This Sunday, in Austin (United States), several drivers presented themselves on the starting grid. And in the end, it’s (always) Max Verstappen (Red Bull) who wins. Already world champion and author of a stratospheric season, the Dutchman won his 15th GP of the season when he was only sixth on the starts. Pole position this time went to Charles Leclerc, a situation familiar to the Monegasque (21 career poles). However, his Ferrari did not hold up to the comparison from the first meters of the race. On the first corner, Lando Norris (McLaren) took the inside and took the lead of the race. Worse, Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) even attempted an attack on his teammate which allowed Norris to dream of a first victory.
Ocon’s race stopped prematurely
Pushing his tires to near wear, Max Verstappen gradually made up his deficit and was content to follow Lewis Hamilton (McLaren), first after 20 laps. Norris having regained the lead after a pit stop at Hamilton, Max Verstappen was then in second position. A temporary situation, since the Dutchman overtook Norris halfway through the race on an inside corner.
Among the Tricolores, Esteban Ocon (Alpine) saw his race thwarted by contact with Oscar Piastri (McLaren) on the 6th lap. “It’s another difficult Sunday for us. We gained good momentum, but it was a racing incident. The car is damaged, we couldn’t continue. We have a few days to wait before planning. I can’t wait to be able to turn the situation around in Mexico,” he confided to Canal +. For his part, Pierre Gasly (Alpine) finished in 8th place.
The end of the race was the opportunity to see who would take second place between Norris and Hamilton, Verstappen having pulled away. A little too short in the last laps, Norris finished on the 3rd step of the podium and left Hamilton the status of runner-up. Sergio Pérez retains his second place overall despite his fifth place. Leclerc finished sixth.
“I struggled a lot with my brakes and missed a few braking points. This made things more difficult today. It was very close at the end with the latecomers. It’s incredible to win my 50th Grand Prix, I’m very proud and I’ll keep pushing for even more,” Verstappen said.
Hamilton had a good race and further reduced the gap in the championship with Sergio Pérez (Red Bull), fifth on Sunday. “My team has done a remarkable job bringing new developments to the car. I’m happy to be back here and to be able to come back and fight for the lead again,” Hamilton said.
The classification of the Austin Grand Prix
1.Max Verstappen (NED/Red Bull) les 308,405 km en 1 h 35:21.362
2.Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) at 2′’225
3.Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren-Mercedes) at 10′’730
4.Carlos Sainz Jr (ESP/Ferrari) at 15”134
5.Sergio Pérez (MEX/Red Bull) at 18′’460
6.Charles Leclerc (MON/Ferrari) at 24′’662
7.George Russell (GBR/Mercedes) at 24”999
8.Pierre Gasly (FRA/Alpine-Renault) at 47′’996
9.Lance Stroll (CAN/Aston Martin-Mercedes) at 48”696
10.Yuki Tsunoda (JPN/AlphaTauri-Red Bull) at 1:14”385
11.Alexander Albon (THA/Williams-Mercedes) at 1:26”714
12.Logan Sargeant (USA/Williams-Mercedes) at 1:27’998
13.Nico Hülkenberg (GER/Haas-Ferrari) at 1:29”904
14.Valtteri Bottas (FIN/Alfa Romeo-Ferrari) at 1:38”601
15.Zhou Guanyu (CHN/Alfa Romeo-Ferrari) at 1 lap
16.Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas-Ferrari) at 1 lap
17.Daniel Ricciardo (AUS/AlphaTauri-Red Bull) at 1 lap
18.Fernando Alonso (ESP/Aston Martin-Mercedes) at 6 laps
Best lap in the race: Yuki Tsunoda (JPN/AlphaTauri-Red Bull) 1:38.139 on lap 56 (average: 185.724 km/h)
Abandons :
Esteban Ocon (FRA/Alpine-Renault): accident 7e tour
Oscar Piastri (AUS/McLaren-Mercedes): mechanical problem 11th lap
Fernando Alonso (ESP/Aston Martin-Mercedes): mechanical problem 51st lap (classified)
