Race report by Aramco

United StatesUnited States

2022 season

Sebastian brought home four points at Circuit of the Americas with an eighth-place result, while Lance had a strong start from fifth but was unable to finish the race. However, the team showed good pace across the weekend as Formula One approaches its final few races of the 2022 season.

2022 season

United States Grand Prix circuit figures

Number of pitstops

Longest stint (laps)

244

Total laps in the United States

1345

Total Km in the United States

Fastest lapM:S.MS

1.41.538

Sebastian

1.43.080

Lance

Max speedKM/H

315.2

Sebastian

315.9

Lance

We had sixth place in the bag so we should focus on the positives of our competitive car pace today.
Sebastian Vettel

United States GP

Sebastian Vettel

"In the end it was a good recovery drive to score four points today. I really enjoyed the last few laps, especially the final-lap fight with Kevin [Magnussen].

"When I crossed the finish line, the adrenaline was really pumping. Without the slow stop, I think we had sixth place easily in the bag so we should focus on the positives of our competitive car pace today.

"We were strong all race; the start was great and I was up in fifth place early on. It was also nice to lead the race for a while because it has been a while since I was in that position."

Thankfully, it was not a big impact with the wall, I did not hit anything hard, and I am OK after the contact.
Lance Stroll

United States GP

Lance Stroll

"We had a good start to the race; everything was feeling great with the car and we were sitting in third for a little while.

"Unfortunately, we had contact with Fernando [Alonso] which was a shame. There was a big difference in speed and I was defending.

"I gave him plenty of room on the left of the track, so it was not as if I squeezed him against the wall. He could have moved earlier or moved more to the left.

"Thankfully, it was not a big impact with the wall, I did not hit anything hard, and I am OK after the contact."

The highlight of Sebastian's charge was a tremendous dice with Magnussen on the final lap.
Mike Krack - Team Principal

United States GP

Mike Krack

"Having been third and fifth on lap one, clearly we are disappointed to have come away with only a DNF and eighth place. But that is racing.

"After the Safety Car that had been triggered by [Valtteri] Bottas's 'off', we were running sixth and seventh, looking set for another good points haul, but then Lance and Fernando made contact, ending Lance's race, and Sebastian was delayed by a problem with his second pitstop, dropping him to 13th.

"Thereafter he launched a great recovery drive that resulted in a fine eighth place, the highlight of which was a tremendous dice with Magnussen on the final lap, which happily went Sebastian's way."

Your guide to the United States

With Cognizant

Insight and Speed

Overtaking

COTA tends to feature a good number of overtakes – with 40 on average being made outside of the first lap and restarts. Some 72 per cent of passes are made using DRS – with the two zones being situated on the runs to Turns One and 12, the latter being the preferred spot for moves.

Safety Cars

The Safety Car has not been used here since 2015 and has only made an appearance four times in total. Virtual Safety Cars are a bit more common, with five uses since its inception. The VSC rate is above average and is also in part due to a retirement rate above the norm.

Strategy

The middle selection of tyre compounds – the C2, C3 and C4, will be used for the first of three consecutive race weekends. This is not usually a one-stop race. Ease of overtaking, a short pit-lane delta and high tyre degradation are factors that all come into play.

With SentinelOne

Unlocking the Lap

A lap begins with a climb of almost 30 metres as the cars approach one of the most iconic hairpins on the whole calendar – Turn One. Uphill braking shortens the slow-down distance for the corner, but a very wide entry massively aids wheel-to-wheel battling. The apex is tough to spot, and the exit is tight and tricky as the cars head back downhill.

This immediately feeds into the fast, sweeping sector that takes inspiration from Silverstone's Maggotts and Becketts sequence. This is a series of seven bends in quick succession, each with their own challenges on the tyres and the car. Each is important to lap-time, with the final twist of the sequence deceptively tight.

At the end of the long back straight is Turn 12, another challenging hairpin. This is where most of the passing will happen, aided by a long DRS zone. Judging the braking point for this corner is tricky, and running wide is easy to do. Doing so then compromises the tricky sequence of corners that follow.