Originally built in 1969 to replace the Zeltweg Airfield circuit located just across the expressway, the Österreichring was situated in the Styrian mountains. Although narrow at 10 m (11 yd) throughout, the track was very fast — every corner was a fast sweeper taken in no lower than third gear in a five-speed gearbox and fourth in a six-speed gearbox. It had noticeable elevation changes of 65 m (213 ft) from lowest to highest point. It was hard on engines and harder still on tyres because of the consistently high speeds.
The Österreichring was widely considered dangerous, especially the Bosch Kurve, a 180-degree banked downhill right-hander with almost no run-off area. By 1986, with turbos pushing Formula One engine power to upwards of 1,400 bhp (1,044 kW; 1,419 PS) in qualifying, Derek Warwick was speed-trapped at 344 km/h (214 mph) in his BMW-powered Brabham BT55 on the approach to the Bosch Kurve. Other demanding corners included the Voest-Hugel, a flat-out 290 km/h (180 mph) right-hander leading to the 240 km/h (150 mph) Sebring-Auspuff Kurve — also known as Dr. Tiroch or Glatz Kurve — an essential corner to get right because of the long straight that followed into the Bosch Kurve.
Much of the track had little to no protection. The final Austrian Grand Prix at the venue in 1987 had to be restarted twice due to two progressively serious accidents caused by the narrow pit straight, similar to 1985 when the race was stopped after one lap following a start-line shunt that eliminated three cars including championship leader Michele Alboreto's Ferrari and local driver Gerhard Berger's Arrows-BMW. In practice for the 1987 race, Stefan Johansson narrowly escaped serious injury when at over 240 km/h (150 mph) he collided with a deer on the track while cresting a blind brow before the Jochen Rindt Kurve behind the pits.
Speed increases at the Österreichring were a persistent concern. During the final Grand Prix there in 1987, pole-sitter Nelson Piquet's lap of 1:23.357 across the 5.942 km (3.692 mi) circuit set an average speed record of 256.621 km/h (159.457 mph), second only in F1 average speed to Keke Rosberg's 258.9 km/h (160.9 mph) pole lap at Silverstone during the 1985 British Grand Prix. Both times were set using a turbocharged Williams-Honda.
American driver Mark Donohue died after crashing at the Hella-Licht Kurve in 1975. The corner was tightened in 1976 into a single right-hander and slowed in 1977 to become the Hella-Licht chicane — from the fastest to the slowest corner on the track. Alain Prost often stated that all tracks can be changed but that the Österreichring should remain unchanged, needing only added run-off areas, which eventually did happen up until 1995. Motorcycle rider Hans-Peter Klampfer died after a collision at the Bosch Kurve and 29-year-old Hannes Wustinger was killed after a crash at the Tiroch Kurve during an Austrian Touring Car Championship race; these fatalities sealed the decision to build a new circuit.
Niki Lauda is the only Austrian driver to have won his home Grand Prix. He won the 1984 Austrian Grand Prix at the Österreichring driving a McLaren-TAG Porsche, going on to win his third and final championship that year by beating teammate Alain Prost by half a point — the smallest margin in F1 history. Lauda announced his permanent retirement from driving at the circuit before the 1985 race.
Safety concerns reached a head in the mid-1990s and the circuit was totally rebuilt in 1995 and 1996, at the same site, by Hermann Tilke. Its length was shortened from 5.942 to 4.326 km (3.692 to 2.688 mi) and the fast sweeping corners replaced by three tight right-handers to create overtaking opportunities. Three long straights and a twisty infield section required a setup compromise from teams.
As much of the construction work was paid for by the mobile phone provider A1, the rebuilt track was renamed the A1-Ring. It hosted seven Formula One Austrian Grand Prix rounds between 1997 and 2003, along with several DTM races and the Austrian motorcycle Grand Prix in 1996 and 1997.
After the Austrian Grand Prix contract was terminated, the circuit was sold to Dietrich Mateschitz in 2004. The grandstands and pit buildings were demolished that year, rendering the track unusable. In January 2005, Mateschitz publicly announced he had no intention of wasting money on a deficient circuit, though throughout 2005 speculation arose that the newly founded Red Bull Racing might renovate the track as a test venue. In 2006, Austrian racing driver Alexander Wurz claimed he would buy and renovate the circuit, but the idea came to nothing. By 2007, talks involving Red Bull, KTM, Volkswagen, and Magna International for a new Österreichring collapsed after VW pulled out.
Late in 2008, Red Bull began a €70m reconstruction of the track. In September 2010 it was confirmed the circuit — now known as the Red Bull Ring — would host a round of the 2011 DTM season. In November 2010, F2 announced Round 6 of the 2011 F2 championship would also take place there. The circuit reopened at a special event over the weekend of 15–16 May 2011, which included displays by various Red Bull-sponsored teams including Red Bull Racing and a headline FIA Historic Formula One Championship race.
In December 2012, Red Bull contacted the FIA to say the track would be available to host a Formula One round after a slot became available following the postponement of the proposed New York metropolitan area Grand Prix of America. By July 2013, Red Bull confirmed the Austrian Grand Prix would return in 2014; the race was held on 22 June 2014. From 2014 until 2016 the track also hosted a round of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship. On 11 February 2016, MotoGP's return to the circuit in 2016 was announced — its first visit since 1997.
On 30 June 2019, in honour of the late three-time Formula One World Champion Niki Lauda, the first turn was renamed the Niki Lauda Turn.
On 2 June 2020, Formula One confirmed the Red Bull Ring would host back-to-back races on 5 and 12 July to open the pandemic-delayed 2020 season, with the second race designated the Styrian Grand Prix. This made it the first European circuit to host the opening round of a Formula One season since the Circuit de Monaco in 1966, and the first time Austria had opened the World Championship. The circuit also hosted back-to-back 2020 MotoGP rounds on 16 and 23 August, the second again named the Styrian Grand Prix.
In the 2021 Formula One season the Red Bull Ring hosted two races again due to pandemic-related schedule changes. The first was titled the Styrian Grand Prix and the second the Austrian Grand Prix; Max Verstappen won both from pole position. In MotoGP, following the cancellation of the Finnish Grand Prix, a Styrian Grand Prix was added on 6–8 August. The first MotoGP race saw rookie Jorge Martín claim his and Pramac Racing's first premier-class win; the second saw Brad Binder take a win for KTM finishing on dry tyres in wet conditions.
In January 2022, it was revealed that a chicane would be introduced at turn 2 for MotoGP and other motorcycle races. Formula One and other car racing series continue to use the pre-chicane layout.
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