United States Grand Prix 2021 — Weekend Preview

Round 17 of the 2021 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 25 points, 7 points ahead of Max Verstappen.

Driver Championship (entering R17):
P1: Lewis Hamilton — 25 pts (1W, 1P)
P2: Max Verstappen — 18 pts (0W, 1P)
P3: Valtteri Bottas — 16 pts (0W, 1P)
P4: Lando Norris — 12 pts (0W, 0P)
P5: Sergio Perez — 10 pts (0W, 0P)

Constructor Championship:
P1: Mercedes — 41 pts
P2: Red Bull Racing — 28 pts
P3: McLaren — 18 pts
P4: Ferrari — 12 pts
P5: AlphaTauri — 2 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 Max Verstappen — 7 points separate them.

P3 vs P4: Valtteri Bottas (16) vs Lando Norris (12) — just 4 points apart.
P4 vs P5: Lando Norris (12) vs Sergio Perez (10) — just 2 points apart.
P5 vs P6: Sergio Perez (10) vs Charles Leclerc (8) — just 2 points apart.

Understand this race better:

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