Lewis Hamilton had a rare chance in 2022 to win in Sunday’s United Grand Prix after Max Verstappen’s race was compromised by a slow pit stop.
The Red Bull driver fought back to win, but there was tension in the final laps as he had strayed beyond track limits three times during the course of the race and was at risk of a five-second penalty which could have cost him his victory. Behind, Hamilton was keeping a close eye on how well Verstappen stayed within the lines, and ensuring his team and race control did not miss any potential infractions.
Transcript: Hamilton vs Verstappen in the United States Grand Prix
Verstappen and Hamilton started second and third. However they were soon in contention for the lead, as pole-winner Carlos Sainz Jnr started slowly and was hit by George Russell.
The pair started on the medium compound tyres and over the opening laps it quickly became clear Hamilton did not have the pace on that rubber to keep up with Verstappen.
| Lap: 1/56 | |||
| Bonnington | So Stroll car behind at 0.8. So we had Sainz spin at turn one. | Lambiase | Car behind, Hamilton. Sainz was tagged at turn one. Mode 10 and gap one second, Max. Straight into this. |
| Hamilton | Gone wide, turn four. | Lambiase | Gap 1.5. |
| Bonnington | Okay copy. | ||
| Lap: 2/56 | |||
| Bonnington | Stroll 1.8 behind, Verstappen 1.3 ahead. | Lambiase | Gap 1.5. And race update, Max. Sainz has retired from that incident at turn one. |
| Bonnington | So Verstappen 1.7 ahead, Stroll two behind. | ||
| Lap: 3/56 | |||
| Bonnington | DRS has been enabled. | Lambiase | High-speed saving looks similar to Hamilton in the Esses. |
| Lambiase | You can afford to save more in turn 17, 18 Max. Straight-line gains are strong. | ||
| Lap: 4/56 | |||
| Bonnington | Tractions metrics only at 3.7. Think about bringing back the entry turn one for a better exit. | Lambiase | Strat two. The previous lap Hamilton pushing more in sector one. Keep it there for the moment. Turn 17, happier now. |
| Bonnington | So gap to Verstappen at 2.2 and it looks like he’s pushing hard. The gap to the midfield should open up quickly. | ||
| Bonnington | So Verstappen a 42.6. | ||
Red Bull could see Hamilton is using up his tyres in pursuit of Verstappen and tell their driver he can afford to push harder. Verstappen responds and begins to pull away from Hamilton by three to four tenths of a second each lap.
| Lap: 5/56 | |||
| Hamilton | Left is high? Very hard to keep up. | Verstappen | Wind makes it really tricky, it’s very gusty. |
| Bonnington | Yeah copy. Nothing concerning at the moment. | Lambiase | Understood. Gap 2.4. Make sure you control the rear axle in the high speed. |
| Lambiase | |||
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