McLaren Honda enter the weekend coming off of a mixed experience in Japan. The car showed some moments of good pace and potential; however, they were not able to put together a great race weekend. They steady flow of suggestions that the Spec. 4 engine will debut soon have slowed and, as of right now, it appears Mexico might be the target rather than COTA . Still, the team is optimistic that they can achieve a double points finish.
Elsewhere on the grid, if Ferrari’s outright poor luck continues, there is an outside change Lewis Hamilton could clinch the WDC title this weekend. More likely, we will see Ferrari re-group and return to their rightful place on the front row of the grid. It would be smart to expect Red Bull to split Ferrari and Mercedes as they continue to understand their package better with each Grand Prix. From here, Force India should comfortably follow this group. Things then become more tricky not only because of how tight the midfield is, but two teams will have new drivers: Renault will be welcoming Carlos Sainz and Torro Rosso will feature Brendon Hartley of WEC fame. Haas will be keen to see whether they can duplicate their double points finish in Japan here at their home race in the US. Williams has been nearly impossible to predict this year but we can be relatively sure of Sauber’s start and finish positions.
US TV SCHEDULE
Practice 1: Friday October 20th, 11:00AM
EST
,
NBCSN
Practice 2: Friday October 20th, 3:00PM
EST
,
NBC
Sports Live Extra (re-air 11:00PM on
NBCSN
)
Practice 3: Saturday October 21st, 12:00PM
EST
,
NBC
Sports Live Extra
Qualifying: Saturday October 21st, 4:00PM
EST
,
NBCSN
Race: Sunday October 22nd, 2:00PM
EST
,
NBC
CIRCUIT
INFORMATION
Lap data
Lap length: 5.513km (3.426 miles)
Race laps: 56
Race distance: 308.728km (191.835 miles)
Pole position: Right-hand side of the track
Lap record*: 1’39.347 (199.773 kph) by Sebastian Vettel, 2012
Fastest lap: 1’35.657 (207.479 kph) by Sebastian Vettel, 2012
Maximum speed: 314kph (195.11 mph)
DRS
zone/s (race): Pit straight and longest straight
Distance from grid to turn one: 280m
Car performance
Full throttle: 49%
Longest flat-out section: 1090m
Downforce level: Medium
Gear changes per lap: 54
Fuel use per lap: 1.8kg
Time penalty per lap of fuel: 0.072s
Strategy
Quickest complete pit stop in 2013: 23.537s by Red Bull (see full list)
2016 prime tyre: Medium (2015: Medium)
2016 option tyre: Soft & Supersoft (2015: Soft)
*Fastest lap set during a Grand Prix
Data sources:
FIA
, Williams, Mercedes
2016 (V6
TURBO
ERA
) RESULTS
Race Info.
Pole: Lewis Hamilton, 1:34.999
Race laps: 56
Fast race lap: Sebastian Vettel, 1:39.877
Podium
1. Lewis Hamilton – Mercedes
2. Nico Rosberg – Mercedes
3. Daniel Ricciardo – Red Bull
CURRENT
STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes
AMG
Petronas, 306
2. Sebastian Vettel, Scuderia Ferrari, 247
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes
AMG
Petronas, 234
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing, 192
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Scuderia Ferrari, 148
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 111
7. Sergio Perez, Sahara Force India, 82
8. Esteban Ocon, Sahara Force India, 65
9. Carlos Sainz, Scuderia Toro Rosso, 48
10. Nico Hulkenberg, Renault Sport F1, 34
Constructors
1. Mercedes
AMG
Petronas, 540
2. Scuderia Ferrari, 395
3. Red Bull Racing, 303
4. Sahara Force India, 147
5. Williams Martini Racing, 66
6. Scuderia Toro Rosso, 52
7. Haas F1 Team, 43
8. Renault Sport, F1 42
9. McLaren-Honda, 23
10. Sauber, 5
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