United States Grand Prix: Max Verstappen wins 50th race in fiery scenes as Oscar Piastri retires
Max Verstappen spent much of the US Grand Prix fuming at his team, before notching his 50th victory. But it was disaster for Australians Oscar Piastri and Daniel Ricciardo.
Motorsport
Don't miss out on the headlines from Motorsport. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Max Verstappen defied a rapid Lewis Hamilton and some “s***” brakes to salute for a third-consecutive United States Grand Prix victory in Austin on Monday morning.
But the world champion-elect was greeted to a chorus of boos as he accepted his United States Grand Prix winners’ trophy on Monday morning.
After his 15th race victory of the season and 50th of an already legendary career, Verstappen – who had his third world championship title wrapped up with four races still to run – raised his fist in triumph on the top step of the podium in Austin.
But the response to his salute was jarring.
Fans assembled for the trophy ceremony began booing the new face of F1, which drew the ire of Sky Sports commentators David Croft and Martin Brundle.
Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Perez is perhaps the most popular driver in North America given his Mexican roots and thus commands the bulk of support at the US Grand Prix.
“I know Checo (Sergio Perez) is a popular man around here, there are a lot of Perez fans – they were chanting his name during the anthems – but I don’t think it’s just because Checo Perez is popular,” Croft said.
“There are a lot of boos for Max Verstappen and it’s a shame, it really is, that you hear that amount of boos for a man who is at the peak of his excellence on the track but not popular off it.”
“Yeah it’s a shame, isn’t it?” added Brundle.
“He’s taken his 50th Grand Prix victory and that’s the reaction of the fans.”
If Verstappen’s dominance has lowered his popularity with F1 fans it would be a fair departure from F1’s established order, given the love Lewis Hamilton enjoyed while at the peak of his powers.
The seven-time world champion stood on the second step of the podium in Austin as Verstappen stared down his loud detractors.
It’s likely the Dutchman’s dominance over his teammate had a hand in the heavy chorus of boos, given the assembled crowd chanted Perez’s name during the presentation ceremony.
Perez’s future has been the topic of much speculation in recent weeks, with reports he could lose his 2024 race seat if he fails to finish second in the Drivers’ Championship.
The Mexican conceded another eight championship points to Lewis Hamilton on Monday morning, having only managed P5 while the Mercedes driver crossed the line in second behind Verstappen.
Perez’s shortcomings have been magnified by the uber-consistency of Verstappen, who continues to stack victories in what could become one of the all-time great seasons by a single driver in F1 history.
Verstappen reeled in race leader Lando Norris right on half-race distance and scooted away for yet another chequered flag but it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the world champion-elect, who appeared to battle his brakes as much as his rivals on-track in the dying stages.
“Mate these brakes are so s*** compared to yesterday,” Verstappen roared over the team radio as he opened up a gap on Norris and the trailing Lewis Hamilton.
“What a piece of s**t.”
That heralded an early warning of things to come for the reigning world champion, who hit the airwaves repeatedly late in the race to bite back at his race engineer for radioing in while Verstappen was under braking.
His bemused engineer offered a curt “copy” in response and ultimately it mattered little as Verstappen crossed the line two seconds clear of Hamilton, with Norris in third.
Both Britons appeared capable of taking the race up to Verstappen at stages on Monday morning as varying tyre strategies served up an enthralling battle.
McLaren felt Norris was in the box seat to record a maiden F1 victory in his 100th race start but the young star could not keep pace with Verstappen once the Red Bull hit the lead on lap 28.
And he was rounded up in the dying stages by Hamilton who, on a faster tyre compound, took the battle to Verstappen late as the Red Bull struggled with its brakes.
It was a frustrating day at Ferrari and in particular pole sitter Charles Leclerc, who was overtaken by Norris at the start and teammate Carlos Sainz at the end.
Leclerc could only manage P6 having finished on the podium in the Sprint Race, while Sainz crossed ahead of him in fourth.
It was the 10th race in a row in which Leclerc failed to convert pole into a race victory.
Meanwhile, the second Red Bull of Sergio Perez was almost anonymous at COTA.
The under-fire Mexican driver crossed the line in fifth, having overtaken Leclerc in the dying stages.
But he conceded even more championship points to Hamilton in the process.
Perez is now just 19 points ahead of Hamilton in the race for P2 in the Drivers’ Standings.
It was a disappointing day for the Aussie drivers, headlined by Oscar Piastri’s retirement on lap 11 following a coming together with Esteban Ocon at the start.
Both the McLaren and Alpine retired, having sustained damage during the early jostle.
As for the returning Daniel Ricciardo he was the last car to meet the chequered flag.
