The 4th F1 Sprint Race in Austin highlighted Ferrari’s difficulties in the high-speed corners of the first sector. The Maranello team, however, showed impressive tire management throughout the race, even if the performance gap to Red Bull remained significant. On the other hand, data revealed excellent top speeds—a factor that could prove crucial for today’s main race.
Russell keeps pace with Verstappen until lap 9. Hamilton outpaces Leclerc
The first part of Saturday’s race was heavily affected by a turn 1 incident involving Fernando Alonso, Nico Hulkenberg, and the two McLarens, forcing the race direction to deploy the Safety Car. After the restart, Max Verstappen did not immediately show a clear pace advantage over his rivals, which allowed George Russell to attempt pressure using DRS.
Despite enjoying generally higher top speeds than the RB21, Russell only had one realistic opportunity to mount an attack. After that moment, the tires on W16 #63 exceeded their ideal usage window, and the gap between the two leaders gradually widened. This allowed Verstappen to build an average advantage of over two-tenths per lap.
The two Ferraris, meanwhile, engaged in an internal battle for most of the race, competing for fourth place and risking contact on several occasions. Only towards the end of the race did Lewis Hamilton manage to close in on Carlos Sainz. However, the seven-time world champion never had a clear overtaking opportunity, finishing the race in fourth.
Ferrari manages tires well and improves lap times at the end
Regarding tire wear, the repeated slowdowns due to Safety Car periods prevented a fully consistent picture of data. The graph clearly shows time lost by Leclerc during his battle with Hamilton. Nonetheless, Ferrari’s drivers proved to be the best among the leading pack in tire management.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc adopted a more conservative approach in the early laps, which allowed them to maintain a pace closer to the leaders in the closing stages. Verstappen, and especially Russell, suffered from a too-aggressive pace early on. Nevertheless, with clear air ahead, the Dutch driver managed to keep his tires within the optimal window more easily.
This effective tire management over the 100 km distance, combined with Verstappen securing pole position, could prove decisive for the main race tonight. It remains to be seen whether the SF-25 can fight at the front or will have to focus on defending against a comeback from Oscar Piastri.
Snake section and slow corners in T3 limit the SF-25: top speed remains strong
Analyzing average telemetry, the two Ferraris achieved higher average speeds on the straights. As highlighted in the qualifying data, the most critical point for the SF-25 remains the same: the “snake” section, between turns 5 and 9. In particular, Hamilton and Leclerc were losing over 15 km/h at the middle of turn 6 and around 10 km/h in turn 7.
Russell, however, managed to maintain speeds closer to the world champion, keeping the time gap down at the end of the first sector. The challenges faced by the SF-25 are likely due to a ride height not optimized for the U.S. track. As known, the Maranello car must run higher off the reference plane, which reduces the aerodynamic load generated by the floor.
On especially bumpy circuits, this factor reduces extractable downforce. Additionally, the compromise setup chosen to ensure aerodynamic balance significantly penalized mechanical grip in the slow section. Fortunately, the setup adjustments improved the SF-25, as the mini-race required sacrificing entry performance in T3 to gain better traction on exit.
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