
Max Verstappen drove a masterclass race at the Circuit of the Americas, scoring maximum points in the main event following on from the sprint at the United States Grand Prix.
Lando Norris was able to gained the upper hand on Charles Leclerc by passing his rival twice at Turn 12. The McLaren driver had to settle for P2 while the Ferrari scored a podium.
At the Circuit of the Americas Verstappen led the field from pole, while Leclerc passed second-place start Norris around the outside of Turn 1, the Ferrari driver getting a better getaway on soft tyres compared to mediums for the rest of the frontrunners.
Lando’s bid to challenge Max was effectively ruined by falling behind Charles as he was then unable to overtake the soft-tyre Ferrari for the majority of the opening stint.
There was a brief virtual safety car on lap 7 for contact between Carlos Sainz and Andrea Kimi Antonelli in Turn 15, triggered by the Williams driver, which saw him knocked out of the race and also dumped Antonelli out of the top ten.
After that incident was cleared up, Norris remained stuck behind Leclerc until he finally got close enough to the back of the Ferrari on lap 21, and passed him on the inside of Turn 12.
That was the sign for Leclerc to pit for mediums, but the damage was already done for Norris as Verstappen’s gap had steadily increased to 11 seconds. To make matters worse, Norris had received a black and white flag for three track limits violations while hunting down Leclerc, which was stressful for the remainder of the 56-lap contest.
The second Ferrari of Lewis Hamilton followed three seconds behind Norris, with the championship leader Oscar Piastri in fifth position. Piastri managed to pick off George Russell at the start but soon started struggling for grip, as he continued what had been a low-key weekend.
Piastri made his only pitstop on lap 31 to protect against potential undercut from Russell, with Hamilton, Norris and then Verstappen also heading to the pits on subsequent laps.
By that time Norris had made up two seconds on Verstappen, but his pitstop then put the Briton behind Leclerc once more, despite this time on the faster tyres.
Keen to make the move on Leclerc much faster than in round one before he lost the edge of his soft tyres, Norris pushed for a move, but soon reported his tyres were past their best.
Norris then took his time, cooled his tyres and relaunched his attack in the closing laps, briefly getting the move made into Turn 1 on lap 51. Leclerc initially restored his position with a switchback, but was then powerless to hold Norris at bay on the main DRS straight, with Norris securing second on the run into Turn 12.
Hamilton dropped back from the Norris-Leclerc fight to finish a distant fourth, just ahead of Piastri in fifth and Russell in sixth.
In an otherwise uneventful race, Yuki Tsunoda survived a fraught fight with Oliver Bearman to claim seventh in the Red Bull, with Bearman’s spin also costing him eighth to Nico Hulkenberg.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso held off Liam Lawson and hard-charging teammate Lance Stroll to secure the final point.
It all means Piastri holds a 14-point lead over second-placed Norris in the championship, while Verstappen is third and 40 off top with five rounds remaining. The Mexican Grand Prix is next up and will be fascinating if Max can score more big points.

United States Grand Prix, race results:
1 Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:34:00.161
2 Lando Norris McLaren +7.959s
3 Charles Leclerc Ferrari +15.373s
4 Lewis Hamilton Ferrari +28.536s
5 Oscar Piastri McLaren +29.678s
6 George Russell Mercedes +33.456s
7 Yuki Tsunoda Red Bull +52.714s
8 Nico Hulkenberg Sauber +57.249s
9 Oliver Bearman Haas +64.722s
10 Fernando Alonso Aston Martin +70.001s
11 Liam Lawson Racing Bulls +73.209s
12 Lance Stroll Aston Martin +74.778s
13 Andrea Kimi Antonelli Mercedes +75.746
14 Alexander Albon Williams +80.000s
15 Esteban Ocon Haas +83.043s
16 Isack Hadjar Racing Bulls +92.807s
17 Franco Colapinto Alpine +1 lap
18 Gabriel Bortoleto Sauber +1 lap
19 Pierre Gasly Alpine +1 lap
Carlos Sainz Williams DNF