F1 2024 United States Grand Prix Qualifying

Sportixer

Transcript

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00:00:44Right, it's a big day of sports here in this part of Texas.

00:00:47Welcome to Austin for round 19

00:00:50of the Formula One World Championship in 2024.

00:00:54There's a massive college football game

00:00:56that kicks off in about an hour and a half's time.

00:00:58And for that, who's got the Russian game

00:01:00around the circuit of the Americas.

00:01:0212th time we've been here for a US Grand Prix

00:01:05and Polar's won five out of the previous 11 races.

00:01:09Here's the track, 3.426 miles long.

00:01:13Full throttle, just over 56% of that lap.

00:01:16Bouncery Bottas, the lap record holder.

00:01:18And there are two DRS zones,

00:01:20one of which, down towards Turn 12,

00:01:22has been shortened by 95 meters since last year.

00:01:25There are 20 corners in total,

00:01:27and by the time you get to Turn 20,

00:01:29those Red Stripe soft tyres are screaming for mercy.

00:01:32And the medium tyre is what the group drivers had

00:01:35for the sprint race,

00:01:36and they were all suffering with raining by the end.

00:01:38The hard tyre we'll see for tomorrow's Grand Prix.

00:01:4156 laps to come.

00:01:43Max Verstappen's already taken one pole position

00:01:46for the sprints this weekend.

00:01:48He hasn't been on pole for a Grand Prix since Imola,

00:01:51back at the start of May.

00:01:53And they seem pretty happy.

00:01:54Red Bull with his car, Martin Brundle.

00:01:56Can he go and make it two poles, add a two this weekend?

00:01:59Yeah, pivotal point today with Max Verstappen

00:02:02winning front pole in the sprint race

00:02:04and feeling much happier with the car,

00:02:07adding some points to his championship lead.

00:02:11But we've had the appetizer,

00:02:13now it's the main course, qualifying,

00:02:15and the main race where the big points are handed out.

00:02:19They've got a lot more experience now.

00:02:20Yesterday, one hour to get themselves together.

00:02:23Now they've had sprint qualifying,

00:02:25they've had the sprint.

00:02:26Three hours to adjust their cars

00:02:28and the knowledge they've gained through all of that.

00:02:31I'm expecting them to be more dialed in

00:02:33and even closer in this session.

00:02:36Williams with Alex Albon took their car out of palm firm.

00:02:39They've changed some of the suspension set up

00:02:41and the rear wing as well.

00:02:43Very much with this Grand Prix qualifying

00:02:45and the race in mind.

00:02:47Haas are running the upgrades on both of their cars.

00:02:49Only Nico Hülkenberg had it for the sprint session.

00:02:52And if we've had the appetizer,

00:02:54now for the main course,

00:02:55it's an entree into the pit lane for the drivers already.

00:02:59I can't believe this.

00:03:00There's two minutes to go until the green light

00:03:02and they're all out there queuing up.

00:03:04They are. They want to get out and do it.

00:03:06But I also think that helps them with losing tyre pressure

00:03:10because they've lost tyre temperature.

00:03:12And they have minimum...

00:03:14They've got to come out of the blankets on the car

00:03:16at a minimum pressure,

00:03:18which I believe is 23.5-21 here.

00:03:22But they do lose a bit of that

00:03:24while they're sitting in the pit lane.

00:03:25I think it's quite helpful

00:03:27when they've got to go out and do a hot lap

00:03:30and get ready to deliver

00:03:33the fastest lap they can achieve this afternoon.

00:03:36Ted, what can you tell us?

00:03:38Well, it's quite nice.

00:03:39Hello, Martin. Hello, Crofty.

00:03:40Hello, everybody, by the way.

00:03:41It's quite nice actually for them to come out two minutes before

00:03:43because it gives me a lovely view of some Formula 1 cars.

00:03:45One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve.

00:03:47There are about 13 of them right in front of me.

00:03:50A lot of them on scrub tyres.

00:03:51The Ferraris on red tyres that they've used before,

00:03:53as have the Williams and the McLaren.

00:03:55Valtteri Bottas and his teammate Joe Guangyu on fresh tyres.

00:03:58I've got to tell you, it's Bottas' car

00:04:00that's been right up against it, Crofty,

00:04:02in terms of being finished.

00:04:03They had to change a lot of the both rear corners

00:04:06because they caught fire at the end of the sprint race.

00:04:09So the Sauber mechanics have been working very hard,

00:04:11but that car is ready.

00:04:13And I think it's fourth in the queue,

00:04:16ready to go out.

00:04:19I've never seen a busier pit lane at this stage, Ted,

00:04:22for a qualifying session.

00:04:24We just had a look at Liam Lawson

00:04:26deputising now for Daniel Ricciardo

00:04:28for the rest of the season, replacing him at RB.

00:04:31He has got a grip penalty to carry into tomorrow's race.

00:04:34He's taken pretty much every single extra element

00:04:37in the power unit that he can.

00:04:39It equates to a 60-place grip penalty,

00:04:42or he will start behind any of the last classified finishers.

00:04:46So whoever is classified last in this session,

00:04:48he'll start behind them.

00:04:49That's how I understand those regs.

00:04:56Finally, we get a green light then.

00:04:58And they can, one by one, file their way onto the track.

00:05:02Yeah, to pick up on Liam Lawson,

00:05:03his team principal, Lauren Mackey,

00:05:05said to us earlier on in the day,

00:05:07look, I think that takes the pressure off him.

00:05:09He hasn't raced a car for a year,

00:05:11and he did look a bit rusty in the sprint,

00:05:13I must say.

00:05:14We saw him a little bit under pressure

00:05:16with wheel-to-wheel combat, Liam Lawson,

00:05:19but they'll be looking forward to settling down this weekend.

00:05:22And then, as he fully admits himself,

00:05:24he's got to deliver in that car,

00:05:27in the RB where he's replaced Daniel Ricciardo.

00:05:30That's Lando Norris looking to try and deliver

00:05:33something a little better for him than he fared in the sprint.

00:05:36Started fourth, finished third,

00:05:38and lost points to Max Verstappen in that championship battle.

00:05:43Verstappen now 339 points, Lando Norris 285 points.

00:05:48My basic math tells me that's a 54-point lead

00:05:52that Max Verstappen now has with, what, 172 points?

00:05:56Yeah.

00:05:57Thanks ever so much, Mr. Maths Teacher.

00:05:59There's plenty of points out there,

00:06:01but, you know, Norris is not really putting Verstappen

00:06:06under pressure with that kind of, with a 54 point.

00:06:10You know, that's two full Grand Prix, isn't it?

00:06:13With fastest lap and a couple of points to spare.

00:06:16You know, if Max doesn't show up,

00:06:18you know, didn't race tomorrow or in Mexico,

00:06:21that's the next weekend,

00:06:23it's still be leading the World Championship.

00:06:25So that's the comfort zone he's got there.

00:06:28And as I say, the sprint race only served to help that along.

00:06:33But this is about now

00:06:35turning five great racing drivers into spectators.

00:06:39Replica helmet for Alex Albon

00:06:41to match his first ever helmet

00:06:43when he first started racing in single-seaters

00:06:46all those years ago.

00:06:47And he's done that in tribute to Valentino Rossi

00:06:50and because it's his 100th Grand Prix this weekend.

00:06:53OK, that was Alonso.

00:06:55Don't worry about it.

00:06:57He's doing exactly what he said he'd do.

00:07:00Yeah, don't stress about it. Forget it.

00:07:02Fernando Alonso carrying on where he left off in the sprints,

00:07:05where he called that car the Alpha Tower.

00:07:07Yeah.

00:07:08Yeah, there's just no point in letting your pulse rise.

00:07:14Just focus on the qualifying.

00:07:16You can't change anything there.

00:07:18It's irrelevant anyway.

00:07:20Alonso has overtook Liam Lawson on the track,

00:07:24which we didn't see.

00:07:26I assume he passed him at the wrong time.

00:07:28Didn't he shoot up the inside going into the first corner

00:07:31because he wanted track position?

00:07:33Fernando, a man in a hurry as always.

00:07:36Yeah, and needing to get a bit of a shift on for Aston Martin,

00:07:41for whom neither car reached Q2 here last year

00:07:45and who got to the second part of sprint qualifying yesterday

00:07:49and both had their lap time deleted for exceeding track limits.

00:07:52This man didn't get out of the first parts of qualifying

00:07:55and both Williams were knocked out in Q1 here last year.

00:07:58So we'll see how he navigates Turn 12, Alex Albon.

00:08:01Yeah, he could do with a bit of a decent run, Alex Albon.

00:08:04It's been a bit difficult for him lately, hasn't it?

00:08:07And he's got a teammate that is competing against him,

00:08:10which he probably hasn't had during his time at Williams.

00:08:13Yeah, he's got 100 races under his belt.

00:08:16That's kind of an apprenticeship these days, isn't it?

00:08:19Fernando Alonso celebrates 400 races next weekend,

00:08:23which is inconceivable as far as I'm concerned.

00:08:26Yeah, 400 race weekends.

00:08:28Alex taking the press conference.

00:08:30I can't quite believe I've overtaken Sir Jack Stewart

00:08:32as the list of most experienced drivers.

00:08:34Well, he aborts that lap.

00:08:36So comes in at the end of it,

00:08:38and obviously didn't feel that it was a lap that was going to count for much.

00:08:41So wants to come in and have a bit more time to make a few changes

00:08:44as Lily, his girlfriend, watches on from the back of the garage.

00:08:48That's prepping the tyres, I think.

00:08:50Colopinto's doing the same thing.

00:08:51So I think that's just what we call a light scrub.

00:08:53Give it a bit of a heat cycle.

00:08:55Toughen the tyre up.

00:08:56Some teams think...

00:08:58I mean, we always do it with some brands.

