F1

MAX VERSTAPPEN held off a late charge from Lewis Hamilton to win a brilliant US Grand Prix.It’s was another epic tussle at the Circuit of the Americas, but the Red Bull driver edged out the Brit champion after 56 engrossing laps.

Podium: 1st Verstappen 2nd Hamilton 3rd Perez

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THE WINNING MOMENT
Here is the moment Max Verstappen crossed the line to claim P1.
What a drive, what a race, what a championship battle.
Five races to go…
🥇 Max Verstappen wins the #USGP 🏆The Red Bull holds off a late Hamilton charge to take the win! 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵! 🤯🥈 P2: Hamilton🥉 P3: PerezFull race results over at the #SkyF1 blog ⬇️📺 @SkySportsF1💻 https://t.co/dsFCYRqRzo#F1— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 24, 2021

GLISTENING SILVERWARE
The Red Bull team are in the long-horned car, the trophies are in hands and…
Out comes the champagne as the three Red Bull reps spray each other and Lewis tries to join in.
140,000 fans at the Circuit of the Americas enjoyed that one. And we certainly did, too.
ANTHEM TIME
Shaq and Lewis shake hands as the Brit comes out to stand on second spot.
But now it is all about Verstappen as he takes the top spot and the caps are off for the Dutch national anthem.
Oh, and Shaq is standing next to him… and is almost as tall!
SHAQ IN STYLE
Shaquille O’Neal delivers the winning trophy – and the big man does it in style.
He arrives on a huge horned car – it really is quite bonkers – and ducks his way into the F1 garage.
He is up to the podium ready for the drivers to come up.
MAX THE WINNER
Verstappen: “We lost out in the start so had to try something else. The tyre war is high on this track.
“We went aggressive and I was not sure it was going to work but the last few laps were fun.
“A bit sideways through the high-speed corners but super happy to hang on.
“The fans have been incredible and amazing to see so many of you here. Hopefully we can do this for many years to come.”
SERGIO STRUGGLING
Perez describes that race as his ‘toughest race physically’.
No wonder he is necking a huge can of Red Bull!
LEWIS MESSAGE
Hamilton: “Firstly congrats to Max, great job today it was such a tough race, they had the upper hand this weekend we couldn’t ask for more.
“Thanks to my team: great pits stops, great hard work, what an amazing crowd, it’s an honour to perform here.
“This is our acceptance into the US what a place to be, I hope we get more races out here, you can tell how good the fans are!”
DOZEN DELIGHT
Hamilton did hold on for the fastest lap which means the gap is 12 points.
It was six just two hours ago.
Just to reiterate how strong Hamilton and Verstappen were, Perez was third 42 seconds back!
MAX CELEBRATES
The Dutchman jumps out of his Red Bull car and runs straight into his team.
What a moment for Verstappen. And what a moment for the championship race.
Lewis, still in his helmet, looks pretty dejected as he gets out after pulling up behind the P2 sign.
NINTCHDBPICT000688997673Credit: Getty
COMMISERATIONS LEWIS
Toto Wolff is on the radio to Hamilton.
Wolff: “Brilliant drive, brilliant, brilliant drive.”
‘CRUCIAL DRIVE’
Christian Horner said: “I’ve aged 25 years in that race. I didn’t think we could hang on.
“We were out of tyres.
“Mick cost us, he also gave us the DRS and alsmot gave me a heart attack.
“A crucial drive.
“It was big for us to beat Mercedes here. We know Lewis is a phenomenal driver around here.”
VERSTAPPEN WINS
What a pulsating race that was.
Hamilton did so well to catch Verstappen but Verstappen does even better to hold his rival off and win.
Red Bull are on the radio: “What a drive, masterful. That was classy.”
MAX VERSTAPPEN WINS THE UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX!
Wow wow wow – Verstappen takes the chequered flag!
LAST LAP
Hamilton did not get DRS down the back straight and that might be the chance of a win over…
LAST LAP
Verstappen still leads…
LAST LAP
We are on to the last lap!
Hamilton 0.9 seconds behind with DRS but Verstappen also gets DRS after the trouble with Schumacher.
Can Verstappen hold on?!
LAP 55
Hamilton dipped below a second. It is back to 1.1.
The wind is picking up to only add to the drama.
The leaders have caught Schumacher at the back.
Hamilton has a slight error at turn 11 and that has cost him.
But Schumacher took a while to get out of the way and that has annoyed Verstappen who had to go through dirty air.
LAP 54
Verstappen is doing enough as things stand.
He is still 1.1 seconds ahead and that means still no DRS advantage for Hamilton just yet.
Can Lewis get inside a second?
LAP 54
Here. We. Go.
Hamilton within 1.2 seconds now.
But he is running out of time in this race to get past!
1.1 now…
LAP 53
Hamilton has taken 0.4 seconds out of Verstappen’s lead and it is back to 1.5 seconds.
Raikkonen has taken a spin into the gravel and drops to 12th.
LAP 53
Bottas is being held off by Sainz in the battle for sixth and Vettel is up to tenth.
The dirty air is causing problems for Hamilton with Verstappen starting to pull away!
Incredible stuff.
LAP 52
Or is Hamilton saving a bit to give it absolutely everything in the final couple of laps?
There are just four to go… he hasn’t got long!
Verstappen is holding his position and P1 for now…
LAP 51
Verstappen is still 1.7 seconds ahead – in fact that’s an increase in the lead – and has the Dutchman been clever and saved enough in the tyres to see him through?
Hamilton wants to get inside a second for DRS.
LAP 51
Vettel is desperate to get in the points.
He is still behind Giovinazzi and Raikkonen in his attempt to secure the last of the championship points.
Alonso has been retired and that’s both Alpine cars out – it’s his rear wing that is the problem.
LAP 49
Hamilton is within two seconds now.
Remember, his tyres are eight laps younger than Verstappen’s and it is coming down to the last few laps – as both teams predicted early on in the race.
Credit: Getty
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MAX VERSTAPPEN will start the F1 US Grand Prix on pole after a dramatic qualifying session in Austin. The Red Bull star leads the Driver’s Championship by just six points and will line-up on the front of the grid alongside nearest rival Lewis Hamilton.

