After an intense fight against Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen went on to claim his 13th victory of the season to offer the constructors’ title to Red Bull at the United States Grand Prix.
After two Asian Grands Prix, Formula 1 is taking on a Texas accent this weekend in Austin for the United States Grand Prix. Arrival in 2012 on the F1 calendar, Lewis Hamilton had baptized the circuit of the Americas. The Brit then signed his 21st and final victory in the colors of McLaren before joining Mercedes.
With 20 turns spread over 5.513 km of asphalt, the Austin circuit offers several fast and technical corners like the first sector strongly inspired by Silverstone. To win in Texas, going fast in the fast corners is not enough, the cars must also need a good level of mechanical grip in order to get out of the slower sequences between turns 13 to 15.
Mixed results for the poleman in Austin
If Max Verstappen had won the previous season starting from pole position, the poleman won only five times in nine editions. A statistic that can be explained by the nature of the first corner often giving the possibility to the pilot in second position to be able to dive to the rope to take the lead. After taking pole position in qualifying, Carlos Sainz will start ahead of Max Verstappen.
Winner of the British Grand Prix this season, the Ferrari driver will be keen to achieve a second success. The Spaniard will however have to be wary of Max Verstappen (2nd) and Lewis Hamilton (3rd) on the starting grid.
Penalized for changes of engine elements Sergio Pérez (7th) and Charles Leclerc (12th) will be determined to go up. To complete the United States Grand Prix, the drivers will have to complete 56 laps for a total distance of 308.405 km.
Last 10 Laps of Austin GP
- Lap 45: Another overtaking of Lando Norris, the McLaren clears the Alpine of Esteban Ocon to take 8th place.
- Lap 46: Max Verstappen returns to 2 seconds behind Lewis Hamilton! the Red Bull driver is determined but the seven-time world champion is not giving up.
- Lap 47: There are 10 laps left in this GP! Lewis Hamilton is 1.7 seconds ahead of Max Verstappen. The Briton is trying to keep the Red Bull behind.
- Lap 48: Fernando Alonso erases Kevin Magnussen at turn 12! The Spaniard takes 6th place in this GP.
- Lap 49: Max Verstappen has just passed under the second gap with Lewis Hamilton! The Red Bull driver will be able to use the DRS.
- Lap 50: Max Verstappen overtakes Lewis Hamilton with the DRS at turn 12! The Red Bull is back in the lead of this GP.
- Lap 51: Lewis Hamilton does not give up! The Briton remains in contact with the Red Bull.
- Lap 52: Sebastian Vettel makes a magnificent overtaking in the parabola of turns 16, 17 and 18! The German climbed back to 10th position.
- Lap 53: Max Verstappen abused the track limits a little too much in this GP! The race direction indicates to the Dutchman that the next error will be the penalty.
- Lap 54: Max Verstappen pushes Lewis Hamilton back to 1″2 seconds! The Dutchman seems to be holding a 13th victory this season!
- Lap 55: At Mercedes, George Russell makes another pit stop! The Briton puts on soft tires to get the best lap in the race.
- Last lap: Max Verstappen with his medium tires is heading for victory, Lewis Hamilton is 3.5 seconds behind Max Verstappen!
- Checkered flag: VICTORY FOR MAX VERSTAPPEN! RED BULL VICTORY! The Dutchman takes his 13th victory of the season and offers the constructors’ title to Red Bull!
What a race for Lewis Hamilton who finished 2nd! The Briton offered superb resistance with hard tires against Verstappen on medium rubber. Starting 12th, Charles Leclerc finished in 3rd position and completed the podium! Thanks to this result, the Ferrari driver regains 2nd place in the drivers’ championship.
