F1 USA Grand Prix 2022 Verstappen wins: Results, Daniel Ricciardo 16th
Max Verstappen rallied to break Lewis Hamilton’s heart and leave the F1 legend staring down a brutal first in his driving career.
F1
Don't miss out on the headlines from F1. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Max Verstappen overcame a horror pitstop to deliver Red Bull the Formula 1 constructors’ championship with his 13th win of the 2022 season, outlasting Lews Hamilton in the dying stages to take the United States Grand Prix.
Hamilton appeared poised to take his first win of the season when he led with six laps remaining, after succesfully undercutting Verstappen who was left furious following a pit lane debacle.
“Beautiful. F------ beautiful” screamed Verstappen over the Red Ball radio as he exited the pits on lap 38 behind not just Hamilton, but Charles Leclerc as well, who came from 12th on the grid to finish third in Austin.
But as Hamilton battled his degrading tires and the brake issue that was discovered just minutes before the start of the race, the faster Red Bull with DRS was able to pass with five laps remaining and cruise to victory.
Hamilton held on to finish second, his 189th career podium in Formula 1.
After pole-sitter Carlos Sainz crashed out on the opening lap, for the second time in as many races, it was on Leclerc to win the US Grand Prix to stop Red Bull winning the constructors’ championship in Austin.
RED BULL COMPLETE DRIVERS' AND CONSTRUCTORS' CHAMPIONSHIP DOUBLE!! 🆠pic.twitter.com/69ynVds4GT
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 23, 2022
The Ferrari man put in an incredible drive to come from 12th to take third, but the day belonged to Verstappen and his team, who celebrated a bittersweet weekend following the death of Red Bull founder Dietrich Mateschitz on Saturday.
“It was a tough one. It was all looking good but of course the pit stop was long that we would have liked,” Verstappen said.
“We gave it everything out there today. Of course it’s a very difficult weekend for us, this one was definitely dedicated to Dietrich.
“Of course we had a big chance to win the constructors (championship) here. We wanted to do that in style and I think we did that today.”
With his 13th win of the season, Verstappen tied the Formula 1 record held by Michael Schumacher (2004) and Sebastian Vettel (2013).
Hamilton now has just three races remaining to take his first win of the 2022 season and continue his streak of at least one race victory in every Formula 1 season of his career.
“I’m shattered,” Hamilton said post-race.
“The car was a handful today. It felt amazing to be in the lead, that’s something we’ve been working so hard on as a team through the year.
“We’ll hold onto that, keep pushing and try and do everything we can in these next three (races).”
It was carnage on the opening lap when George Russell clipped the back of pole-sitter Sainz, ending the Ferrari driver’s day.
Not long after Valterri Bottas spun out into the gravel and brought out the safety car, removing the heady gap Verstappen had built over the rest of the field.
The race resumed but only for a moment, as Lance Stroll cut across Fernando Alonso and the pair both spun with debris flying across the track.
Incredibly Alonso was able to continue the race, moving from last to finish seventh, however Stroll’s day was done after losing a wheel.
At one point Vettel was poised for a shock podium finish before he endured his own pitstop debacle. He returned to the race in 13th and looked set for disappointment, however the retiring former world champion powered back to eighth place and earned himself driver of the day honours.
Daniel Ricciardo’s Austin nightmare continued, finishing where he started on the grid - 16th - however he ultimately dropped three places, given the trio of DNFs.
Recap all the action in our live blog below.
FINAL RACE ORDER
1. Verstappen 2. Hamilton 3. Leclerc 4. Perez 5. Russell 6. Norris 7. Alonso 8. Vettel 9. Magnussen 10. Tsunoda 11. Ocon 12. Albon 13. Guanyu 14. Gasly 15. Schumacher 16. Ricciardo 17. Latifi. DNF: Sainz, Bottas, Stroll
7.47AM: VERSTAPPEN WINS AHEAD OF HAMILTON, LECLERC
Verstappen chalks his 13th win of the season finishing more than two seconds ahead of Hamilton. Leclerc back in third. Incredible drives from all of the top three today.
Verstappen defied the horror pit stop to take the win; Hamilton battled brake and tire troubles to put up an incredible fight; and Leclerc moved from 12th to third, his best-ever drive to the podium from a starting grid position.