Race: 8pm TONIGHT
TV channel: Sky Sports F1
Live stream: Sky Go/NOW TV
Grid: 1st Verstappen 2nd Hamilton 3rd Perez 4th Bottas 5th Leclerc

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HAMILTON PUZZLED BY STRUGGLE
Lewis Hamilton admits he is puzzled why his Mercedes failed to match Max Verstappen in practice.
Title leader Verstappen and fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez line up first and third on the grid for tonight’s US GP, with Hamilton sandwiched inbetween.
Hamilton said: “I don’t know. “It started off good, and then bit by bit they have got faster.
“I don’t know if we’ve got slower but it has been a real struggle with the car compared to normally when we’re here.”
SAINZ PAINS
Scuderia Ferrari star Carlos Sainz explained why he’s in a less-than-ideal predicament ahead of the US Grand Prix.
The Spaniard also explained why it wasn’t a “gamble” to start on softs.
Sainz said: “No, no, not a gamble – just a compromised situation that we saw that we wanted to do the soft first and then beat the lap time on the medium, and then the track got a bit slower at the end of Q2.
“No one improved in the second run. And we had reserved the medium for the second run and normally it’s quicker but this time it was slower because the wind picked up.
“So we need to analyse what we could have done differently there because it obviously puts us on the back foot.”
TAKE IT TO THE MAX
Max Verstappen meanwhile quickly brushed the topic of the pair colliding under the carpet.
The title rivals went wheel-to-wheel in practice on Friday, with the Dutchman showing seven-time world champion Hamilton the middle finger.
Although Verstappen insisted: “I don’t see why we have to keep bringing this up.
“It is not like we are the only ones who have touched in this sport.
“These things happen, unfortunately. But we are on the front row again and everyone is just expecting a great race and as drivers, that is what we expect, too.
“We will be professional.”
FINGERS CROSSED
Lewis Hamilton has revealed he is hoping he makes it to the second corner as he lines up next to rival Max Verstappen on the front row of the grid this evening.
Hamilton trails Verstappen by just six points in the title race, with another hotly contested battle expected today.
Speaking in a post qualifying press conference, the Brit said: “I hope we make it through turn one and we get a good race.
“It is all fun and games. We are going to have fun, and give it everything as you would expect. It is no real difference to any other part of the season.”
‘UPPER HAND’
Mercedes driver Valteri Bottas expects a tight battle with Red Bull when lights go out later today.
That’s despite Red Bull being better in qualifying.
He said: “Yesterday they looked OK, but nothing amazing, so they found more than we did overnight.
“For me the car felt a lot better than it did yesterday, but Red Bull made a bigger step with performance and they definitively had the upper hand today.
“I still think that race pace-wise it will be quite similar.”
MORE FROM NORRIS
“We do have a good car, just today Ferrari were that little bit ahead.
“It wasn’t like they were four or five tenths ahead, they were just a little bit ahead, so I think we have a chance, especially with Carlos on the softs, but the softs aren’t a bad tyre so it’s not like he’s just going to be shocking and they made a terrible move.
“I think he’s going to have an advantage on at least the first half of the first stint, so there’s still things that they’ve gained from starting on the softs, but I think in the long run hopefully we can pip them”
NORRIS REACTS
British superstar Lando Norris felt he could have beaten Carlos Sainz but for errors late in his final lap
Norris said: “We were kind of expecting to be ahead of the Ferraris, they made a good step today compared to where they were yesterday.
