F1 | US GP | Sprint Race | Verstappen wins at COTA as both McLarens DNF - Motorsport

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It is time for the Sprint Race at the F1 US GP. Will Max Verstappen be able to turn his pole position into victory for the third time? Or will one of his two championship rivals – Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri – be able to deny him the win?

Turn 1 drama

The Sun was shining in Austin as the F1 US GP Sprint Race got underway for 19 laps of the Circuit Of The Americas. All drivers had chosen the medium tyre for the race, hoping to be able to make them last until the end.

As the lights went out, the field barrelled towards Turn 1. Verstappen got away well and led the pack at the start. Piastri got a better start than Norris and looked to make a move up to P2. However, he made contact with Nico Hulkenberg, which sent him spinning into Norris, taking both of them out of the race. Hulkenberg also suffered significant damage, losing his front wing. Fernando Alonso picked up a puncture from contact with Hulkenberg and had to retire from the race. Lance Stroll also made contact at Turn 1, damaging his front wing. This all caused a safety car to allow for the stranded cars to be recovered and the debris cleared.

Those who made it through Turn 1 cleanly benefited from the chaos. George Russell moved up into P2, followed by Carlos Sainz in P3. Hulkenberg was able to continue, but had dropped from P4 to P15. Charles Leclerc gained the most, moving up to P4. The incident had caused a large amount of debris, which took the stewards a while to clear up.

Under the safety car, Stroll and Hulkenberg pitted to change their front wings. Colapinto was also able to follow them into the pits.

Safety car ending

The safety car came in on Lap 5, and Verstappen led the pack away early on. Despite his best efforts, Russell was unable to take the lead, and Verstappen held strong at the front. The stewards also decided that there would be no further action on the Lap 1 incident.

Russell was able to stay within a second of Verstappen as DRS was enabled on Lap 7. Kimi Antonelli looked close to Pierre Gasly, but was unable to make a move. Leclerc was chasing down Sainz, looking to take P3 from his old teammate.

An opportunistic dive from George Russell gave him a shot at the lead into turn 12, but the Brit and Verstappen both went off the track, and he couldn’t make the move stick. Lewis Hamilton took P4 over his teammate Charles Leclerc, who tried to fight it, but had to concede the position.

The half way point

Verstappen started to pull ahead at the front, as Russell was unable to stay within his DRS. The remaining drivers began to settle into the race.

Liam Lawson made the move on Pierre Gasly to promote himself into P10. At the back of the pack, Hadjar and Hulkenberg were going wheel to wheel for P15. Bearman was also working hard to hold off fellow rookie Antonelli for the final points-paying position of the Sprint Race. Russell picked up two strikes for track limits at Turn 12.

Stroll and Ocon out

As the final laps were underway, the battle for P8 continued to heat up. Antonelli was able to remain in Bearmans DRS, and was getting ever closer to the Haas. At the front, Verstappen led from George Russell by 2.8 seconds.

On Lap 16, the safety car came back out due to contact between Stroll and Ocon. Coming into Turn 1, Stroll came steaming down the inside from far behind. But he locked up and had nowhere to go except into the side of the Haas car. Both cars were forced to retire from the race, bringing the total of DNFs to five.

Ollie Bearman received a 10-second penalty as he left the track when defending against Kimi Antonelli. This meant that he will finish the US GP Sprint Race in last place.

The final lap of the race was completed under the safety car, as the marshals were unable to clear the track in time to resume racing. Max Verstappen was victorious in the US GP Sprint Race for the third time, gaining 8 points on the two McLaren drivers in the championship battle. George Russell finished in P2, and Carlos Sainz came home in P3, delivering Williams their second podium of the season.