Lewis Hamilton’s hopes of securing the world championship in style suffered a setback in Austin after he qualified only fifth for Sunday’s United States Grand Prix.
Valtteri Bottas, who has to win here to stand any chance of taking the title fight to Brazil in a fortnight’s time, secured pole position ahead of Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen will line up in third, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc fourth on the grid.
Hamilton needs to finish only eighth to be certain of the title that will move him one above Juan Manuel Fangio and within striking range of Michael Schumacher’s record haul of seven.
But the 34 – year-old British driver will face a tall order to see out the title with his 11 th victory of another world championship-winning campaign.
Hamilton, the sport’s fastest man ever over one lap, has only four poles to his name this year, and he was unable to improve that tally here.
He was running down in fifth place ahead of the final runs, but failed to go any quicker and was forced to abort his last lap.
There were no such concerns for Bottas as he saw off Vettel by just 0.0 12 seconds to take his fifth pole of 2019.
“I am really happy,” said Bottas, who is 74 points behind Hamilton with only 78 ava ilable. “It was a nice lap at the beginning of Q3. It is a good feeling.”
Hamilton is notoriously difficult to beat in Austin, having won on five of his last seven visits to America, but here he finished three tenths down on his Mercedes team-mate. It marked a scruffy session for the five-time world champion, who had earlier irked Verstappen.
Hamilton and Verstappen have been engaged in a war of words since last weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix, and the duo almost collided here in Q2. Hamilton moved to his left to overtake the Toro Rosso of Daniil Kvyat at Turn 19, with Verstappen then taking to the grass to avoid the Briton’s Mercedes.
The Dutchman vented his anger at Hamilton in a strongly-worded radio message.
“It is his f ——- problem, this, what is happening,” said Verstappen. The stewards noted the accident, but took no further action.
Explaining the incident, Verstappen said: “We were all lining up to do our lap, and I had Daniil in front of me.
“We were slowing down to make space and Lewis drove by like nobody was there, and didn’t care. I was like ‘if you don’t care, neither do I’. Everyone was respecting each other and that is why it was such a close call. “
British teenager Lando Norris was the surprise name at the top of the time chart in Q1. The 19 – year -old eventually settling for eighth on the grid, one spot behind Carlos Sainz in the sister McLaren. Alex Albon will line up in sixth place for Red Bull. Renault driver Daniel Ricciardo is ninth on the grid.
Final positions after qualifying:
- Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP (min) *********************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************** 029 SECS
- Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 01: 32 .0 41
- Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 01: 32. 096
- Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari 01: 32. 137
- Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 01: 32. 321
- Alexander Albon (Tha) Red Bull 01: 32. 548
- Carlos Sainz (Spa) McLaren 01: 32. 847
- Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 01: 33. 175
- Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Renault 01: 33. 488
- Pierre Gasly (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso 01: 33. 601
- Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 01: 33. 815
- Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 01: 33. 979
- Daniil Kvyat (Rus) Scuderia Toro Rosso 01: 33. 989
- Lance Stroll (Can) Racing Point 01: 34. 100
- Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 01: 34. 158
- Antonio Giovinazzi (Ita) Alfa Romeo Racing 01: 34. 226
- Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Alfa Romeo Racing 01: 34. 369
- George Russell (Gbr) Williams 01: 35. 372
- Sergio Perez (Mex) Racing Point 01: 35. 808
- Robert Kubica (Pol) Williams 01: 35. 889
Hamilton speaking to Sky Sports F1
Clearly the car had the capability to be n the front row and I just didn’t do it today. It’s my fault and I’ll try and rectify it tomorrow. Honestly, I am not trying to think about that [the race] right now, I am trying to digest what happened and I’ll move onto that later on.
Bit of a weird one for Hamilton
Unusual to see him out-performed like that. He can’t be feeling the pressure of the championship but maybe he is feeling the pressure of winning it in style. The last two years he’s won he did it without being on the podium. He’ll have to fight to do that tomorrow now. Top four within 0. 108 s of each other , Hamilton nearly two tenths further back. He just didn’t hook it up.
Qualifying – Top 10
- BOT
- VET 0.0 12
- VER 0. 067
- LEC 0. 108
- HAM 0. 292
- ALB 0. 519
- SAI 0. 818
- NOR 1. 146
- RIC 1. 459
- GAS 1. 572
Very little in it at the front, less than a tenth between the top three, just over a tenth for the top four. Bottas on top, though. He was 11 / 1 for the win before qualifying. If he can hold first place by the end of the first lap that’ll go a long way to his fourth victory of the season.