00:09:00Some teams think it doesn't work with Pirelli's,

00:09:02others...

00:09:03Aston Martin do it as well, don't they?

00:09:05Just to get the shiny surface off

00:09:07and give it a little bit of a buff.

00:09:101.34.49 for Fernando Alonso,

00:09:13ahead of Bottas, Okoff, Joe and Gasly.

00:09:16And here's Lando Norris, fastest overall in the middle sector.

00:09:20He was two tenths down on Carlos Sainz in the first sector,

00:09:24two tenths up on Carlos Sainz in the middle part of the lap.

00:09:28I dare say it's going to be a close battle

00:09:30between Leclerc and Ferrari throughout this qualifying session.

00:09:33Let's see how good this lap is,

00:09:35as Norris crosses the line at 1.34.0.

00:09:38So not quite into the 1.33s.

00:09:41And last year, Q1, which was held on a Friday,

00:09:441.35.0 from Lewis Hamilton at the fastest time.

00:09:47Sainz seven hundredths outside Norris.

00:09:50Yeah, we've still got a 39 degrees track temperature.

00:09:54Charles Leclerc crosses the line only P5

00:09:58and behind Valtteri Bottas.

00:10:00So something didn't work out on that lap for Charles Leclerc.

00:10:04I like that McLaren livery, it really jumps out of the racetrack.

00:10:07It is, with the extra crove along the side as Piastri goes third fastest.

00:10:12A very striking livery.

00:10:14Just to let you know, Alpine,

00:10:16as the Williams comes out of the pit lane,

00:10:18the Alpine has changed its livery for this weekend.

00:10:21It looks very much like a McLaren.

00:10:23They've got a partnership with Indiana Jones.

00:10:26I think they had a whip round, if you pardon the pun.

00:10:28And Balsa-Bupin, there it is.

00:10:30It's not pink anymore, it's orange.

00:10:32It's sort of a dirty orange, though, isn't it?

00:10:34Actually, when you're trackside, it looks quite a bit different to the Macca,

00:10:38although their wheels actually look more McLaren than the McLarens do now.

00:10:43That is Pierre Gasly, who had a lap time deleted.

00:10:46One of three, actually, so far.

00:10:48Yuki Tsunoda, too, and Charles Leclerc.

00:10:51But they're all on Outlap,

00:10:52so they're not going to make any difference too much to the standings.

00:10:57Here comes Max Verstappen, then.

00:10:58Take us through this, Martin, as he exits Turn 1.

00:11:01Yeah, it's accelerated beautifully down there.

00:11:03The bump's gone in two,

00:11:05so they can take them on normal line through there.

00:11:07And then they just come at you thick and fast.

00:11:11But they get ever tighter towards the end.

00:11:13So you have to start slowing down.

00:11:15Some corners tighten through the exit as well.

00:11:18And this is a critical blind over the top of the hill.

00:11:22Totally blind when you're sitting on the ground.

00:11:24And a big braking.

00:11:26You're slightly uphill as you finally get to the Turn 11 hairpin.

00:11:30A nice up, pick up the throttle.

00:11:32Beautiful the way the car's just complaining at you.

00:11:35You want a little bit of slip at the back for maximum traction.

00:11:39And then the shortest route you can take without scrubbing any speed off

00:11:44into Turn 12.

00:11:46Nice wide turn here.

00:11:48The corner that also nips through the exit.

00:11:50It kept it within track limits.

00:11:52Max was very cautious with the white lines

00:11:55and the little blue telltale lines yesterday for sprint qualifying.

00:12:00And let's see what he does today

00:12:02as he's heading towards the end of the lap.

00:12:05Navigating the traffic nicely.

00:12:0616, 17, 18, 1.

00:12:09Flat out, triple apex, right-hander, downhill.

00:12:1219, get the car slowed down again.

00:12:15Plenty of space up against the white line.

00:12:18Brake into the hill for the final corner.

00:12:20The finish line comes up very quickly indeed.

00:12:24And that is fastest at the moment.

00:12:26Yeah, it is.

00:12:27By about three-tenths of a second from Lando Norris

00:12:30and Sergio Perez slots into third fastest

00:12:33with an identical time to the one that Lando Norris managed.

00:12:37So they've got times on the board.

00:12:38Charles Leclerc hasn't got a time on the board at the moment.

00:12:41That lap time that was deleted was before track limits.

00:12:44And it would have put him with a 1.34.9

00:12:48only around where Esteban Ocon was.

00:12:51The thing there, Martin, is that

00:12:53he would have had to have gone again anyway

00:12:55because that time wasn't good enough.

00:12:56But does he need to now burn up another set of new soft compound tyres?

00:13:00You would think so, wouldn't you?

00:13:02Keep an eye on that.

00:13:04And that's...

00:13:05Unless, of course, he started on the used.

00:13:08And I'm being told he did start on the used tyres.

00:13:12So, no harm done so far

00:13:15as long as he gets a time in.

00:13:17Here's George Russell on his latest lap.

00:13:1925.3 for the first sector.

00:13:21Same as Kevin Magnussen, same as Nico Hülkenberg.

00:13:24Alex Albon managed a 25.2

00:13:26and he goes into fourth fastest

00:13:28as Russell now exits.

00:13:30A little unsteady.

00:13:31Out of Turn 11 and makes that long run

00:13:34down towards the braking zone of Turn 12

00:13:37where there's a little ripple in the tarmac

00:13:39that the cars have to ride over.

00:13:41That slightly unsettles the car under braking.

00:13:44Right there.

00:13:46Nicely done, though, by George Russell

00:13:48through the middle sector of 37.6.

00:13:51Once again, matched by Kevin Magnussen in the Haas

00:13:54and Nico Hülkenberg in the other Haas.

00:13:58Because they get one set less

00:14:00which seems illogical, doesn't it?

00:14:02But on a sprint weekend where you've got two qualifying sessions

00:14:04and two races

00:14:06you've got one less set of tyres

00:14:07which is an attempt to gradually wean teams off

00:14:11throwing brand new tyres at the car all the time.

00:14:14Hülkenberg had a very good final sector

00:14:16and three tenths of a second slower

00:14:18with his teammate Kevin Magnussen.

00:14:19Second and eighth for Haas and Russell.

00:14:21Only 10th fastest so far for Mercedes.

00:14:25Here's Lewis Hamilton next to come round the final corner.

00:14:29And where does he end up?

00:14:31The light comes at you quite quickly.

00:14:32Only 14th fastest.

00:14:33I haven't got the information in front of me, Martin

00:14:35but I dare say they are both on a used set of soft tyres as well.

00:14:42Yeah, both Ferrari's out on new tyres now

00:14:45and the Mercs on a used tyre.

00:14:48We don't see that actually at the beginning of Qualifying 3

00:14:50but as I say, they've got less, a smaller tyre allocation

00:14:54on a sprint weekend.

00:14:55I wonder as well, is it a case of getting the drivers

00:14:57dialed in on the soft tyre?

00:14:59They've been out sprint racing on those medium tyres

00:15:02so let's just use up the set of softs that we had

00:15:04in sprint qualifying and get their eye in a little bit.

00:15:08Lawson goes fourth fastest into the 1.33s for him.

00:15:12Pierre Gasly is quickest overall.

00:15:15So new tyres against used tyres.

00:15:17I think a lot of the differences here.

00:15:19Tsunoda goes fifth fastest.

00:15:20Bottas only 14th fastest.

00:15:22And I haven't mentioned Esteban Ocon

00:15:24who's right up there in sixth currently as well.

00:15:26And I think we're looking at the low 1.33s

00:15:30as the times that are going to be the competitive ones

00:15:33come the end of this Q1 session.

00:15:35Well we've had different cars out there racing

00:15:38and it seems like they're now reconditioning the track.

00:15:41The surface will come to this brand new surface

00:15:44in many parts of it.

00:15:45Although the track temperature has gone up a little bit

00:15:48since we started this qualifying session

00:15:50but quite clearly the track is coming to the drivers.

00:15:53It's a cloudy day, as in little bits of cloud in the sky

00:15:58as you can see there.

00:15:59So if the sun does get a little bit blocked by a cloud

00:16:02for long enough

00:16:03that might just cool things down at the right moment

00:16:06or the wrong moment if it doesn't for you

00:16:08depending on when you're on the track.

00:16:10Tsunoda goes last again then

00:16:12because he lost that lap time at 33.9.

00:16:14That's why you see him down at the bottom with Leclerc.

00:16:17No time recorded.

00:16:19So that's two laps deleted then for Yuki Tsunoda.

00:16:24It is two laps deleted for Yuki Tsunoda

00:16:27Tsunoda signs to turn 11.

00:16:30Second gear corner around about 45 miles an hour

00:16:33accelerating to maximum speed of just under 200 miles an hour.

00:16:37Maybe a few miles an hour more with DRS

00:16:40by the time you slam on the brakes in the turn 12.

00:16:43Great place to watch Formula 1 cars down there.

00:16:46That's where a lot of overtaking happens isn't it there?

00:16:49This section works beautifully for good racing.

00:16:52When you're in front it's really hard to defend.

00:16:55Eventually your assailant will have you in the wrong part of the racetrack.

00:17:00Will have you off guard somewhere.

00:17:02And we've seen some cracking racing already in the sprint through there.

00:17:05Two Ferraris looking really sharp here.

00:17:08Charles Leclerc in the middle sector

00:17:10has pulled out a bit of an advantage on this man.

00:17:13His teammate Carlos Sainz

00:17:15who took a very, very impressive second place in the sprint race

00:17:21goes second fastest behind Pierre Gasly.

00:17:24Six one thousandths of a second difference.

00:17:27And Charles Leclerc goes fastest overall

00:17:30by about three tenths from Pierre Gasly.

00:17:32He should be rightly very proud, I think, of the time that he's got on the board.

