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lando norris And oscar piastri They collided with each other again on the first lap as both title rivals were eliminated from the United States Sprint.
The preparations leading up to the weekend have been dominated by imposed “results” mclaren After the team held Norris responsible for banging the wheels with Piastri Singapore a fortnight ago.
That minor tap paled into insignificance compared to the carnage that occurred on the first stage of Saturday’s sprint Austin Since Norris’s car only had three tires left.
Starting from third, Piastri – who leads Norris in the championship standings by 22 points – attempted to cut off the inside of his team-mate, but turned into Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg and, as a result, collided with the left side of the rear of Norris’ car.
Norris became dizzy as his left rear tire went across the track. Piastri limped along briefly but due to suspension damage he was also included in the 19-lap dash – where max verstappen Achieved victory.
mclarenThe decision to insert themselves into the title fight by giving Norris the nod after Singapore will raise questions about what they decide to do after this latest clash.
mclaren ceo jack brown From the pit wall he told Sky Sports: “It was terrible. None of our drivers are to blame for this.”
“It’s an hour of amateur driving by some drivers on the front lines, (they) killed two people.”
Piastri said: “We both went too deep into turn one and I tried to cut back and got hit, so obviously it wasn’t a good way to start the day.”
Top-8 – US Grand Prix Sprint
1) Max Verstappen – Red Bull
2) George Russell – Mercedes
3) Carlos Sainz – Williams
4) Lewis Hamilton – Ferrari
5) Charles Leclerc – Ferrari
6) Alex Albon – Williams
7) Yuki Tsunoda – Red Bull
8) Kimi Antonelli – Mercedes
McLaren have another cause for concern in the form of Verstappen. The clash between the tangling pair of papayas left the door wide open for the Dutchman to claim victory as he continues to grow larger in the championship picture.
His eight points for the sprint win meant he had reduced Piastri’s advantage to 55 points and was 33 points behind Norris.
Starting from pole, Verstappen steered clear of the first-lap chaos – where Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso were also eliminated – and he overtook George Russell at the safety-car restart.
But Russell, having penned a new Mercedes deal following his win in Singapore, was intent on countering this as he lunged on the inside of Turn 12 on Lap 19, but failed to make the corner as both cars were sent off the track.
Verstappen moved clear to claim routine victory after that incident carlos saenz – starting from seventh – finished an impressive third for Williams.
Lewis Hamilton finished fourth ahead of Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc after passing Monegasque on lap nine.
Qualifying for Sunday’s main race will begin at 1600 local time (2200 BST).