VALTTERI BOTTAS TAKES POLE POSITION FOR THE (US GRAND PRIX)
He nailed his first lap. Nobody improved bar Verstappen on their second runs. Albon gets his lap deleted for a track limits violation but stays in P6. That’s Bottas’s fifth pole of the season and Mercedes’ first since the German Grand Prix in July! Hamilton in P5, that is not great at all. It was another messy lap on his second run.
He nailed his first lap. Nobody improved bar Verstappen on their second runs. Albon gets his lap deleted for a track limits violation but stays in P6. That’s Bottas’s fifth pole of the season and Mercedes’ first since the German Grand Prix in July! Hamilton in P5, that is not great at all. It was another messy lap on his second run.
Q3 – Vettel and Leclerc both slower in sector two
Has the track evolution stopped? Verstappen can’t improve, neither can Vettel! Has Bottas got pole here? Hamilton doesn’t look like challenging it either … Hamilton gives his lap up, that’s it, surely? Verstappen improves and goes fastest in the final sector but just can’t dislodge Bottas or Vettel and stays in third!
Q3 – Top 10 after the first runs
- BOT
- VET 0.0 12
- VER 0. 162
- LEC 0. 198
- HAM 0. 292
- ALB 0. 519
- SAI 0. 818
- NOR 1. 733
- GAS 2. 243
- RIC (no time set)
Norris will surely improve once he bolts on a set of fresh soft tires . Ricciardo out on track on his own for his one hot lap of the session. Would be surprised if he can beat either McLaren but beating Gasly in P9 could be a fair target.
Q3 – Ferrari falling back in sector two here
As Sainz goes quickest, briefly. To be displaced by Hamilton first and then Bottas, who beats his team-mate by 0. 292 S!
Q3 – Leclerc quickest in sector one
And Vettel second quickest. Hamilton third. Have the Ferraris found their pace again?
A bit of a moment between Kvyat, Hamilton and Verstappen there
Looked like Verstappen was blocked by Hamilton, who was unawares of the Red Bull behind him. They were both trying to pass the Toro Rosso of Kvyat and it was close to a collision but it was just a bit of a strange moment, they both tried to overtake him at the same time, Verstappen trying one down the inside of them and complaining about it on the radio. I don’t think he has anything to complain about, he knew Hamilton would be overtaking Kvyat so why did he try and go down the inside of them both?
Q2 ends
T (op) :
- LEC
- VET 0.0 22
- ALB 0. 138
- HAM 0. 285
- VER 0. 260
- BOT 0. 400
- NOR 0. 556
- SAI 0. 662
- RIC 0. 848
- GAS 0. 955
Drivers eliminated:11. HUL 12. MAG 13. KVY 14. STR 15. GRO
Kvyat actually had his second hot lap removed due to a track limits violation and drops back two spots. P 13 rather than P 11.
Q2 – Drivers on their hot laps
Lance Stroll is the first driver on a hot lap at the moment and he’s struggling to get out of Q2 here. Indeed, he cannot improve enough to get into the top 10 and Q3.
Norris improves by 0.5s to go seventh, Magnussen stays P 10 and on the cusp, that’s dangerous. Grosjean doesn’t improve either … Sainz doesn’t improve either and stays P8.
Hulkenberg gets into P 10, knocking Magnussen out. Ricciardo then knocks Hulkenberg out! Vettel pops up in P1 and then he’s pipped by Leclerc by 0.0 22 seconds!
Can Kvyat improve? No. He ends it in P 11, where he was before the final runs.
Q2 – That calm before the storm feeling
Three minutes on the clock, out come the top teams. Both Mercedes on the soft tires, unlikely they’ll set a time unless they need to. If it looks close they can set a time and also it gives them a bit of practice on the softs for Q3. Ferrari out on the mediums, though, so it is 100 per cent certain they will start on that compound. I don’t think anyone is safe bar the top six.
Q2 – Drivers in the drop zone
11. KVY
12. RIC
13. STR
14. HUL
15. GRO
Kvyat within 0.0 10 of P 10, Ricciardo less than a tenth behind him, Stroll less than a tenth behind Ricciardo, Hulkenberg a little further back and Grosjean all out on his own, over 0. 150 s behind P 14.
