2024 United States Grand Prix

Championship standings

Max Verstappen leads the Drivers’ Championship with 331 points, 52 points ahead of Lando Norris in second, and 86 ahead of Charles Leclerc in third. McLaren, holding 516 points, enters this round as the leader of the Constructors’ Championship ahead of Red Bull Racing and Ferrari, who are second and third with 475 and 441 points, respectively.

Previous race

At the Singapore Grand Prix, Norris narrowed his points deficit to Verstappen to 52 points, and McLaren extended their Constructors’ Championship lead to 41 points over Red Bull. Singapore marked Ricciardo’s 257th and final Grand Prix.

Between-race developments

Daniel Ricciardo was dropped from RB due to poor performance, with Helmut Marko, head of Red Bull’s driver development programme, stating that Ricciardo had lost his “killer instinct.”

Entrants

Liam Lawson replaces Ricciardo at RB. This is Lawson’s first race of the 2024 season; he drove for the same team (then known as AlphaTauri) in the 2023 season in place of the injured Ricciardo.

Sprint format

This is the fourth Grand Prix weekend of the season to utilise the sprint format. The weekend structure consists of a single free practice session, followed by sprint qualifying, the sprint race on Saturday morning, then Grand Prix qualifying on Saturday afternoon, with the main race on Sunday.

Weather

Sunny conditions are expected for race day.

Tyre choices

Sole tyre supplier Pirelli brings the C2, C3, and C4 tyre compounds (the middle three in their range), designated hard, medium, and soft, respectively.

Car upgrades

Three teams equip their cars with special liveries: the McLaren MCL38 features a chrome livery referencing Google Chrome, the Haas VF-24 uses a livery inspired by the American flag, and the Alpine A524 switches to an orange livery to promote the Xbox video game Indiana Jones and the Great Circle. Eight out of the ten teams bring upgrade packages for their cars. The Red Bull RB20 has an adjusted floor and modifications to the upper sidepod. The Mercedes W15 has substantial upgrades including changes to the front wing, front suspension, floor, and bodywork. The McLaren MCL38 has modifications to the front wing, suspension, brake ducts, and beam wing. The Aston Martin AMR24 has adjustments to the front wing, floor, engine cover, and rear diffuser. The Alpine A524 has adjustments to its floor, rear wing, and bodywork. The Haas VF-24 has a modified floor and sidepods. The Kick Sauber C44 has a new front wing and suspension modifications. The RB VCARB 01 has a new floor. The Ferrari SF-24 and Williams FW46 do not receive any upgrades.

Practice

The only free practice session is topped by Carlos Sainz Jr. of Ferrari with a time of 1:33.602, ahead of his teammate Charles Leclerc in second and Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing in third.