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The 2018 US Grand Prix was no doubt one of the races of the season so far after Kimi Raikkonen got back to winning ways five years after his previous win in Australia.
Lewis Hamilton did not score enough points to seal a fifth world championship but has another opportunity to seal it this weekend at the Mexican Grand Prix.
The Briton finished in third place while his championship rival Sebastian Vettel finished behind in fourth. All Hamilton needs is five more points to end the title race for another year.
But overall Sunday's race in Austin had a nail-biting end to the race with the front three of Raikkonen, Max Verstappen and Hamilton battling for the race win.
Many fans praised the conclusion of the race especially when a majority of the races are already determined laps before the finish line.
There were some scintillating performances on Sunday and here is Sportskeeda's driver ratings for the US Grand Prix:
#10 Williams
Lance Stroll - 14th
Another race to forget about for Lance Stroll and the Williams team.
But it might not be too long until the Canadian leaves the suffering of poor results behind in order to join his father, Lawrence Stroll, at Racing Point Force India.
Stroll began the race in 15th and with four retirements and two disqualifications, the Williams driver only went up by one position.
Driver's rating: 1/10
Sergey Sirotkin - 13th
Just like Stroll, Sergey Sirotkin had a pretty long race day in Austin by finishing in 13th.
The Russian's future in F1 looks very uncertain with Force India's Esteban Ocon linked to Williams for next season.
Mercedes' reserve driver George Russell is the first man to be announced for Williams in 2019.
Sirotkin began the race in 14th before finishing one place further in 13th.
Driver's rating: 1/10
#9 Sauber
Marcus Ericsson - 10th
Another name on the current driver's line-up who has a big decision to make over the next few weeks.
Marcus Ericsson has lost his seat at Sauber for next season with the arrivals of Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi taking on the roles.
But the Swede has been offered a reserve role in the Swiss team. It is believed that Ericsson is considering a move to the States to compete in the IndyCar series.
Ericsson certainly impressed in the States on Sunday with a point finish in 10th.
Driver's rating: 5/10
Charles Leclerc - DNF
A frustrating day for Sauber's Charles Leclerc by not finishing the race. Leclerc retired from the race 31 laps in after a collision damage.
It is now back to back races that Leclerc has faced a DNF. His last race finish was an impressive 6th place at the Russian Grand Prix.
Leclerc will no doubt be determined to bring the car home at Sunday's race in Mexico City.
Driver's rating: 1/10
#8 Toro Rosso
Brendon Hartley - 9th
It was a fine drive from Brendon Hartley in Sunday's race by finishing in 9th place on the points table.
Hartley began the race at the back of the grid in 20th position but took the advantage of his Honda-powered Toro Rosso to finish in the top ten.
The New Zealander is under a lot of pressure between now and the end of the season.
Hartley has not been guaranteed a seat for 2019 just yet but maybe still in with a chance. All he can do is to continue performances like this one.
Driver's rating: 7/10
Pierre Gasly - 12th
Saturday was a grim day for the Toro Rosso team with Hartley and Pierre Gasly qualifying at the back of the grid in 19th and 20th.
But as well as Hartley being the most impressive on race day, his teammate didn't do too badly either.
Gasly started the race in 19th but was able to challenge the Williams cars with ease but just missed out on the points.
Driver's rating: 5/10
#7 Force India
Sergio Perez - 8th
Another points finish from Racing Point Force India's Sergio Perez with an 8th place just days after announcing his contract extension with the 'pink panthers'.
Perez has a huge ambition to challenge Renault for fourth place in the constructors' championship.
Despite there still being 150 points available for the next three races, it looks very unlikely but it just shows the belief Perez has for a team he has been working with for the last four years.
Driver's rating: 6/10
Esteban Ocon - Disqualified
It was a mixed weekend for Esteban Ocon.
The Frenchman began with a very convincing qualification place in 6th ahead of Sunday's race.
But then at the end of the race, Ocon was sent to the stewards and was given a disqualification for exceeding fuel flow limits on the opening lap.
Ocon originally finished the race in 8th place.
Driver's rating: 5/10 (Excluding his disqualification)
#6 McLaren
Fernando Alonso - DNF
Fernando Alonso's fourth last ever race in F1 was a Grand Prix to forget after an early retirement in Sunday's race.
The Spaniard caused a collision on the opening lap after starting the race in 13th. Alonso is known for his quick starts especially when attempting to climb from the back rows.
But this time the US fans missed out on what a truly talented this driver is. Who knows, the United States might become Alonso's new home from 2019 onwards.
Driver's rating: 1/10
Stoffel Vandoorne - 11th
It was Stoffel Vandoorne's first race in F1 since his announcement of joining Formula E team HWA.
In which we now know that the rest of the season sees the next three races kind of pointless for the Belgian as he is no longer fighting for an F1 seat for next year.
Vandoorne started in 17th before climbing up the leaderboard by six places but just missed out on the points while Alonso retired in the opening lap.
