Lando Norris risks losing ground to Max Verstappen in his bid to be crowned world champion after seeing his rival take pole position for Saturday’s sprint race in the United States.
Norris, who trails Verstappen by 52 points heading into the concluding six rounds of the campaign, will line up three places behind Verstappen for the 19-lap dash after he qualified a disappointing fourth at Austin’s Circuit of the Americas.
Verstappen has not won since the Spanish Grand Prix, nearly four months ago, but he pulled out an impressive lap in the closing seconds to beat Mercedes’ George Russell to top spot by just 0.012 seconds.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc will line up from third, one place ahead of Norris, with Lewis Hamilton seventh.
Follow live updates from the United States Grand Prix with The Independent
F1 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX – LATEST UPDATES
Max Verstappen takes pole for the sprint; Russell 2nd; Leclerc 3rd
Sergio Perez knocked out in SQ2, also out: Lawson, Gasly, Stroll, Alonso
Oscar Piastri knocked out in SQ1, also out: Ocon, Albon, Bottas, Zhou
Lando Norris trails Verstappen by 52 points with six races left
PREVIEW: How Trump and Harris revealed F1’s true value amid US presidential race
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Max Verstappen on pole for the sprint!
Friday 18 October 2024 23:17 , Kieran Jackson
Super lap from Max Verstappen! He takes pole position, 0.012 secs quicker than George Russell in second!
Charles Leclerc comes home third, with Lando Norris two-tenths off in fourth – a blow for his title hopes!
5-10: Sainz, Hulkenberg, Hamilton, Magnussen, Tsunoda, Colapinto
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Lando Norris…
Friday 18 October 2024 23:58 , Kieran Jackson
“Not very good, been struggling all day with the balance. My lap was shocking, I’ll take it.
“I hope to go forward, on pace we are where we deserve to be. I hope to go forward but no idea if we can.”
Lando not a happy man after that – he starts P4.
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Top-10 in sprint qualifying!
Friday 18 October 2024 23:43 , Kieran Jackson
1. Max Verstappen
2. George Russell
3. Charles Leclerc
4. Lando Norris
5. Carlos Sainz
6. Nico Hulkenberg
7. Lewis Hamilton
8. Kevin Magnussen
9. Yuki Tsunoda
10. Franco Colapinto
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Max Verstappen after claiming sprint pole…
Friday 18 October 2024 23:30 , Kieran Jackson
“We had a good day. I’m happy, the car was working quite well, very happy to be first – it’s been a while.
“It’s not easy, to deal with it over one lap is not the easiest but it’s fun.
“We’ll do the best we can in the sprint but the most points are available on Sunday.”
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Russell top early on!
Friday 18 October 2024 23:12 , Kieran Jackson
Only three cars out to set laps at the start – and Russell goes quickest, half-a-second faster than his team-mate Lewis Hamilton!
Hamilton: “Come on guys, that was not good.” Don’t think he’s happy about coming out so early!
Franco Colapinto, however, spins off – and he’ll do well to start higher than P10!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: SQ3 underway!
Friday 18 October 2024 23:08 , Kieran Jackson
Here we go then! Soft tyres, eight minutes… who will be on pole for tomorrow’s sprint?!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Sergio Perez out in SQ2!
Friday 18 October 2024 23:02 , Kieran Jackson
He only did one lap and it wasn’t enough for the Mexican!
Bottom-five and out in SQ2: Perez, Lawson, Gasly, Stroll, Alonso
Top-3: Sainz, Verstappen, Hamilton
Time for the top-10, eight minute shootout!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Max Verstappen…
Friday 18 October 2024 22:59 , Kieran Jackson
“I’m struggling with the ride.”
Well, use the cockpit device!
Just joking. Final laps coming in now in SQ2…
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Carlos Sainz in P1!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:58 , Kieran Jackson
Sainz quickest, just 0.016 secs ahead of Verstappen, with Hamilton in third – Norris down in sixth.
