The Mercedes driver took advantage of the accident between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris on lap 63 to achieve an unexpected victory.
George Russell won the Austrian Grand Prix for Mercedes after Red Bull's triple world champion Max Verstappen and McLaren's Lando Norris collided towards the end of the race while battling for the lead.
McLaren's Oscar Piastri finished second and Ferrari's Carlos Sainz third at Spielberg, Austria's Red Bull Ring, on Sunday.
The superb victory was the first for Mercedes since November 2022, when Russell triumphed in Brazil, and the second of the Briton's career.
“It's not over until it's over,” declared the exultant winner after crossing the chequered flag in a race that was thrilling until the final 20 laps, when the battle between Verstappen and Norris broke out.
A slow 6.5 second pit stop for Verstappen on lap 52 brought Norris back within range and in the ensuing duel the McLaren car enjoyed a drag reduction benefit as Norris attempted to overtake.
“The team has done an incredible job to put us in this fight. You have to be there at the end to pick up the pieces and that's where we were,” Russell said before climbing to the top of the podium.
“We were only 12 seconds behind and I knew it. [the collision] It was a possibility. “You are always dreaming.”
Russell had started third, with Verstappen on pole and Norris alongside on the front row, but victory was handed to him after 63 of the 71 laps.
Both drivers suffered punctures, Norris limped back to the pits and retired, while Verstappen rejoined and finished fifth behind seven-time Mercedes world champion Lewis Hamilton.
The stewards gave the Dutch driver a 10-second penalty for causing the collision, but that made no difference to Verstappen's result, which increased his championship lead to 81 points over Norris.
Nico Hulkenberg was sixth for Haas, a big boost for that team, with Red Bull's Sergio Perez seventh and Kevin Magnussen eighth for Haas.
Daniel Ricciardo gave RB two points in ninth place and Pierre Gasly took the final point for Renault-owned Alpine.