Q2 – Sainz goes fifth
Just 0. 457 behind Vettel, but on the soft rather than medium tires. Norris can’t match that, he’s eight tenths behind Hamilton. Verstappen is looking like posting a good time, can he disrupt the order here?
Yes! Quickest in the final sector and just behind Hamilton. Albon is also looking quick, mighty quick. It’s a 1. 32. 898 on the soft tires, 0. 147 ahead of Hamilton. Decent but much of the difference is down to those tires.
Q2 – Hot laps underway
And Leclerc is the quickest of anyone in sector one … Hamilton quickest in sector two, taking two tenths out of Leclerc there. This could be close. It’s a 1. 33. 045 for Hamilton, it’s quickest but for how lon g?
Bottas can’t beat it … Vettel is even further back. Leclerc? He’s third, just behind Bottas but ahead of Vettel. They are all within two tenths of one another. In fact just 0. 153 between Hamilton in first and Vettel in fourth.
Q2 begins – 15 minutes to go
Both Mercs and Ferraris out on the medium tires. There’s a big difference between each compound this weekend, but they should be okay to get through here. Wondered if McLaren would put either of their drivers on the mediums, but it seems not.
Q1 – Drivers finishing hot laps in a bunch!
Russell gets into P 16 but that’s not enough. Decent lap, though. Raikkonen gets into P 14 but is bumped down immediately by his team-mate Giovinazzi. But Gasly then goes P4 and knockshiminto the drop zone, both Alfas out then.
Romain Grosjean survives but only just. Less than a tenth of a second and he’s into Q2. Nice work.
Q1 – Perez in P 18 and not coming out again
But he takes a grid drop so it’s not likely to affect him at all. Magmussen goes quickest in sector one, Norris quickest in sector two. Track evolution very strong here. Hulkenberg moves up into P8 but I think that could be close. Is Sainz in danger here? Norris goes quickest! I think he could be …
Q1 – Zac Brown thinks a mid 1. 34 is about the cut off time here
Norris currently has a 1. 34 5 to his name. It is pretty close around the drop zone. Hamilton is currently topping the timesheets. Ferrari 4th and 7th and haven’t unlocked any decent pace yet. Two minutes to go, we’ll see a gaggle of cars out there now. Doesn’t look like Carlos Sainz is going out, though. He’s still sitting in his car in the garage. He should be safe, though.
Q1 – Leclerc sets the fastest first sector
But loses shape in the middle sector and has to back out of his lap. He’s still down in P7. Bottas, meanwhile, is looking like he means business, going fastest in sector two. Not sure if that was on an out lap but if it wasn’t, he did not improve his time.
Q1 – Verstappen out in front
But only until Hamilton sets his first lap. The Mercedes driver goes quicker by 0. 095 s. Verstappen is still quicker than Bottas, though, by two tenths of a second. What can Vettel do on his second hot lap? Ferrari don’t look super quick here at the moment.
Q1 – Albon into the 1. 33 s
As he goes quickest. Norris about 0.5s behind. Carlos Sainz has gone quickest of anyone in the middle sector and is looking good here. He’s looking VERY good as he goes quickest by 0. 07 s over Albon. McLaren are looking very tasty here. Leclerc has completed another hot lap but he’s still slower than Albon and in P4.
Q1 – Leclerc still fastest
But Gasly has slotted into second, just 0. 181 s behind. Vettel had started a hot lap but messed it up very early on with a lock-up into turn one. He abandoned his lap soon after.
(9: (PM) *************************************
Q1 – Leclerc out on track early
Which is no surprise as he completed a total of 0 laps in practice. A 1.. 34 .7 for him, 0. 825 s ahead of Kimi Raikkonen’s Alfa Romeo. There isn’t any doubt that Leclerc will get into Q3 with his pace but it’s about how high up the grid he starts after missing running and being re-fitted with a used engine for qualifying.
A couple of questions ahead of qualifying
Can Verstappen take pole position? I’d be surprised if Mercedes and Ferrari were not a lot closer. But it’s on. Can Lando Norris hold his third place from practice in qualifying? No. There’s almost no chance of that. But being in the top six is certainly a possibility.