Bottom-five (11-15): Stroll, Alonso, Lawson, Tsunoda, Gasly
Perez in trouble in P10. Four minutes to go…
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: SQ2 underway!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:51 , Kieran Jackson
SQ2 now – 10 minutes where again the medium compound is the mandatory tyre!
And just one McLaren left in contention!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Alex Albon has a spin and is out – as is Oscar Piastri!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:44 , Kieran Jackson
Woah that was dramatic! Alex Albon had a massive spin at the penultimate turn – he kept his Williams car on track – but it ruined his lap!
But Oscar Piastri has also lost his lap-time and so he’s out in P16! He had his lap time deleted!
Bottom-five and out in SQ1 (16-20): Piastri, Ocon, Albon, Bottas, Zhou
That was eventful!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Oscar Piastri on the edge!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:41 , Kieran Jackson
Piastri in P14 with two minutes to go as Sergio Perez puts it together to go P7!
Current bottom-five (16-20): Colapinto, Ocon, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Zhou
2:00 to go!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Lewis Hamilton quickest early in SQ1!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:38 , Kieran Jackson
This is a quickfire session!
Times tumbling all the time and it’s Lewis Hamilton top, less than a tenth clear of Charles Leclerc in second and Lando Norris in third.
More importantly, the bottom-five (16-20) and heading out as it stands: Ocon, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Zhou, Perez
5 minutes remaining…
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: SQ1 underway!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:31 , Kieran Jackson
The Red Bull of Max Verstappen leads us around for the first sprint quali session – 12 minutes and all the cars on medium tyres!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Sprint qualifying coming right up!
Friday 18 October 2024 22:29 , Kieran Jackson
So it’s our first competitive action of the weekend and after a chaotic practice session, it feels like anything could happen in Austin this evening!
Sprint qualifying will follow the same Q1-Q2-Q3 format but the session times will be shorter than traditional qualifying: SQ1 (medium tyres) will be 12 minutes, SQ2 (medium tyres) will be 10 minutes and SQ3 (soft tyres) will be eight minutes.
Who will be on pole for the sprint tomorrow?!
Martin Brundle insists there is ‘no smoking gun’ in Red Bull F1 bib device saga
Friday 18 October 2024 22:24 , Kieran Jackson
Martin Brundle believes there is “no smoking gun” for Red Bull as their ‘bib’ device saga continues at the US Grand Prix in Austin on Friday.
Full quotes below:
Martin Brundle insists there is ‘no smoking gun’ in Red Bull F1 bib device saga
SPRINT WEEKEND FORMAT
Friday 18 October 2024 22:21 , Kieran Jackson
Friday: Free Practice 1 (DONE); sprint qualifying (for Saturday’s sprint race)
Saturday: Sprint race (Top-eight receive points, finish order has no impact on grand prix grid); Grand Prix qualifying
Sunday: Grand Prix
How many points are on offer in the sprint race?
P1 – Eight points
P2 – Seven points
P3 – Six points
P4 – Five points
P5 – four points
P6 – three points
P7 – two points
P8 – one point
A reminder of the start times this weekend in Austin:
Friday 18 October 2024 22:15 , Kieran Jackson
All times BST
Friday 18 October
Saturday 19 October
Sprint race: 7pm
Qualifying: 11pm
Sunday 20 October
What’s the state of play in the drivers’ championship?
Friday 18 October 2024 22:03 , Kieran Jackson
1. Max Verstappen – 331 points
2. Lando Norris – 279 points
3. Charles Leclerc – 245 points
4. Oscar Piastri – 237 points
5. Carlos Sainz – 190 points
6. Lewis Hamilton – 174 points
7. George Russell – 155 points
8. Sergio Perez – 144 points
9. Fernando Alonso – 62 points
10. Nico Hulkenberg – 24 points
11. Lance Stroll – 24 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda – 22 points
13. Alex Albon – 12 points
14. Daniel Ricciardo – 12 points
15. Pierre Gasly – 8 points
16. Ollie Bearman – 7 points
17. Kevin Magnussen – 6 points
18. Esteban Ocon – 5 points
19. Franco Colapinto – 4 points
20. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points
21. Logan Sargeant – 0 points
22. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points
F1 makes shock fastest lap rule change for 2025 season
Friday 18 October 2024 21:40 , Kieran Jackson
The FIA, F1’s governing body, have decided to remove the bonus point available for setting the fastest lap for the 2025 season onwards.