00:17:37Rounding the final corner now is Oscar Piastri

00:17:39and puts himself into the top seven.

00:17:41133.9, I wonder is that going to be enough?

00:17:44Come the chequered flag.

00:17:46Ted Kravitz, down to you.

00:17:47Yes, I think it will.

00:17:48I think we're looking at a 34.1, 34.2 to get you into Q2.

00:17:52But Lando's going to have to go again.

00:17:54Lots of people in the 34.0s.

00:17:57From Lando in P9 now.

00:17:59P4 now, he's just crossed the line.

00:18:01Has he improved? Good, he needed to do that.

00:18:03So does Oscar Piastri, which he has done, I believe.

00:18:05He's P7, correctly, if I'm wrong, Crofty.

00:18:07But those like Magnussen, Stroll, Albon, Colopinto on a 34.0, 34.1

00:18:12that will be right on the margins.

00:18:15He's P8, Oscar Piastri, because his teammate had just crossed the line.

00:18:18But you were right, when you last looked at the timing screen,

00:18:21there's Yuki Tsunoda, who's having trouble staying on the asphalt

00:18:26and inside the white lights.

00:18:29Yeah, I think that's, from this angle, we'll see.

00:18:31That's a slam dunk.

00:18:33It was only momentarily, wasn't it, that he'd got both of those

00:18:37outside of the blue line, but they paint the blue line now

00:18:40to help give the drivers much more visibility.

00:18:43Try to make it as kind as possible, but as rigid, too, as possible.

00:18:47You have to have track limits.

00:18:50Got to have a field of play.

00:18:52Remember, it was at the IndyCar race here where there were no track limits

00:18:56and they all went sailing wide at that corner.

00:18:59Did something fly off the Ferrari there?

00:19:01It was either tripping over somebody else's pieces of carbon fibre

00:19:04or it looked suspiciously like his, didn't it?

00:19:06It certainly did.

00:19:08Lance Stroll has been noted for an incident,

00:19:12potential impeding, with Nico Hülkenberg

00:19:15that the stewards aren't looking at as yet,

00:19:17but race control have certainly noted that.

00:19:21Lance Stroll has scored his first points here last year, seventh.

00:19:25It was his sixth start, I think, around here.

00:19:29Only raced last season that he scored, and Fernando Alonso didn't.

00:19:33So, three and a quarter minutes to go

00:19:38and two Mercedes in the drop zone at the moment.

00:19:42And now they need to do something about it.

00:19:44And here they are.

00:19:45Yeah, well, they certainly do.

00:19:46Russell is 17th, Hamilton is 18th.

00:19:50And whilst they all came out early onto the track,

00:19:53there's been a few exploratory laps.

00:19:55These are the ones that are really going to count.

00:19:57There's a fair bit of traffic for George Russell to try and navigate on this lap.

00:20:02Charles Leclerc keeps out of his way as he goes through Turn 1.

00:20:06There is the Ferrari of Leclerc disappearing into the distance

00:20:09as we look from the rear wing of George Russell's Mercedes.

00:20:12By 12 one thousandths of a second, he was denied pole position for the sprint race.

00:20:16Now he's in a battle to try and get out of the bottom five.

00:20:20And he's already nearly three tenths up in the effort to do that.

00:20:24But, Martin, he's two tenths down on Verstappen on this lap through the first sector alone.

00:20:28Yeah, Verstappen flying through the first sector

00:20:31comfortably faster than anybody else we've seen.

00:20:34And we'll see what the middle sector is about 46 seconds here.

00:20:38So you have to wait a little, you have to be patient for that one.

00:20:41Russell and Hamilton then have both done personal bests.

00:20:44That's essential for them at the moment.

00:20:46It certainly is. Verstappen with a 37.2 in the middle sector.

00:20:50George Russell will be coming to the end of that in a few moments' time.

00:20:53And we can try and let you know how he fares.

00:20:57Dropped a tenth to Verstappen in that middle part of the lap.

00:21:01How he fares up against the Red Bull.

00:21:04And Leclerc Gasly cites the top three.

00:21:07And Russell looking good here for about a top six at the moment.

00:21:10Hamilton, though, half a second down on his teammate through that middle sector.

00:21:14Verstappen, as you would expect, goes to the top again with a 1.33.0.

00:21:19Where are the Mercedes going to end up then after the end of these oh-so-important laps?

00:21:25Russell to the line and he goes third fastest.

00:21:28Half a second down, but clear daylight between himself and the bottom five.

00:21:32What about Hamilton? Really bad middle sector, as I said, half a second down.

00:21:36And Lewis Hamilton only 16th fastest and out of qualifying.

00:21:40That is it for Lewis Hamilton at a circuit where it comes to Grand Prix qualifying.

00:21:46He has always qualified inside the top five.

00:21:49He hasn't made it out of the bottom five in the first part of qualifying.

00:21:53That is a huge upset.

00:21:56It was the middle sector that got him. He lost half a second, as you pointed out.

00:21:59But my goodness, what is going on there?

00:22:03There's a bit of a hush around the track as the fans take that particular effort from Lewis Hamilton in.

00:22:11And it's only by three one thousandths of a second he's slower than Kevin Magnussen.

00:22:15But you certainly would have expected more from Lewis Hamilton and from Mercedes there.

00:22:21And just to be clear, he hasn't got enough time to get round and start another lap.

00:22:25That is it.

00:22:27And yes, he could, if there was fuel in the car, carry on for the next lap.

00:22:30But he hasn't got the energy in his batteries to aid his acceleration and his pace during the lap.

00:22:38And he made a mistake at Turn 10. That's what cost him, so I'm being told.

00:22:42I'm sure we'll get a replay. Turn 12, I should say.

00:22:45Yuki Tsunoda goes seventh fastest, gets himself out of a bit of trouble.

00:22:50Fernando Alonso, hands working very hard on the steering wheel.

00:22:54There's Aston Martin currently in 18th.

00:22:57And as I say, both Aston Martins out in Q1 here last year.

00:23:03And Fernando Alonso really struggling at the wrong end of the grid for him.

00:23:06Checker flag is flying, so this is going to have to count here.

00:23:10And Alonso giving it absolutely everything as he races towards the line.

00:23:13His teammate Lance Stroll, as you can see, only 15th fastest currently, but on a better lap.

00:23:18Alonso goes 10th fastest. Not sure that's going to be enough.

00:23:23It should be, because Hamilton's not doing another lap.

00:23:26Lawson up in third. That's a cracking lap from the young Kiwi.

00:23:31It is, unfortunately, that's at P16.

00:23:36And it's already P18, since that message.

00:23:40Joe Guanyew has been knocked out of qualifying.

00:23:43Holkenberg goes seventh fastest. Joe has been the slowest qualifier at the last five consecutive race weekends.

00:23:50He's ahead of his teammate Valtteri Bottas, but Bottas still on a lap.

00:23:53He has to be 10th fastest as he crosses the line.

00:23:56Lance Stroll is still out there, hasn't set a personal best in the middle sector.

00:24:00Kevin Magnussen, this man has, was in the top eight for the sprint qualifying.

00:24:05Would certainly fancy his chances with the full upgrades on that Haas to at least equal that.

00:24:11This afternoon for the Grand Prix qualifying, he goes into the top seven,

00:24:14which pushes Colopinto into the bottom five and out.

00:24:18Lance Stroll next to cross the line. He has made it out of the bottom five.

00:24:23Perez goes ninth fastest. Alex Albon drops in to that bottom five,

00:24:29and he is out of qualifying, too.

00:24:31Both Williams, both Saubers, and the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton have all ended early.

00:24:37Both Williams, both Saubers is not a total shock.

00:24:39Lewis Hamilton, P19, is a total shock.

00:24:44Well, he was disqualified from second here in the Grand Prix last season.

00:24:48That was a major disappointment for Lewis Hamilton,

00:24:52and that run of disappointments continues here today.

00:24:56When it comes to the U.S. Grand Prix, three times he has been on pole.

00:25:00Oh, that was a bit stressful.

00:25:05Here at the Circuit of the Americas, once at Indianapolis,

00:25:09four U.S. Grand Prix poles, but out in the first part of qualifying here today.

00:25:14And for the first time in 12 attempts, he has qualified outside the top five

00:25:19at the Circuit of the Americas.

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00:27:44Welcome back to Austin, qualifying for the US Grand Prix.

00:27:47Lewis Hamilton lost half a second in the middle sector.

00:27:50Is this the half a second, Martin Brunner?

00:27:52Yeah, he's locked the front left and drifted wide.

00:27:56And that has cost him dearly a little bit of traffic ahead.

00:28:01But just look at his left front.

00:28:03And that as soon as the tyre stops rotating, you lose grip.

00:28:08And that's walked him away from the apex and wide.

00:28:12He was six tenths slower than his teammate.

00:28:15Five of those are in the middle sector.

00:28:17He had to wrestle some oversteer then as he recovered the car.

00:28:20And that's enough.

00:28:21His teammate was fourth and he was 19th.

00:28:24That's how close the field is.

00:28:26He'll start 18th on the grid because Liam Lawson will go right to the back

00:28:30because he's taken engine penalties.

00:28:32And he'll start alongside Valtteri Bottas,

00:28:35who he used to start alongside quite a bit once upon a time,

00:28:37but they were Mercedes teammates then.

00:28:40Now Bottas is in the Sauber and Lewis still at Mercedes for the next six races.

00:28:45Joe Granul was the slowest qualifier for the sixth race in a row.

00:28:48We lost Bottas, Colopinto and Albon as well.

00:28:51And Zac Brown, the CEO at McLaren, watching from the pit wall.

00:28:54Oskar Piastri safe, but only in 12th and Lando Norris in 10th.

00:28:59And it wasn't exactly the pace that we're expecting from your cars there, Zac.

00:29:03No, but it's only Q1.

00:29:05I think we should get both cars into Q3.

