Ferrari goes 1-2 in Texas
Ferrari's performance has brought them back into the running for the team championship.
Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) convincingly won the USA Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, last Sunday, with teammate Carlos Sainz only eight and a half seconds behind him. It was a great boost for Ferrari after a long drought.
Leclerc took the lead at the start, followed by top two championship contenders Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.
They were at it for almost the entire race, jostling for third place, with Norris planning his attempt to get past Verstappen late in the day.
It was exciting stuff with Verstappen defending as manfully as he could until finally, Norris passed him in a move which saw both cars completely off track limits.
Norris was given a five-second penalty for this, which I think was unfair as both cars were off the track.
At the finish, Norris was four seconds ahead and had to hand his third place back to Verstappen.
In my opinion, it was a harsh decision and one which could potentially affect the outcome of the championship.
After the first four came Oscar Piastri in his McLaren Mercedes.
As teammate to Norris, he drove a supportive and competitive race, finishing a few seconds behind.
George Russell was sixth, having had a good duel with Sergio Perez (Red Bull), while Nico Hulkenberg was four seconds further back in eighth position after another solid drive.
The final two places for points were taken by Liam Lawson (ninth) in the junior Red Bull and Franco Colapinto in his Williams (tenth).
The next two races are in Mexico and Brazil, a week apart, so we are enjoying a quadruple-header extravaganza in the Americas.
After that, there’s a two-week break, and then it’s back to the US for the Las Vegas GP on November 24, followed by the Qatar GP on December 1 before the closing race in Abu Dhabi on December 8.
DRIVERS
1 Max Verstappen 354
2 Lando Norris 297
3 Charles Leclerc 275
4 Oscar Piastri 247
5 Carlos Sainz 215
6 Lewis Hamilton 177
7 George Russell 167
8 Sergio Perez 150
9 Fernando Alonso 62
10 Nico Hulkenberg 29
TEAM
1 McLaren 544
2 Red Bull 504
3 Ferrari 496
4 Mercedes 344
5 Aston Martin 86
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