The veteran Aussie at one stage looked poised for a points finish having roared up the order from his P15 grid start to sit inside the top 10, only to tumble down the field by the end of the race.
To add insult to injury, teammate Yuki Tsunoda not only scored points – finishing P10 – but also stole the fastest lap from Ricciardo at the end of the race.
RE-LIVE ALL THE ACTION IN OUR LIVE BLOG BELOW
7.40AM: VERSTAPPEN CLAIMS 50TH CAREER WIN
Recently crowned champion Max Verstappen has done it again - surging from sixth on the grid to force his way to a 50th grand prix victory.
Lando Norris led the pack early at the US GP, holding firm ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and Verstappen, before the Red Bull star and Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton battled it out for top spot.
But as ever, it was Verstappen who came out on top - despite frequent complaints about his brakes.
Norris’ Aussie teammate Oscar Piastri enjoyed a stellar start, rising four places in the opening exchanges to sit on the gearbox of Verstappen - but disaster struck soon after, and he was forced to retire after just 11 laps.
Fellow Australian Daniel Ricciardo also battled car troubles, but nursed his car to the finish line for a 17th-placed finish.
7.20AM: VERSTAPPEN RAGES, BUT SURGING TO VICTORY
Max Verstappen appears to be cruising to a comfortable victory in Austin, with 10 laps remaining.
He's a little flustered - still raging over Red Bull Radio about his brakes - but that’s what you get with a perfectionist. They demand perfection.
And he’s not the only driver sharing some tense words with his team, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc unhappy with they’re plans.
“Let me know what you think about Plan C, or keep Plan D,” he was asked.
Leclerc replied: “What the f**k? Plan C is ruining my race! It‘s too late.”
Xavi: "Let me know what you think about Plan C, or keep Plan D."
— tami. (@Vetteleclerc) October 22, 2023
Charles: "Plan C is ruining my race, it‘s too late."#USGP
7.05AM: MCLAREN’S BOLD GAMBLE FORCES MAX SHAKE-UP
McLaren has thrown down a challenge to Red Bull and Max Verstappen by pitting Norris after just 17 laps on his second set of tyres.
With Verstappen breaking away in the lead, McLaren gambled to pit Norris 21 laps from the finish.
And Red Bull called their bluff, following into the pits on the next lap.
We could be on for a wild finish with Hamilton still on-track and now taking over the lead of the race.
While the rest of the F1 world might feel Verstappen’s win a fait accompli after he wrested the lead from Norris, the man himself appears to be feeling the heat in the cockpit.
“Mate these brakes are so s**t compared to yesterday,” bemoaned Verstappen over the Red Bull radio.
“What a piece of s**t.”
Verstappen is not happy with his brakes... ðŸ¤¬ðŸŽ™ï¸ pic.twitter.com/nPdFjkhHIM
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) October 22, 2023
6.50AM: CAN LANDO TOPPLE THE UNSTOPPPABLE?
McLaren is positioning Lando Norris for a breakthrough Formula One victory and there is a genuine feeling on the pit wall he can outlast the flying Red Bull of the world champion elect, Verstappen.
After flying out of the blocks to hit the lead on the opening lap of the US Grand Prix, Norris had dictated proceedings up until Verstappen – from third – pitted for a fresh set of medium tyres.
That confirmed Red Bull had moved to a two-stop strategy and set in motion a chain reaction that sent Norris into the pits on the following lap.
But at half race distance Verstappen sits high on the gear box of Norris, who was told by the pit wall: “Our race is with Verstappen”.
Can the young Briton hold his nerve as the shark circles in the water?
It now looks a race in two for the chequered flag after Mercedes’ second guessing hamstrung Lewis Hamilton’s race.
When Hamilton did enter the pits it was a slow 3.6 second stop, compounding his frustration.
If Norris can hold on it would be a famous victory considering Verstappen and Red Bull’s dominance at COTA.
The Dutchman has won each of the past two US Grand Prix and the Sprint Race a day earlier.
Norris, in his 100th F1 start, has never stood on the top step of the podium.
6.40AM: VERSTAPPEN SURGES AS RICCIARDO EYES POINTS
The shark is in the water.
After 22 laps, Max Verstappen is officially on the hunt.
The Flying Dutchman made the first chess move of the Grand Prix, pitting for mediums – confirming a two-stop strategy for Red Bull.
That set off a chain of events with race leader Lando Norris heading into the pits the following lap.
But incredibly Lewis Hamilton chose to stay out.
Mercedes appears ready to gamble on a one-stop strategy in its bid to hand Hamilton his first race victory since the 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
It sets up a juicy middle section of the race, with all of Verstappen, Norris and Hamilton running differing strategies.
