Max Verstappen wins COTA as McLaren extends championship lead

Race summary

Max Verstappen converted pole position into a lights-to-flag victory at Circuit of the Americas, completing all 56 laps in 1:34:00.161 to win the United States Grand Prix by 7.959 seconds. Lando Norris started alongside him on the front row and crossed the line in 2nd, 7.959 seconds adrift.

Charles Leclerc completed the podium from 3rd on the grid, finishing 15.373 seconds adrift of Verstappen — a clean, controlled run that mirrored the race's processional character at the top. Lewis Hamilton gained one position from 5th on the grid to take 4th, 28.536 seconds behind the winner, with Oscar Piastri — who started 6th — pressing him hard to the flag, eventually finishing just 1.142 seconds in arrears in 5th.

George Russell endured a subdued afternoon for Mercedes, slipping two places from 4th on the grid to 6th and finishing 33.456 seconds off Verstappen's pace.

Midfield movers

Yuki Tsunoda was the story of the midfield, charging from 13th on the grid to 7th at the flag, 52.714 seconds behind the winner, and securing 6 points for Red Bull to complement Verstappen's haul. Nico Hülkenberg converted 11th on the grid into 8th for Sauber, 57.249 seconds back — a tidy afternoon for a team that rarely finds itself in the upper reaches of the points.

Oliver Bearman dropped from 8th on the grid to 9th for Haas, finishing more than a minute behind Verstappen, while Fernando Alonso held his starting position of 10th to earn Aston Martin's sole point of the day. Lance Stroll recovered from 19th on the grid to 12th, gaining seven places across the afternoon — though it went unrewarded in terms of points.

Fastest lap

Verstappen's 1:37.991 on lap 35 ranked third among the field's quickest laps, with Norris recording a 1:37.620 on the same lap for second on the chart. Russell, likewise on lap 35, recorded a 1:38.224 for fourth.

Championship implications

With 19 rounds complete, Oscar Piastri leads the drivers' championship on 346 points, Norris second on 332 — a 14-point gap between the McLaren teammates. Verstappen's victory lifts him to 306 points in third, 40 points behind Piastri and 26 behind Norris.

The arithmetic at COTA shifted fractionally in Norris's favour within the McLaren camp. Norris's 18 points from 2nd place, set against Piastri's 10 points from 5th, means Norris closed 8 points on his teammate in Austin. That still leaves Piastri 14 clear, and the championship looks increasingly like an internal McLaren negotiation.

George Russell sits 4th in the standings on 252 points, while Leclerc is 5th on 192 and Hamilton 6th on 142. For Red Bull, the combination of Verstappen's 25 points and Tsunoda's 6 produced a 31-point constructors' haul from the Texan round.

Race result

Pos	Driver	Team	Time/Status	Pts
1	Max Verstappen	Red Bull	1:34:00.161	25
2	Lando Norris	McLaren	+7.959	18
3	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	+15.373	15
4	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	+28.536	12
5	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	+29.678	10
6	George Russell	Mercedes	+33.456	8
7	Yuki Tsunoda	Red Bull	+52.714	6
8	Nico Hülkenberg	Sauber	+57.249	4
9	Oliver Bearman	Haas F1 Team	+1:04.722	2
10	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	+1:10.001	1