“So I guess we didn’t get our hopes up yesterday but they made a good jump from yesterday to today. We were still competitive, we were still not bad, but they were just quicker.
“Not an easy day, I didn’t feel it was too bad. I made a couple of mistakes – just the last two corners I overcooked a little bit – so I probably lost a couple of positions there but it happens and I’ll make up for it tomorrow”
HUNTERS
McLaren stars Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris have warned their opponents that they will race like “hunters” in the US Grand Prix despite trailing behind the Ferraris.
Ricciardo said: ““Q1 was probably the best lap of the session.
“It was where I felt probably the most comfortable. The medium, I didn’t feel that great.
“It was a little hairy, although I’m happy to start the race on that tyre, but on one lap I didn’t really get comfort on that. Then back to the softs in Q3 was better.
“So very close to Carlos, when the gap’s that small that’s definitely achievable but I think Charles was maybe two tenths up the road and I don’t think we had that in Q3.
“I want to say obviously we want to be ahead but we’re close enough to not be discouraged, and we’ll be the hunters tomorrow”
GETTY IMAGES
MORE FROM SAINZ
Carlos Sainz discussed whether he has an advantage heading to the US Grand Prix as he starts the race on the faster compounds.
Sainz said: “For the first 10 metres, yes; after one corner, you want mediums.
“There’s one positive but a lot of negatives in that sense, so a bit on the back foot going into tomorrow.
“But we’ll try our best and see what we can do differently”
SAINZ REACTS
Scuderia Ferrari star Carlos Sainz explained why he’s in a less-than-ideal predicament ahead of the US Grand Prix.
The Spaniard also explained why it wasn’t a “gamble” to start on softs.
Sainz said: “No, no, not a gamble – just a compromised situation that we saw that we wanted to do the soft first and then beat the lap time on the medium, and then the track got a bit slower at the end of Q2.
“No one improved in the second run. And we had reserved the medium for the second run and normally it’s quicker but this time it was slower because the wind picked up, so we need to analyse what we could have done differently there because it obviously puts us on the back foot going into tomorrow”
LECLERC THRILLED
Scuderia Ferrari star Charles Leclerc is “very happy” that he beat both McLarens in quali.
Leclerc said: “Very happy with today and with the whole weekend to be honest.
“But especially with today, because, personally, it hasn’t been easy today.
“In FP3, the first run went very, very well, and then in the second run of FP3 we tried something and I lost completely the confidence in the car and I was struggling a lot with the rear end of the car.
“So in Q1, we decided to do a bit of a different plan, do it going for a bit more laps than usual, and that helped me gain the confidence back in the car.
“And then we went into Q2, did that great lap with the medium in the first run, which helped us to go into Q3 with those medium tyres – and Q3 went very well so very happy that both of our cars have outqualified the McLarens, which was the goal today”
MORE FROM PEREZ
Sergio Perez is confident about Red Bull’s chances but expects a “pretty long race”.
Perez added: “Still, I think we are in a good position.
“I think it’s going to be a pretty long race tomorrow so not too concerned about the qualifying; I think there is plenty of opportunities for tomorrow.”
“We haven’t had the year that we were hoping [for]; the adaptation has been longer than expected but we’ve been working flat out and yes, we can see the progress and yes, I can just expect to keep getting better”
GETTY IMAGES
PEREZ REACTS
Red Bull star Sergio Perez believes his qualification spot is fair, even though he came close to a front-row start.
