But with intermittent rain forecast across the weekend, the Hungarian Grand Prix could once again provide a race to remember — especially when combined with the long-awaited return of Daniel Ricciardo and a new qualifying format!
After leaving McLaren at the end of the 2022 season, the Aussie was signed to be Red Bull’s third driver for 2023 while searching for a way to return to the grid in a full-time seat. A tyre test with Pirelli acted as an audition, and after his lap times proved to be “highly competitive” (in the words of Christian Horner), the decision was made for Ricciardo to replace the struggling Nyck de Vries at AlphaTauri with immediate effect.
Of course, Ricciardo is not expected to fight at the front, but will instead join the likes of Haas, Alfa Romeo and Williams in the midfield battle while Mercedes, Ferrari, Aston Martin and a resurgent McLaren aim to reel in Red Bull at the front.
All the ingredients are there for a great Hungarian Grand Prix, and here is how to watch it.
How to watch F1: live stream and TV details for 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix
The Hungarian Grand Prix is widely regarded as a fierce challenge for F1 teams – mainly due to the unforgiving and unpredictable nature of the Hungaroring and the Hungarian climate. As a result, each and every session is usually action packed, as teams aim to make use of the three critical practice sessions before heading into the all-important qualifying session on Saturday afternoon and Sunday’s grand prix.
Live TV: All sessions will be broadcast live on Sky Sports F1 starting with Free Practice 1 on Friday at 12.00pm.
Live stream: For viewers in the UK, Sky Sports F1 subscribers can watch all the running live on the Sky Go app. Now TV subscribers can also access live coverage of every session via Sky Sports F1 with live timings are available through the F1 app.
Highlights: Channel 4 will also showcase highlights of the weekend’s action on both Saturday and Sunday evening.
F1 live stream and TV schedule
All times in BST
Qualifying Saturday 8 July |
Hungarian Grand Prix Sunday 9 July |
|
Session start time | 3pm | 2pm |
Live coverage Sky Sports, Sky Go, NowTV |
2.15pm | 12.30pm |
Highlights Channel 4 |
6.45pm | 6.30pm |
Hungarian GP circuit details and weather forecast
Since its debut on the calendar in 1986, the Hungarian Grand Prix hasn’t always produced the most scintillating F1 race weekends — mainly due to the tight layout. But when combined with Hungary’s unpredictable weather climate, it can suddenly produce some of the best wheel-to-wheel action of the season. Primary overtaking zones are usually found in the first sector – utilising the only DRS detection zone to dive down the inside of Turn 1 or Turn 2.
Despite boasting 18 corners in total, overtaking can be an almost impossible feat and can force teams to become inventive with strategy calls – leading to moments of brilliance and bizarreness. In 2023, intermittent showers throughout qualifying and a cloudy race day could produce similar results.