World championship leader Max Verstappen ended his long thirst for victory, winning a thrilling US Grand Prix sprint, while title rival Lando Norris finished third.

Pole-sitter Verstappen took his first win – either in the sprint or Grand Prix – since June, providing further evidence that the extensive improvements Red Bull have brought to Austin are working.

Norris appeared to have saved second place after a brilliant start saw him move up two places from fourth on the grid, but the McLaren driver struggled to make his tires last and was passed on the final lap by Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz overtakes.

Norris survived late pressure from Sainz’s teammate Charles Leclerc to hold on to third place and avoided a penalty after race stewards investigated him after the race for driving erratically at Turn 15 while defending against the Ferrari .

Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ standings grows by two points to 54, with Norris still having the chance to make up ground in Sunday’s Grand Prix, for which qualifying takes place later on Saturday at 11pm. live on Sky Sports F1.

“It feels a bit like old times,” said Verstappen. “I am very happy with today. If you look at the entire race, Ferrari was also very fast.”

“The time has finally come for us to start racing again. Normally we always look back, but now we can just run our own race, so we had a good pace.”

George Russell, who started second on the grid, finished fifth – one place ahead of his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton – as the Silver Arrows failed to deliver the speed many expected from their improved car.

The Haas duo Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hülkenberg completed the points and brought the American team ahead of RB to sixth place in the constructors’ championship.

How exciting the sprint turned out to be

The Circuit of the Americas lived up to its reputation as an entertaining circuit, with nearly all 19 laps of the race offering drama.

Norris made the start by jumping up the inside of Turn 1 to overtake Leclerc and Russell, with the latter offering stiff resistance in the following corners before eventually conceding a goal.

The McLaren’s early pace was strong and Norris was able to stay within a second – within DRS range – of Verstappen, but the Dutchman eventually pulled away on lap five.

The action in the early stages was provided by the Ferraris, who fought an intense battle before Sainz finally got past Leclerc on lap five.

Russell caught up with Norris and almost reclaimed second place, but overheated his tires in the process and left himself vulnerable to the Ferraris, both of which passed him on successive laps.

Verstappen’s lead wavered and Norris crept back towards the edge of the DRS area, but the Red Bull had enough pace to meet the challenge and build a comfortable lead towards the end of the final laps.

It then became clear that Norris was threatened from behind as both Ferraris ended up on his rear wing on the penultimate lap.

After the long approach to the first corner, Norris had a big block that allowed Sainz to get past him.

While Leclerc now tried to follow his teammate, Norris ran wide at Turn 12 and then appeared to change his line just before Turn 15, surprising the Ferrari driver who had to get out to avoid a collision.

Leclerc went too far, leaving Norris to take the checkered flag in third place, but stewards concluded it was worth investigating the incident, which divided opinion, before clearing the Briton of any wrongdoing.

“It was a good race,” said Norris. “I’m pretty happy with how things turned out.

“It was a difficult question. I thought I could stay in second place, but Carlos did a good job. My front tires were completely destroyed, so there wasn’t much I could do.”

Ultimately, Verstappen crossed the finish line almost four seconds ahead of Sainz, securing victory in all four sprints this season. Two more will follow in the five remaining laps after Sunday’s race.

While Verstappen will appreciate the return to the winning feeling he knew so well on his way to winning the last three drivers’ titles, he still faces the huge challenge of taking his first outright race victory since the Spanish Grand Prix on June 23 .

Formula 1’s updated sprint format for 2024 gives teams the opportunity to change their car setup ahead of full qualifying later on Saturday, giving McLaren – along with Ferrari and Mercedes – hope to make significant progress as the weekend progresses achieve.

Sky Sports F1’s live United States GP schedule

Saturday, October 19th
10:00 p.m.: Preparation for qualifying for the United States GP*
11:00 p.m.: United States GP qualifying*
(Sunday) 1am: Ted’s Qualifications Notebook

Sunday, October 20th
6:30 p.m.: Grand Prix Sunday: Preparation for the United States GP*
8:00 p.m.: THE GRAND PRIX OF THE UNITED STATES*
10 p.m.: Checkered flag: United States GP reaction
11 p.m.: Ted’s notebook

*also live on Sky Sports Main Event (race preparation on Sunday from 7:15 p.m.)

Watch the entire United States GP Sprint weekend live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month membership – no contract, cancel anytime