Qualifying countdown
The scriptwriters for the F1 film starring Brad Pitt must now be in charge of the current season. How else do you explain the McLarens’ newfound intramural magnetism that keeps knocking title contenders Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris out of the way of the Max Verstappen march of re-conquest?
We’ve all been doing math trying to figure out if Verstappen really has a chance to defend his title, but if Piastri and Norris can’t make it through the first lap without denting each other, then it becomes a simple matter of Verstappen Points Minus Zero Equals Verstappen Wins Again.
We’ll see what the constructors’ champions can do with their two would-be champions’ cars in time for qualifying. Apparently, the word from McLaren is that Niko Hulkenberg and all the other drivers near the front of the sprint race should have zipped into another dimension to clear the way for their drivers to race each other?
If you have a hot take on what happened in the sprint race or what is happening now, please do drop me a line.
Norris and Piastri collide before Verstappen wins sprint race
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri collided with each other on the first lap again as the title rivals were both dumped out of the United States sprint.
The buildup to the weekend has been dominated by the “consequences” imposed by McLaren on Norris after the team held him responsible for banging wheels with Piastri in Singapore a fortnight ago. That minor tap paled into insignificance compared with the carnage at turn one of Saturday’s sprint in Austin, as Norris was left with only three tyres on his car.
Starting from third, Piastri – who leads Norris by 22 points in the championship standings – attempted to cut back up the inside of his teammate but turned into Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg and, as a result, smashed into the rear left of Norris’s car.
Norris was spun round as his left-rear tyre was sent careering across the track. Piastri limped on briefly but suspension damage also put paid to his involvement in the 19-lap dash – where Max Verstappen clinched victory.
McLaren’s decision to involve themselves in the title fight by punishing Norris over the Singapore incident will prompt questions over what they decide to do after this latest collision.
McLaren’s CEO, Zak Brown, told Sky Sports from the pit wall: “That was terrible. Neither of our drivers to blame there. That’s some amateur-hour driving by some drivers up there at the front, [they] whacked out two guys.”
McLaren have further cause for concern in the shape of Verstappen. The crash between the tussling pair threw the door wide open to the Dutchman to claim victory as he looms ever larger in the championship picture. His eight points for winning the sprint means he has cut Piastri’s advantage to 55 points and trails Norris by 33.
Starting from pole, Verstappen was clear of the first-lap chaos – where Hülkenberg and Fernando Alonso were also eliminated – and he led away from George Russell at the safety-car restart. But Russell, fresh from signing a new Mercedes deal after his win in Singapore, was intent on making a fight of it as he lunged up the inside of turn 12 on lap 19 but failed to make the corner as both cars were forced off the track.
Verstappen pulled clear after that incident to claim a routine win as Carlos Sainz – starting from seventh – took an impressive third for Williams.
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth ahead of his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc after diving past the Monegasque on lap nine.
Qualifying for Sunday’s main race gets under way at 4pm local time (10pm BST).
• Beau Dure will be covering the qualifying action later.
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