right-rear supersoft tyre burst, sending his Ferrari into the barrier near the pit entry and out of the race. The safety car was deployed, and the field went through the pit lane for two laps while debris was cleared. Racing resumed on lap 32.

Rosberg retained the lead at the restart, with Hamilton close behind. Verstappen’s one-stop strategy kept him firmly in the top three, while Ricciardo held off Räikkönen’s pursuit further back. The four drivers formed the main group fighting for podium places.

Hamilton reduced the gap to Rosberg to 0.9 seconds on lap 44 and pitted for soft tyres on lap 54 in an attempt to undercut him. Rosberg stopped on the following lap for his remaining supersoft tyres and rejoined still ahead.

Rosberg made a mistake at Turn 1 on the final lap, giving Hamilton the chance to attack around the outside at Turn 2. The cars made contact, and Hamilton went into the run-off before rejoining and completing the pass. The stewards ruled that Rosberg had failed to leave sufficient room. His front wing was damaged, while his brake-by-wire system had already entered passive mode on the previous lap.

Rosberg received a 10-second time penalty for causing the collision but was still classified fourth. He was also reprimanded for failing to stop promptly with a seriously damaged car. Pérez retired after a brake failure sent him off at Turn 3, while Hülkenberg also failed to finish because of brake problems.

Hamilton won, with Verstappen second and Räikkönen third. Rosberg ultimately finished fourth, followed by Ricciardo and Button in fifth and sixth. Hamilton’s post-race total was 142 points, leaving him 11 behind championship leader Rosberg.