We’ve got about five minutes until Q1 begins …
Formula One chiefs predict futuristic new cars likely to be three seconds per lap slower than the existing machines
While the cars have a futuristic look and a revised rear-wing concept to diminish the effect of turbulent air on the drivers behind, raw speed has been sacrificed in the hope of encouraging more competitive racing. “We are expecting cars to be approximately 3-3½ seconds slower per lap,” said Nikolas Tombazis, the FIA’s head of single-seater technical affairs. “But we don’t think that is the key parameter. We feel the raceability is the main target. ”
F1 unveils its 2021 Blueprint
F1 is due for significant rule changes for the 2021 season. There has been a lot of wrangling going on behind the scenes and we’ve had delay, after delay, after delay. But on Thursday F1 unveiled their plans for the 2021 rules, aimed at creating closer racing between the teams, reducing downforce and making it easier for cars to follow one another without losing so much downforce in dirty air. Below are a few rough images of what they expect the 2021 cars to look like.
They look neat, I think. They also look like the current IndyCars. Which is nobadthing.
How can Hamilton win the world title this weekend?
- If Valtteri Bottas does not win, Hamilton is champion
- If Bottas winswiththe fastest lap bonus point, Hamilton needs to finish eighth or higher to be champion
- If Bottas winswithoutscoring the fastest lap bonus point, Hamilton can finish ninth and be champion as long as he scores the fastest lap point
Leclerc update from Ferrari
****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************** (We had an oil leak (cause still being investigated (on) # Charles 16’s engine so we are now fitting another (used) engine. (# USGP) 🇺🇸- Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) (November 2, 2019
That means it won’t be a penalty. But using an old engine will affect performance a little.
Final times after third practice
- Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1min 33. (secs)
- Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1: 33. 523
- Lando Norris (Gbr) McLaren 1: 33. 818
- Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP 1: 33. 904
- . 923
- Alexander Albon (Tha) Red Bull 1: 33. 983
- Carlos Sainz (Spa) McLaren 1: 34. 408
- Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Alfa Romeo Racing 1: 34. 513
- Pierre Gasly (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1: 34. 517
- Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Renault 1: 34. 774
- Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 1: 34. 784
- Lance Stroll (Can) Racing Point 1: 34. 792
- Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 1: 34. 849
- Daniil Kvyat (Rus) Scuderia Toro Rosso 1: 35. 129
- Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1: 35. 305
- Antonio Giovinazzi (Ita) Alfa Romeo Racing 1: 35. 956
- George Russell (Gbr) Williams 1: 36. 256
- Robert Kubica (Pol) Williams 1: 36. 628
- Sergio Perez (Mex) Racing Point 1: 38. 426
- Charles Leclerc (Mon) Ferrari No Time Set
Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:
Good afternoon F1 fans
And welcome to our coverage for qualifying for the 2019 United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas, in Austin. For my money, it’s one of the best tracks that Formula One visits and consistently produces brilliant races. Last year edition, with Kimi Raikkonen winning his first race for Ferrari since 2009, was a prime example. In fact, when I went through the current calendar and ranked and rated every circuit, COTA was fourth behind Silverstone, Spa-Francorchamps and Suzuka. I reckon it’s the best F1 track designed in the last 10 or 20 years.
As you should be aware,Lewis Hamilton can secure his sixth world drivers’ title at the US Grand Prix. All he needs to do is finish eighth to do that and even if Bottas wins he’ll be champion. Given that ninth is Hamilton’s worst result of the season and that Bottas has won only three times all year, it seems almost certain that he’ll move within one of Michael Schumacher’s record seven titles tomorrow evening UK time. He’ll want to do it with a victory but, really, he’ll likely have plenty to celebrate in around 24 hours’ time.
His Mercedes team, though, have struggled to match Ferrari for raw pace since we returned from the summer break. The last time Mercedes or Hamilton were fastest in qualifying was all the way back in July at the German Grand Prix. Their race pace, though, is still top of the shop and that is where Ferrari have struggled to keep up with them. Will it be the same in Austin? COTA is a different type of track to Mexico City – where Hamilton won last week – but it’s not yet clear if Mercedes will be genuine contenders for pole position, having finished fourth and fifth in final practice.
Max Verstappen topped that session for Red Bull (as he did in FP1, with Hamilton quickest in FP2 yesterday) ahead of Vettel’s Ferrari by 0. 169 seconds. Lando Norris was a surprise in third, just 0.5 seconds slower than Verstappen. Again there was concern for Ferrari, though, with Charles Leclerc pulling over to the side of the track just minutes into the session with an engine or gearbox issue. That may require and change and subsequent penalty but we wait to see.
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