After a three-week hiatus, the United States Grand Prix commences a triple-header for the F1 circus and is the first of six races to finish the 2024 season.
Included in the weekend is the fourth F1 Sprint race, with another two looming ahead late in the year at Brazil and Qatar.
The F1 Sprint format sees the grid fight for a race win over a 100km charge, with the top eight finishers receiving points accordingly.
Now in its fourth iteration, the Sprint is meant to create an emphasis on attacking for teams, with less strategy and no pit stops involved over the 30-minute affair.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen has clinched each of the three Sprint victories this year in China, Miami, and Austria, each picking him up an extra eight points for his championship fight.
The Dutchman also holds the record for the most Sprint wins in F1. In 2023 alone, he took out four of the six shortened Saturday races. Only teammates Sergio Perez and Oscar Piastri could beat Verstappen in Azerbaijan and Qatar respectively.
The United States Sprint
Around Austin’s Circuit of the Americas, this year’s sprint will see Lando Norris looking for all-important points to extend his fight in the driver’s championship against Verstappen.
After the only Free Practice session of the weekend on Friday morning, the Sprint Qualifying will commence at 16:30 local time to lock in the grid for Saturday’s 100km dash.
The Sprint will begin on Saturday at 13:00 local time before teams quickly turn around for Qualifying to decide who will start in pole position for the United States Grand Prix.
Brazil and Qatar Sprint
Last season in Brazil saw Verstappen set a new F1 record for the highest percentage of wins in a single season. Polesitter Norris lost his first-place position to the Dutchman into the Senna Esses on Lap 1, having to settle for second place instead.
Moving from its mid-October slot in 2023, the Qatar race around Lusail International Circuit will be the final F1 Sprint for the 2024 season.
With last year's race seeing a new maiden victor crowned in Piastri alongside the Australian's first pole position, the McLaren driver will be looking to recreate his notable weekend this time.
Liam Lawson will also return to Qatar after last year’s disappointment in the Sprint. Now firmly in the Visa Cash App RB seat as a mid-season switch as Daniel Ricciardo's replacement. The Kiwi will look to increase his DNF result from 2023 to solidify his place on the grid for 2025 and onwards.
This weekend’s Sprint will be the first race outing for many teams with their cars's new upgrades. With only one Free Practice session, all eyes will be on Sprint Qualifying and Race to determine the winners and losers over the break.
Mercedes Technical Director James Allison admitted that the Mercedes team will come with “a fairly substantial set of new clothes for the car coming for Austin,” which the team hopes will give them a decent weekend around Circuit of the Americas.
Allison explained that during the break the team was “trying to figure out how to mitigate what ailed [them over the Singapore] weekend, how to make the tires run better on…overheating circuits and doing quite a lot of work to bring [the] last upgrade of the season together.”
Action at the COTA track will begin on Friday. With the extra eight points up for grabs, the Sprint can shake up the championship fight between Norris and Verstappen, with only 52 points separating the two.