The extra point, given to the driver who sets the fastest lap in Sunday’s grand prix (if he finishes in the top-10), was introduced in 2019.
It often results in drivers pitting late in the race for an extra point, particularly if it doesn’t impact their position in the top-10.
Full story below:
F1 makes shock fastest lap rule change for 2025 season
What is a sprint race in F1 and how does qualifying shootout work?
Friday 18 October 2024 21:23 , Kieran Jackson
The sprint format continues in Formula 1 this weekend as the US Grand Prix hosts the fourth sprint weekend of the 2024 season.
The sprint was first introduced in 2021 at Silverstone as a way of making more sessions over the course of the weekend competitive, with the target of driving interest in F1. In 2021 and 2022, there were three sprints a year.
2023 saw a new format. The number of sprint races were doubled to six, while Saturday was designed ‘sprint day’ – with a new “sprint shootout” qualifying session determining the grid for the sprint race. In addition, the result of the sprint race had no baring on the grand prix on Sunday.
However, the format has been tweaked again in 2024 and we will see it in action for the fourth time this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas:
What is a sprint race in F1 and how does qualifying work?
Sebastian Vettel announces racing return in ‘super team’ alongside axed F1 star
Friday 18 October 2024 21:08 , Kieran Jackson
Sebastian Vettel will return to racing next year at the 2025 Race of Champions in Sydney, teaming up with compatriot and friend Mick Schumacher.
Four-time F1 world champion Vettel retired in 2022 after 16 seasons in the sport, where he raced for the likes of Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin.
Yet next March at the Accor Stadium in Sydney, Vettel will form a German ‘super team’ alongside Schumacher – son of seven-time F1 world champion Michael Schumacher – in the ROC Nations Cup.
More below:
Sebastian Vettel announces racing return in ‘super team’ alongside axed F1 star
Constructors’ Championship ahead of the US Grand Prix:
Friday 18 October 2024 20:52 , Kieran Jackson
1. McLaren – 516 points
2. Red Bull – 475 points
3. Ferrari – 441 points
4. Mercedes – 329 points
5. Aston Martin – 86 points
6. RB – 34 points
7. Haas – 31 points
8. Williams – 16 points
9. Alpine – 13 points
10. Sauber – 0 points
RACE PREVIEW: How Donald Trump and Kamala Harris revealed F1’s true value as US presidential race nears finish line
Friday 18 October 2024 20:34 , Kieran Jackson
For a sport which struggled for the best part of 70 years to find a home across the Atlantic, Formula One’s presence in the United States has reached unprecedented heights this year. And that’s not just a nod to the three US races, in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas, nor to the boom in popularity stateside – a result of Liberty Media’s 2017 takeover and Netflix’s Drive to Survive fever.
Rather it has been, ahead of the highly charged US presidential election on 5 November, the surprising arena for the two nominees to appear, promote and present themselves in a unique and increasingly attractive way to the electorate.
Full piece below:
How Trump and Harris revealed F1’s true value amid US presidential race
A reminder of the start times this weekend in Austin:
Friday 18 October 2024 20:15 , Kieran Jackson
All times BST
Friday 18 October
Saturday 19 October
Sprint race: 7pm
Qualifying: 11pm
Sunday 20 October
Red Bull ‘cannot afford’ F1 driver disparity as pressure grows on Sergio Perez
Friday 18 October 2024 20:03 , Kieran Jackson
Red Bull boss Christian Horner admits his team “need answers” to their driver line-up dilemma as the pressure grows on Sergio Perez.
Mexican driver Perez trails teammate and championship leader Max Verstappen by 187 points after 18 races this year and has not won a grand prix since April 2023.
