Max Verstappen overcame a slow pit stop to beat Lewis Hamilton to victory at the United Stated Grand Prix on Sunday, as Red Bull wrapped up its fifth Constructors’ Championship.
Sergio Perez came home fourth behind the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc, taking the Austrian side 188 points clear of the Scuderia heading into the final three rounds of the season.
Polesitter Carlos Sainz was out-launched by Max Verstappen off the start, before being spun round by contact with the Mercedes of George Russell.
READ MORE: US Grand Prix – Race Results
The resulting water leak was insurmountable, and Ferrari were forced to retire the 28-year-old’s car at the end of the opening lap.
Russell was handed a five-second penalty for his part in the incident, which he would serve during his first stop of the race, when he switched from Mediums to Hards.
A Safety Car was deployed when Valtteri Bottas span into the gravel, giving a cheap stop to Sergio Perez and Charles Leclerc, who had started ninth and 12th, respectively, due to engine penalties.
Green flag running was short-lived after the restart as Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll made contact down the back straight, sending the Alpine up into the air, before the Spaniard whacked the barrier.
Remarkably, the two-time champion was okay to continue, but his future Aston Martin team-mate was forced to retire.
Following a clean restart, a battle ensued between Leclerc and Perez for third, with the Monegasque pulling a fine move on the Red Bull into Turn 12, enabling him to chase down Lewis Hamilton for second.
Both Hamilton and Leclerc cleared Verstappen when the reigning champion was given an awfully slow stop by his team, leaving him in need of a recovery drive.
The 25-year-old became embroiled in an enthralling battle with the Ferrari, eventually passing him into Turn 12 with 17 laps to go.
Hamilton cleared Sebastian Vettel for the lead, with the German having gone long on Mediums, but his second stop was a horrible one as the Aston Martin mechanics tried to replace the front right.
Meanwhile, Verstappen and Leclerc were converging on Hamilton in the lead, creating the fascinating prospect of a three-way tussle for the lead.
A handful of laps before the end, the Red Bull driver passed Hamilton following a brilliant battle through Turns 12 and 13, reclaiming the lead he had lost in the pit stop phase.
Russell crossed the line fifth, while Alonso finished an excellent sixth following his collision with Stroll.
Norris wound up seventh ahead of Vettel, who passed Kevin Magnussen at the penultimate corner of the final lap. The Dane claimed Haas’ first points since the Austrian Grand Prix.
Yuki Tsunoda took the final point for AlphaTauri, ahead of Esteban Ocon, Alex Albon and Zhou Guanyu.
Pierre Gasly’s two penalties sent him down to P14, and 15th and 16th culminated frustrating weekends for Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ricciardo.
Nicholas Latifi was 17th and last of the classified runners.
Verstappen’s win is his 13th of the season, pulling him level with Vettel and Michael Schumacher for the most wins in a single season.
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