Perez said: “I was just into my own thing – I knew there was some time to find so I felt like this could be my day, you know?
“Unfortunately I didn’t put it all together there in the end where it counted.
“Yes, it was pretty tense but I think I knew it was all down to the final chance: how much I was able to find.
“I was on a pretty good lap; I think in Turn 1 itself I was able to find a couple of tenths.
“I just couldn’t keep it up completely throughout the lap and didn’t get 100 per cent out of the car today.
“I think Max [Verstappen] did a fantastic job, same as Lewis [Hamilton], so we finished where we deserved today, I think”
MORE FROM VERSTAPPEN
“To show this pace already in quali is positive for the race but I still expect it to be a tough balance.
“They still have good straight-line speed, but again, it’s going to be really warm, it’s going to be hard on tyres a lot of wear, so that naturally makes it more interesting.
“It’s so closely matched that if you miss one tiny detail or if you just can’t bring it together for whatever reason, you just miss out, and that’s what happened to us, for example, in Turkey”
NOT WORRIED
Red Bull superstar Max Verstappen is not worried ahead of the US Grand Prix after earning the front slot.
Verstappen said: “I’m not worried about what happens behind me, I just have to focus on myself.
“I don’t see why we always have to keep bringing this up.
“It’s not like we’re [Verstappen and Hamilton are] the only ones who have touched in this sport and these things happen, unfortunately.
“But I think we are on the front row again and everyone is expecting a great race and that is what we also expect as drivers, and we really want to have a great race”
RACE ORDER
Lewis Hamilton is going to start second on the grid behind Max Verstappen, who took the front slot.
Red Bull’s Sergio Perez will be third and breathing down Hamilton’s neck during the US Grand Prix.
Verstappen will be counting on Perez’s help as Valtteri Bottas is ninth due to an engine penalty
Charles Leclerc is fourth and Calros Sainz lines up in fifth in their Ferraris
GETTY IMAGES
MORE FROM HAMILTON
“It was quite exciting out there. In the end it was spitting and I was not too sure if I’d hold on to the lap time.
“I guess the start will be what people like to see tomorrow and I hope to have a good start and we work as a team to get the best result possible”
HAMILTON PROMISE
Lewis Hamilton missed out on pole by 0.209 seconds but promised to fight back in today’s race.
Hamilton said: “I gave it everything I had.
“It was a struggle out there but I was happy with the last lap.
“I will now give it everything tomorrow and the mindset is that I want to win the race and give these guys a fight”
MAX POWER
Lewis Hamilton was pipped to pole for the US Grand Prix as title rival Max Verstappen took the front slot on the grid.
Hamilton recovered after a slow start and looked to have taken pole until Verstappen snatched it from his grasp at the death.
It was the Red Bull man’s eight pole in the last 11 races as he looks to increase his advantage in the title race over the Mercedes star, which currently stands at six points.
The British star, who apologised to his team having missed out on pole by 0.209 seconds, has promised to fight back in today’s race
RED BULL DOES IT AGAIN
Driver’s Championship leader Max Verstappen will start the US Grand Prix 2021 on pole.
Was it ever in doubt? Well, for a few minutes it looked like it could be.
Sergio Perez has been quick throughout practice and brought his A-game once again when it mattered.
But he’ll have to make do with third on the grid after an excellent last lap from Lewis Hamilton snatched second in a dramatic conclusion to Q3.
Brilliant drama in qualifying and the perfect scene-setter for tomorrow’s showpiece.
8pm BST – right here. Don’t be late.

