Austrian GP Paddock Notebook - Thursday - MotorSportsTalk

Formula 1 returns to Austria this weekend after eleven years away. The old A1-Ring last hosted a race in 2003 before the money dried up and it eventually shut, but the circuit has since been revamped by Red Bull and renamed the ‘Red Bull Ring’.

Shameless plugging aside, it’s a fabulous facility that has immediately been a hit with everyone in the paddock. However, the shiny newness does not overawe the old-style circuit, which is unquestionably one of the most picturesque on the calendar.

Here’s the first paddock notebook from Austria on media day.

NEWS FROM THE PADDOCK

First up, we have our complete preview of the Austrian Grand Prix, which is the first since 2003. In with the old is fine in our book, that’s for sure.
Felipe Massa did not mince his words when talking about the Sergio Perez incident. He even suggested that Checo should receive a one race ban to teach him a lesson.
Plans to condense the race weekend from four days into three have been rejected, but testing will be revamped to keep it Euro-centric.
Lewis Hamilton was in high spirits, saying that he “couldn’t be better” for this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix.
The MotorSportsTalk team has made its predictions for the race; four writers picking three winners – could be an open thing.
Just four of the current racers in F1 have done so before at the Austrian Grand Prix, but could the advantage actually lie with the youngsters who raced here a little more recently?

THOUGHTS FROM THE TRACK

Of course, Thursday gives us very little to go on besides what we hear from the drivers in the media sessions. It is interesting to not only listen to what they say, but also note how they say it. Felipe Massa is clearly still very upset about the incident with Sergio Perez in Canada, whilst the Mexican driver remains adamant that he did little wrong.

Heading to a new circuit for the first time is always exciting for the paddock, and Red Bull has rolled out the red carpet. The old, run down A1-Ring is nothing but a distant memory, and has since been replaced by a shiny new facility. The media centre itself is a work of art, giving a stunning view of the circuit. Few other tracks can boast such a beautiful setting.

Lewis Hamilton was in a good mood during his media session, taking the opportunity to snaffle a sweet before proceedings began. The Briton is hoping to bounce back from his Canada DNF to score his fifth win of the season this weekend, and cut the gap to teammate Nico Rosberg at the top of the drivers’ championship.

For Red Bull, this marks its first ever home race since debuting back in 2005. Morale is high following Daniel Ricciardo’s shock win in Montreal, but the team will be under no illusions that Mercedes is still the team to beat at the moment.

As for the picture? That’s the actual ‘Red Bull Ring’ at the Red Bull Ring. Get it? A Red Bull in a ring? They’re very clever, those energy drink makers.

All in all, it promises to be another fascinating grand prix weekend, so be sure to keep up to date with the latest breaking news and views from the paddock on MotorSportsTalk.

Follow @LukeSmithF1

INDIANAPOLIS — The first Indy 500 victory for Josef Newgarden also was the richest in race history from a record 2023 purse of just more than $17 million.

The two-time NTT IndyCar Series champion, who continued his celebration Monday morning at Indianapolis Motor Speedway earned $3.666 million for winning the 107th running of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing.

The purse and winner’s share both are the largest in the history of the Indianapolis 500.

It’s the second consecutive year that the Indy 500 purse set a record after the 2022 Indy 500 became the first to crack the $16 million mark (nearly doubling the 2021 purse that offered a purse of $8,854,565 after a crowd limited to 135,000 because of the COVID-19 pandemic).

The average payout for IndyCar drivers was $500,600 (exceeding last year’s average of $485,000).

Indianapolis Motor Speedway owner Roger Penske, whose team also fields Newgarden’s No. 2 Dallara-Chevrolet, had made raising purses a priority since buying the track in 2020. But Penske but was unable to post big money purses until the race returned to full capacity grandstands last year.

The largest Indy 500 purse before this year was $14.4 million for the 2008 Indy 500 won by Scott Dixon (whose share was $2,988,065). Ericsson’s haul made him the second Indy 500 winner to top $3 million (2009 winner Helio Castroneves won $3,048,005.

Runner-up Marcus Ericsson won $1.043 million after falling short by 0.0974 seconds in the fourth-closest finish in Indy 500 history.

The 107th Indy 500 drew a crowd of at least 330,000 that was the largest since the sellout for the 100th running in 2016, and the second-largest in more than two decades, according to track officials.

“This is the greatest race in the world, and it was an especially monumental Month of May featuring packed grandstands and intense on-track action,” Penske Entertainment president and CEO Mark Miles said in a release. “Now, we have the best end card possible for the 107th Running of the Indianapolis 500: a record-breaking purse for the history books.”

Benjamin Pedersen was named the Indy 500 rookie of the year, earning a $50,000 bonus.

The race’s purse is determined through contingency and special awards from IMS and IndyCar. The awards were presented Monday night in the annual Indy 500 Victory Celebration at the JW Marriott in downtown Indianapolis.

The payouts for the 107th Indy 500:

1. Josef Newgarden, $3,666,000
2. Marcus Ericsson, $1,043,000
3. Santino Ferrucci, $481,800
4. Alex Palou, $801,500
5. Alexander Rossi, $574,000
6. Scott Dixon, $582,000
7. Takuma Sato, $217,300
8. Conor Daly, $512,000
9. Colton Herta, $506,500
10. Rinus VeeKay, $556,500
11. Ryan Hunter‐Reay, $145,500
12. Callum Ilott, $495,500
13. Devlin DeFrancesco, $482,000
14. Scott McLaughlin, $485,000
15. Helio Castroneves, $481,500
16. Tony Kanaan, $105,000
17. Marco Andretti, $102,000
18. Jack Harvey, $472,000
19. Christian Lundgaard, $467,500
20. Ed Carpenter, $102,000
21. Benjamin Pedersen (R), $215,300
22. Graham Rahal, $565,500*
23. Will Power, $488,000
24. Pato O’Ward, $516,500
25. Simon Pagenaud, $465,500
26. Agustín Canapino (R), $156,300
27. Felix Rosenqvist, $278,300
28. Kyle Kirkwood, $465,500
29. David Malukas, $462,000
30. Romain Grosjean, $462,000
31. Sting Ray Robb (R), $463,000
32. RC Enerson (R), $103,000
33. Katherine Legge, $102,000

*–Broken down between two teams, $460,000 Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing, $105,500 Dreyer & Reinbold Racing/Cusick Motorsports

Austrian GP Paddock Notebook – Thursday

Winner Josef Newgarden earns $3.666 million from a record Indy 500 purse of $17 million