A missed opportunity to grow the gap away from Force India in the constructors championship.
Driver's rating: 3/10
#5 Haas
Kevin Magnussen - Disqualified
Esteban Ocon was not the only driver to be given a disqualification at the end of Sunday's race.
Haas' Kevin Magnussen also received the same treatment.
This happened after Magnussen was consuming more than 105kg of fuel during the race. The Dane had finished the race in 9th place.
Driver's rating: 4/10 (Excluding his disqualification)
Romain Grosjean - DNF
Romain Grosjean's DNF (Did Not Finish) wrapped up a disappointing weekend for the Haas team at their home Grand Prix.
Grosjean had started the race in a good position in 8th but was out of the race just two laps in.
The Frenchman suffered collision damage making the Haas driver retire from the race despite a convincing performance in Saturday's qualifying.
For Haas as a whole, it is really disappointing when you consider that Renault were able to take home 14 points to extend their lead over the American team.
Driver's rating: 1/10
#4 Renault
Nico Hulkenberg - 6th
The season is getting ever closer to the end of both the driver's and constructors' championship.
The Renault group are firmly focused on finishing 4th in the constructors' championship and made that aim very realistic after Sunday's race.
Nico Hulkenberg's performance on Sunday was very strong by crossing the finish line in 6th place.
The German started the race in 7th and was only slowest to the top three teams of Mercedes, Scuderia Ferrari and Red Bull.
Driver's rating: 7/10
Carlos Sainz Jnr - 7th
Carlos Sainz Jnr came up with the goods on Sunday by displaying a similar performance to his teammate.
The Spaniard finished just behind Hulkenberg to help the team score a total of 14 points to add to their overall score in the constructor's championship.
Renault are now 22 points ahead of Haas with three races to go after both Grosjean and Magnussen retired from the race.
Good timing from the French team.
Driver's rating: 6/10
#3 Red Bull
Max Verstappen - 2nd
Max Verstappen was voted as the driver of the day for the US Grand Prix and we agree as he is Sportskeeda's racer of the race.
Verstappen sealed another podium finish to what is becoming a scintillating second half of the season for the 21-year-old.
The Dutchman even fought off Lewis Hamilton in the closing laps to deny the Briton second place to Kimi Raikkonen.
And let's not forget that Verstappen finished 2nd after starting the race in 18th - climbing up 16 places.
Is that not convincing enough for you?
Driver's rating: 9/10
Daniel Ricciardo - DNF
It was Daniel Ricciardo's first retirement from a race since the Italian Grand Prix at the beginning of September.
The Australian showed us one hell of a performance at the Japanese Grand Prix with 4th place after qualifying in 15th position.
But after a collision with Sebastian Vettel in the opening lap, Ricciardo had a battery problem 8 laps into the race.
Driver's rating: 1/10
#2 Scuderia Ferrari
Kimi Raikkonen - 1st
It was a great day for Kimi Raikkonen and his huge group of fans as they finally saw the Iceman win an F1 race for the first time in 5 years.
Raikkonen's previous race victory was at the 2013 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne when he was in his second season at Lotus before rejoining Scuderia Ferrari the following year.
With Raikkonen in his final few races in his Ferrari contract, the Fin is clearly making the most out of it before he rejoins Sauber for 2019.
Driver's rating: 8/10
Sebastian Vettel - 4th
Sebastian Vettel's championship bid lives on for another week before the Mexican Grand Prix this weekend.
Vettel began the race in 5th after he was given a three-place grid penalty for failing to slow sufficiently during a red flag period in Free Practice 1.
And it was also a bad start to the race for Vettel when he spun off the track after colliding with Daniel Ricciardo.
Vettel has had a repetitiveness of spinning off the track in the last few races especially in the opening laps.
The German will challenge once more this weekend in Mexico City but will probably be his last chance before Hamilton gets his hands on a 5th world championship.
Driver's rating: 6/10
#1 Mercedes
Lewis Hamilton - 3rd
The celebrations were put on hold for Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton on sealing a fifth world championship.
Third place was simply not enough while Sebastian Vettel finished behind the Briton in 4th place.
The circuit of the Americas is one of Hamilton's favourite tracks when it comes to his recent results.
So the Mercedes man failing to win the race was a shock to many after Raikkonen overtook Hamilton on the first corner.
Another podium for Hamilton but he will be geared up to win this weekend's Mexican Grand Prix to celebrate another driver's title.
Driver's rating: 7/10
Valtteri Bottas - 5th
As always, Valtteri Bottas was a good team player for Lewis Hamilton especially in the later laps when the Fin allowed the four-time champion to pass in a bid to win the race.
But Bottas will be disappointed to have let Vettel overtake him in the last few laps of the race which guaranteed the championship will go on for another week.
Driver's rating: 5/10
Who was your driver of the day at the US Grand Prix? Comment below...
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