LAP 53 RED BULL REGAINS THE LEAD
The Red Bull is just too good. Verstappen throws open the rear wing and moves past Hamilton with three laps remaining. The Mercedes put in a great fight but Verstappen on the faster tire, in a faster car and with DRS could not be denied.
Verstappen cautioned for exceeding the track limits - he will get a five-second time penalty if he does so again. Hamilton on the radio pushing for more.
Verstappen and Hamilton go wheel-to-wheel! 😲
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 23, 2022
Verstappen now LEADS! pic.twitter.com/FkyV79fXUf
LAP 48 VERSTAPPEN HOT ON HAMILTON’S HEELS
We’re inside 10 laps to go and Hamilton is hanging on for dear life with the Red Bull of Verstappen bearing down in his mirrors. He’s 1.5 seconds ahead of the Red Bull and needs to keep this gap lest the Dutchman active DRS and zoom by as he did to win the 2021 world championship last season ...
Leclerc has broken away from Perez and looks set for an incredible third having started from 12th on the grid. Top 5 looks set in stone with Russell 9 seconds back from Perez.
Magnussen in the Haas is all of 20 seconds back from the top five. Alonso is hunting him down.
FERNANDO HOW HAVE YOU DONE THIS?!
Fernando Alonso looked gone for all money when he was sent spinning into the wall by Lance Stroll. That looks a distant memory now, with the two-time world champion, incredibly, all the way up into 7th. He’s crashed, had one more pit stop than teammate Esteban Ocon and STILL one place ahead of him. What a drive from the Spaniard.
LAP 42 VETTEL STOP RUINS HIS DAY
A shambles for Aston Martin. Vettel was in the frame for a rare podium in the green, but the engineers cooked him in the pits. Instead he exits in 13th and that’s any chance of a podium out the window.
After Stroll’s crash, from his own doing, it’s been an absolute debacle from Aston Martin today given how much promise they showed in the opening stages with both drivers deep into the points.
Meanwhile, Hamilton leads Verstappen by more than three seconds with 13 laps to go. Can he do it?!
Below for a heartbreaking story, in two Tweets:
Sebastian Vettel leads the #USGP.
— Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) October 23, 2022
That’s it. That’s the tweet. pic.twitter.com/lU5Shsix68
16 SECOND STOP FOR VETTEL pic.twitter.com/BK8ICyae1v
— F1 MEMES (@f1trolls_) October 23, 2022
LAP 40 GLOVES OFF BETWEEN LECLERC AND VERSTAPPEN
Sebastian Vettel leads in Austin ... but he still needs to pit.
Behind him Leclerc and Verstappen have got the Austin crowd on their feet, with the two rivals going tit for tat exchanging places three times in the one lap.
But while all this is happening, Hamilton is extending his lead in clear air with no battle of his own. Incredible racing for the fans but the Red Bull and Ferrari will want to save their tires. Can’t have too much of this.
Meanwhile in P17 ... Ricciardo. I’ve lost track of the back of the grid but somehow the Aussie is now in last place, nine seconds behind Latifi in 16th. The nightmare weekend for the West Australian just keeps getting worse it seems.
LAP 38 HAMILTON HITS THE UNDERCUT
Hamilton pits while Verstappen blows up the Red Bull radio complaining about ‘strat changes’ making his life difficult.
Hamilton returns to the race in P6 but on fresh tires. Red Bull responds by pitting Verstappen and it’s a horror stop. ‘F------ beautiful’ screams Verstappen as he exits the pits behind not just Hamilton, but also Leclerc who beat the Red Bull out of the pits. Race on with Hamilton now the defacto leader. Incredible series of events in Austin!
LAP 36/56
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 23, 2022
Verstappen pits but it's a slow stop
The Dutchman comes back out on track behind Hamilton and Leclerc#USGP#F1pic.twitter.com/kaEKoMau0I
LAP 33 LECLERC INTO THIRD, GASLY PENALISED
Leclerc gets his man Perez finding the inside line and beating the Red Bull to the exit. That puts Leclerc into third and he’ll go about hunting down Hamilton, who is three seconds clear in second.
The Mercedes has been reporting brake and tire dramas but Hamilton is doing his best to keep pressure on the breakaway Verstappen. In the middle sector the Red Bull seems to be able to break away. He now has the fastest lap in his back pocket as well.
But Verstappen is back on the radio complaining about the car, claiming the wind is making his life difficult.
