Verstappen has no chance statistically during the American GP (but he is optimistic)
Depending on your sleep schedule, you may need to set an alarm for the US GP. The 1st training is the earliest of all sessions at 6:30 PM. Qualifying will not be held until 11 p.m. on Saturday. The race is a good time for some fun with friends: you have to be ready at 9:00 PM.
The reason for the different times is of course the time difference in America. For the drivers, the race will simply take place at 2 p.m. The teams are already there to get used to the time difference and Perez already gave a small demonstration with the RB7 in Dallas. That late qualifying is really just at 4:00 PM. So the drivers are just racing during the day and it looks like it will stay dry, warm and a bit cloudy.
Mercedes is dominant
In the turbo era of F1, Mercedes always qualified in first place here. One of the reasons is the 1.1-kilometer straight, where the Mercedes reaches serious speeds. Red Bull team boss Christian Horner already told the media in Turkey that Mercedes has only been driving faster on the straight and that the RB is not keeping up.
Verstappen is confident
Max has been back on top of the championship since the last race and he is confident. on his website he says: ‘We’ve always been competitive in the US and have had good results, so now it’s about turning that into a win. We now go to every track knowing that at least we can now fight for a podium, but also for a win and that is different from previous years.”
About the track he says the following: ‘The layout of Circuit of the Americas is really cool. The tarmac is bumpy as it is built on a swamp and that also adds to the thrill of the race. The first sector is fun, with lots of fast corners, especially in qualifying when you’re running on low fuel.’
Dates and times of the 2021 American GP
Friday October 22, 2021
1st free practice: 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
2nd free practice: 10pm – 11pm
Saturday, October 23, 2021
3rd free practice: 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Qualification: 11:00 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
Sunday, October 24, 2021
Race: 9:00 PM
