Lewis Hamilton claims United States GP pole ahead of Sebastian Vettel to take giant step closer to fifth F1 title
Lewis Hamilton laid the best possible platform for his fifth Formula One world title, underlining his supremacy here at the Circuit of the Americas with a record-extending 81st pole position.
With a brilliant late surge to squeeze out his arch-rival Sebastian Vettel, he set a dazzling track record in overcast, blustery conditions, giving him a priceless advantage in Sunday’s United States Grand Prix as he seeks to equal Juan Manuel Fangio with championship No 5.
The portents could hardly be more auspicious: Hamilton has won at this Texan track, a favourite of his, each of the last four years, while Vettel has been relegated to fifth with a three-place grid penalty, imposed after he had failed to slow down for a red flag in practice.
With Britain’s most decorated driver already holding a 67-point lead in the standings, Vettel must target no worse than second if he is to have any hope of extending the duel as far as next weekend’s race in Mexico City.
“That was very important,” said Hamilton, his relief palpable after a tense qualifying tussle between Mercedes and Ferrari. “It was close. I knew it was quite edgy between us, that it was going to require a solid lap. I was adamant I was going to pull it off.”
For Vettel, the damage could already be irreparable after his Friday penalty. It was the latest in a catalogue of Ferrari errors this season, which included Vettel spinning out of the lead at his home race in Germany. Such haplessness has been the difference in their battle with Mercedes, who have made remarkably few mistakes.
“It was a shame to miss out by so little time,” Vettel said. “The wind was quite tricky at times. I’m pretty happy that we’re back in range, given the past few weeks we have had.”
Hamilton, so relaxed during qualifying that he found time to chat to Hollywood actor Matthew McConaughey, a guest in the Mercedes garage, has had the beating of Vettel ever since the summer break. While Vettel ratcheted up the pressure with an impressive final lap, Hamilton still surpassed him by six hundredths of a second.
Final Positions after Qualifying:
Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1min 32.237secs
Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:32.298
Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:32.307
Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP 1:32.616
Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:33.494
Esteban Ocon (Fra) Force India 1:34.145
Nico Hulkenberg (Ger) Renault 1:34.215
Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 1:34.250
Charles Leclerc (Mon) Sauber-Ferrari 1:34.420
Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 1:34.594
Carlos Sainz (Spa) Renault 1:34.566
Kevin Magnussen (Den) Haas F1 1:34.734
Pierre Gasly (Fra) Scuderia Toro Rosso No Time
Brendon Hartley (Nzl) Scuderia Toro Rosso No Time
Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull No Time
Fernando Alonso (Spa) McLaren 1:35.294,
Sergey Sirotkin (Rus) Williams 1:35.362
Lance Stroll (Can) Williams 1:35.480
Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber-Ferrari 1:35.536
Stoffel Vandoorne (Bel) McLaren 1:35.735
Note:Sebastian Vettel has a three place grid penalty for not slowing sufficiently during a Red Flag period in FP1
Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley are required to start the race from the back of the starting grid after power unit changes
It is all set up very nicely for tomorrow
Raikkonen getting ahead of Bottas was the key, really. Pole would have been what Vettel and Ferrari wanted but Raikkonen, remember, will start on the better tyres tomorrow. Hamilton, also did extra laps on his starting tyres in Q2 and also locked up on them. So that may affect the length of his first stint and his pace in it.
Vettel will start down in fifth place, which is not ideal, but the championship is such a distant target for him now. But there's still a chance he can keep this alive.
Thanks for joining me and I'll be back tomorrow from around 6pm BST for all the race build-up. Lights out at 7.10pm BST tomorrow. The championship is still alive. Just. And we may have a very, very interesting tactical race tomorrow.
Toto Wolff reacts
I'm very happy about that. It's so close between the top three. My thinking goes already to tomorrow. We're lacking a bit of straight line speed I'm very worried about Ferrari. It was always very close the whole season and it's going to continue. [On winning the championship tomorrow] It's getting the best possible race result and scoring the points and if it doesn't come tomorrow we have to do a better job in Mexico.
It looks favourable for Hamilton tomorrow but it's a long run up to turn one and with Raikkonen on the quicker tyres and with seemingly better straight line speed that could be a worry. But Raikkonen is not known for his quick starts in recent times.
