Qualifying for the US race had to be postponed from Saturday until Sunday due to the ongoing poor weather, and the rain also meant the session had to be halted when it got underway before the race. It was a very damp start that saw Carlos Sainz crashing into the barriers which brought out the red flags. When the session resumed Sebastian Vettel also bumped into the barriers, but he did manage to get into Q2.

After completing the running in the second session, with Rosberg fastest and Hamilton close behind him, the stewards opted to stop qualifying there, as the rain got worse and the weather closed in.