MAX VERSTAPPEN TAKES POLE POSITION!!
Hamilton in 2nd, Perez in 3rd. Well that was fun – and here’s the rain.
HAMILTON TAKES PROVISIONAL!
But Verstappen and Perez still to put in their times…
Q3 DRAMA
There’s a lot of Mexican support in the stands and they went crazy as Perez pipped Verstappen to the provisional.
Perez has NEVER had a pole in his F1 career, remember. It could be a dream day for him.
Red Bull looking the business, Mercedes need a huge final effort here to make the front row.
PEREZ TAKES PROVISIONAL POLE
What a lap from the Red Bull man!
Verstappen takes P1 for all of about 10 seconds, as his teammate crosses the line to huge cheers.
Mercedes have it ALL to do here…
TEN FOR TEN
10 minutes to go, 10 drivers out on the track.
It’s time to decide pole for the 2021 US Grand Prix.
All the usual suspects involved and there are a number of Union Jacks flying proudly in the packed stands.
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THE FORMULA ONE season heads Stateside this weekend to the iconic Circuit of the Americas.Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen resume their epic tussle for the F1 title, with just six points separating the two rivals.

Practice Three – 7pm TONIGHT
Qualifying – 10pm
Sunday: Race – 8pm

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LANDO’S LOW-DOWN
Lando Norris was recently voted as ‘Ladies’ favourite driver’ in a survey on Formula 1 fans.
Reacting to the news, Bristol-born Norris said: “It’s really cool. Fans are the reason Formula 1 exists, in a way. I feel like I do quite a bit for the fans and it’s nice to know I have a lot of people supporting me, cheering me on and just being there for me. That’s awesome.
“It’s good to know I can influence them or try to help change them, say good things every now and then. Normally I’m not very good at saying good things, but the fact I have the chance to influence that many people is pretty awesome.
“Especially, I guess, with the women. There are so few women in motorsport and racing, so the more I can hopefully impact on that and give them the chance to believe they can be here in Formula 1 – maybe not just as a race driver but also engineering or mechanic-ing or whatever – there are plenty of spaces for them to do that.
“If I can have an influence on them, that’s great. But I guess the more fans the merrier as well. It’s a nice thing to see.”
TODAY’S SCHEDULE
A reminder of the timings for today’s Practice and Qualifying in Texas:

Practice Three
Qualifying

*UK time
BACK TO SOUTH AFRICA
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton is eager for the F1 calendar to return to South Africa.
A race hasn’t been held on the continent since 1993.
And when asked where the Brit would like to see a GP held, he said: “The place that I really feel is dear to my heart and most important for me is to get a race back in South Africa.
“I think there’s a great following out there. I think it would be great to be able to highlight just how beautiful the motherland is.”
‘CAPABLE’
Max Verstappen’s former Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo believes the Dutchman has what it takes to beat seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton to the title.
The McLaren driver said: “Although Lewis has the experience of winning World titles, I don’t really see that as an advantage now.
“They are both capable, Lewis has proven it, but Max is capable and he has a pretty stable head on his shoulders now.
“He has proven that with some of the drives he has done this year so I am kind of at the point where I am just looking forward to see how it unfolds.”
SIX TO GO
Here’s a reminder of how the F1 2021 season has played out so far.
The season is beginning to draw to a conclusion, with a thrilling title race playing out.

