The 2024 United States Grand Prix offered a bit of everything for racing fans. There were daring overtakes, constant battles, controversial decisions, and a surprising winner in Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.
Leclerc started the race at No. 4, but managed to emerge as the race leader by the time the drivers exited the first turn at Circuit of the Americas. Lecler first had a quick charge off the line to overtake his teammate Carlos Sainz and then used the clash between championship contenders McLaren’s Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen in front of him to grab the first position.
Leclerc held firmly to the position until Lap 26 when he pitted and exited behind Norris and another McLaren driver Oscar Piastir. Once the McLarens pitted, Leclerc got up front once again and controlled the race until the end.
“I knew that Max and Lando would be very aggressive towards each other,” Leclerc said after the race. “I mean, they are fighting for the championship. “
Meanwhile, Sainz, who was third after the first lap, overcame an issue with his power unit and eventually managed to overtake Verstappen for second position, one he managed to hold on to. This gave Ferrari a 1-2 finish.
Despite not being in a position to fight for the win, Norris and Verstappen still treated the US F1 fans with an exciting battle that culminated four laps before the end of the race. After several attacks, Norris managed to overtake Verstappen for third position but went beyond track limits to do so.
Norris believed that Verstappen forced him to make that move and decided not to give back the position. The officials ended up handing him a 5-second penalty, which pushed him back to fourth place.
After United States GP, Verstappen increased his lead over Norris at the top of the Drivers Standings. The Red Bull driver has a 57 points advantage with five races left in the season.