Meanwhile the returning Daniel Ricciardo has quietly enjoyed a stellar start to his race, rising into eighth – albeit with the retirements of Piastri and Ocon – having started 15th on the grid.
The affable Aussie could be on for a shock points finish at COTA on his return from a broken hand.
6.25AM: DISASTER AS PIASTRI FORCED TO RETIRE
A major blow for Aussie rookie Oscar Piastri who was forced to retire his car on Lap 11.
Piastri had started strongly rising four places to sit in sixth after the early exchanges – seemingly defying a coming together with the Alpine of Esteban Ocon.
But not long after Ocon went into the pits to end his day, Piastri was told to join him.
The young Aussie began tumbling down the order, ceding track position to Sergio Perez and Pierre Gasly, which prompted a radio call from the pit wall informing him he had to retire the car.
It brings to an end a stunning run of form for Piastri, who stood on the podium in both Qatar and Japan.
6.15AM: BOXING GREAT’S FAILED BLESSING
Anthony Joshua’s pre-race blessing clearly fell on deaf ears for Alpine, with Esteban Ocon forced to retire after sustaining damage following contact with Piastri during the opening jostle.
The British boxing champion hit the airwaves before the race to wish Ocon and Pierre Gasly good luck.
“Anthony Joshua here. I’m just wishing you well. God Bless you, we’re all behind you.”
Joshua was part of a conglomerate of sports stars including NFL players Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce who invested in Alpine last week.
But it wasn’t the start the French outfit was hoping for, with the unlucky Ocon forced to retire for the third time in five races.
6.05AM: PIASTRI’S DREAM START AS F1 GUN BUTCHERS START
Is Lando Norris on for a long-awaited maiden race victory?
In his 100th career Formula One start, the popular McLaren driver leads the US Grand Prix ahead of the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton after an entertaining opening stanza at COTA.
Leclerc started on pole but it was Norris who stole all eyes at the start, throwing his McLaren into the lead by the first turn and powering away from the Ferrari.
In two laps the Briton had already opened up a two-second gap on Leclerc.
Aussie teammate Oscar Piastri also enjoyed a stellar start, rising four places in the opening exchanges to sit on the gearbox of recently crowned world champion Max Verstappen.
After a diabolical sprint race the day before, Piastri has eyes on continuing his impressive form of recent weeks.
5.30AM: PIASTRI TO OVERCOME ‘BUMPS IN THE ROAD’
Welcome to our coverage of the United States Grand Prix from Texas - where there’s plenty of storylines to keep an eye on this morning.
Australia’s Daniel Ricciardo and Oscar Piastri are starting back on the grid, but of much greater surprise is Max Verstappen who qualified sixth fastest.
Piastri, who will start 10th on track, conceded his work in the Saturday sprint race left something to be desired.
“Wasn’t the best of days yesterday, we’ll try to make up for it - I think we can make some progress,” he said.
Mentor and former Australian F1 star Mark Webber was optimistic.
“There’s been a few bumps in the road, first year, sprint race, new experience,” Webber said.
“He’s had some extraordinary weekends this year... yesterday was tricky for him.”
5AM: CAN VERSTAPPEN BE STOPPED?
Newly-crowned world champion Max Verstappen added eight more points to his title-winning tally when he cruised to victory for Red Bull in the sprint race at the United States Grand Prix.
The 26-year-old Dutchman led unchallenged from pole position to chequered flag to finish 9.465 seconds clear of revitalised seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes. Charles Leclerc came home third for Ferrari, 17.997 adrift.
It was Verstappen’s third sprint race win of the season and buoyed his prospects for another triumph in Sunday’s Grand Prix race when he will start from sixth on the grid after having his best qualifying lap deleted for exceeding track limits.
Lando Norris maintained McLaren’s much-improved form by taking a strong fourth place ahead of Sergio Perez in the second Red Bull and Carlos Sainz in the second Ferrari. Norris was less than a second behind Leclerc at the finish.
George Russell finished seventh in the second Mercedes, but he was relegated to eighth after taking a five-second penalty, thus elevating Pierre Gasly of Alpine to seventh.
Will anyone be able to catch Verstappen this morning? Follow the race and all the latest news in our live coverage below.
Originally published as United States Grand Prix: Max Verstappen wins 50th race in fiery scenes as Oscar Piastri retires
Piastri vows no repeat of fifth place finish at US Grand Prix
Even though Oscar Piastri managed a fifth placed finish at the US Grand Prix, the young gun wasn’t impressed with his ‘handful’ of a car, saying he doesn’t want a repeat in the final five races of the F1 season.
Title showdown: Where Supercars crown will be decided
Two of the most brutal events on the Supercars calendar are set to decide the Supercars champion. Here’s how the title fight looks ahead of the final two rounds.