Raikkonen reacts to his third position on the grid....but he will start on the front row on the quicker tyres
RAIKKONEN: "It's been a pretty positive day, we got pretty close. I feel good with the car. We will try tomorrow. It's a long race. We'll try to make a good start and go from there" #USGP ���� #F1pic.twitter.com/YRKzImYvrn
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 20, 2018
It was a good lap, to be fair
YES!! YES!!! YES!!!!!!!!!!
Pole position for @LewisHamilton at @COTA! What a lap! ����#USGP ���� #F1pic.twitter.com/0lmAF5Scm6— Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) October 20, 2018
Sebastian Vettel reacts to his second place finish
It was pretty close. Obviously a bit of a shame when you miss out on that little time. I was pretty happy with the laps I had. It was quite tricky to get everything together. The wind was quite tricky at times. Pretty happy that we are back in range. It seems that we are better off. I think today has been surprisingly close.
He starts P5 tomorrow.
Hamilton reacts to ANOTHER pole position
That was very important. That was close, these guys have...I didn't know how close it would be once we went into qualifying. The first one was decent but not good enough. The second one was just that little bit better that enabled me to pull it out. I was adamant that I was going to do a better second lap. The track has been incredible. Once we got into qualifying it was rubbering in.
The top 10
HAM
VET
RAI
BOT
RIC
OCO
HUL
GRO
LEC
PER
"How much did we miss it by?"
Asks Vettel. He is told and swears on the radio. As well he might. Oh well.
LEWIS HAMILTON TAKES POLE FOR THE 2018 UNITED STATES GRAND PRIX!
Bottas doesn't improve, he stays third! Raikkonen goes onto provisional pole but Hamilton pips it by 0.070s...
What can Vettel do?! It's second by 0.061 seconds. It's not enough! It was so, so close. It's pole for Lewis Hamilton!
Raikkonen, with that lap, will start second on the quicker ultrasoft tyre! That could be interesting...
Q3 - Bottas down in sector one
Hamilton improves his time. Vettel goes quickest of all in S1 though! And Raikkonen goes purple in sector two! Oooh. Hamilton improves in the second sector...
Q3 - "There's some rain on the back straight," Raikkonen says
Hardly much, though. Anyway, Bottas begins his hot lap.
Q3 - Final runs underway
Vettel has another click of front wing added. Will that help? Bottas will be the first of the top four to set a time.
This obviously doesn't look great for Ferrari or Vettel at the moment
It's a net front row lockout for Mercedes and Vettel would have Ricciardo and Raikkonen between him and Bottas in second. Raikkonen really needs to get in amongst as he'll be starting on the quickest tyres tomorrow. Pole would be great but ahead of Bottas is a must.
A new lap record...but of course
�� NEW TRACK RECORD! ��
Lewis goes P1 with his first Q3 effort - it’s a 1:32.567 and provisional pole!
�� 0.088s separates #LH44 and VET! #USGP ���� #F1pic.twitter.com/9TJRC2PUtI— Mercedes-AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) October 20, 2018
Q3 - top 10 after the first runs
It's close. Raikkonen must've made a mistake in sector two, he lost a lot of time to Hamilton there.
Q3 - Hamilton quickest!
He beats Bottas's lap time by just over a tenth! Raikkonen can't beat it or Bottas's time...
Vettel can't beat Hamilton's time either! He's 0.088s behind Hamilton. Good news for Mercedes...
Q3 - off they go on their hot laps!
Botts and Hamilton lead them out. Bottas sets a quick time in S1, beaten by Hamilton and then beaten by Raikkonen and THEN beaten by Vettel!
This could be close, all within a tenth. Hamilton improves in sector two and he's four tenths ahead of Raikkonen in that part of the track...
Q3 - Bottas not messing around on his out lap
The quickest time of anyone in second sector. We wait for his hot lap...
Q3 begins! 12 minutes to go
Who will take pole? Ferrari look good but, you know...
This is, by the way, Romain Grosjean's 11th consecutive appearance in Q3
After a tricky start to the season he has turned it around nicely.
Another fine performance for Force India
Esteban improves to 1:34.522 and P8 - Checo is in P9 and both progress to Q3! �� #USGP
— Racing Point Force India F1 (@ForceIndiaF1) October 20, 2018
Q2 - top 10
All these lads are through:
RAI
VET
HAM
BOT
RIC
LEC
GRO
OCO
PER
HUL
That lap of Leclerc's was a very, very good one. Two tenths ahead of Grosjean. Nice!
Q2 ends - Raikkonen quickest
Neither Mercedes or Vettel improved their times so they WILL start on the supersofts tomorrow. A bit of kidology, there. Raikkonen will start on the quickest ultrasoft tyre though.