🏁 F1 2021 calendar: practice times, dates and racetrack info
MORE FROM TOTO
Toto Wolff also admitted that Mercedes’ engines are ‘hanging on for dear life’ after Valteri Bottas took a five-place grid penalty by having a new one fitted yesterday.
He said: “I think you see that we are suffering with reliability this year.
“We are going on to the sixth engine, I believe it is for Valtteri, and it’s not something we choose to do.
“On the contrary, we are trying to really get on top of the problems and we haven’t understood [them] fully.
“I think we are a step closer now, so it’s not always that we are literally easy with having the engines.
“We are hanging on for dear life in supplying all customers and that is not trivial.”
TOTO TALK
Mercedes Team Principal and CEO Toto Wolff thinks the championship title race between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen could come down to the final race.
When asked if it was going down to the wire, he said: “Yes, I think it will, because the swings of points are not massive. Goes one direction and then the other way.
“I’ve said before I think that the DNFs are the killer for this championship because you can’t.
“It’s very difficult to recover a 25-point loss, so you need to minimise the mistakes. It’s exciting to see.”
‘WORK TO DO’
Lewis Hamilton was reasonably content with his Friday practice sessions.
The 36-year-old finished the day third fastest after having a number of lap times deleted for exceeding track limits.
Hamilton said: “Generally, it’s been a good day but there’s still work to do.
“The first session was really good, but I made some changes for FP2 and I wasn’t as happy with the car.
“The pace wasn’t bad, but I think we lost a bit of ground to everyone, so we need to dig into the data tonight and figure out why.
“The surface here feels rougher and that means it’s a struggle to keep the temperature out of the tyres, so there’s more degradation than we’ve experienced before.
“It’s been a productive day so we have plenty of findings that we should be able to navigate well and improve for tomorrow.”
AS IT STANDS
Here’s a look at how the Driver Standings heading into USA Grand Prix.
Lewis Hamilton trails rival Max Verstappen by six points, with six races left on the 2021 calendar.
The title race could go right down to the wire…

‘WORK TO DO’
Valteri Bottas will be hit with a five-place penalty from wherever he qualifies for Sunday’s race after taking on a new engine.
But he has still vowed to do all he can to finish on the podium in Texas.
He said: “There’s quite a bit of work to do, no doubt, we need to find what are the best options we can take.
“I will be definitively be racing other cars, with the penalty, so I’ll need to be overtaking other cars.
“I want to make it to the podium and fight for the win, so there’s lots of work to be done, as always.”
‘PLAYGROUND ACTIVITY’
Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen went wheel-to-wheel in yesterday’s practice, with the Dutchman calling Hamilton a ‘stupid idiot’ on his radio.
But speaking on the incident, Red Bull team principal Chrstian Horner said: “I think there’s not too much to read into it.
“It’s like playground activity really. So, obviously, Max had passed Lewis earlier in the lap, Lewis then obviously felt that he wanted to pass Max at the end of that lap, and then they drove around, drove down to the first corner.
“Then it all got a bit messy. I think Max indicated that he would have been first on the road! So I wouldn’t read too much into it.”
PRACTICE 2 IS DONE – PEREZ LEADS THE WAY BUT VERSTAPPEN DID NOT DO A QUALIFYING RUN
The Dutchman is keeping his powder dry, and it is the Mexican who is quickest as Red Bull look like they have improved.
Norris in P2, Hamilton P3 and Bottas in P4. Verstappen down in eighth.

