Race Report: Three-Pointed Star Shines Brightest in Lone Star State as Kimi takes Stunning Win

• Kimi Antonelli took his ninth victory of the season in Sunday’s United States Grand Prix, putting him on the verge of sealing the Drivers’ World Championship in Mexico next weekend.

• The race was shaped by the strategic decisions in the opening 15 laps, with Red Bull committing Max Verstappen to a two-stop strategy and both Ferraris following suit.

• We trusted the degradation and lap times we were seeing and opted not to cover, committing Kimi and George to the one-stop strategy.

• That proved to be the right call, as Kimi took the chequered flag 13 seconds ahead of Charles Leclerc and Verstappen.

• George endured a more difficult afternoon, struggling with the balance of the car and receiving a penalty following an incident on the opening lap.

• Despite a strong start to his second stint, his progress was halted when he caught the McLaren of Piastri and was unable to find a way through.

• Kimi’s victory is the team’s sixth at the Circuit of the Americas, following our wins in 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2019.

• Pierluigi Orsi, Chief of Aerodynamic Technology, represented the team on the podium.

• Kimi now leads the standings by 123 points meaning a P9 finish or higher will secure the title for him.

George Russell

It was another difficult day for me today. I just didn’t have the pace and I’m unsure why that is. My first stint wasn’t great, and I was struggling initially on the Medium tyre but after the pitstop my pace felt stronger and I felt I could make some progress. However, once I caught up with the McLaren of Piastri, I just couldn’t overtake and ended up stuck behind him for the remaining laps of the race.

The time penalty from the opening lap cost me a couple of places but overall, the pace just wasn’t good enough today for me to be fighting at the front. The lack of performance is something me and the team will look at and work on over the next couple of days. Hopefully we can make some improvements ahead of next weekend in Mexico and come back stronger for the rest of the season.

Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director

Well done to Kimi and everyone in Brackley and Brixworth on the win. After Friday, a race victory simply didn’t look achievable given our single-lap and long-run pace, so it’s been a remarkable turnaround and a very satisfying result.

For George, it was a frustrating afternoon. The penalty for going off track on the opening lap didn’t help and, despite making a strong start to his second stint, he got stuck behind Piastri and couldn’t find a way through.

There were encouraging signs with the car pace, although since the update it does feel like the set-up window has become a little harder to hit. Operationally though, the team did a very good job. The strategy decisions weren’t clear-cut, but we held our nerve, made the right call to stick with the one-stop, and the pit stops were solid.

Most of all, Kimi should be incredibly pleased with his performances. It was a difficult Friday, but what he produced in qualifying, and the race today, was exceptional.