Perez has a contract with Red Bull until the end of 2025 – with an option to extend for 2026 – but Liam Lawson’s promotion to sister team RB for this weekend’s US Grand Prix indicates that Red Bull are assessing their options ahead of next year.
Having relinquished their spot at the top of the constructors’ standings to McLaren, Red Bull boss Horner acknowledges that his team “can’t afford a big gap” between Verstappen and his team-mate next year.
Full quotes below:
Red Bull ‘cannot afford’ F1 driver disparity as pressure grows on Sergio Perez
FP1 RESULTS IN FULL:
Friday 18 October 2024 19:48 , Kieran Jackson
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Lando Norris only fourth-fastest!
Friday 18 October 2024 19:33 , Kieran Jackson
Norris’ car, covered in flow-vis paint, can only go fourth-fastest – but it would have been cancelled in qualifying as he went off the track!
Top of the timesheet? Carlos Sainz with a 1:33:602, 0.021 secs quicker than Charles Leclerc – a Ferrari one-two!
Max Verstappen is third, 0.013 secs quicker than Norris in fourth, with Oscar Piastri in fifth.
6-10: Hamilton, Russell, Magnussen, Alonso, Tsunoda
Advantage Ferrari heading into sprint qualifying later!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Oscar Piastri almost crashes!
Friday 18 October 2024 19:25 , Kieran Jackson
Piastri went into the pit lane way too hot and had to drastically stay on track to avoid the wall!
At the top, with all the runners now on softs, Carlos Sainz has toppled Max Verstappen for first place – with Fernando Alonso a surprise name in third!
Lando Norris? Yet to set a time on softs. Five minutes to go!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Max Verstappen still P1
Friday 18 October 2024 19:19 , Kieran Jackson
The championship leader still top with a 1:33:855, 0.783 secs quicker than Sergio Perez in second.
The rest of them? Still not on softs!
3-10: Sainz, Leclerc, Russell, Norris, Alonso, Bottas, Lawson, Tsunoda
10 mins to go!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Red Bull duo kick-off the soft tyre running
Friday 18 October 2024 19:06 , Kieran Jackson
Max Verstappen storms to the top of the timesheet with a 1:33:855, 0.862 seconds quicker than Carlos Sainz on the hard tyres. Sergio Perez is third on softs, but is not happy.
“The main struggle was the ride in the low speed, I started to bounce a lot more.”
4-10: Leclerc, Russell, Norris, Alonso, Bottas, Lawson, Tsunoda
McLaren, incidentally, have brought seven upgrades to this race!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Charles Leclerc leads after 20 minutes!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:56 , Kieran Jackson
It’s Ferrari one-two early on on the hard tyres, with Charles Leclerc’s time of 1:34:966 setting the pace at the top – 0.265 secs quicker than teammate Carlos Sainz.
George Russell is third, four-tenths down, with Max Verstappen fourth and Lando Norris in fifth.
6-10: Bottas, Lawson, Perez, Tsunoda, Piastri
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Lewis Hamilton spins!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:46 , Kieran Jackson
High-speed spin in sector one for Lewis Hamilton, but he keeps it out of the barrier by nothing more than pure luck!
“You’ll have to check those damn tyres, and the floor.”
Interesting session so far this, a lot of drivers struggling with grip on this resurfaced track!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Gasly spins at turn 1!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:43 , Kieran Jackson
Pierre Gasly – in the ORANGE Alpine this weekend – has a spin at turn one!
“Just lost it on braking.”
All the cars on hard tyres to start with…
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Verstappen and Colapinto almost collide!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:36 , Kieran Jackson
Verstappen has to bail out late to stop a collision with Colapinto!
Did the Argentine not see him?
Verstappen’s engineer, GP: “There you go, you know what the state of play is this weekend.”
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: First practice underway!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:31 , Kieran Jackson
Here we go with first practice then, at the resurfaced Circuit of the Americas!
A clear day in Austin, if not scorching hot – there’s a slight chill in the air in Texas!