CRASH FOR ALONSO
The Spaniard loses control and spins into the barriers, but he is moving again. His car looks undamaged and he’s back in the garage.

10 MINUTES TO GO
And it is still Perez at the top of the timesheets as the team complete their long runs.

PEREZ LEADS THE WAY
Norris, Hamilton, Bottas, Ricciardo, Stroll, Leclerc, Verstappen, Sainz, Giovinazzi is the top 10 at just after the halfway stage of FP2.

VERSTAPPEN BLASTS HAMILTON
The two come close during practice as Hamilton comes close to the Red Bull.
Verstappen snaps over the radio: “Ha! Stupid idiot!”
He is told to “ignore it” by his race engineer.

NORRIS IS BACK IN THE PITS
“Something’s come loose on my elbow, I can’t turn properly,” Norris says over the team’s radio.
He’s back in the garage as the team investigate the problem.
FP2 IS GO – MERCEDES WERE AWESOME IN PRACTICE ONE
Can Red Bull fight back? Or are they saving engines? Either way, it looks a straight fight between the two teams.

TOTO WOLFF HAS BEEN SPEAKING ABOUT MERC’S ENGINE PROBLEMS
Remember, Bottas has a new engine this week, triggering a penalty.
Merc customers, Williams and Aston Martin have also taken new engines for Russell and Vettel, respectively.
And it could mean bad news for Lewis Hamilton, who could face more grid penalties for taking a new engine.Wolff admits the team have struggled with reliability this season as their complicated power units are pushed to the limit in their fight with Red Bull.Hamilton was given a 10-place grid drop last out in Turkey for taking a new internal combustion engine and he had to settle for finishing the race in fifth.Wolff snapped on Sky F1 when quizzed that the team’s engine woe was being caused by “air valves”.He blasted: “You are being fed with a lot of bull***t. We don’t need to talk about air valves or anything like this because you and I wouldn’t understand what it is.”He was later pressed to reveal the cause of their unreliability and added: “I would not want to disclose what it is for obvious reasons but it is always a concern.”When you look at Monza where Valtteri had to start at the back, we are losing points.”We are trying to push the performance every year and this year it has cost us points but for the last seven years, that mindset has won us races and championships.”I would have hoped for less penalties and used less engines, but this year it has hit us hard and we have to take it on the chin and do the best possible job.”Wolff says Merc are now weighing up whether to up Hamilton’s engine count too through fear of it failing mid-race.He said: “I cannot say whether we will be taking or what the percentage is, but obviously the risk is there.”What is difficult to evaluate is do you want to pre-empt the situation and take a penalty, take the hit.”Or do you want to run it and take the risk, which could be a DNF? That is a discussion we are having at the moment.”
LECLERC AND SAINZ IN P4 AND P5
Different tyres used for Perez and Sainz.

BOTTAS NOT THE ONLY ONE WITH AN ENGINE PENALTY
George Russell also takes a new unit in his Williams, as does Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin.
The team can confirm that George has taken new power unit elements this weekend and therefore will incur a grid penalty.Still plenty to play for this weekend, GR 👊 pic.twitter.com/9IaV21rpRO— Williams Racing (@WilliamsRacing) October 22, 2021

HORNER KEEPING CALM ABOUT MERC’S ENGINE WOES
The Red Bull boss said: “Mercedes obviously have their reason for taking it and they must be having a few issues.”Under normal circumstances, [our engines] should be ok, but you can never say never.”
BOTTAS LEADS THE WAY
The Finn is in P1, Hamilton is second and Verstappen third-fastest in Austin.

BOTTAS’S ENGINE PENALTY IS A CONCERN FOR HAMILTON
That is a SIXTH unit for the Finn, as Mercedes are clearly worried about their ICE. That could mean that Hamilton is due a new one too, he took a new ICE in Turkey.

AND A SPECIAL LID FOR LANDO
The McLaren man also has a cool helmet for this race.

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