Charles Leclerc impressively won the United States Grand Prix in a surprisingly-dominant one-two for Ferrari as Lando Norris lost third place to title rival Max Verstappen after being penalised for a late overtake on his F1 title rival.
While Ferrari overcame the championship’s top two and front-row starters in a supreme show of speed as Leclerc led home team-mate Carlos Sainz, all eyes ended up still being on the title protagonists as they duelled over the final podium berth in a gripping, tense and ultimately controversial conclusion to the race.
Having dropped from pole position to fourth, behind Verstappen, in a dismal start to the race, Norris came back at his title rival in the second stint after McLaren delayed his sole pit stop to ensure he had fresher tyres than the Red Bull for the closing stages.
With Norris arriving at the back of his Red Bull rival at a fast rate of knots, Verstappen initially defended superbly as he knocked back Norris’ advances lap after lap.
Norris then eventually overtook into Turn 12 with four laps to go but, as Verstappen resolutely held the inside under braking, the McLaren ran wide off the track before sweeping back on and taking the position.
But after several laps of deliberation, stewards ruled that Norris had completed the move illegally and added five seconds to the Briton’s final race time. He crossed the line 4.1s ahead of Verstappen, meaning the Dutchman was promoted back into third once the penalty was applied.
The late switch around means Verstappen, who won Saturday’s Sprint, increases his title lead over Norris to 57 points with five race weekends left in 2024.
Behind the top four, Oscar Piastri took fifth in the second McLaren with George Russell impressively beating the second Red Bull of Sergio Perez to sixth despite having started from the pit lane and then picking up a five-second time penalty for an incident with Valtteri Bottas’ Sauber.
But it proved an absolutely miserable Sunday for Austin’s most successful driver, Lewis Hamilton.
The seven-time champion’s race ended inside the first three laps as he spun out and beached his Mercedes at Turn 19.
After a storming start saw him gain five places from his 17th-place grid spot, Hamilton turned into the right-hander as normal but the rear of his car did not go with him and he slithered off the track and into the gravel, where his rear wheels got stuck.
It was the same corner where Russell crashed at the end of qualifying on Saturday in an incident which damaged his car and triggered the pit-lane start.
More to follow…
Formula 1’s Americas triple header continues next weekend with the Mexico City Grand Prix, with every session live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership – No contract, cancel anytime