00:29:09We went a little bit early, but yeah, looking at the times,

00:29:13I think it could be a Max versus Ferrari here for pole.

00:29:17I'm surprised that Mercedes isn't a little bit quicker, but let's see.

00:29:21There's still two sessions to go.

00:29:23Yeah, one Mercedes out now already.

00:29:26So what are your drivers reporting back, Zac?

00:29:29What are they complaining of on this revised circuit?

00:29:33It's bumpy and that's some inconsistency through the high speed.

00:29:37The car is stepping out on them a little bit,

00:29:39so I don't think we have them yet totally comfortable with the setup of the car.

00:29:43It's a tricky track and a little bit of porpoise, so inconsistent.

00:29:47I think the car is capable of a top five qualifying time,

00:29:52but it's going to be difficult to put it together.

00:29:54Thanks ever so much, Zac. Perfectly timed.

00:29:57As you finished speaking, the green light went on at the end of the pit lane,

00:30:01and we can get going with the second part of qualifying.

00:30:05I say get going.

00:30:07We're looking into a garage here where it doesn't seem to be a huge amount of urgency.

00:30:11Oh, good. Now we can get the tyre blankets off and we can get going.

00:30:1515 minutes to decide the top 10.

00:30:18Liam Lawson, third fastest in the first part of qualifying.

00:30:21He's got a massive engine penalty to take into tomorrow's race.

00:30:25Third fastest. Pacer than RB Tech Gravis.

00:30:28And I don't expect to see him, Crofty, take part in this session in Q2.

00:30:34The mechanics I can just see down to the RB garage,

00:30:36they're kind of looking like they're just taking the car into the air.

00:30:40They're putting some fans on it. I don't think they're going to send him out.

00:30:43On the radio, Liam Lawson said that,

00:30:45look, that's all I wanted to do.

00:30:47And his engineer said, you have shown what you can do.

00:30:50So that lap time of P3 for Lawson, so far ahead,

00:30:54a few tenths it was ahead of his teammate Yuki Tsunoda in the same car,

00:30:57was just a message to Christian Orne, to Helmut Marko.

00:31:00You put me in, I can do this in qualifying.

00:31:03Let's see what Liam can do in the race.

00:31:05And a further message, what they don't want to cause,

00:31:07knowing Lawson will start at the back with all of those penalties.

00:31:10Hang on, he's come out, Martin.

00:31:12I said that, and then their car, sorry, car number 30,

00:31:15trundles past me in the pit lane. Sorry, carry on.

00:31:17What they don't need is for Lawson to beat Tsunoda.

00:31:22Tsunoda finishes 11th or something, doesn't get into Q3,

00:31:27and they just cost themselves two cars in the top ten at that point.

00:31:32So, it is, yeah, that's what they need to be careful of with Liam Lawson.

00:31:37Which, using that logic, is why Ted was convinced he wasn't coming out,

00:31:41and why we all know that as commentators in Formula 1,

00:31:44whatever we say one second is completely wrong the next.

00:31:49I love it.

00:31:50So, we saw Max out on used tyres.

00:31:53The McLarens are on, that one's on new tyres.

00:31:56They were looking out there for Landon Norris, anyway.

00:31:59So, yeah, a completely different concept here.

00:32:02Max trying to get a time on the board with those used tyres.

00:32:06Must be feeling a lot happier, Max Verstappen,

00:32:09in the cockpit this weekend than he was in Singapore.

00:32:14Yes, he finished second, started second,

00:32:16but it was very much damage limitation for Red Bull that particular weekend,

00:32:21and a super lap to put that car on the front row.

00:32:25Hasn't been on pole for a Grand Prix since Imola.

00:32:28This is the man and the car, of course, that took the first seven poles of the season.

00:32:35But they've got the march on McLaren, their nearest rival so far this weekend.

00:32:39Yeah, and he looks much happier in it, doesn't he?

00:32:41The magic dust hasn't arrived with Sergio Perez yet in the other car,

00:32:45but, you know, Perez is still in the hundreds.

00:32:49Right, through Turn 1 we go with Max Verstappen

00:32:52on his latest foray at full speed onto the track.

00:32:58Beautiful driver's eye view.

00:33:01Wow.

00:33:02The first few corners, which...

00:33:04That's an obedient car on the steering wheel.

00:33:06Superb. He had a lot of throttle on through there.

00:33:09That was nice.

00:33:10So confirming then Max Verstappen on used tyres.

00:33:14They were new ten minutes ago, but they're used now.

00:33:17And Ferrari too on used tyres.

00:33:20And Verstappen two tenths up on his teammate Sergio Perez through the first sector.

00:33:26Fernando Alonso behind him.

00:33:28Alonso's on an out lap.

00:33:30Yeah, Gasly has just come out onto the track as well.

00:33:32They had some pace in the Alpine in that first part of qualifying.

00:33:38Verstappen into Turn 12.

00:33:40Still looks pretty obedient, that car.

00:33:42It's almost as if it's found a rail somewhere.

00:33:46Yeah.

00:33:47Just beautifully balanced, isn't it?

00:33:49Yeah, it does look...

00:33:50It's very reminiscent of early in the season.

00:33:53The car just following its nose around the corner nicely

00:33:58and not complaining at the back end of the car as well.

00:34:01Verstappen pumping in great sector times.

00:34:04And he's definitely giving the white lines plenty of safety margin as well.

00:34:10He does not want to lose a lap time.

00:34:12Yes, a lot of lap times have been deleted this weekend.

00:34:15And Verstappen has seen in the past here as well

00:34:19that you can easily lose pole position by having lap times deleted.

00:34:24Perez will be next to cross the line.

00:34:26Ends up four tenths behind his teammate.

00:34:28Guess what?

00:34:29Liam Lawson went out for a lap, came in at the end of the lap,

00:34:32didn't carry on past the chequered flag.

00:34:34He was just scrubbing a set of tyres.

00:34:36So Ted Kravitz was pretty much right.

00:34:38He wasn't coming out of the Q2 to do any laps.

00:34:41And as I say, I think the reason is

00:34:43they don't want him to mess up Tsunoda's chance as teammate.

00:34:47Right.

00:34:48Carlos Sainz, where are you?

00:34:50Four tenths behind Max Verstappen in the Ferrari.

00:34:53His teammate Charles Leclerc is out on the track.

00:34:56A 25.3 and a 37.5,

00:34:58which is fairly good for the first two sectors.

00:35:00Gasly once again puts that Alpine into a very decent position.

00:35:06We can find Charles Leclerc out on the track.

00:35:09Gasly, by the way, never out-qualified by a teammate here in Austin

00:35:12in five previous visits.

00:35:14Ferrari on the used tyres with Charles Leclerc a second off the pace.

00:35:17Ocon, fastest man of anybody through the middle sector.

00:35:20How's that going to end up at the end of that?

00:35:22We have seen some outliers up there.

00:35:24Lawson, we know he's not contending because of his penalty,

00:35:27but we've seen with the Haas,

00:35:29we've seen outliers up the front and Gasly second at the moment.

00:35:33Stroll goes P5.

00:35:35Of course, we've got new tyres, used tyres

00:35:38and some that haven't delivered a lap time at all.

00:35:40Interestingly, Liam Lawson came back out again onto the track

00:35:44and he seemed to be just ahead, as Ocon goes fifth fastest,

00:35:48of his teammate Yuki Tsunoda down the back straight.

00:35:51And I wonder if he was giving Yuki Tsunoda a bit of a tow

00:35:54down the straight there,

00:35:56because Tsunoda easily got past him into Turn 12

00:35:59and would have picked up a bit of extra pace.

00:36:01That's smart work from RB if that was the case.

00:36:04Alonso goes sixth fastest.

00:36:06Nearly 7 tenths off the pace.

00:36:08Yeah, which is a lifetime in a Formula 1 car,

00:36:11but, you know, what is that?

00:36:137 tenths of a second.

00:36:15How many blinks of the eye is that?

00:36:17Two or three or something?

00:36:20We get conditioned to it, doesn't it? 7 tenths.

00:36:22That's an eternity.

00:36:24Hulkenberg within half a second of Max Verstappen

00:36:28sets the fastest final sector time.

00:36:30Kevin Magnussen slots in just behind him.

00:36:33The Hasses look competitive

00:36:35for a points finish at least, I think, this weekend.

00:36:38Agreed. They were on brand new tyres over, too.

00:36:41As Norris, then, on...

00:36:44I'm going to assume...

00:36:45Sorry, go out on brand new tyres.

00:36:47Norris goes fastest into 32s.

00:36:49It wouldn't be a surprise if Hasse did score points,

00:36:51as they have done in each of the last three Grand Prix.

00:36:54Here's Oskar Piastri crossing the line,

00:36:56the top scorer in the last eight Grand Prix.

00:36:58He goes third fastest.

00:37:00But he doesn't beat Verstappen's used tyre time.

00:37:02No.

00:37:04Which...

00:37:05The track's getting a little bit cooler.

00:37:07That will help with the times a touch,

00:37:09but that will worry McLaren,

00:37:11that Lando Norris only 2 tenths faster than Verstappen

00:37:15on new tyres compared to used.

00:37:17They'll be pleased that they're ahead of Russell

00:37:19on new tyres, though.

00:37:21If they can stay in there

00:37:23with Norris, Piastri, Verstappen,

00:37:26and it looks like the two Ferraris

00:37:28should be right on the pace as well.

00:37:30What's going on here?

00:37:34This looks a long way out of the garage, doesn't it?

00:37:37Well, it is a very wide pit lane,

00:37:39so they've got plenty of room.

00:37:41A very long car.

00:37:44And snugly into the garage, therefore,

00:37:47Charles Leclerc, who is down in 14th,

00:37:50but we haven't seen on a new set of tyres

00:37:53in this session so far.

