© Getty ImagesA Big Points Haul for the Team in AustinSee the Team's reactions and the full Race Report.
MaxVerstappencappedaperfectweekendinAustinwithadominantlights-to-flagracevictoryaheadofMcLaren’sLandoNorrisandFerrari’sCharlesLeclerc.YukiTsunodaaddedtotheTeam’scelebrationswithastrongdrivefrom13thonthegridtoseventhplaceattheflag.
At the race start, Max got away well from pole to take a solid lead ahead of Lando. The Briton had started as well on the dirty side of the grid and the McLaren driver was ambushed on the exit of turn 1 by Soft-tyre starter Charles who barged past to take P2.
Flyaway Flyover© Getty Images
Lights Out At COTA© Getty Images
Behind the top three, both Lewis Hamilton and Oscar Piastri beat George Russell to the punch and the Mercedes driver dropped from fourth on the grid to sixth. Further back, Yuki also made a good start, and he climbed from P13 to P10. The Japanese driver's start to the race improved soon after, when he made his way past Haas’ Ollie Bearman to take P9 and then climbed to seventh when Carlos Sainz collided with Kimi Antonelli on lap 7.
At the front, after two laps under a Virtual Safety Car, Max led Charles by almost three seconds. The Ferrari driver was also comfortably keeping Lando well over a second behind, while Lewis was a similar distance off the McLaren driver. Yuki was now just 2.5s behind George.
What A View COTA© Getty Images
As the stint evolved, Max began to pull away from the field. Charles was trying to drive as conservatively as possible in order to extend his stint on the Softs and by lap 19 Max was 7.5s clear of the Ferrari driver. Behind Charles, Lando was growing increasingly impatient and as the race headed for one third distance the McLaren driver launched a series of attacks on the Monegasque driver. Charles defended superbly until lap 21, but eventually his fading tyres could hold out no longer and Lando powered past.
Yuki was the first of the Bulls to make a pit stop and came in at the end of lap 29 to make the switch to Softs in a 3.4s halt. Oscar was the next in for Softs, followed by Lewis and Lando and then, at the end of lap 33 Max finally made his sole stop, for C4 Soft tyres before emerging in the lead six seconds clear of Charles who had used his Mediums to good effect to haul his way past Lando with a successful undercut.
Nice Paintjob© Getty Images
The McLaren driver was now on new Soft tyres and by lap 37 he was right up behind the Ferrari and once again pushing to get past. At the front, Max was complaining about the state of his Soft tyres and, with 15 laps left, the Dutchman reported that he was “suddenly sliding a lot”. But though he was struggling for grip, he was able to maintain good pace and the gap back to the Ferrari stayed steady at just under seven seconds.
Yuki In And Out© Getty Images
But then, in the closing laps, Charles’ ageing Medium tyres at last began to give up and on lap 51, Lando got close enough under DRS to make a move stick on the way into turn 12. Charles tried to fight back but Lando quickly began to pull away and the position at the front stabilised. Max crossed the line to take his 68th career win, 7.9 seconds clear of Lando and 15 ahead of Charles.
Another Win for Max!© Getty Images
Fourth place went to Lewis, while Oscar had to settle for fifth place ahead of George. At the end of a strong second stint Yuki brought his RB21 home in seventh place ahead of Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg, Haas’ Ollie Bearman and Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso.
Both drivers bringing home important points for the Team give us 331 points in the Constructors’ Championship, just 3 points behind Ferrari and 10 behind second-placed Mercedes. Max continues to close his gap to the current Drivers’ Championship leader Oscar, with the gap now down to 40 points.
