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The United States Grand Prix is certainly a special race in the F1 calendar because of its long association with the sport. Watkins Glen held the Grand Prix for over 30 years, while the Indianapolis circuit held it from 2000 to 2007.
After a hiatus of four years, Formula One returned to the United States of America with a race at the Circuit of the Americas at Austin, Texas. Since 2012, the track has been hosting the United States Grand Prix, and during its six years of operation the track has given all racing fans brilliant racing action, and in this action, let us look closer at the five best races at the Circuit de Americas.
#5 2014 United States Grand Prix
The 2014 United States Grand Prix exemplified Mercedes’ dominance in the sport along with Lewis Hamilton’s sheer brilliance behind the wheel.
The Silver Arrows locked the front row of the grid with Nico Rosberg taking the pole and Lewis Hamilton starting the race from the second place.
Rosberg had a dream start and maintained his advantage during the initial stages of the race with the Briton following him in a close second. However, on lap 24, Lewis Hamilton overtook his teammate and claimed the lead. Since then, Hamilton pulled away from the pack and went on to pick up another routine victory at the Circuit of the Americas. Rosberg finished second to take a brilliant one-two for Mercedes.
#4 2013 United States Grand Prix
The 2013 United States Grand Prix was completely dominated by Renault powered machines as all the three drivers on the podium featured cars powered by Renault engines.
Sebastian Vettel dominated the entire weekend by claiming a race win from pole position. Romain Grosjean came in second while Mark Webber took the final step on the podium.
During the race, the German started strong and held his lead until the first round of pit stops. After trailing the leader for a couple of laps, Vettel reclaimed his lead and went on to secure his first United States Grand Prix victory, which was also his eighth consecutive win of the 2013 Formula One Championship.
Interestingly, Sebastian Vettel is the only driver other than Lewis Hamilton who managed to secure a race win at the Circuit of the Americas.
#3 2017 United States Grand Prix
The 2017 United States Grand Prix was a special race for the Silver Arrows as a strong show by its drivers at the Circuit of the Americas helped the team secure its fourth successive World Constructors’ Championship.
Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel split the Mercedes teammates on the grid as Lewis Hamilton took the pole position.
Vettel’s blistering start propelled him into the lead on lap one; however, the German’s lead was short-lived as Hamilton wrestled the lead away from Vettel on lap 6. Since then, Lewis Hamilton held his ground to claim yet another victory at the United States Grand Prix.
Hamilton’s scintillating first and Bottas’ hard-earned fifth earned the Silver Arrows 35 points, which were enough to clinch the constructors’ championship.
The other notable driver during the race was Max Verstappen. Driving the Red Bull machine, the Dutchman started the race from the sixteenth place but managed to secure the fourth place with a mesmerising drive.
#2 2012 United States Grand Prix
The 2012 United States Grand Prix is the inaugural F1 race at the Circuit of the Americas. Driving the McLaren, Lewis Hamilton took the race win to mark his last victory for the team before moving to Mercedes in 2013.
Sebastian Vettel started the race from pole position alongside Lewis Hamilton and needed to finish ahead of Fernando Alonso as the German was on the brink of winning the drivers’ championship. The Spaniard, however, struggled in Q3 and started the race from the seventh place.
Vettel had a dream start and maintained the race lead during the first half of the race. However, the Briton’s precision drive enabled him to slip past the German on lap 42 to secure the race lead. From there on, Hamilton held his ground and took the chequered flag just 0.675 seconds ahead of Sebastian Vettel.
Alonso recovered and finished the race in the third spot, which ensured that the championship would be settled in the last race of the season.
#1 2015 United States Grand Prix
The 2015 United States Grand Prix is one of those few races of the season that managed to etch itself into the minds of every Formula One enthusiast as the entire weekend offered loads of drama and brilliant overtaking action.
A rain-hit qualifying session saw Mercedes lock the front row of the grid with Q2 times for the Q3 was cancelled due to treacherous track conditions.
An aggressive move by the Briton forced his teammate Nico Rosberg to run wide on lap 1, which in turn, handed the lead to Lewis Hamilton. Rosberg, on the other hand, slipped further down the grid and was facing an uphill battle to reclaim the lead.
However, an inspired drive by the German ensured that he would reclaim the race lead before the halfway point. On lap 48, fortunes changed as Rosberg surrendered the lead to Hamilton after running wide. This error opened the doors for Hamilton, who held his nerve and took the win to claim his third drivers’ championship.
