Verstappen returns, Sainz takes podium after Hamilton, Leclerc and Alonso withdraw

Verstappen During the fight for pole on Friday, I was surprised by the high speed of the first lap. leclerc, norris, hamilton And his mistake at a crucial moment. He failed in his final qualifying by exceeding the limits of the course and was relegated to 6th place. But when Max makes a few mistakes, he usually responds forcefully. Everyone knew it. That was expected. Although it was only for a moment, Norris had a big dream. However, as the rounds progress, Max kept getting bigger and bigger. And he won.He first did it against Hamilton (2nd), Norris (3rd), Sainz (4th), Perez (5th), Leclerc (6th). However, the final disqualification of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc after the race changed that classification.

After the event, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc’s cars failed a technical inspection by the stewards. This was because the dimensions of the wooden plates at the bottom of each car were below acceptable dimensions due to erosion caused by friction with the tires. Cars, floors, pianos, etc. In other words, both drivers were disqualified because they completed the race with two cars that did not comply with the regulations.

Lewis Hamilton’s disqualification left Lando Norris in second place and Carlos Sainz in third, but although he gained one more box, he was unable to enjoy it by the time of the podium ceremony. The final top 10 is: Verstappen (1st), Norris (2nd), Sainz (3rd), Perez (4th), Russell (5th), Gasly (6th), Stroll (7th). ), Tsunoda (8th), Albon (8th) and Sergeant (10th).

F1 2023 American GP Results

F1 World Cup classification

Verstappen is not allowed

to Verstappen He may lose in one turn, but he continues to make a big difference in races behind the wheel of the best cars in the world championship. He did it again this Sunday, winning for the 15th time out of 18 races. F1 American GPThis tied his own single-year wins record, which he set in 2022. He now has four races left to establish a record that will be very difficult to break. He can win 19 of the 22 races this year. 80 and more. crazy.

Verstappen won the short classification and subsequent sprint race on Saturday, with a caution and no options given, regardless of the sprint. And this Sunday, starting sixth, he had to correct his mistake. Already a three-time world champion, he took the turn without nerves and with the calmness of a driver who knows he has the best weapon in his hands. First, he took advantage of Russell’s poor start to gain position.

He avoided an accident with Hamilton, who overbraked at Turn 1. And due to sheer pace, he quickly overtook the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc and was forced off the track. The Dutchman risked a penalty for his action, but it was the only rush in a career that later ended for good.

He finished third behind Norris, who took the lead in the race against Hamilton. The same thing could happen to Lewis with a different strategy. And that ended Norris’ dream before reaching his second destination. He showed great ability in braking to change direction at turn 12, successfully passing Lando’s McLaren and taking the lead.

From there, the race was over. He had to complete the file on his second stop and manage to make his way to the finish line. Not a final failure of the brakes prevented him from winning. He perfectly controlled the “mattress” to win against Hamilton. It got hot and finished with just 2 inches. All this took place before the stewards inspected Lewis’ car, and the disqualification meant he would miss out on the final podium.

After Max’s return, the battle for second place became even more exciting. With eight laps to go, Hamilton, who had tried a riskier initial strategy, came out on fire with a stunning comeback. Norris tried his best to defend against the seven-time champions, but was unable to stop Mercedes, who had taken another step forward thanks to Austin’s improvements.

Mercedes in progress

The Silver Arrow will only be slowed down by subsequent revisions. Nevertheless, Brackley natives should go to Mexico with a smile on their faces. Far more important than any particular result or disqualification in a race is knowing that they continue to make great progress. Through its evolution, Mercedes has revealed itself as a strong contender to compete with McLaren for the second-best car spot in the remaining four events. Some even surprised Red Bull, as happened in Brazil last year. Hamilton continued to close in on Max, but the champion’s advantage would have been even greater had it not been for Verstappen’s brake problems.

Carlos Sainz was fourth at the finish line, but he took over the podium lost to Hamilton due to career evaluation. The player from Madrid came in third place. He ran a good race without making any mistakes, overtaking his teammate Leclerc with six laps to go, and with younger tires he was able to pick up the pace even further and was closing in on the podium. Ferrari tried the impossible to stop with Charles, but the strategy was wrongThat kept Monaco away from the podium, with Sainz finally grabbing it a few hours after the ceremony.

alonso leaves

Fernando Alonso took this race as a learning test. He and teammate Stroll left the pit lane after breaking through parc fermé to make changes to their car due to poor reviews. Alonso appeared with an aerodynamic package in Qatar and Stroll with a new package unveiled in Austin.

The goal was to compare and learn data from both solutions, but the competition Fernando was doing much better than expected and was on pace to fight for 8th place. He was going to accomplish that and leave Austin with more prizes than he could have ever imagined. However, with five laps remaining, a mechanical problem occurred and he was forced to abandon the race. A weekend to forget him.