Meanwhile Pierre Gasly has been docked a five-second penalty for being further than 10 lengths from the car in front under safety car conditions - another safety car drama for Gasly, after the controversy in Suzuka last time out.
Word from Lando on the damage he picked up in the incident between Stroll and Alonso. 📻😒#USGP 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/tj4amKMfET
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) October 23, 2022
LAP 30 NORRIS’ CAR DAMAGED BY DEBRIS
McLaren reporting Lando Norris’ car sustained some damage from debris on the track following the Stroll-Alonso crash.
“He’s got some of the debris there in the accident from Fernando and Stroll. It doesn’t look too bad but certainly doesn’t help,” McLaren team boss Zak Brown told Sky Sports.
Meanwhile Leclerc and Perez with another jostle for position reminiscent of their Suzuka ending; Perez locking up opening the door for Leclerc, but he goes off the track and the pair resume regular program in three and four. Verstappen still leads Hamilton.
Ricciardo into 13th, four seconds back from teammate Norris in 9th.
LAP 26 RACE RESUMES, VERSTAPPEN LEADS
After 8 safety car laps the green flag flies and Verstappen leads Hamilton, Perez, Leclerc and Russell. Verstappen on the radio furious: ‘What the f--- happened to my drivability?’ Despite his musings, the Dutchman already has a 1.5 second advantage over Hamilton.
The field: 1. Verstappen 2. Hamilton 3. Perez 4. Leclerc 5. Russell 6. Vettel 7. Gasly 8. Tsunoda 9. Norris 10. Schumacher 11. Magnussen 12. Ocon 13. Ricciardo 14. Albon 15. Latifi 16. Alonso 17. Zhou. DNF: Stroll, Bottas, Sainz
âš ï¸ SAFETY CAR! âš ï¸
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 23, 2022
There's a high-speed collision between Alonso and Stroll, and we have another Safety Car! Stroll is out of the race.
Both drivers are okay. pic.twitter.com/81IgKXe0iR
LAP 22 ANOTHER SAFETY CAR!
Carnage in Austin with two-time world champion Fernando Alonso spinning into the wall.
The jostle from the restart was all chummy at the front but behind things got very spicy. Alonso clipped the back of Stroll after the Aston Martin driver jigged in front of his rival and the pair both spun. Alonso took flight for a moment before spinning into the barrier, while Stroll also spun on track - losing a tire in the process.
Thankfully it seems everyone else avoided the carnage.
Shocking for Aston Martin, who were enjoyig a ripper day in Austin to this point with both Stroll and Vettel deep into the points.
Stroll the consensus man at fault for the collision it seems.
In all the drama Ricciardo moved up two spots, courtesy of Stroll’s DNF and Alonso being forced back into 16th. We now have three cars out of the race before the halfway point.
LAP 21/56
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 23, 2022
Contact between Stroll and Alonso at the restart
âš ï¸ SAFETY CAR âš ï¸ is immediately recalled #USGP#F1pic.twitter.com/dD0thqgqTW
LAP 22 RACING RESUMES
Verstappen leads with Hamilton second. Perez and Leclerc behind them. Russell into fifth after serving that five-second time penalty. Every driver has pitted at least once now.
Hamilton on the team radio reporting struggles with the brakes. If he can hold on for a podium here it will be a ripper drive from the seven-time world champion, given all that he’s had to battle through in the opening stages.
Ricciardo still in 16th but has technically lost two places, given both Bottas and Sainz are out. Only the two Williams are behind him.
LAP 18 SAFETY CAR OUT
Ask and you shall receive! Bottas loses the back end and spins into the gravel. He’s out of the race and safety car is out on track. This is perfect timing for Leclerc, who will get a cheap pitstop and brings him right back into calculations.
Mixed feelings for Mercedes. Hamilton needed something like this to have any chance of catching Verstappen - but now he has a Ferrari to deal with at the top as well.
LAP 18/56
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 23, 2022
Bottas beached!
âš ï¸ SAFETY CAR âš ï¸#USGP#F1pic.twitter.com/asVXkH15FP
LAP 17 ’PLAN E’ FOR FERRARI?
We’re not even a third into the race and Leclerc is already asking the garage to commence ‘Plan E’ - whatever that might be. Race can’t be going to plan for the Scuderia if they’re already that far down the alphabet.
