Hamilton’s sixth title, Bottas’s fourth victory and Quat’s next fine: how did the US Formula 1 Grand Prix end

First day

Lewis Hamilton failed in Mexico to become a six-time world champion. He had theoretical chances for this, but not everything depended on himself, and even victory was not enough for an early triumph. But the US Grand Prix could bring the British pilot an honorary title. He came to Austin with an advantage of 74 points over Mercedes mate Valtteri Bottas. To win the championship for the sixth time, it was enough for Hamilton to finish eighth on the American track or ninth with the best lap. The results of the Finnish racer then would have no significance this season.

Hamilton was hardly going to confine himself to this result. The Austin race track is one of his favorites - he won five times here, with seven races in total in Texas. But Ferrari could call the track suitable for themselves. A year ago, Kimi Raikkonen celebrated the victory, and this season, the cars of Sebastian Vettel and Charles Lecler are no weaker than the previous models.

And on Friday morning, Red Bull came to the fore. Max Verstappen showed the best seconds, while Alexander Albon took third place. Vettel wedged between them, and there was an abyss behind Pierre Gasley. The training took place in rather unusual conditions - the temperature did not exceed 12 degrees, which became the coldest indicator of this season. Many pilots could not show all their strength because of the strict requirements not to go off the track in the 19th turn - the same Verstappen twice canceled the results because of this.

Get ready for a bumpy ride! 😬

The #USGP weekend is under way, after an exciting first practice session ...

🎥 # F1pic.twitter.com / mOTerFsOhc

In the evening, Texas air warmed up, and speeds rose at Mercedes and Ferrari. Hamilton has now become the best, and Leclair and Verstappen lost to him three tenths of a second. Vettel could not storm the time of the Briton because of the departure from the track, which ended safely. Daniil Kvyat also could not cope with the management, while trying to show the result at the top ten.

Who catapulted themselves to the top of the Friday standings?

Catch up with the best bits from FP2 at the #USGP ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/L3dH4BTJ1m

Second day

On Saturday morning, bets on Ferrari dropped again. Lecler’s car caught fire and continued to smoke for another quarter of an hour while it was taken to the pits. It turned out that there was an oil leak, so the Monegasque received an old engine to avoid a fine. Vettel alone tried to accelerate before the qualification, but still lost to Verstappen. Hamilton, on the other hand, did not have a free race session - he was fifth, losing not only to his partner Bottas, but also unexpectedly becoming the third Lando Norris, for whom the race in Austin was debut.

A nightmare FP3 for Charles Leclerc!

Ferrari now have a lot of work to do ahead of qualifying ... # USGP 🇺🇸 # F1pic.twitter.com / O2HrMfEEVl

The Briton was initially accompanied by success in qualifying. He won the first session, ahead of Hamilton by one tenth of a second. Moreover, the tires for all pilots in this part of the races were the same, so that the struggle between them was equal. Then the big three teams still pushed all the other riders, and in the literal and figurative sense.

At the end of the second session, an unpleasant episode occurred for Quena. Hamilton overtook Verstappen, warming up tires for a fast lap, and he did not tolerate this trick and accelerated himself. Together, they caught up with the Russian pilot and forced him to slow down when he also needed to warm up the rubber. As a result, Kvyat failed the attempt, and when he miraculously managed to move to 11th place, the stewards canceled this result for leaving the track in the unfortunate 19th corner. Pilot Toro Rosso got only 13th starting position.

A near miss for Max, Lewis and Dany in qualifying ... # USGP 🇺🇸 # F1pic.twitter.com / j5FYSo4tAn

Both Hamilton and Verstappen were punished for their disrespect in the final session. None of them managed to overtake Bottas, who immediately showed the best result of the day. For the second attempt, the asphalt quickly fell into disrepair, and no one had time to bypass the Finn, who won the fifth pole position. Hamilton was completely in the third row of the starting field, losing to Vettel, Verstappen and Leclair who was back in action.

Brilliant work from @ValtteriBottas 👏 # USGP 🇺🇸 #Fit4F1@pirellisportpic.twitter.com/orlNwPDosn

Race

Bottas tried to do everything possible so that the Hamilton championship was slightly overshadowed by a defeat on the highway. Finn had a great start, immediately leaving his neighbors on the grid. Verstappen rushed after him, rather easily bypassing Vettel. The German pilot suddenly began to lose position after position, and it became clear that he had serious problems. Irregularities in the Texas track spoiled his hydraulics, and almost immediately the red car went to the pits.

LAP 9/56

Sebastian Vettel's race is over

He retires with what looks like a suspension problem # USGP 🇺🇸 # F1pic.twitter.com / ZRPYmTbWtr

In the starting turmoil, an incident occurred between Albon and Carlos Sainz. In the first corner they collided, but continued the race, only the Red Bull pilot had to call in the boxes to the mechanics, after which he even showed the best lap on the track. When the peloton became calmer, Quat began to attract most attention to himself. He managed to break through with a fight from 13th place to 11th, just before the wave of pit stops at the leaders of the race began.

At Bottas, the pit stop was quite long, and he wore the tires harder than Verstappen. At the last moment, the Mercedes pilot still retained the leadership, but let the Dutchman get too close to him. However, the Finn race car literally flew on the new tires. Bottas not only stamped the best circles, clinging to a bonus point in the championship standings, but also began to catch up with those who have not entered the pits yet. Even to Hamilton, he picked up frighteningly fast.

LAP 16/56

Bottas absolutely flying out there 🚀

He pits and comes out behind Leclerc - but it doesn't take him long to catch and pass the Ferrari man # USGP 🇺🇸 # F1pic.twitter.com / wcxqdsjhYB

The middle of the race was a difficult test for Kvyat - his tires wore out too quickly, and he had to change them much earlier. By that time, he even skipped ahead of Sergio Perez, who began the race from the pit lane. Quat returned to the track on the 15th, but remained calm and was able to again be ahead of him after the Mexican pit stop.

Hamilton could not get closer to Bottas with Verstappen and decided to apply tactics with one pit stop. It was already too late for the race leaders to return to it, and after another stop, they were behind the future world champion. But the pace of Bottas and Verstappen was much higher than what Hamilton was capable of on the slowest tires. Sometimes the difference between the two Mercedes was three seconds in a circle!

LAP 52/56

Fighting for the win 👀

After being denied by Hamilton, Bottas takes P1 on the next lap # USGP 🇺🇸 # F1pic.twitter.com / Ja4NfAZepL

Bottas quickly caught up with his partner, wanting to spoil his holiday, and in the last few laps the Finn burst forward. Hamilton did not even try to interfere - an attempt to counterattack could only turn into an undesirable contact with any possible consequence. As a result, Bottas celebrated his victory in the race, and Hamilton - in the entire championship, becoming a six-time triumph of Formula 1. Verstappen finished third.

A great day for @ValtteriBottas 🇺🇸🏆

A great day for @LewisHamilton 🌍🏆6⃣ # USGP # F1pic.twitter.com / gc4iWe3Got

Quat spent the final part of the race even more actively than Bottas. On fresh tires, he smashed the entire middle of the peloton, breaking into tenth place. When it seemed that he had nevertheless been rewarded for this difficult weekend, during which the Russians followed on the heels of failure, he was overtaken by another nuisance. In the last attack on Sergio Perez, contact was recorded between two pilots, for which the Russian was punished with a five-second fine. From tenth place, he fell to 12th, losing points for the second time in a row by decision of the stewards.