Red Bull driver Max Verstappen claimed the checkered flag for a record-tying 15th win this season on Oct. 22.
Despite having officially clinched the Drivers Championship in Qatar, the Dutch driver refuses to let other drivers get an easy win.
As usual, the U.S. Grand Prix was one of the best of the year, providing amazing battles between the 20 drivers in the grid.
McLaren driver Lando Norris found himself leading for over half the race until Verstappen caught up to him with a better tire strategy.
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton eventually caught up to Norris as well, taking second place from him, but a disqualification at the end of the race for Mercedes not following car regulations on Hamilton’s car found Norris reclaiming second place and the Mercedes driver falling behind Sergio “Checo” Perez by 39 points in the Drivers Championship.
Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz claimed the third spot on the podium due to Hamilton’s dis-qualification, whereas his teammate Charles Leclerc was also disqualified for the same reasons as Hamilton.
The two drivers’ disqualifications meant Alpha Tauri driver Yuki Tsunoda claimed his best result of the season, finishing in eighth as well as making the fastest lap, getting him an extra point in the Drivers Championships.
Most importantly, though, rookie Williams driver Logan Sargent became the first American to score points in 30 years.
McLaren driver Oscar Piastri and Alpine driver Esteban Ocon retired early on in the race due to a crash between the two in the first lap, whereas Aston Martin Fernando Alonso (who started from the pit lane) retired on lap 50 with a rear suspension failure.
The Constructors Championship battle Red Bull claimed the Constructors title for the second year in a row during the Japanese Grand Prix.
Despite this meaning the championship is over, prize money at the end of the season is distributed depending on where one finished in the Constructors Championship.
After an abysmal start to the season, McLaren has finally overtaken Aston Martin for the fourth spot in the Constructors despite them earning six podiums in the first eight races to start the season.
The tables have now turned with McLaren appearing on the podium six times in the past nine races, with two double-podiums. McLaren now leads Aston Martin by six points in the Constructors.
Ferrari tightened the gap for second place with Mercedes to just 22 points, outsourcing them by five points in this past race. Williams solidified themselves in seventh place thanks to their first double points in 2021.
On the other hand, after a horrible performance in their home Grand Prix, Haas now finds itself pressured by Alpha Tauri, only leading by two points for last place in the title run. Many of these teams will look to increase their points in the next Grand Prix, which at press time was scheduled to take place in Mexico on Oct. 29.
Driver hot seats
Sergio Perez
The Mexican Red Bull driver has been on one of the worst slumps of his career, with many critics asking for Red Bull to let go of the Mexican Minister of Defense.
Perez has failed to reach the podium in the past three races, letting Lewis Hamilton get closer to him in the Drivers Championship.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner said Perez is struggling in the mental game because of Verstappen’s dominance and that he needs to go back to basics in order to achieve the highest finish any Mexican driver has had in Formula 1. After a strong U.S. Grand Prix, it does seem like “Checo” is slowly but sure-ly regaining form, hopefully letting him retain his seat for next season.
Lance Stroll
The only remaining Canadian driver in Formula 1 is, as many would suggest, the reason why Aston Martin is now on the losing end against McLaren.
Stroll has failed to score points in eight of the 17 races this season, whereas his teammate has failed to score points only twice all season, with one of those occasions being due to a mechanical failure.
Now, despite Stroll severely underperforming all season, this last race was an absolute driving masterclass where he started from the pit lane and made his way up to seventh place.
If Stroll can find the same race pace he showed in Austin, he will have finally proven himself to be worthy of the F1 seat he is in.
Logan Sargeant
The young American has been a very expensive investment for Willaims this season, costing his team over $3 million in damage making many question whether or not he is worth the money and time invested.
However, the U.S. Grand Prix was a statement race for Sargeant, where he finished only 1.2 seconds behind his teammate Alex Albon, who is regarded as one of the best drivers on the grid.
In a race where his goal was to simply finish, he was able to score his first points in Formula 1, earning a 30-year drought of American drivers failing to finish in the Top 10 of a Grand Prix.
If Logan can continue to drive the way he did on in his last game, he’ll solidify his spot on the heavily coveted F1 grid.