Leclerc has moved into second but he’s yet to pit, while Verstappen has already been to pit lane and has a 2.7 second advantage to the Ferrari.
Hamilton has also pitted and is back into third. He’s flying but still reporting some issues with the tires. This looks like a Verstappen procession, short of a safety car making things interesting.
LAP 11 HAMILTON REPORTS TIRE PROBLEM
Hamilton on the team radio reporting “a little bit of a tear” in the front tires as he battles to keep pace with Verstappen. He’s been foot to the floor chasing the Dutchman but the Red Bull just looks on a different level in the early stages in Austin. Now out to a 3.5 second gap in clear air.
Leclerc has moved into 7th and is matching Verstappen’s lap times - unfortunately for the Ferrari he doesn’t have clear air to drive into.
Aston Martin punching well above its weight early, with Stroll and Vettel sharing fifth and sixth.
LAP 7 RUSSELL TIME PENALTY
Russell will serve a five-second time penalty on his first pit stop for his role in ending Sainz’s day on lap one.
It’s Mercedes two and three behind a breakaway Verstappen, who already has a 2.5 second gap to Lewis Hamilton.
Perez has moved into fourth though has reported an issue with his front wing. Ricciardo has dropped two places back to 15th since we last checked in with the Aussie.
LAP 3 VERSTAPPEN LEADS
The Sainz drama has only helped Verstappen, who has already pulled nearly two seconds clear of Lewis Hamilton in second.
Lance Stroll throwing his Aston Martin around in third, followed by George Russell - who has been cited by stewards for sending Sainz into a spin on the opening lap.
Perez sixth, Norris seventh and Leclerc is up three places from the start and into ninth.
Ricciardo also faired well in the early drama. He’s up three spots and into 13th.
Sainz’s day is done once again after one lap. His sixth DNF this season - and this one hurts.
Drama on the first lap for as Carlos was hit by RUS.
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) October 23, 2022
Unfortunately he had to retire due to a water leak after the contact 💔#USGP
5.05AM: LIGHTS OUT IN AUSTIN - LAP 1
Pole to last for Carlos Sainz! Max Verstappen steals a fast start and edges ahead of his Ferrari rival, who was then tagged and spun from behind. Sainz reporting a puncture ... the worst possible outcome for the Spaniard, who of course was out on lap one at Suzuka.
10 MINUTES UNTIL LIGHTS OUT
Not the news Mercedes needed so close to race start, with Lews Hamilton reporting issues with his brakes just minutes before lights out in Austin.
The Mercedes engineers are furiously swapping parts in and out as the car sits on the grid.
Hamilton starts fourth on the grid and will have one of his best chances at a win this season, on a track he has traditionally driven better than almost anyone else.
Hamilton has never finished a Formula 1 season without standing on the podium at least once. He is yet to taste victory in 2022. Can he do so in Austin? This brake issue isn’t the high drama he would have hoped for.
20 MINUTES UNTIL LIGHTS OUT
Red Bull and the FIA have parked talks about any Accepted Breach Agreement until the middle of next week in light of Dietrich Mateschitz’s death.
The Red Bull founder died aged 78 on Saturday following a long battle with illness and F1 paid tribute to the Austrian prior to Monday morning’s US Grand Prix in Austin.
In a statement early on Monday, Red Bull said the team had put off talks with the FIA regarding penalties for their cost cap breach.
“Following the passing of Mr Mateschitz, all conversations with the FIA around Cost Cap and next steps are on hold until further notice,” the statement read.
“The deadline for agreement has been extended and we expect talks to pick back up (in the) middle of the week.”
With Max Verstappen having clinched the world championship in Japan, the biggest story in Formula 1 at the moment is Red Bull’s cost cap breach and what the penalty may be.
Rivals are calling for heavy carryover sanctions into next season, including financial and wind tunnel penalties, but Red Bull continues to maintain its innocence.