Liam Lawson among the first cars out on track – as they practically all get out there straight away!
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: FP1 coming right up!
Friday 18 October 2024 18:27 , Kieran Jackson
So we’ve been away for four weeks – but it’s go time again for F1 in 2024!
Six races, three sprints, and one championship battle remain! So let’s kick-off the US Grand Prix weekend.
It’s a big session for the drivers – including the returning Liam Lawson – who only have one practice session this weekend to get up to speed with the track!
SPRINT WEEKEND FORMAT
Friday 18 October 2024 18:23 , Kieran Jackson
Friday: Free Practice 1; sprint qualifying (for Saturday’s sprint race)
Saturday: Sprint race (Top-eight receive points, finish order has no impact on grand prix grid); Grand Prix qualifying
Sunday: Grand Prix
How many points are on offer in the sprint race?
P1 – Eight points
P2 – Seven points
P3 – Six points
P4 – Five points
P5 – four points
P6 – three points
P7 – two points
P8 – one point
A reminder of the start times this weekend in Austin:
Friday 18 October 2024 18:15 , Kieran Jackson
All times BST
Friday 18 October
Saturday 19 October
Sprint race: 7pm
Qualifying: 11pm
Sunday 20 October
Lewis Hamilton and F1 are desperate for Africa return – but these obstacles must be overcome
Friday 18 October 2024 18:11 , Kieran Jackson
Formula One wants to return. Lewis Hamilton insists F1 cannot continue to ignore it. But after 31 years away, the sport still can’t thrash out a route back into the only viable continent (sorry Antarctica) it fails to race in: Africa.
It was 1993 the last time the “Mother Continent” hosted an F1 grand prix. That was at Kyalami, 20 miles north of Johannesburg, as Williams driver Alain Prost won the 27th version of the South African Grand Prix.
Rather obviously, it is difficult to claim the full veracity of the competition “Formula 1 World Championship” while a record 24-race calendar does not actually include the entire world and its continents.
But F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has made no secret of his desire to add an African race to the schedule, amid an opening set of talks with Rwandan officials last month.
However, is Rwanda the only option? South Africa has come close in recent years, too. And what are the major obstacles? The Independent takes a look at all the potential locations F1 could venture to in Africa.
Lewis Hamilton and F1 are desperate for Africa return – but these obstacles remain
What is a sprint race in F1 and how does qualifying shootout work?
Friday 18 October 2024 18:04 , Kieran Jackson
The sprint format continues in Formula 1 this weekend as the US Grand Prix hosts the fourth sprint weekend of the 2024 season.
The sprint was first introduced in 2021 at Silverstone as a way of making more sessions over the course of the weekend competitive, with the target of driving interest in F1. In 2021 and 2022, there were three sprints a year.
2023 saw a new format. The number of sprint races were doubled to six, while Saturday was designed ‘sprint day’ – with a new “sprint shootout” qualifying session determining the grid for the sprint race. In addition, the result of the sprint race had no baring on the grand prix on Sunday.
However, the format has been tweaked again in 2024 and we will see it in action for the fourth time this weekend at the Circuit of the Americas:
What is a sprint race in F1 and how does qualifying work?
Friday 18 October 2024 17:56 , Kieran Jackson
Lewis Hamilton has reacted to Red Bull’s controversial device that alters the height of its front bib ahead of the United States Grand Prix this weekend.
“I’ve only just heard about it before I got here,” he told Sky Sports. “But I think the name of our sport is all about innovation. Red Bull have been the leaders and they’ve innovated.
“Ultimately all the teams look at the rules and try to find how to massage those rules and get the most out of it, even if it’s just over the edge a little bit. You just need to continue to evolve and be better policed.”
Max Verstappen vs Lando Norris: predicting who will win the last six F1 races – and the 2024 title
Friday 18 October 2024 17:47 , Kieran Jackson
This was just a bit of fun… so don’t take it too seriously!
Max Verstappen vs Lando Norris: predicting who will win the 2024 F1 title
No more Daniel Ricciardo!
