Austin sprint report: Carlos Sainz P2, Charles Leclerc P4 at COTA | 2024 F1 USA GP. How Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc performed in Austin sprint.

Here is our full text transcript from the United States Grand Prix Sprint race:

Not sure what to do on this Saturday night? Fear not, F1 is in town and we have a Sprint to look forward to at the United States Grand Prix. As always, you can follow us here on ScuderiaFans.com for all the key updates and the best video.

Remember that number – 52 points. That’s the advantage Max Verstappen has over Lando Norris going in to this Sprint. There are eight points on offer for the winner, seven for second, six for third, and so on down to one for eighth place. If the drivers finish in the position they qualify, Verstappen would be on to extend his lead by three points to 55 ahead of tomorrow’s GP. Norris will be out to minimise that – or indeed make gains himself by turning things completely round from fourth. McLaren, chasing their first Constructors’ Championship since 1998, hold a 41-point lead over the reigning champions but Red Bull have the superior grid positions (first and 11th vs fourth and 16th) to make at least a minor dent in that here in the Sprint.

Sky Sports F1’s Jenson Button on Ferrari ahead of the Austin Sprint race:

“It worked for them in practice, so it is surprising. Maybe they’ve set the car up to work on a slightly harder tyre. They will find out today how the car’s working on the longer run in the Sprint race, and I’m sure they’ll find a better setup for qualifying and race day. I think they’re still in the mix. They’re pretty good off the line too, so Turn 1 is going to be very interesting.”

Here’s an at-a-glance guide to what you need to know about what we’ve got ahead of us, with lights out just a few minutes away.

How many laps is it? 19
What tyres do drivers start on? Free choice from soft, medium and hard
Do drivers need to make a pit stop? No
How many places earn points? The top eight
What’s the points breakdown? From first to eighth the allocation is a straightforward 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
What happens after the Sprint? The weekend is effectively reset and it’s in to normal qualifying at 11pm for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Very warm conditions, so it will be interesting to see how that affects the balance of the cars with the track temperature at 41 degrees! You get a free starting tyre choice for the Sprint, just like the main Grand Prix, but everyone has chosen the mediums for this 19-lap race. No surprise there as the teams want to save the hard for tomorrow and the soft will simply degrade quickly in these hot conditions.

Lap 1/19: Max Verstappen easily holds the lead into and out of Turn One. BUT LANDO NORRIS IS UP TO SECOND FROM FOURTH! A brilliant move around the outside of George Russell sees the McLaren make a decisive start to this race from the second row. Russell third with Leclerc on his tail ahead of the other Ferrari of Sainz. Charles Leclerc charges down the inside into Turn 12 but George Russell cuts back and retakes third place. Great racing from the pair of them but this is allowing Max Verstappen and Lando Norris to get away.

Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton is up to sixth after Nico Hulkenberg falls behind the Mercedes driver, plus Kevin Magnussen and Yuki Tsunoda.

Lap 2/19: Max Verstappen opens a lead of 0.9s over the fast-starting Lando Norris at the end of that first lap. George Russell is 1.1s behind the top two after that Leclerc scrap.

Lap 2/19: Wow, more incredible racing this time between Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. Sainz goes down the inside at the Turn 12 hairpin, again three corners later at Turn 15 then into Turn One on the next lap. All three times, Leclerc ducks back underneath his team-mate to re-gain fourth place.

“We’ve got to try and come back on the others if possible,” says Leclerc to the Ferrari pit wall. They’ve dropped 2s behind the Mercedes of Russell.

Lap 4/19: Down the inside goes Carlos Sainz into Turn 12 again, but Charles Leclerc cuts back and we are as we were. Leclerc came onto the radio to say he doesn’t want to fight as they are losing time, but Sainz is having none of it.

Lap 5/19: Sainz throws his car down the inside at the tight Turn 15, Leclerc goes off the track and the pair beautifully go side by side through the next high-speed few turns. In the end, Sainz comes out on top and he’s now in fourth. Extraordinary battle between the red cars.

Lap 6/19: Max Verstappen’s lead is now 1.5s, with Lando Norris now having to contend with George Russell being right on his gearbox. The McLaren doesn’t have the pace of his title rival right now in this Sprint.

Laps 6&7/19: With the advantage of DRS on the McLaren, George Russell twice gets very close to Lando Norris, but the McLaren places his car well and the Mercedes stays behind. On the next lap, Russell has dropped back out of DRS range, but Verstappen’s lead is up to 1.9s.

Lap 9/19: If McLaren’s pit wall is correct that Verstappen is damaging his rear tyres a little more than them, then Norris will hope to eek closer to the race leader over the next laps as we fast reach half distance in this Sprint. Verstappen’s lead is hovering around the 1.5-second mark now.

Lap 9/19: Fernando Alonso says “the AlphaTauri is an idiot” as Liam Lawson aggressively defends from the Aston Martin driver. We have to remind Alonso that AlphaTauri are now called RB this year. Lawson and Alonso are squabbling over 16th place.

Lap 11/19: Oscar Piastri is given a five-second time penalty for forcing Pierre Gasly off the track. The pair went wheel to wheel a couple laps ago into Turn 12, with Gasly losing out. Piastri is still in 12th and his hopes of scoring points are all but over with that penalty.

Lap 11/19: George Russell is going backwards as Carlos Sainz overtakes him at Turn 15, then Charles Leclerc also gets by a lap later. The Ferraris are on a charge.

Lap 13/19: It didn’t look quite so clear cut for a few laps, but Max Verstappen definitely does look fully in control of this Sprint race now. He’s increased his lead over Lando Norris to beyond two seconds now and on course to increase his title lead by a handy additional point.

Lap 13/19: Yuki Tsunoda dives down the inside of Sergio Perez at Turn 15 but can’t quite make the move stick. Tsunoda then locks up into Turn One but will have to play the patient game here. This is a big battle considering Perez is under pressure to keep his Red Bull seat for next year…

Lap 15/19: Yuki Tsunoda is now having a great scrap with Oscar Piastri. Tsunoda runs wide at Turn 12 and is told to give the place back, but refuses as he feels Piastri forced him off the track. The incident is under investigation as they continue to fight for 10th place.

Lap 16/19: Just as I say that, Piastri finally gets by at Turn One to take 10th place. However, he has a five-second time penalty. Russell has dropped 8s back on the second of the Ferraris, with Hamilton now within DRS range of him and eyeing a late move.

Lap 17/19: Back at the front and the gap has stabilised between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris at just over two seconds. In fact, Norris is being caught by Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, who are almost nose to tail again.

Lap 17/18: “Goes without saying, but keep it nice and clean,” George Russell is told over Mercedes team radio as Lewis Hamilton lines up a late move for sixth place on the sister car.

Lap 18/19: Sainz gets within one second of Norris but isn’t close enough to make a move in the battle for second. Leclerc is right there too in case things get tasty in these last couple of laps.

Lap 19/19: Norris goes deep into Turn One as we start the final lap and Sainz slips through! Can Leclerc also find a way by?

Lap 19/19: Just before Verstappen crosses the line, Norris runs wide at Turn 12 and Leclerc looks to go down the inside at Turn 15 but nearly collects the McLaren driver. That was so close to a crash.

Chequered flag: The first ‘win’ of any kind for Max Verstappen since June as the world championship lead takes a very comfortable Sprint win. Carlos Sainz is second after that late move on Lando Norris, who comes home third despite a near-miss with Charles Leclerc on the final lap! Verstappen increases his title lead by two points to 54.