00:37:55And this is where

00:37:57Lando Norris and Max Verstappen

00:37:59are gaining or losing time to each other.

00:38:01Verstappen, look, we were on board with Verstappen

00:38:03through that first sector,

00:38:05and it just looked absolutely magnificent

00:38:07in terms of the ride that he was getting.

00:38:09Meanwhile, Lando Norris...

00:38:11That's what Zach was talking about, being bumpy.

00:38:14I'm sure it looks bumpier than it did,

00:38:16unless they've lowered the cars a little bit,

00:38:18made them a bit stiffer,

00:38:20in an attempt to make them go faster.

00:38:22But we're seeing a lot more movement

00:38:24than I recall yesterday.

00:38:26Very much so.

00:38:27Speeds are obviously greater,

00:38:28engines turned up,

00:38:29fuel's drained out a little bit,

00:38:31but you're right.

00:38:32You could see Lando bouncing in the car.

00:38:35There's no give in your seat, of course.

00:38:37You are sitting on the floor of the car.

00:38:39But Lando's head was bouncing up and down there.

00:38:43So just over six minutes to go, then,

00:38:45in this session.

00:38:46Everyone's in the garage,

00:38:47apart from this man, Oscar Piastri,

00:38:50and George Russell.

00:38:53Piastri's just coming into the pits now,

00:38:56comes past our commentary box.

00:39:00I'm sure we'll have heard

00:39:03the Aussie fans on the bank

00:39:07and the New Zealand fans with them

00:39:09to come and cheer them on.

00:39:11And the Antipodean Brigade are here.

00:39:1416 nationalities represented on the grid,

00:39:17tied for the most in any Formula 1 race

00:39:20in the history of the World Championship.

00:39:22But with only 20 cars,

00:39:24that's the remarkable aspect of that.

00:39:27Ted's got news on Max Verstappen.

00:39:29He's gone out, Martin, on track,

00:39:31all on his Lonesome.

00:39:33Lonesome.

00:39:34Lonesome.

00:39:35That's a sort of Western thing, isn't it, Crofty?

00:39:37I'm on my Lonesome.

00:39:38Lonesome Dove, there you go.

00:39:39That was a Western-based book, wasn't it?

00:39:41Very good, very long.

00:39:42But Max Verstappen...

00:39:44Oh, team radio.

00:39:45I'll tell it to Liam.

00:39:47When he gave me the slipstream,

00:39:50stay at the middle

00:39:52and go to the left end of the straight.

00:39:55I was picking up so much dust.

00:39:57There's gratitude.

00:39:58There's gratitude for you.

00:39:59Pass the message.

00:40:00Yeah.

00:40:02Well, you know, we tried to help you.

00:40:05Tried to help you.

00:40:07Tell Liam, first of all, thanks a lot.

00:40:09Second of all, I got loads of dust in my face,

00:40:11but good information.

00:40:12Max Verstappen seemingly has learned a lesson

00:40:14of what Mercedes did around about this time

00:40:16in Q2, sprint qualifying 2 yesterday.

00:40:18The feeling, just like George Russell

00:40:20saying on team radio,

00:40:21thinks the track improvement is plateauing.

00:40:23Max seemingly thinking the same thing.

00:40:25He's not going to get the track improvement at the end.

00:40:28Would rather a clean run at it,

00:40:30which we should see starting very soon.

00:40:33Which is normally a sign

00:40:34that Red Bull have enough confidence in driver and car

00:40:37that they don't feel it's going to be a tight one

00:40:39to get into the final part of qualifying.

00:40:42The trouble for Max is I think he could come across

00:40:4414 slow cars in that lap.

00:40:48It's a fine point.

00:40:49A minute later,

00:40:50and it'll probably clear the cars

00:40:52that are now coming out of the pit lane.

00:40:56They'll look at the weather.

00:40:57They'll look at the temperatures.

00:40:59They'll look at the cloud cover,

00:41:00work out when is the optimum time

00:41:03to get out for a run at the end of this Q2 session.

00:41:09Sergio Perez that we're looking at there.

00:41:12Gap to Lando Norris,

00:41:13about six tenths of a second.

00:41:16What Perez wants is to avoid

00:41:18what happened in the sprint qualifying,

00:41:20where he failed to get into the top 10

00:41:22on a track where he's qualified ninth

00:41:24in each of the last two years,

00:41:27three times in the past.

00:41:29It's helped Max a lot

00:41:30because they was loitering so long

00:41:32in the pit lane in many of these cars.

00:41:34They haven't yet made it onto track

00:41:35and he's now underway.

00:41:37He's got a couple ahead of him in science and gasoline.

00:41:39Blasting his way through turn seven

00:41:42as we watch the cars coming out of the pit lane

00:41:44with just over three minutes to go

00:41:47of this session.

00:41:48Verstappen, 24.9 for the first sector.

00:41:51It wasn't his best first sector time,

00:41:54but it was very close to the fastest,

00:41:56which he set and will do it nicely.

00:41:59I'm sure the middle sector will see

00:42:02with a bit of extra grip coming out of turn 11,

00:42:05how good he is down that back straight.

00:42:08On board with Charles Leclerc

00:42:09going for a flying lap here.

00:42:11And it's a pressure lap really for Charles Leclerc

00:42:14as he's got one chance, one shot,

00:42:16as Eminem might say a little bit later on here tonight

00:42:19to get out of that bottom five.

00:42:21Martin.

00:42:22Yeah, you can see the patchwork quilt element

00:42:24of the new and not so new surfaces.

00:42:27This is the section that just starts tightening up now.

00:42:30And we're going to go over a blind crest here.

00:42:33And there's a big track limit issue there,

00:42:37but he gave that a massive margin

00:42:38having taken some pain earlier on in qualifying.

00:42:41Slightly uphill into the braking zone,

00:42:43get off the brake pedal, pick up the throttle,

00:42:45squeeze it and go.

00:42:48As soon as you feel, as Verstappen does,

00:42:50amid a one minute 32,

00:42:52a quarter of a second faster than Norris,

00:42:55we're doing okay in the first sector is Charles Leclerc.

00:42:59Nothing better than that at the moment,

00:43:01but okay should be enough to get him

00:43:03where he needs to be for the top ten shootout.

00:43:06And this is the bit that gets technical.

00:43:08You link these corners up.

00:43:09You've got to treat them really as one long section.

00:43:12Go in high, turn the car hard,

00:43:15strain it up, then you get some traction.

00:43:17Now just let it go.

00:43:19It's sort of mishit.

00:43:21Miss the final apexes

00:43:24and then get the car just nicely load up

00:43:27through turn 19.

00:43:28Huge margin on the outside of the corner there for Leclerc

00:43:33to carry more speed than that.

00:43:35But he knows he's got to get this lap on the board

00:43:37and he does so.

00:43:38Third fastest for Charles Leclerc should be okay.

00:43:41Sergio Perez was going faster than the Ferrari

00:43:44through the first two sectors.

00:43:46Yuki Tsunoda's had a tow from Liam Lawson once again

00:43:49down the back straight.

00:43:50Probably helped out Lance Stroll as well.

00:43:52It was the car right behind him.

00:43:53Perez goes fourth fastest just behind Charles Leclerc

00:43:56by a few one hundredths of a second.

00:43:58Gasly still with pace in the Alpine

00:44:01as we ride on board now with the Frenchman.

00:44:03Carlos Sainz looking handy through the first sector

00:44:07and matched that first sector time of Pierre Gasly's.

00:44:10Hülkenberg lost six tenths of a second

00:44:12to those around him in the first part of the lap.

00:44:14Tsunoda slots in ninth fastest.

00:44:17Will that be good enough?

00:44:18I wonder.

00:44:19You've got on a lap here Lance Stroll

00:44:22who'll be going for a lap I should say in a moment

00:44:25as Gasly crosses the line now, stays in seventh place.

00:44:29So that does put Yuki Tsunoda under a little bit of pressure

00:44:32I think there.

00:44:33Carlos Sainz currently in eighth.

00:44:35Next car to round the final corner does so

00:44:38and moves up to second fastest.

00:44:40Two and a half tenths off Max Verstappen

00:44:43as he Verstappen's nearest challenger

00:44:45for pole position this afternoon.

00:44:47Esteban Ocon will be next to cross the line.

00:44:49It's not been Esteban Ocon's greatest track in the past

00:44:52but he was eighth on the grid last year.

00:44:54He has not made it into the top ten this year.

00:44:56Only by five one hundredths of a second

00:44:58he is out of qualifying.

00:45:00Same I think is going to be said for Kevin Magnussen

00:45:03who's on a lap too.

00:45:04Hülkenberg next to cross the line

00:45:06stays tenth fastest as he hits the chequered flag.

00:45:09Who's improving behind these?

00:45:1125.3 for the first sector for Lance Stroll.

00:45:13It's his fastest first sector time so far.

00:45:16Fernando Alonso now going through turn 13

00:45:19and he's, what, two one thousandths of a second

00:45:22through the first two sectors

00:45:24away from making the top ten.

00:45:26And Magnussen has kicked Hülkenberg out.

00:45:28He has.

00:45:29He goes P9, Hülkenberg down to 11.

00:45:31Produced a really good final sector.

00:45:33Kevin Magnussen has been outqualified by Hülkenberg

00:45:35in their last eight consecutive qualifying sessions

00:45:38as teammates.

00:45:40Alonso, around the final couple of corners he comes

00:45:43trying to desperately get into that top ten

00:45:46using all his experience.

00:45:48As he crosses the line, he makes it.

00:45:50Sonoda is out, Alonso is through

00:45:53and a decent lap in the end

00:45:55from Fernando Alonso.

00:45:57By five one hundredths of a second

00:45:59he beats Kevin Magnussen at the tenth.

00:46:01Can Magnussen stay tenth?

00:46:03Here's Lance Stroll, crosses the line,

00:46:05stays fourteenth.

