Oct 22, 2023 at 12:36 AM Update: an hour ago
Max Verstappen has won the sprint race of the American Grand Prix. The Dutchman stayed ahead of Lewis Hamilton on Saturday (local time) in the nineteen-lap race at the Circuit of the Americas. Charles Leclerc came third.
Verstappen took eight points with the win, while Hamilton got seven points, slightly reducing the gap in his battle with fifth-finished Sergio Pérez for second place in the World Cup standings. Lando Norris was among them with his McLaren in fourth place.
Leclerc posed a major threat to Verstappen at the start, who barely managed to stay ahead of the Ferrari driver. As a result, the Monegasque did not get through the first corner properly, from which Hamilton took advantage. He was then able to keep up with Verstappen for a few laps, after which the reigning champion slowly disappeared from view.
Behind it, it was particularly exciting around Carlos Sainz, who was the only driver on soft tires. The Spaniard lost grip earlier than his competitors and mainly had to defend. The Ferrari driver successfully did this against George Russell, who also received a five-second time penalty because he overtook Oscar Piastri off the track. Pierre Gasly benefited from this with seventh place.
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Max Verstappen remains in first place at the start of the sprint race
Verstappen’s pace is a bad sign for the main race
After some quiet opening laps, Verstappen steadily built up a gap at a pace that the rest could not follow. It’s a bad sign for Sunday’s race. Leclerc then starts from pole with Hamilton next to him, while Verstappen has to come from sixth on the grid. Norris stood out with a good pace in the final phase. His progress came too late to threaten Leclerc’s third place.
Verstappen already captured his third world title in Qatar two weeks ago, but still has a challenge in the United States. The Dutchman can record his fiftieth Grand Prix victory on Sunday, joining an exclusive group. Currently, Michael Schumacher, Hamilton, Sebastian Vettel and Alain Prost are the only drivers with at least fifty victories in Formula 1.
Oct 22, 2023 at 01:15
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Formula 1Lewis HamiltonMax VerstappenCharles Leclerc
2023-10-21 22:36:00
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