What every driver said ahead of the F1 Austrian Grand Prix

“This is untrue and I wish I didn’t get this [question], because it’s the exact question that I’ve got everywhere else.

“I wish I wouldn’t need to fight for this type of things. We are extremely united."

“I didn’t realise I was between the barriers. I was thinking I was next to the barriers. But I was actually between the barrier and the fence, which I don’t know how I survived."

He has provided an in-depth recap of his awful crash...

“I had to unstrap my helmet myself. They tried to pull my helmet off me but it got locked.

“I tried to move myself, to twist my body. I was waiting for them to flip my car over because I didn’t know that I was stuck between the fence and the barrier. It was scary.

“I knew there was one man there, making conversation with me to make sure I was OK. Looking at the pictures, it was George. Respect to him. It was very sportsmanlike.”

"I like. I saw the camps outside the circuit full already on Thursday. And that has something to do I guess with the sprint weekend.

"All those people tomorrow if it is raining or whatever, they will see a qualifying. So that's fantastic. If you come to the track, and you only see free practice, maybe not running much, because you want to save tyres.  

"All these kind of things definitely change the Friday activities. So I'm a fan of the sprint weekend format, so let's hope to bring a good show for them."

This is what the world champion thinks about his unique style on the team radio...

Lewis Hamilton replied to Christian Horner's interesting quotes...

"It’s been pleasant. We’ve worked together incredibly well and George has been super positive and he’s had a positive impact on the working environment.

"It’s generally been a real pleasure to work with him. It’s been great to see his success. He’s scored great points for the team and he’s going to continue to improve for a long time.

"I definitely see that he’s got so much potential in him and he’s in the right place for it as well. Whether or not I’m here, I think he has all the qualities to take this team forward in the future and lead the team to success. I think he’s been the right choice for the team and I hope I can be a little part in helping him progress."

"I think we have to talk. But obviously, when you are side by side and you push someone out of the track, there are different scenarios and different manoeuvres, different corners, it is always more difficult to judge, but we have been told that the one thing that was very clear to police was the white line.

"Other things, the stewards' decision can be changeable, you know, between racetracks or corners or whatever. But the the white lines will be this year, you know, very clear. And it was not in Silverstone.

"So, I leave the track in Miami on one corner and I gain advantage for them, and they have to imagine that I gain advantage because I give back the fact was that I gave back all the advantage.

"Now it was a clear gaining of advantage because you can fight on the next corner on the inside or outside. So it's clear. And it was no penalty. So I'm very confused."

"It would be a shame to lose Spa. It's my favourite track in the world.

"There are so many races which would be nice to have an F1 race.

"Mugello, Nürburgring..."

"What is important to the team is that both cars are scoring points.

"It was a simple decision to give Checo a new contract.

"We have a good time together on and off track. There are no heated moments."

"It was a relatively short briefing because we had to leave for the airport and take the picture. I think Charles was also called to anti-doping so he couldn’t join for all of the briefing.

"But like always he behaved like the gentleman he is. The way it goes when I have a bad race is a normal briefing and the way it goes when Charles has a bad race is a normal briefing.

"That is part of the spirit at Ferrari and these things are always under control." 

"I have never worked with [a psychologist].

"But you look at what you could have done better.

"It doesn't help the team if you come in [angry].

"I still get upset on the radio. It doesn't influence my performance.

"When the day comes that I am not upset anymore, I am not interested in the sport anymore. It is because I care. 

"You must be a calm as you can. Some are calm, some people are explosive."

"The debris was a big part of the wing. When you are going at high speed you can't see.

"It was terrible to drive. I lost two-and-a-half second a lap due to it.

"It was like a wedge, stalling the floor. This is on top of the damage.

"It felt like a puncture because the car was undrivable. It could have been a broken suspension. We put new tyres on. I tried to fine-tune my balance."

"It was our first time having two cars in the point.

"It was a crazy race so was good to get something out of it.

"We need more downforce, not more drag."

“No I cannot describe it, because it is something that is very personal and difficult to describe. 

“It has little by little sunk in day by day. At the same time, being a back-to-back, there’s not much time to hang around and the focus is now on Austria. 

“If anything this win has given me hunger to keep fighting for more wins.”

"I know what an overtake it. If there's a gap, and fresh air, then I go for it.

"There is always some calculation. Some wording won't change how we approach it.

"We have the best judgement. Our approach won't change.

"Overtaking is the most fun thing to do in a race car!

"Going wheel to wheel and pulling off an overtake, or even defending, feels really fun."

"The rules are clear but drivers will always push it, that's natural."

“For me it was horrifying to see him trapped in there, literally not being able to get out of the car. He was obviously fine and I could see he was moving. 

"You are in there pretty tight and when you have a tyre wall on top of you and your head blocking your exit upside down, it’s a horrible position to be in.

“I think from every disaster there’s improvements that can be made… Hopefully the gap between the catch fencing and the barrier can be resolved. It wasn’t nice for sure.”

"I know myself how tricky it is to beat Lewis!

"So George is doing a great job."

"No driver has ever won a race 100% on his own. It is collaborative.

"The last few weekends were better. We got consistency.

"But at Silverstone, what the hell happened?

"There are things that are confusing. With the margins that they are at...

"I have driven cars for a long time. It's important to stay committed to it now. Try to figure it out.

"It could happen any weekend. I'd love sooner rather than later.

"If everything is sweet and we're dialled in? I 100% have faith that I can do it.

"I'll get into the car with a nice mind-set, and go hard!"

“It was just a natural reaction for me to do. That the race was red-flagged and seeing such a horrific incident. 

“I thought at the time my car was game over and it wasn’t. It just adds to the emotion because we could have probably got going again and probably scored a strong result.”

“Yeah I feel fine. A little bit sore on Monday and each day so far has just been getting better and better. 

“I’m sure by tomorrow I’ll be back to 100 percent. A little time spent in hospital but all ok.

“It all happened really quickly. I remember hitting the wall and then it was like a pinball reaction with all the other cars. Thankfully everyone was okay.”

Albon adds Williams will still have their upgrades, if not "even more" of one in Austria, despite his crash at Silverstone.

"We are lacking pace, we are not as quick as we want to be.

"Silverstone just isn't a competitive track for us. We have some ideas why we weren't as competitive as we should have been, in the wet."

"I really enjoyed it here in 2017. It's the most jacked I've ever been by getting a podium.

"Silverstone was a dark race. Very slow. A long, long, long way off the pace.

"We can strike back but we don't have a lot of time to diagnose what happened.

"It was a lack of grip. I didn't feel that I had the same grip as other cars around me. It was accumulatative.

"It was a puzzling race, a frustrating one."