00:46:07He was the last one going for a lap

00:46:09and sadly he didn't leave his best effort

00:46:12until last.

00:46:13And misses out there.

00:46:15Liam Lawson we expected.

00:46:16Stroll misses out.

00:46:18Hülkenberg I think is going to be very disappointed

00:46:21and Sonoda had the benefit of the toe

00:46:23but it didn't quite work for him.

00:46:25Not quite, did it?

00:46:26Sonoda misses out by three hundredths of a second

00:46:29for getting through.

00:46:31So good job from Kevin Magnussen

00:46:33who's presumably...

00:46:36Oh man, I just...

00:46:39No, no, no, no, no.

00:46:42Yeah, you got bumped out, Nico.

00:46:44I can't believe it.

00:46:50Wow.

00:46:51Damage was done, I think, in the first sector

00:46:54for Nico Hülkenberg.

00:46:55He was six-tenths of a second down

00:46:58and we can maybe see what the problem was.

00:47:00Was it the first corner?

00:47:01He locked the front axle.

00:47:03He certainly has.

00:47:06Look at that.

00:47:07Working the steering wheel like crazy.

00:47:10So he kind of knew it was over before it barely begun.

00:47:15Hence, I think, his reactions.

00:47:17Nico Hülkenberg on the radio.

00:47:20He also got 12 and 13 wrong too.

00:47:23And he's out along with Yuki Sonoda

00:47:25who's only reached Q3 once in the last six races.

00:47:28Ocon, Stroll and Lawson who start at the back.

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00:49:54Welcome back to Texas and the Circuit of the Americas.

00:49:58Ten down, ten still remain.

00:50:01We've had the first two parts of qualifying.

00:50:03And we lost Lewis Hamilton in Q1.

00:50:06He's preparing for a start of 18th on the grid.

00:50:08His worst ever start at this track.

00:50:10And he's talking now to Rachel Brooks.

00:50:14Lewis, did the team make changes on the car from the sprint earlier on today to now?

00:50:19Is that what's basically given you that performance today?

00:50:22We had some sort of failure from the formation lap on the front suspension.

00:50:27And I had that throughout the sprint race.

00:50:29And then that made the balance really difficult.

00:50:33We did change a couple of things.

00:50:34It was just in the direction of what we would have done yesterday.

00:50:37And the car was a nightmare today in qualifying.

00:50:40So I think I should probably start in the pit lane.

00:50:43Because otherwise I won't be going anywhere from where I am.

00:50:47Just tell us what you were dealing with during that session.

00:50:49And what the feel was like.

00:50:51And what you were having to manage.

00:50:52And what the challenge was.

00:50:53It's just a very inconsistent balance.

00:50:55And no grip.

00:51:00All right.

00:51:01Good luck tomorrow.

00:51:03I think if the balance is that bad, Martin.

00:51:05The pit lane start might be a no-brainer for Lewis Hamilton tomorrow.

00:51:07Yeah.

00:51:08And throw a bundle of new...

00:51:09You might as well introduce a fresh engine.

00:51:11A power unit.

00:51:12And all the control electronics.

00:51:14Batteries.

00:51:15What have you.

00:51:16Into it as well.

00:51:17And try for a different setup.

00:51:18He might as well.

00:51:19Because he's starting, as you point out, 18th anyway.

00:51:23When Lawson's had his penalty.

00:51:26And see if they can...

00:51:28That is one of the downsides of a sprint weekend, isn't it?

00:51:31As if a team or a driver have missed the moment.

00:51:35At the knife edge of a setup.

00:51:37And they're not there.

00:51:38And that's new news.

00:51:40That Lewis actually had a failure of some sort in the sprint race.

00:51:44It's such a whirlwind of an event thereafter.

00:51:48You can't really put it right.

00:51:50Let's head down to the SkyPad.

00:51:52Anthony Davidson.

00:51:53Yeah.

00:51:54Thanks, Crofty.

00:51:55I'm just going to get into what happened to Hülkenberg later on in his lap.

00:51:57We saw what happened in Turn 1.

00:51:59But look at this.

00:52:00This is Turn 12.

00:52:01Where he's hunting for the grip.

00:52:02And loses a bit of traction on the exit.

00:52:04And then into 13.

00:52:05On top of what's happened.

00:52:07He gets another oversteer moment.

00:52:09So I'm not surprised he was even laughing.

00:52:11How bad the performance was during that lap.

00:52:14It happens to the best of them.

00:52:15Nico, you've been brilliant all the way through in qualifying.

00:52:18So we'll let you off for that one.

00:52:20Back to you, Crofty.

00:52:21Good timing.

00:52:22Thanks ever so much, Anthony.

00:52:23As the tyre blankets come off.

00:52:26George Russell's Mercedes.

00:52:28It looks like he's going out on a set of the used soft tyres.

00:52:31We have one Mercedes then.

00:52:33In this final top ten here.

00:52:36We have one Haas of Kevin Magnussen.

00:52:38We have one Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso.

00:52:41One Alpine of Pierre Gasly.

00:52:43Two McLarens of Piastri and Norris.

00:52:45Two Ferraris of Leclerc and Sainz.

00:52:48And two rebels of Perez and Verstappen.

00:52:52And in 3, 2, 1.

00:52:54The green light is on.

00:52:56Max Verstappen will come out thinking.

00:52:59It's been a long time since I've been on a Grand Prix pole.

00:53:02Maybe this is my time.

00:53:04He's the man to beat, isn't he?

00:53:06This looks like it's Verstappen for pole at the moment.

00:53:09Unless somebody can pull a magic lap out of the bag.

00:53:12And then a big scrap between Ferrari, McLaren and George Russell.

00:53:18For best of the rest.

00:53:21Only one pole in the last ten races for Max Verstappen.

00:53:28In this sprint to Austria.

00:53:30Until he took a pole for the sprint here last night as well.

00:53:34And can he make it two out of two?

00:53:35Ted, down to you.

00:53:36Seeing lots of the new fresh red striped soft tyres that Ferrari have saved.

00:53:41McLaren have saved.

00:53:42That Red Bull have saved.

00:53:44Actually, I've just seen an Alpine pass me on scrub tyres.

00:53:47But otherwise, yeah, the Red Bull you can see just going down the pit lane now.

00:53:51Of the reigning world champion Max Verstappen on fresh soft tyres for this one.

00:53:55I've just got some more info from Mercedes on this suspension problem Hamilton was talking about there.

00:54:00Apparently it was a bearing problem, guys, in the front suspension.

00:54:04All the components were changed between the sprint race and the start of this qualifying session, say Mercedes.

00:54:11No suggestion of any kind of recurrence of that bearing problem.

00:54:15But obviously the consequence was that Lewis just wasn't happy with that car.

00:54:19He did say on the formation lap on the sprint, didn't he, Lewis?

00:54:22I'm feeling a clicking.

00:54:24I can hear a clicking.

00:54:25Yeah.

00:54:26Something feels not right.

00:54:27He thought it was coming from the brakes, if I recall.

00:54:29That's right.

00:54:30Yeah, he felt that.

00:54:32So, brand spanking new tyres there.

00:54:35On the reigning world champion.

00:54:38The championship leader.

00:54:40And a man who seems entirely much more happy with Formula 1 life after the break we've just had.

00:54:49Here's a man Max Verstappen is used to make in Q3.

00:54:52He's done it in every race so far in 2024, as has Oscar Piastri.

00:54:58There is one driver in the top ten in Q3 for the first time this season.

00:55:02And that's Kevin Magnussen.

00:55:04And, Lando, trust the car.

00:55:06Don't overload combined.

00:55:08The lap time will couple.

00:55:10Combined is basically turning and braking at the same time.

00:55:15Don't ask too much in there.

00:55:17Just let the car roll a little bit, is what he's been told.

00:55:20Don't overdrive it, basically.

00:55:23Magnussen making then his first Q3 appearance here for ten years.

00:55:26His first of the season.

00:55:28He'll go for a lap in a moment or two.

00:55:31But here goes Lando Norris.

00:55:33Take us through this one, Martin.

00:55:34As he makes that 40 metre climb to Turn 1.

00:55:37Must be wonderful with some driving up there.

00:55:39But a mix and match of cambers.

00:55:42This car has looked horrible on the bumps through this next stage.

00:55:47Relatively speaking, it must be said.

00:55:50We can't see it from this height, of course.

00:55:53It's sparking on the ground.

00:55:55Looked like it just stepped out a little bit on him from the back end.

00:55:59And he's keeping good forward speed.

00:56:02Well within track limits there.

00:56:04And he's under 25 for the first sector, which is good.

00:56:07Brake into the hill.

00:56:10Get off the brakes.

00:56:12Pick up the throttle.

00:56:13Do not hit the rev limiter.

00:56:15Get your shifts absolutely spot on.

00:56:19And now get ready for a critical braking point into Turn 12.

00:56:24There's your references on the right-hand side.

00:56:26Boom! He's braked about 95 metres, didn't he?

00:56:29That's very, very late at that speed.

00:56:31Again, neat and tidy.

00:56:33A decent middle sector.

00:56:35This lap's coming together better.

00:56:37The car's still looking very stiff in the suspension.

00:56:42Almost lifting a front wheel in places.

00:56:45But critically, he's keeping it going forward.

00:56:48And he's not having to correct a load of slides.

00:56:51Comparing it to his teammate, Oscar Piastri,

00:56:53he's four tenths up through the first two sectors.

00:56:55That looks a little bit wild through Turn 19.

00:56:58Russell with a 1.32.9 is the target to beat.

00:57:01Norris crosses the line and goes on to provisional pole

00:57:04with a 1.32.3, which is good.

00:57:07But Max Verstappen's already a tenth up through the first sector on him.

00:57:10Oscar Piastri makes it a McLaren front row

00:57:13if it stays that way.

