Max Verstappen during a training ride on the circuit in Austin.
Mike Blake, Reuters
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Qualification plays a crucial role in Austin, with seven of the eight starting out in the front row. The last triumph is defended by Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas, who also succeeded in the last Turkish GP. However, even Verstappen does not have bad memories of the US GP, in 2018 he was second there and a year later third.
However, the US Grand Prix is one of Hamilton’s favorites. In 2015 and 2019, he definitely secured two of his seven titles in Austin, and with five triumphs, he is also the most successful racer on this circuit in history. The profile of the track with long straights and a number of sharp turns should fit his Mercedes this year as well. The question is how the newly laid asphalt will affect the performance of the cars.
Neck and neck in the title battle, and in FP2 ???? #USGP ???????? # F1 pic.twitter.com/wXuBD6kecG
– Formula 1 (@ F1) October 22, 2021
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Verstappen has a six-point lead over Hamilton at the head of the World Championships, and the intense battle of both rivals offered another intense moment already in Friday’s training. During the second race, there was an incident among the drivers, after which the Dutch Red Bull racer described his rival from Mercedes as a “stupid idiot” and showed him an erect middle finger. He didn’t like Brit’s maneuver at the beginning of the circuit, when Verstappen started the fast lap, but Hamilton overtook him and then accelerated lap to lap along the entire finish line.
The prestigious race returned overseas after a one-year break caused by the coronavirus pandemic, and could be visited by up to 360,000 fans in three days.
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