Red Bull saw their six-race winning run ended in dramatic fashion at last week’s British Grand Prix, but hopes are high that they can get back on track in the team’s home race in Austria.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz drove superbly to earn his first pole position and win in Formula 1 at the 150th time of asking at Silverstone to end Red Bull’s recent run of success.

It was an important victory for the Scuderia after so many issues for the Italians recently. Still, it may prove to be just a brief moment of respite with the home favourites having proven dominant at the Red Bull Ring in recent years.

Max Verstappen is strongly fancied to make it five wins in the last seven races staged in Spielberg, where there is the added bonus this year of extra points being on offer via the second sprint race of the season.

Sprint suited to speedy Spielberg

Verstappen comfortably won the first of this year’s three sprint races in Imola, nabbing the eight drivers’ championship points and pole position for Sunday’s grand prix on offer to the sprint winner.

The return of the sprint means a reshuffle to the usual order of events at a Formula 1 weekend with qualifying for the sprint taking place on Friday, followed by the sprint race on Saturday and the grand prix on Sunday.

The picturesque Red Bull Ring seems an apt setting for a sprint race given the high-speed nature of the venue with drivers spending 70% of a lap at full throttle down one of the four long straights.

As a result, a lap takes just over a minute to complete and the nature of the track should lend itself to more action-packed racing following on from a thrilling British Grand Prix.

Verstappen poised to push on

Silverstone proved a bit too dramatic for championship leader Verstappen, who nearly spun out in a wet qualifying session before running over a piece of debris in the race that damaged his car.

As a result, the Dutch driver was forced to nurse home his Red Bull as he took seventh, which did not turn out to be the worst result as his title rivals failed to take full advantage.

That may prove a major missed opportunity for the likes of Ferrari with Red Bull having looked extremely quick at Silverstone when unimpeded. They made minor changes to the car which appear to have made a positive impact, and the army of Verstappen fans that tend to come to Austria could be sent home happy.

Verstappen is ably backed up by Sergio Perez, who gave a clear demonstration of Red Bull’s edge over the rest when piloting his car from the back of the grid to second at Silverstone.

Perez has been driving well of late and with him and Verstappen, who has won five of the last seven races, Red Bull could get both drivers on the podium.

Leclerc struggling to release pressure

Ferrari will be feeling confident about their chances after Sainz’s victory, which ended their run of bad luck in recent races.

The Spaniard is another driver in good form, finishing in the top two in three of the last four races and he now sits only 11 points behind team-mate Charles Leclerc in the drivers’ standings.

Leclerc is growing increasingly frustrated with his faltering title campaign, which has been badly damaged by a series of errors. For the fourth time in five races at Silverstone, Leclerc lead a grand prix but failed to convert that advantage into a win.

The 24-year-old has kept a lid on his frustrations for the most part but has been put in a difficult position and if his head is not in the right place then he could find himself behind Sainz once more.

Mercedes threatened by regression

Leclerc has also crossed the line behind at least one Mercedes in the last two races with the Silver Arrows putting in some improved performance of late.

A series of upgrades have brought them closer to Ferrari and Red Bull with Lewis Hamilton taking third in the last two races, while he also nabbed the extra point for the fastest lap at his beloved Silverstone.

While the Silver Arrows are trending up, their progression could stall in Austria, which has not been a happy hunting ground of late.

The bumpy Red Bull Ring is a far cry from the smooth Silverstone track and Hamilton and George Russell face a rough ride once more which could hinder their ability to challenge.