00:57:15That's their 50th in Formula 1.

00:57:17But I don't think it will.

00:57:18Six tenths of a second between the two McLarens.

00:57:20And Carlos Sainz slots in between them.

00:57:22And that confirms what I'm thinking.

00:57:24Norris will be thoroughly satisfied with that lap.

00:57:27He certainly will.

00:57:29They said, take it easy.

00:57:31The lap time will come.

00:57:32Trust the car.

00:57:33And Max Verstappen through the middle sector.

00:57:35Only two hundredths of a second up on Lando Norris.

00:57:39So it's very close at the moment between the championship leader

00:57:43and the man in second place.

00:57:45And it's the man in second place who set the first target time.

00:57:48Gasly, six fastest ahead of Magnussen.

00:57:51We've not seen Alonso on the track as yet.

00:57:54Perez is going. Here's Verstappen.

00:57:56Seems he had to take another gear down in Turn 19.

00:57:59And he hasn't done it.

00:58:01He's afraid, once again, confirming what a cracking lap that was

00:58:04that we watched from Lando Norris.

00:58:07But I'm sure Max had to just steal another downshift in T19.

00:58:11And Perez goes only eighth fastest when he crosses the line.

00:58:15This season is just wonderful, isn't it?

00:58:18It swings around.

00:58:19And just when you think you've got a handle on who is the dominant car.

00:58:23I don't know what we're missing.

00:58:28Then you get little upsets along the way.

00:58:30And Lando Norris at the moment, three one hundredths of a second

00:58:33ahead of Max Verstappen.

00:58:35Looks so comfortable for him.

00:58:36And then Norris pulls a lap out of the bag.

00:58:39And I said it looks a little bit wild through Turn 19.

00:58:41Yeah, he was well within the blue line there, wasn't he?

00:58:44I mean, he was wringing his neck there.

00:58:46Absolutely wringing his neck.

00:58:48And then gave it a bit of a left-hander to left-hand down

00:58:51to make sure he kept a wheel in play, which he did.

00:58:56And he should be absolutely fine there.

00:58:59Perez lost that lap time as well.

00:59:03So he doesn't have a time on the board.

00:59:05That 33.260 from Perez.

00:59:09Critically, he's lost that.

00:59:11But yeah, that's a cracker.

00:59:13That's a little caught Max Verstappen's attention.

00:59:16It certainly has.

00:59:17Three tenths up on Carlos Sainz's Ferrari.

00:59:20With something to do as the cars get pushed back into the garage again.

00:59:24Perez losing that time for exceeding track limits.

00:59:27He was on a set of used tyres, which is why he was down in eighth place.

00:59:32Everyone's coming into the garages to swap their tyres.

00:59:35All except Fernando Alonso, who's just gone out and I think wants the track to himself

00:59:40to set the time on the one set of new tyres he's got for this final part of qualifying.

00:59:48I like it. Drivers who can carry the speed and stay within the track, on the racetrack, get rewarded.

00:59:56Those that can't get penalised. That's how it should be.

01:00:01You should reward the drivers that can carry the speed and can stay on the racetrack.

01:00:07So the last time he raced in the US was in Miami for a Grand Prix.

01:00:12Lando Norris won it.

01:00:14He's on provisional pole for the return here.

01:00:20Here comes Fernando Alonso then.

01:00:23And he has, Martin, got the track to himself.

01:00:26Lonesome Dove, the Larry McMurtry book that Ted Kravitz was referencing.

01:00:30We'll give it some Bruce Springsteen. Lonesome Day for Fernando Alonso.

01:00:34It's like a test day for him.

01:00:36A man who's raced over 100,000 kilometres in Formula 1.

01:00:41The most experienced driver of all time.

01:00:44Already three tenths down through the first sector.

01:00:47And Aston Martin, full of upgrades this weekend, but still, sadly, lacking the downforce he wants.

01:00:52I couldn't tell you why it was three tenths down. It looked superb through there.

01:00:55Taking the ground a lot, but they all do that.

01:00:58And look at his head bouncing against the headrest.

01:01:02You can't lean into the corners as you naturally want to when you go into a high-G corner,

01:01:09because your head can't move, basically.

01:01:12But they're used to that.

01:01:14But, I don't know, up here today and yesterday,

01:01:17they must have lowered and stiffened the cars a little bit.

01:01:20What's he doing then?

01:01:2125.3, then a 37.3, so that puts him 1.2 off Norris' lap, doesn't it, at that point?

01:01:29It does.

01:01:30And that is a long way, but, I mean, Fernando's giving it everything.

01:01:35The man still racing into what is 44th year.

01:01:40Fernando Alonso.

01:01:42Mark Webber has been retired a few years.

01:01:44Been on pole more recently than this guy,

01:01:46but he's still going out there to try and get something out of this sport that he loves so much.

01:01:51It's 8th on the grid.

01:01:52You think, oh, only 8th for Fernando Alonso,

01:01:54but he's had grid penalties here for the last three years.

01:01:57I dare say, if he stays 8th, he might just be pretty happy with that.

01:02:01Meanwhile, Sergio Perez.

01:02:04Track limits at Turn 9.

01:02:07Over the blind crest. There it is.

01:02:10He hit the kerb on the way in.

01:02:13He hit the kerb on the left and it bounced him wide.

01:02:19Unfortunately, he's gone a bit too greedy on that left-hand kerb.

01:02:23Red Bull fans watching on and looking at the replay of Sergio Perez,

01:02:29whilst his teammate Max Verstappen is out on track.

01:02:33Celebrating, of course, his 27th birthday on September 30th,

01:02:38in between the last two races.

01:02:41Last race, I should say, in this.

01:02:43He's won the last three US Grand Prix.

01:02:46He's won the last three Mexico City Grand Prix,

01:02:48where we go next week, of course.

01:02:50He's going to the tracks that he absolutely loves,

01:02:52but he won't want to be starting on the front row.

01:02:54He will want to be on pole for this tomorrow.

01:02:56And that, is that Lando Norris coming out of the garage?

01:02:59Oh, no, it's the Alpine.

01:03:01As I see the rear wing now of Pierre Gasly.

01:03:04It's a textbook case of unsafe release.

01:03:07Yeah.

01:03:10Is that a fine or is that a grip penalty if it is an unsafe release?

01:03:14As long as the team get a fine for that, isn't it?

01:03:16It is, but, you know, could Gasly have seen it?

01:03:19I don't know. You sat in these cars.

01:03:21I sat in mine ten days ago.

01:03:22You could see pretty much nothing out of them, basically,

01:03:25but especially beside you or behind you.

01:03:29And he gave it a big swerve when he did realise there was something there.

01:03:32Presumably he got a radio call.

01:03:34So, I said it would take a spectacular lap to beat Max Verstappen this evening.

01:03:40Have we already seen that from Lando Norris?

01:03:42Can he go faster still?

01:03:44Or does Verstappen, or indeed anybody else, have an answer to a 1.32.330?

01:03:51I'm thinking about it.

01:03:52The important thing with that Gasly unsafe release,

01:03:54he didn't hit Max Verstappen and he could easily have hit Max Verstappen

01:03:57because he was coming out in a fairly attacking style.

01:04:01So Max Verstappen survives that one and he lives to fight another lap.

01:04:05Here he goes there, Martin.

01:04:06Can he beat Lando Norris?

01:04:10Well, he'll know if he's left any time on the table anywhere.

01:04:15He's certainly left a margin up against track limits,

01:04:18so he's got that available to him.

01:04:20And we'll see if he uses it.

01:04:22He's carrying superb speed through there, isn't he?

01:04:24As this is the section, as I said, that gets tighter and tighter.

01:04:28Nice, sweet. It's a 24.8 first sector.

01:04:31So he knows he's got to wring its neck a little bit up against track limits.

01:04:35He got away just fine with turn 9.

01:04:38Turn 12 is another one at the end of this next straight.

01:04:42All looking good.

01:04:43And Norris is two tenths down in the first sector,

01:04:46has not had even a personal best there.

01:04:49The door is open for Verstappen and pole position.

01:04:53Who will want to walk in, I'm sure.

01:04:55There's a yellow flag in the final sector. It's George Russell.

01:04:58He's gone off into the barriers.

01:04:59Max Verstappen is going to get to that seam very, very soon.

01:05:03And he's going to have to slow down.

01:05:05And that will cost Max Verstappen a chance at pole position.

01:05:09It's cost George Russell, who's gone off into the barriers.

01:05:12He seems to be OK.

01:05:13And that's the main thing here.

01:05:15But the medical car has been deployed.

01:05:19George says he's OK. That's brilliant.

01:05:21He's getting out of the car. That's even better.

01:05:24But that should end this qualifying session.

01:05:26That's double-waved yellows. Nobody will get a time.

01:05:29And puts Lando Norris on pole then for the US Grand Prix.

01:05:33And for Norris, it's a fourth pole in the last five Grand Prix.

01:05:38And it's exactly where he wanted to be.

01:05:42That's key.

01:05:43And the reason the medical car is deployed,

01:05:45because it's registered beyond, I think, 25G impact.

01:05:52So it automatically gets deployed there.

01:05:54Even though George looks like he's just fine.

01:05:57He had a big snap of oversteer going into that penultimate turn 19.

01:06:01And went straight to the scene of the accident by the looks of it.

01:06:05Just as Max Verstappen was rearing it up.

01:06:09Just as the bulls were about to shout hook of horns here in Texas.

01:06:15George Russell goes off into the barriers.

01:06:18Brings qualifying to a premature end.

01:06:21And Lando Norris on provisional pole is confirmed

01:06:24as the pole setter for the US Grand Prix.

01:06:28Well earned.

01:06:29That was a cracking lap, wasn't it?

01:06:31Great advice from his engineer.

01:06:34And he delivered it.

01:06:35He delivered a really neat and tidy lap.

