Nico Rosberg picked up the fastest lap of the race in Austria, beating teammate Lewis Hamilton by two tenths of a second. Not only was he supremely fast, but Nico's speed came halfway through the race, rather than more traditionally towards the end with less fuel. Sebastian Vettel was surprisingly close to Hamilton's race pace, showing just how well suited the track was to Ferrari - and thus how disappointing it was that Kimi went out on the first lap.

Felipe Massa's podium position pace was confirmed by the fourth fastest time, but teammate Valtteri Bottas was a full second off the fastest lap of the top guys.