United States Grand Prix 2018 — Weekend Preview

Round 18 of the 2018 Formula 1 World Championship takes the field to Austin, United States. United States Grand Prix — American Purpose-Built Racing. Lewis Hamilton leads the championship with 331 points, 67 points ahead of Sebastian Vettel.

Driver Championship (entering R18):
P1: Lewis Hamilton — 331 pts (9W, 14P)
P2: Sebastian Vettel — 264 pts (5W, 10P)
P3: Valtteri Bottas — 207 pts (0W, 8P)
P4: Kimi Räikkönen — 196 pts (0W, 9P)
P5: Max Verstappen — 173 pts (1W, 7P)

Constructor Championship:
P1: Mercedes — 538 pts
P2: Ferrari — 460 pts
P3: Red Bull Racing — 319 pts
P4: Renault — 92 pts
P5: Haas F1 Team — 84 pts

Austin is technically demanding.

Recent winners at Austin:
- 2025: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
- 2024: Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)
- 2023: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
- 2022: Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing)
- 2019: Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes)

Tyre strategy data will be available after practice sessions provide degradation information.

Battles to watch:

Championship battle: Lewis Hamilton vs Sebastian Vettel — 67 points separate them.

P3 vs P4: Valtteri Bottas (207) vs Kimi Räikkönen (196) — just 11 points apart.

Understand this race better:

- [Aero Balance](/f1/learning/tactical-intelligence/aero-balance)
- [Downforce](/f1/learning/tactical-intelligence/downforce)