Yahoo Autos How Verstappen Extended His F1 Points Lead with Narrow U.S. Grand Prix Win over Hamilton
The 2021 U.S Grand Prix at Austin, Texas, won't go down in the record books as pass-a-thon, but it certainly kept the fans and the TV viewers on edge.
The hot weather and abrasive nature of the bumpy Circuit of the Americas meant drivers were pushed to a two-stop strategy. It lacked the shock of Silverstone or the madness of Monza but it turned into a tactical battle between Formula 1’s title rivals.
Max Verstappen lost the lead to Lewis Hamilton at the start but Red Bull opted for an aggressive tire strategy by bringing their charger in first. The undercut was powerful and that gave Verstappen track position once Hamilton stopped three laps later. But it also meant Verstappen would need to preserve the life of his tires longer than Hamilton through the final stint.
Hamilton faced a nine-second deficit once the stops had shaken out but reeled in his rival on eight-lap fresher tires and was just a second adrift as they began Lap 55 of the 56-laps race. But Hamilton unable to make up the difference with Verstappen through the downforce-heavy first sector in which dirty air is pushed out towards the pursuer. Verstappen held on by 1.3 seconds to grab his first COTA victory.
Verstappen's eighth win of the season left the Red Bull driver 12 points clear of Hamilton with just five races of the season left to run.
“It was exciting,” said Verstappen after win No. 18 of his career. “The whole race, the pressure was on. We went very aggressive on the first stop after losing the lead in the start then again in the middle stint Lewis was within that undercut range so we had to respond, go early again, and then the last stint was very long, in this heat especially.
"It wasn’t easy, as the tires were really finished, but yeah, incredible to win here.”
Hamilton, a five-time winner at COTA, had to settle for the runner-up position, despite taking the lead from pole sitter Verstappen on the opening lap. Red Bull's Sergio Perez completed the podium, 42 seconds back.
“I got a good start, not had as good a start as that for a long time, was really happy with it,” said Hamilton. “It was about staying clean, coming out ahead, felt good at the time. It was step one, but they were just too quick.”
Mercedes still leads the standings in its quest for an eighth successive Constructors’ title. Mercedes leads Red Bull by 23 points, but Red Bull Racing now leads charts 8-6 this season.
“We thought we had a sniff at the victory with Lewis and he put in a brilliant charge in the final laps, but in the end it wasn't enough,” said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff. “We thought our offset strategy, going longer, would be enough at the end to get them, but the moment you get within touching distance of the car in front, it makes it very difficult to make a move. In the end, we were close, but not close enough, so Red Bull deserved to win today.”
Such was the rapid pace up front that third-place Perez was never in the mix for the lead. It was still a good day for Perez, who overcame a pre-race upset stomach and a failure with his in-car hydration system that kept the driver without drinks for for the entire 56 laps. Perez described the race, held in 84-degree heat, as the toughest of his career physically.
Just five rounds remain in this enthralling 2021 season—events in Mexico and Brazil, which have traditionally been Red Bull hunting grounds, prior to a trio of rounds in the Middle East.
“We go into at least the next two tracks for sure very strong circuits for Red Bull so it’s going to be tough, for sure,” said Hamilton, though Verstappen was keen to stress “we have to start over again in Mexico to get the best out of our whole package.”
And Formula 1 fans in the US don’t have to wait another whole year before the travelling circus returns, with the inaugural Miami Grand Prix, at the Hard Rock Stadium, scheduled for May 8, 2022.
It was a star-studded affair as Formula 1 returned to the United States for the first time since the pandemic. An unofficial crowd of 140,000 fans rocked up on a hot race day, with a figure of 400,000 cited for weekend attendance, a major boon for a championship that has long wanted to crack the American market.
Billy Joel was the headline music act, actor Ben Stiller kept a close eye from the Mercedes garage. Tennis great Serena Williams was also on hand. And to present the trophy? NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal. Oh, and he rocked up on the back of a Texas Longhorns-themed car.
If Austin wants to be kept weird then Formula 1 was willing to play its part too.
F1 U.S. Grand Prix Results
at Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas
Max Verstappen, Red Bull, 56 laps
Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes, +1.3 second
Sergio Perez, Red Bull, +42.2
Charles Leclerc, Ferrari, +52.2
Daniel Ricciardo, McLaren, +1:16.8
Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes, +1:20.1
Carlos Sainz Jr., Ferrari, +1:23.5
Lando Norris, McLaren, +1:24.3
Yuki Tsunoda, AlphaTauri, +1 lap
Sebastian Vettel, Aston Martn, +1 lap
Antonio Giovinazzi, Alfa Romeo, +1 lap
Lance Stroll, Aston Martin, +1 lap
Kimi Raikkonen, Alfa Romeo, + 1 lap
George Russell, Williams, +1 lap
Nicholas Latifi, Williams, +1 lap
Mick Schumacher, Haas, +2 laps
Nikita Mazepin, Haas, +2 laps
Fernando Alonso, Alpine, +7 laps
Esteban Ocon, Alpine, +16 laps
Pierre Gasly, AlphaTauri, +42 laps
Updated Driver Standings
Max Verstappen 287.5
Lewis Hamilton 275.5
Valtteri Bottas 185
Sergio Perez 150
Lando Norris 149
Charles Leclerc 128
Carlos Sainz Jr. 122.5
Daniel Ricciardo 105
Pierre Gasly 74
Fernando Alonso 58
Esteban Ocon 46
Sebastian Vettel 36
Lance Stroll 26
Yuki Tsunoda 20
George Russell 16
Nicholas Latifi 7
Kimi Raikkonen 6
Antonio Giovinazzi 1
Mick Schumacher 0
Robert Kubica 0
Nikita Mazepin 0