Anyway.
Drivers out: Sainz, Magnussen, Gasly, Hartley and Verstappen.
Q2 - Can Magnussen and Sainz dig themselves out of the drop zone?
Doesn't look good for them both on these laps...
Magnussen does not improve and stays in 12th. He's out. Hulkenberg does not improve from 10th but he might be safe. Leclerc driving well again but doesn't improve on his time...
Vettel goes quickest in the middle sector
Sainz does not make it through! He got it back but is out by 0.002 seconds!
Q2 - Hamilton out on fresh ultrasofts
Bottas, too. And Vettel. So that supersoft starting strategy has not materialised. Well, it might do...if they don't set a lap on these tyres? Will they set a lap on these or will they trundle round and see how it goes...probably. Bit hard to monitor, though.
Q2 - top 10 with five minutes left
Q2 - drivers in the drop zone
11. Sainz
12. Magnussen
13. Gasly
14. Hartley
15. Verstappen
Both Toro Rossos and Max Verstappen will not set a time in this session, though. Or will they? Hartley is out...
Q2 - Hamilton's second hot lap is no great shakes
He's five tenths off after the first two sectors and ends up with a decent-ish final sector to put him third, six tenths of Raikkonen and four tenths off Vettel. Have Ferrari been concealing their pace or are the conditions coming to them?
Q2 - both Mercs on supersofts, by the way
Hamilton it seems is not coming in for a change of tyres but is going again on the same set of tyres. They're obviously not flat spotted but he will have done another two laps on them. Hmmm. Vettel and Raikkonen are clearly safe, here.
Q2 - Raikkonen quickest!
He's on the ultrasofts though. Vettel, though, is only two tenths behind on the supersofts. Hamilton makes a mistake locking up on his hot lap and he will go again. He's currently in P4 behind Bottas, 1.193 off the lead.
I do love these shots of the cars coming over the crest of the hill...
...with the viewing tower in the background. Moody.
That's it for Max Verstappen then
No further action for him today after that suspension failure. So another four drivers eliminated in this session. Makes things easier for the midfield runners.
Q2 begins! Big guns out already
Hamilton, Bottas and Vettel out on supersoft tyres.
Once again both Williams cars and both McLaren cars eliminated in Q1...
...a theme for the season. No surprise to see Vandoorne at the bottom of the timesheets again and he was once again miles behind Alonso, who has out-qualified him at every race in 2018.
Hamilton nearly four tenths ahead of Bottas
And Vettel. Normal order resumed, then. Any other surprises? Not really.
"That is P16 Fernando, P16"
He was 0.088s from making it through. He will start ahead of Hartley, though, as both Toro Rossos will start from the back tomorrow.
Q1 - Top 10
HAM
BOT
VET
RAI
RIC
VER
GAS
OCO
SAI
GRO
Also through:Hulkenberg, Magnussen, Leclerc, Perez, Hartley...
Q1 ends - Hamilton quickest
Ocon improves to P7. Alonso jumps up to P13! Can Vandoorne improve? Yes but it's not enough...
Leclerc improves. Hartley improves! And that knocks Alonso down to P16 and he's out of Q1. Sainz into P8, Gasly into P7!
Phew. What a finish.
Drivers out: Alonso, Sirotkin, Stroll, Ericsson, Vandoorne
Q1 - final runs underway
Can Alonso dig out a lap quick enough to get him through to Q2? Don't bet against it, he sets his quickest first sector of the day in sector one...
Q1 - Three minutes left
Hamilton has improved his time by a few hundredths, by the way on his second hot lap.
Drivers in the drop zone: Alonso, Sirotkin, Ericsson, Vandoorne, Stroll
Leclerc in 14th and Hartley in 15th on the cusp by about a tenth of a second.
Okay, Verstappen ran very wide over the yellow sausage kerbs as he put his foot on the throttle...
...and that seemed to do his suspension in. He should be through to Q2 but it seems unlikely - or doubtful - that he will take part.
Q1 - Six minutes left
Grosjean improves to sixth bumping Alonso down to the drop zone. Gasly improves to ninth. Max Verstappen seems to have a problem with his engine...again! Sounds like he has a bag of neutrals but actually it's his right rear suspension that's had it...where did that happen?