HOW THEY START IN AUSTIN
Front Row: Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) / Max Verstappen (Red Bull
2nd Row: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) / George Russell (Mercedes)
3rd Row: Lance Stroll (Aston Martin) / Lando Norris (McLaren)
4th Row: Valtteri Bottas (Alfa Romeo) / Alex Albon (Williams)
5th Row: Sergio Perez (Red Bull) / Sebastian Vettel (Aston Martin)
6th Row: Pierre Gasly (AlphaTauri) / Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
7th Row: Yuki Tsunoda (AlphaTauri) / Fernando Alonso (Alpine)
8th Row: Kevin Magnussen (Haas) / Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren)
9th Row: Esteban Ocon (Alpine) / Mick Schumacher (Haas)
10th Row: Guanyu Zhou (Alfa Romeo) / Nick Latifi (Williams)
RICCIARDO RESPONDS TO RED BULL RETURN RUMOURS
Daniel Ricciardo says there is no deal in place - yet - to take up a reserve driver role next season, despite Sky Sports F1 reporting yesterday the Australian had secured a backup role with Red Bull for 2023.
Ricciardo told media at the US Grand Prix “I don’t (have a deal in place)” in response to the Sky Sports reporter Ted Kravitz’s on-air revelation he would rejoin Red Bull.
“So, for now, everything’s just rumours,” Ricciardo said.
“Am I talking (to teams)? Yes. But there’s (been) no pen on paper or anything like that yet.”
It comes as Ricciardo’s McLaren teammate Lando Norris hit out and suggestions the pair did not get along during the Australian’s time at the Woking-based team.
“We love being teammates,” Norris told ESPN.
“I’ve loved being his teammate, learning from him, spending time with him.
“People are too easy to judge nowadays. It’s something that’s ruining the world in many ways. Things are great. I’ve loved working with him, I’ll miss him, but I’m sure I’ll race him in the future.”
Ricciardo will start Monday’s United State Grand Prix from 16th on the grid, following another disappointing Q1 exit.
RED BULL BOSS HITS OUT AT RIVAL OVER ‘SHOCKING’ ALLEGATIONS
Meanwhile, Red Bull boss Christian Horner has hit out at McLaren counterpart Zak Brown for making “shocking” accusations of cheating over breaches of Formula One’s cost cap regulations.
Speaking at a press conference ahead of Sunday’s United States Grand Prix, Horner slammed Brown over a letter the McLaren chief wrote to the International Motoring Federation (FIA) in relation to Red Bull’s cost cap breach.
The FIA released a report two weeks ago in which Red Bull was declared as having broken the newly-established spending limit of $145 million in the 2021 season.
Brown’s letter to the FIA and F1 chiefs said any breach of the financial regulations “constitutes cheating.” That drew a fiery response from Horner during Saturday’s press conference where he sat alongside Brown, insisting that Red Bull “absolutely and categorically” had not benefited from the rules breach.
Asked for his views on Brown’s letter, Horner replied: “It’s tremendously disappointing for a fellow competitor to be accusing you of cheating. To accuse you of fraudulent activity is shocking.
“It’s absolutely shocking that another competitor, without the facts, without any knowledge of the details, can be making those kind of accusations.” Horner said Red Bull had been “on trial” because of accusations made in the wake of the Singapore Grand Prix earlier this month, with the team subjected to “the rhetoric of cheats”.
STARTING GRID
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 23, 2022
Here's how we're starting Sunday's race in Texas! 🤠#USGP#F1pic.twitter.com/MBIH4zWNbw
“We’re getting kids of employees bullied in playgrounds. That is not right,” Horner said. “Because of fictitious allegations from other teams.
“You cannot go around just making that kind of allegation without any fact or substance.
“We absolutely are appalled at the behaviour of some of our competitors.” Brown meanwhile insisted he had been intending to make a “general response” to the cost cap controversy.
“My letter set out I think that, if a team spends more than the cap, they are going to get an advantage and the cap is a rule -- no different to the technical rules in the sport,” Brown said.
“We are not taking a view whether they did or didn’t...It didn’t mention any teams. It was a general response, now that we are into the cost cap era, if someone breaches that, here’s what we think some of the ramifications are.” Red Bull are currently negotiating with the FIA to find agreement on what they can accept as a breach and a suitable level of punishment, which could be a fine or a points penalty.
“We had zero benefit from a development perspective or an operational perspective either for 2021 or for 2022... Our submission was significantly below the cap.”
Originally published as F1 USA Grand Prix 2022 Verstappen wins: Results, Daniel Ricciardo 16th
Netflix consider bold move for F1 TV rights
After the success of the Drive to Survive series, Netflix are expected to make a bid on broadcast rights to stream Formula 1 live.
F1 star banned from releasing nude calendar
Formula One driver Valtteri Bottas will no longer be baring it all after being dealt swift instructions to reign it in by his new boss.