Friday 18 October 2024 17:40 , Kieran Jackson
Ricciardo was dropped after the last race in Singapore in favour of Liam Lawson!
Here you can look back on his F1 career, which is now likely to be at an end…
Sebastian Vettel announces racing return in ‘super team’ alongside axed F1 star
Friday 18 October 2024 17:29 , Kieran Jackson
Sebastian Vettel will return to racing next year at the 2025 Race of Champions in Sydney, teaming up with compatriot and friend Mick Schumacher.
Four-time F1 world champion Vettel retired in 2022 after 16 seasons in the sport, where he raced for the likes of Red Bull, Ferrari and Aston Martin.
Yet next March at the Accor Stadium in Sydney, Vettel will form a German ‘super team’ alongside Schumacher – son of seven-time F1 world champion Michael Schumacher – in the ROC Nations Cup.
More below:
Sebastian Vettel announces racing return in ‘super team’ alongside axed F1 star
Constructors’ Championship ahead of the US Grand Prix
Friday 18 October 2024 17:22 , Kieran Jackson
1. McLaren – 516 points
2. Red Bull – 475 points
3. Ferrari – 441 points
4. Mercedes – 329 points
5. Aston Martin – 86 points
6. RB – 34 points
7. Haas – 31 points
8. Williams – 16 points
9. Alpine – 13 points
10. Sauber – 0 points
RACE PREVIEW: How Donald Trump and Kamala Harris revealed F1’s true value as US presidential race nears finish line
Friday 18 October 2024 17:12 , Kieran Jackson
For a sport which struggled for the best part of 70 years to find a home across the Atlantic, Formula One’s presence in the United States has reached unprecedented heights this year. And that’s not just a nod to the three US races, in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas, nor to the boom in popularity stateside – a result of Liberty Media’s 2017 takeover and Netflix’s Drive to Survive fever.
Rather it has been, ahead of the highly charged US presidential election on 5 November, the surprising arena for the two nominees to appear, promote and present themselves in a unique and increasingly attractive way to the electorate.
Full piece below:
How Trump and Harris revealed F1’s true value amid US presidential race
What’s the state of play in the drivers’ championship?
Friday 18 October 2024 17:05 , Kieran Jackson
1. Max Verstappen – 331 points
2. Lando Norris – 279 points
3. Charles Leclerc – 245 points
4. Oscar Piastri – 237 points
5. Carlos Sainz – 190 points
6. Lewis Hamilton – 174 points
7. George Russell – 155 points
8. Sergio Perez – 144 points
9. Fernando Alonso – 62 points
10. Nico Hulkenberg – 24 points
11. Lance Stroll – 24 points
12. Yuki Tsunoda – 22 points
13. Alex Albon – 12 points
14. Daniel Ricciardo – 12 points
15. Pierre Gasly – 8 points
16. Ollie Bearman – 7 points
17. Kevin Magnussen – 6 points
18. Esteban Ocon – 5 points
19. Franco Colapinto – 4 points
20. Zhou Guanyu – 0 points
21. Logan Sargeant – 0 points
22. Valtteri Bottas – 0 points
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: What are the timings this weekend in Austin?
Friday 18 October 2024 17:01 , Kieran Jackson
All times BST
Friday 18 October
Saturday 19 October
Sprint race: 7pm
Qualifying: 11pm
Sunday 20 October
F1 US Grand Prix LIVE: Welcome back!
Friday 18 October 2024 16:59 , Kieran Jackson
Good afternoon and welcome to live coverage of the US Grand Prix as F1 returns this weekend in Austin!
Lando Norris won last time out in Singapore to cut Max Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ championship to 52 points with six rounds to go.
Oscar Piastri, Norris’ teammate at McLaren, finished third in the city-state while the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell will be looking to finish their time together on a high before Hamilton heads to Ferrari next year.
It’s a sprint weekend this time around, meaning we will have just one practice session – at 6:30pm BST – today before sprint qualifying at 10:30pm BST!
