United States Grand Prix: Race Recap

Both drivers started from the pitlane for Sunday’s 56-lap race after set-up changes were made outside of parc ferme regulations. This was undertaken in order to gain further understanding of the upgrade package introduced onto the VF-23 at COTA.

Hulkenberg started on Pirelli P Zero White hard tires and ran a two-stop strategy, coming in on lap 19 for Yellow mediums, before pitting for the same compound on lap 35. Magnussen also ran a two-stop strategy but went medium-hard-medium, adopting a more aggressive undercut approach by pitting on laps 10 and 29.

Both drivers made relative gains from their pitlane starting places, with Hulkenberg rising to 13^th, and chasing home the Williams drivers, with Magnussen 16^th. Post race-disqualifications for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc meant that Hulkenberg was ultimately classified 11th, with Magnussen 14th. A two-car finish provides the team with useful lessons to take away from the weekend. 

Max Verstappen claimed his 15^th victory of the season for Red Bull Racing, ahead of McLaren driver Lando Norris, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz third, following the disqualification of original second-place finsher Lewis Hamilton.

MoneyGram Haas F1 Team retains ninth position in the Constructors’ Championship.

Kevin Magnussen:

“I think the race was better because of the changes we made. It still wasn’t enough though, we weren’t fast enough, and we finished in the position we started in from the pitlane, so we need to find more, but we live to fight another day. It felt better today after having done the changes, putting more downforce on and it was definitely a better set-up.”

 

Nico Hulkenberg: 

“The car felt better and I think the relative performance looked a lot more promising than yesterday but it came at a price, having to start from the pitlane. I feel like if we had a half decent qualifying and qualified in the midfield, we might’ve been able to fight and challenge for points today. There are some positives and encouraging signs, but at the same time it was difficult out there with a lot of tire management going on, but that was the case for everyone.”

 

Guenther Steiner, Team Principal:

“It was a tough race, but obviously it was the right decision to start from the pitlane with the modifications to the downforce level. We learned quite a bit and hopefully we can look into the data and get a little bit better in Mexico. It’s not a magic solution that we’ve got now, but some of the comments from Kevin and Nico were encouraging, so let’s hope we can get closer to what is possible with the car in Mexico.”

 

Today's Data

Event: United States Grand Prix – Sunday October 22
Location: Circuit of The Americas, Austin
Layout: 5.513-kilometer (3.426-mile), 20-turn circuit
Weather: Sunny
Air Temps: 29.4 degrees Celsius (84.9 degrees Fahrenheit)
Track Temps: 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit)
Race Winner: Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing
Team Result: Nico Hulkenberg – Started Pitlane / Finished 13^th, classified 11^th (Running – completed 56/56 laps)
Kevin Magnussen – Started Pitlane / Finished 16^th, classified 14^th (Running – completed 55/56 laps)