Q1 - top 10 with eight minutes left
Drivers in danger: Vandoorne, Stroll, Hartley, Grosjean (no time), Gasly (no time)
Red Bulls on the charge
Time to burn the breeze Bulls ������ #USGPpic.twitter.com/wvZd6HQ234
— Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 20, 2018
Meanwhile Raikkonen improves but Bottas goes quickest by 0.05s ahead of Vettel. What can Lewis do? He's quickest in the first two sectors but he's three tenths up on Bottas. A 1.34.1 despite a scruffy final turn.
Q1 - Raikkonen improves on his second hot lap in sector one
It's quick. Verstappen also going well here, running very wide at turn nine, though.
Q1 - 11 minutes to go
A lot of brake dust as Hamilton exits the pit lane on his out lap. Leclerc currently in third but only seven drivers to set a time and only six to have set a representative one as Stroll is currently 11 seconds off the pace.
Q1 - Vettel goes quickest
A 1.34.569, four tenths or so ahead of Raikkonen. Leclerc currently in third. Pierre Gasly has his time eliminated due to exceeding track limits. Will he be the last today? Doubt it.
Q1 - 15 minutes to go
Raikkonen takes a slingshot around the final turn and onto the pit straight for his first flying lap. That first sector is amazing to watch from the helicopter.
So, the problem with Raikkonen's car was that they couldn't start it...
...which seems like a fairly major annoyance. Anyway, they got it started in time and he's out on track along with his team-mate.
Q1 - 17 minutes to go
A few cars out now including Raikkonen and both Toro Rossos.
Here we go, green light in the pit lane and Q1 is go!
Nobody out yet.
The weather for qualifying...
...which is just about to start.
�� Grey clouds overhead, but no sign of rain #USGP ���� #F1pic.twitter.com/CbCNi64qRv
— Formula 1 (@F1) October 20, 2018
The engine cover of Kimi Raikkonen's car is off...
...well, actually it has just gone back on. Not sure what the problem with that was, if there was one but that's running it a bit fine...some fine tuning from the top two teams going on as we speak. Mercedes look to be lacking a bit on the straights compared to the Scuderia.
A reminder at how good Hamilton is at this track...
...he has won here the last four years and five times in six years. He has often had to do that from outside pole position, though.
How much will F1 miss Fernando Alonso? A born racer. Even in practice sessions...
A post shared by FORMULA 1® (@f1) on Oct 20, 2018 at 1:05pm PDT
Okay, just over 20 minutes to go until Q1 starts
Whilst I may have undersold the significance of this qualifying session earlier due to Vettel's penalty, if Vettel can be quickest (meaning he'll start fourth) and Raikkonen can qualify second with Bottas ahead of Hamilton then it could be interesting. But perhaps I am clutching at straws.
In case you missed it (or ICYMI in internet parlance)
Upcoming British driver and current F2 series leader George Russell signed for Williams last week for the 2019 season. Read more on that here. He will be the third British driver on the grid after Lando Norris (McLaren) and Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes, obvs).
How Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes built an F1 dynasty to rival that of the great Michael Schumacher
At a touch past 3pm Texan time on Sunday, on a swathe of scruffy, reclaimed grassland once known as Wandering Creek, Lewis Hamilton stands ready to light his name in the Formula One firmament. A fifth world title: it is a moment savoured by a driver only twice before, when Juan Manuel Fangio sliced through the field at the Nurburgring in 1957, and when Michael Schumacher, irresistible as ever in his Ferrari, emulated the Argentine at Magny-Cours 45 years later, with almost half a season to spare. Whatever one thinks of Hamilton or his sometimes lurid off-track antics, this is a rare and precious moment in the annals of sport.
Read the inside story on Lewis Hamilton's 2018 F1 season from Oliver Brown here.
Current driver standings
Lewis Hamilton - 331
Sebastian Vettel - 264
Valtteri Bottas - 207
Kimi Raikkonen - 196
Max Verstappen - 173
Daniel Ricciardo - 146
Sergio Perez - 53
Kevin Magnussen - 53
Nico Hulkenberg - 53
Fernando Alonso - 50
What happened to that rain then?
We had plenty of it on Friday and more was forecast for today. But that forecast changed and it looks like we're going to have a dry qualifying session. In some ways that is a bit of a shame but the conditions are still a little windy and overcast.
Why Lewis Hamilton's late-season march to the title is no surprise
Since the 2018 Formula One season returned from its summer break, Lewis Hamilton has given himself a commanding championship lead. The gap to Sebastian Vettel now stands at 67 points going into the United States Grand Prix, up from 14 before the summer break.
