Verstappen fights through car trouble to finish third at US GP

Max Verstappen finished third in the United States Grand Prix, behind winner Kimi Antonelli and Charles Leclerc.

Antonelli started from pole on medium tyres, while Verstappen lined up second on softs. The Mercedes driver made a strong start and began to pull away as Verstappen defended against the Ferraris. Leclerc briefly got past, but Verstappen reclaimed second; the battle behind gave Antonelli room to build his lead.

Verstappen stopped at the end of lap 13 for another set of soft tyres, setting Red Bull on a two-stop strategy. As the softs faded, he reported over team radio that the car was undriveable. Tom Hart, filling in for Gianpiero Lambiase over the race weekend, told him the team had found a problem with engine braking. The radio also appeared to be failing again.

His second stop came on lap 32, when Red Bull fitted medium tyres and adjusted the front wing. A disappointing stop left Verstappen fifth, around 20 seconds behind Antonelli. He immediately found speed on the new tyres, then moved up to third when Ferrari’s drivers made their second stops.

Lando Norris remained between Verstappen and Antonelli, trying to run his hard tyres to the finish. Verstappen was caught behind the McLaren as Leclerc closed; he tried to take second, but Leclerc ultimately passed him. The RB22 lacked pace at the Circuit of the Americas, and the late virtual safety car helped Verstappen secure third. Lewis Hamilton tried to close in the final stages but came up just short.