16. Fernando Alonso

17. Alex Albon

18. Daniel Ricciardo

19. Lewis Hamilton

20. Zhou Guanyu

Lance Stroll, with a new long-term deal in his Aston Martin back pocket, goes fifth quickest on the timesheets. Lewis Hamilton needs to get a wiggle on here, as the Mercedes man is stuck down in the danger zone with no time on the board. Zhou Guanyu has joined Hamilton with a deleted lap time to his name.

Those times are quickly beaten by the Red Bull of Max Verstappen with a 1:05.690.

George Russell goes top of the timesheets with a 1:05.764 ahead of the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz and the McLaren of Lando Norris.

Oh my goodness he [Lewis Hamilton] nearly lost it through Turn One, that was a big save and he held on to it but he so nearly lost it!

Lewis Hamilton is winding up for a first attempt in SQ1 but the Mercedes man slides straight out of the gate at the beginning of the lap. He carries on with his effort but has his lap time deleted for track limits at Turn Six. The clock is ticking with less than six minutes left.

The final timesheets [in the practice session] didn't really tell the whole story, so we're set up for a really fascinating qualifying session ahead of tomorrow's sprint where I don't think any of us can really call it. Yes Max Verstappen was dominant and we know that he is quick, he's got a quick car. It's a circuit that definitely suits their car but definitely hasn't got it it all his way. McLaren's Lando Norris is really close but the Mercedes, looked almost like the pick of the bunch in the early part of the session this morning. The Mercedes has totally been revamped over recent rounds and they're really seeing results of that now.

Finally. The cars are released from the garage, with Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes leading the way. Reigning world champion Max Verstappen, meanwhile, is waiting patiently in the Red Bull base.

The second sprint event of the 2024 season was held in Miami and it was a race that saw Daniel Ricciardo finish fourth for RB. There has been a lot of chatter this week about Liam Lawson waiting in the wings to take the Australian's spot in the team, so what can Ricciardo do this weekend in Austria?

Hello? Does anyone want to come out onto the track and play? Not yet it seems.

SQ1 is green and the medium tyres are in use.

Image source, Getty Images

The early weather forecast suggested it could be unsettled in Spielberg, with thundery showers hitting the circuit across various points during the three days of racing.

But as the grand prix draws closer, the risk of rain is decreasing, with possible showers arriving only in the late afternoon of Friday and Sunday - although the skies are blue as we build-up to sprint qualifying.

Saturday will see the hottest temperatures of the weekend at 30C.

Image source, Getty Images

Max Verstappen is still out in front in the drivers' championship but with the likes of Lando Norris and his McLaren slowly closing the gap race by race, tomorrow's sprint event could be one of the most competitive we've seen so far.

OK, I may be slightly getting ahead of myself here but remember, in the sprint race, the top eight finishers score points, from eight for first place down to one point for eighth.

Now, eight points wouldn't be enough to kick Verstappen off the top spot, however, there are only two points between Norris in second and third-placed Charles Leclerc, so a strong sprint for the Ferrari driver would be a major boost in his bid to jump back above Norris in the standings.

The sprint shootout has three sessions - like normal qualifying - with the slowest five cars eliminated at the end of the first two.

These sessions last just 12, 10 and eight minutes, respectively. The three sessions in a standard qualifying run for 18, 15 and 12 minutes.

Unlike a standard qualifying session, tyre compounds are mandated. For SQ1 and SQ2, the medium tyres must be used and for the sprint pole fight in SQ3, only the soft compound is permitted.

Image source, F1

Lando Norris has accumulated a fair amount of shoulda, coulda, wouldas over the last few races and during his flying lap on the soft tyres in first practice, the McLaren driver found himself into the gravel at Turn Four after running wide. However, it's not all doom and gloom for the 24-year-old, as he was quickest in the first sector before his off.

Sprint qualifying may also offer us a chance to see how well Mercedes are performing in Spielberg. Both Lewis Hamilton and team-mate George Russell were looking strong in the opening stages of first practice, but neither driver completed a run on the C5 soft compound.

Image source, Getty Images

Hello, folks. There are six sprint weekends in total this season and we've already reached number three here in Austria. The next one isn't until Austin in October, if the sprints still aren't your thing.

If you're new to the format, this next hour or so is a qualifying session to set the grid for Saturday morning's 100km race.

Lights go green on SQ1 at 15:30 BST.

Full commentary is available on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, BBC Sounds and at the top of this page by clicking 'listen live'.

Commentary is also available via your smart speaker. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play sprint qualifying" and Ben Edwards, former F1 mechanic Marc Priestley and BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson will meet you there.

Image source, Getty Images

The last thing any driver wants during a sprint weekend with only one dress rehearsal is a red-flag moment caused by potential engine bother.

Championship leader Max Verstappen was that car in the opening hour, coming to stop on the Spielberg track with the clock ticking down.

Did that force the Dutchman to sit out the rest of the session? Of course not. Red Bull tinkered in the garage and Verstappen was back out three minutes later to eventually bank the quickest time overall in first practice.

With attention now switching to tomorrow's shorter race around the Red Bull Ring, will Verstappn still be the man to beat?

Image source, Getty Images

Red Bull’s Max Verstappen set the pace in practice at the Austrian Grand Prix ahead of McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

McLaren's Lando Norris, who has been Verstappen’s most consistent challenger over the past five races, was on a quick lap but ran wide at Turn Four and ended up 13th.

Norris had set the fastest first sector time before his error, suggesting the Briton will again be competitive.

McLaren have introduced a new front wing for this weekend which they hope will further improve their performance, especially in slow-speed corners.

Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, who were quickest in the early part of the session, did not do a run on the soft tyre others late on.

Read Andrew's full report here

Time for a break. Join us again at 15:15 BST for sprint qualifying in Spielberg.

See you in a few.

Image source, Getty Images

I've got a huge smile on my face. I'm excited about this. I don't think that timesheet tells the full story by any means. The little hints of performance we've seen are mighty close; I don't think I want to call in at this point!

The Mercedes have got a lot more to come, they are very comfortable in their cars. We know that Lando Norris is going to be right up there or thereabouts. Max Verstappen will always be in the mix - this could go to any one of those four or five drivers.

11. Pierre Gasly (Alpine)

12. Sergio Perez (Red Bull)

13. Lando Norris (McLaren)

14. Zhou Guanyu (Sauber)

15. Valtteri Bottas (Sauber)

16. Daniel Ricciardo (RB)

17. Alex Albon (Williams)

18. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)

19. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

20. Logan Sargeant (Williams)