Hamilton has been driving exceptionally, despite Ferrari closing the gap to Mercedes and perhaps even being the quicker car for much of this period.
How and why is he so good after the summer break? We (well, I did...) crunched the numbers. Read more here.
Hamilton and Vettel get very close to one another in FP3 earlier today
Looks like fun, doesn't it?
A post shared by FORMULA 1® (@f1) on Oct 20, 2018 at 12:18pm PDT
What does Vettel need to do this weekend to keep the title alive until Mexico next week?
Well, he hasn't won it yet but it's almost just a formality...
Lewis Hamilton stands very close to emulating Juan Manuel Fangio's five world titles, a different driver in a vastly different era. Want to know more about this Argentine legend?
When the prospect of emulating Juan Manuel Fangio was first put to Lewis Hamilton, at a gala dinner in Paris last year, he responded blankly, saying only that it would be “quite cool”. Now that it is virtually a racing certainty that he will match the Argentine’s five Formula One titles, his attitude has shifted, his appreciation fulsome for a man whose 1950s feats have lost none of their mystique. “He’s the godfather for us,” he said here in Austin. “It’s crazy to think that I’m embarking on a similar number of championships.”
Read more from Oliver Brown here.
The track for this weekend, the fantastic Circuit of the Americas
It's undulating, it has a great esses section and a few good overtaking opportunities. That first corner, though, is one of the best on the calendar.
More on Vettel's three-place grid penalty
Sebastian Vettel received a three-place grid penalty for not slowing sufficiently under red flags in first practice. The incident was when track marshals were cleaning the track of gravel after Charles Leclerc's spin. The Ferrari driver was judged by the stewards not to have slowed down enough - according to strict timing data - under the red flag.
Here's what he said afterwards.
“I think I saw the red flag, I slowed down, had a look around [to see] where was the car potentially stuck in the wall,” said Vettel, “if there was one around Turn 9 and 10 and then slowed down significantly to comply with the rules. They found it took too long.
“I think it’s the first time we had [the target lap] in the wet and in the wet the target is a lot slower, so literally I have to stop to 30kph or 40, 50 kph, to bring down the delta, which probably I should do next time. In my opinion it’s not the right thing...if there’s a car behind you, it might run into you, but more important that you don’t get a penalty.”
Esteban Ocon received the same penalty for the same reasons in Japan two weeks ago.
The top 10 and times after FP3
Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1min 33.797secs
Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) Ferrari 1:33.843
Lewis Hamilton (Gbr) Mercedes GP 1:33.870
Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Mercedes GP 1:34.556
Max Verstappen (Ned) Red Bull 1:34.703
Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:34.910
Charles Leclerc (Mon) Sauber-Ferrari 1:35.365
Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 1:35.411
Carlos Sainz Jr (Spa) Renault 1:35.45
Romain Grosjean (Fra) Haas F1 1:35.468
Good evening, F1 fans!
And welcome to our live updates from qualifying for the 2018 United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin. Lewis Hamilton stands on the verge of a fifth world title and becoming the equal of Juan Manuel Fangio. If he wins and Sebastian Vettel finishes lower than second, the championship is his with three rounds to spare. He won the 2015 title at this circuit and is unbeaten here since 2013, so it's a particularly favourite track of his.
But that's all tomorrow's action. We still have qualifying to sort out today and it could be an unpredictable one. Unpredictable because of the limited dry running we've had. In fact, today's final practice was the first dry running we've had at COTA all weekend, as both Friday's practice sessions were wet. Hamilton topped both of those but Vettel was the man to emerge on top of the timesheets in final practice, ahead of his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen.
Hamilton was third just ahead of Valtteri Bottas, although behind Ferrari by such a small margin that the positions are perhaps a little insignificant. Or at least not as significant as they might have been. That should have set us up for an exciting qualifying. At least relatively.
But it won't because Vettel will take a three-place grid penalty for the race tomorrow after failing to slow sufficiently for red flag conditions in practice yesterday. So it's unlikely he'll start ahead of Hamilton tomorrow. He said it was unfair but the FIA disagreed obviously and it was consistent with other penalties applied throughout the season.
Anyway, we're here to see if Vettel can keep his title fight going until Mexico. With that penalty he has a job but one mistake from Hamilton could change it all. I'm not sure the last time Hamilton made a significant mistake, though...
I'll be here for the next couple of hours with all the build-up, latest updates and reaction from the US GP qualifying. Can anyone spring a surprise anywhere on the grid? Let's hope so...