Verstappen wins title, Russell triumphs in Vegas
The race was won by Mercedes’ George Russell, who held off seven-time champion teammate Lewis Hamilton, who finished second from 10th on the grid.
Verstappen’s position behind the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc proved more than enough for the Dutchman. Title rival Lando Norris can only manage sixth place for McLaren, leaving the Dutchman 63 points behind and with a gap that could grow to as much as 60.
Verstappen joins Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel as four-time champions, a list that only includes Hamilton, Michael Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio. \”What a season,\” Verstappen said to his team over the radio. \”It was a little more difficult than last season, but we pulled through.\”
He added: “It has been a long season and we started amazing, almost like cruising, and then we had a tough run but we kept it together as a team, kept working on improvements and pulled it over the line. “To be here as a four-time world champion is something I never expected and I stand here with a sense of relief and pride.”
Why Verstappen’s “near-perfect” season is an “amazing achievement”
The victory in Las Vegas was Mercedes’ fourth Grand Prix win of the season, with Russell and Hamilton having won twice each.
The Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc finished third and fourth, narrowing the gap to McLaren in the constructors’ championship to 24 points with two races remaining. Norris stopped for a tire change and set the fastest lap time late in the race, earning McLaren an extra point. Starting from fifth on the grid, one place ahead of Norris, Verstappen led throughout a relatively quiet race for the Red Bull driver, with Russell taking control from the start.
Verstappen’s calm performance was aimed at winning the title at the first chance, and he did so with the same composure and confidence he has driven races with all year. Russell controlled the race from the front, fending off an early attack from Leclerc, who had worked his way up to second from fourth on the grid, then passed Alpine’s Pierre Gasly and then Sainz in the first two corners.
Leclerc was then caught up in a battle with a recovering Sainz, and with Ferrari facing tyre issues ahead of Mercedes and Verstappen, Russell extended his lead and took control of the race. Hamilton was 10th on the opening lap but had a great first stint, staying on his tyres and going fast.
He moved into the lead group, made his first pit stop late and passed Norris shortly after. The seven-time champion then challenged Ferrari, with Verstappen taking second place behind Sainz and Leclerc, and then overtaking the red car during the ensuing pit stops.
But Hamilton lacked the straight-line speed in his Mercedes and was unable to overtake the red car. Instead, Mercedes made their second pit stop on lap 27, a lap ahead of Sainz and four laps ahead of Leclerc, and Hamilton used his pace to move into second place.
He caught Verstappen with a string of fastest laps and passed him on the straight on lap 31.
Russell followed Leclerc in on lap 32, and for a few laps after his stop Hamilton took chunks out of his team-mate’s lead, getting it down from 11.2 seconds to 7.4 in seven laps.
But it soon became clear that Russell had the race under control, and he led Hamilton to an unexpected one-two. Behind them, the Ferraris closed in on Verstappen again after their final pit stops, and both raced past him in the final 10 laps.
Behind Norris, teammate Oscar Piastri was seventh, with Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg, RB’s Yuki Tsunoda and Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez completing the top 10.