01:06:38Pushed his luck in the T19.

01:06:42He knew he was on a great lap.

01:06:45Finished it off there a treat.

01:06:47And then circumstances have protected that.

01:06:51Max Verstappen will say, hey, I'm second on the grid.

01:06:54I'm on the front row.

01:06:55And don't you remember that second on the grid has led lap one in five

01:06:59of the last six US Grand Prix.

01:07:01Still got a chance in this race tomorrow.

01:07:03But what a front row that is.

01:07:05Let's have a look at what happened to George Russell.

01:07:08Approaching turn 19.

01:07:10You said what a snap of oversteer, Martin.

01:07:12That's what it looked like.

01:07:14He's turned in from...

01:07:17It's not that big a shunt really, to be honest.

01:07:20Are you all right?

01:07:21Yeah, yeah.

01:07:22The car is safe.

01:07:25Safe with the battery, he means.

01:07:28It's not going to polish out that shunt.

01:07:30But the battery's safe so you can get out.

01:07:32You don't have to jump clear of it.

01:07:34I think he was quite high up.

01:07:36Anthony will no doubt look at it with his expert eye on the skypad.

01:07:42But I think he was a little bit high on the kerb on the way in

01:07:47and just loosened the back of the car off.

01:07:50125 miles an hour as he approached that turn.

01:07:55Not a big shunt.

01:07:57Yeah, don't get me wrong, but in Formula 1 terms,

01:08:01he managed to scrub some speed off.

01:08:03He'll have felt it, but it's not going to hurt him

01:08:07as long as he takes his hands off the steering wheel.

01:08:10Line up 3rd and 4th on the grid for Ferrari.

01:08:12Oscar Piastri and George Russell 5th and 6th,

01:08:15assuming there's no chassis damage to George Russell's Mercedes.

01:08:197th and 8th for Pierre Gasly and Fernando Alonso

01:08:21and 9th and 10th for Magnussen and Perez,

01:08:23for whom that deleted lap did prove costly in the end.

01:08:27And Lando Norris, McLaren's first pole sitter in the US

01:08:32since Lewis Hamilton in Indianapolis in 2007.

01:08:36Lewis Hamilton, who starts this race down in P18,

01:08:39if you weren't with us at the start,

01:08:41going out in Q1, his car just not competitive

01:08:44and confirming that they've had a few problems

01:08:48with parts on that car.

01:08:50Mixed day for the Brits, wasn't it?

01:08:52Norris on pole, Russell in the hedge,

01:08:54and Hamilton at the back.

01:08:55And we'll start with your 2nd place starter for tomorrow's US Grand Prix,

01:08:58Max Verstappen.

01:08:59Max, it all came down to that first run.

01:09:01A little mistake, it looked like, in Turn 19.

01:09:04Do you think that's maybe where the difference was?

01:09:06Yeah, on the first lap in Q3, I lost quite a bit of time there.

01:09:10So, yeah, that's unfortunate.

01:09:12But then, yeah, I knew that we had another run,

01:09:14but unfortunately I couldn't finish the lap.

01:09:17Otherwise, I think we had a really good shot.

01:09:19But that's how it goes.

01:09:20We're still on the front row.

01:09:22At least the potential was there, you know, to be first.

01:09:25So that's very good.

01:09:26You've got to be confident still going into the Grand Prix tomorrow

01:09:28after a very good performance today in the Grand Prix.

01:09:31Sorry, today in qualifying.

01:09:33What did you guys learn in that sprint race

01:09:35that you can apply to be even stronger tomorrow?

01:09:37Yeah, it seemed that we were competitive,

01:09:39so we made some minor changes on the car,

01:09:42which felt, again, nice.

01:09:44And I hope that that will be also positive for tomorrow.

01:09:47All right, well, best of luck.

01:09:48Congratulations.

01:09:49Front row start for Max Verstappen.

01:09:52Sprint race winner earlier today.

01:09:58Carlos Sainz will line up P3 for Ferrari.

01:10:01Big wave to the crowd, Carlos.

01:10:03A very competitive weekend so far for Ferrari.

01:10:05Competitive session for you as well.

01:10:07You said after the sprint race,

01:10:09if you could just start a little bit higher than you did in the sprint,

01:10:12you had a good shot at the win.

01:10:13P3 is a little bit higher.

01:10:14How are you feeling for tomorrow?

01:10:15Yeah, I mean, that was the target,

01:10:18to do a step in qualifying compared to yesterday.

01:10:21Yesterday we were P5.

01:10:23Today we are P3,

01:10:24so we've done a good step in the right direction.

01:10:27A bit gutted for that last lap

01:10:29because I was three tenths up on my lap,

01:10:32the 32.6 going into turn 16,

01:10:35with only two corners left.

01:10:37But, yeah, easy to say now.

01:10:39Anyway, I think we've done some good progress

01:10:41and we should be in the fight tomorrow

01:10:43if we get a clean start.

01:10:44And then with the two guys in front,

01:10:47it should be a fun one.

01:10:48With the track temperature changing so much

01:10:50throughout the qualifying,

01:10:51did you have to adjust the way you prepare the tires

01:10:54on your prep laps,

01:10:56or was it pretty standard across the entire session?

01:10:58Yeah, I always kept an eye on it

01:11:00because it's something where we've struggled recently

01:11:02in our team to put the tires in the right window

01:11:05for qualifying.

01:11:06We seem to be always quick in the race,

01:11:09but in qualifying we have some ups and downs

01:11:11and it was my main point of focus

01:11:13during the whole quali.

01:11:14And, yeah, it seems like we got it right,

01:11:16especially that last lap before the yellow flag.

01:11:19It seemed like we got them in the right spot

01:11:21because we suddenly found a lot of lap time

01:11:24going into the first two sectors.

01:11:26Well, you had a lot of practice today

01:11:28learning how to pass in the sprint race,

01:11:30so best of luck tomorrow.

01:11:31Only a few positions to go.

01:11:32We'll try and keep it up.

01:11:36And now your pole sitter for the U.S. Grand Prix,

01:11:39Lando Norris.

01:11:40What a run.

01:11:41It was three poles in the last four races coming in here.

01:11:43Make it four out of the last five.

01:11:45Just talk us through the lap in that first run

01:11:47that got it done.

01:11:49No, it was a beautiful lap.

01:11:52I was not going to go much quicker than what I did.

01:11:55When you just do a lap, well, you know,

01:11:57but when you just do a lap and you think down,

01:11:59it's going to be tough to beat that.

01:12:02But I put everything out on the line,

01:12:04and it's what we needed to do.

01:12:06We've been on the back foot pretty much the whole weekend.

01:12:08We've not had the pace of the Ferraris or the Red Bulls.

01:12:11So I had to do something, and today I did that.

01:12:13So, yeah, a cool lap and a nice way to start the race tomorrow.

01:12:18Now, take us through the mindset of a driver

01:12:21coming out of a sprint race

01:12:22and only having just a few hours

01:12:24to kind of regroup, reset,

01:12:25and get back into that qualifying mindset.

01:12:27Is that a big challenge for you guys?

01:12:29It is.

01:12:30Around here, it is, because it's a lot faster.

01:12:33I mean, this is one of the tracks where inside,

01:12:35you're like, damn, this is fast.

01:12:37And it's exciting, and it just gives you a good feeling.

01:12:42You know, it's bumpy and it's fast,

01:12:44especially sector one.

01:12:45So it puts a smile on your face.

01:12:47And definitely ending quickest

01:12:49puts a bigger smile on your face too.

01:12:51So a tough day, a tough weekend for us.

01:12:54But we changed quite a bit.

01:12:55I think we reviewed everything we could,

01:12:58and we made the improvements we needed to make.

01:13:00So maybe we weren't the quickest car out there today.

01:13:02You know, Carlos said he was going to go quicker.

01:13:04Max was going to go quicker.

01:13:06So I'm lucky, and I'll take it.

01:13:08Yeah, it was all about getting it done

01:13:09when you had the opportunity today.

01:13:10But now let's switch focus to tomorrow.

01:13:12In this sprint race, great start to get up into P2,

01:13:14but it seemed like you guys were battling

01:13:16a little bit more tire degradation

01:13:17than Max in the Ferraris.

01:13:19What kind of changes have you made,

01:13:20and are you confident you've addressed

01:13:21that issue for tomorrow?

01:13:23Sure.

01:13:25It's tough.

01:13:26I mean, I'll do my homework.

01:13:27We already made some changes

01:13:29to hopefully improve that direction.

01:13:31But time will tell.

01:13:32So we'll work hard.

01:13:33We've done a good job so far.

01:13:35Box number one ticked.

01:13:36But tomorrow's going to be a tough race.

01:13:38Six different pole sitter in the last six races

01:13:40here at Circuit of the Americas.

01:13:42Your pole sitter tomorrow, Lando Norris.

01:13:45Oh, what a strange weekend.

01:13:51I think we could be fair to describe it as that.

01:13:54What happened to Lewis Hamilton?

01:13:57We'll get to the bottom of that.

01:13:58And George Russell not happy with it.

01:14:00And yes, thankfully he's OK,

01:14:02but he's done his mate a solid there, hasn't he?

01:14:05Because it looked on those second runs,

01:14:07certainly in the first sector,

01:14:09Max Verstappen a couple of tenths.

01:14:10He was purple ahead of Lando Norris,

01:14:13but obviously with the double wave yellows at the end,

01:14:15no-one could complete them.

01:14:17And as a result of that,

01:14:18Lando has inherited pole position.

01:14:22And for his sins, there we go.

01:14:24Gets it for the two-time Olympic pole vault champion

01:14:27that Ted spoke to earlier, Arnaud Duplantis.

01:14:31He is pole for tomorrow.

01:14:34It is the front two on the grid

01:14:36that are the top two in the championship.

01:14:39And we cannot wait.

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