George Russell will have to start from the pit lane

What a turnaround: authors of a great Sprint qualifying with George Russell in second place and Lewis Hamilton in seventh, Mercedes expected to capitalize on their improvements to score big points in the United States.

But nothing went as planned during Saturday’s qualifications. It started with Lewis Hamilton, who set the 19th fastest time in qualifying. The problem was due to a bearing issue on his car during the Sprint race. Even though all the components were replaced in a timely manner, the settings were no longer the same and the seven-time world champion could not defend his chances.

The situation was better for George Russell, who was progressing steadily until Q3. But during his second attempt, while he had the sixth fastest time, he made a mistake and crashed into the tire barriers at high speed.

With such an impact, the mechanics were unable to repair his car within two hours after the end of the qualifying session, which is a breach of the Parc Fermé rule. Therefore, the Briton will join his teammate, starting from the pit lane.

From our special correspondent in Austin