As it happened: United States 2014 - The race

• 19:30

  Hello there fact-hunting Formula One fans, how the devil are you? Today is the United States Grand Prix, that's what I'm here for anyway. Lap by lap coverage of the race will be coming up in about half an hour, so you've just got time to get settled before it all kicks off.

• 19:31

  Yesterday it was quite obvious that there were two teams missing, as Caterham and Marussia's absence meant a tweak in the qualifying format. It's not going to have so much impact today, but that doesn't mean we don't miss them!

• 19:31

  At the front, Lewis Hamilton had been dominating in free practice but found himself outclassed during qualifying, dropping to second on the grid behind teammate Nico Rosberg.

• 19:32

  Plus, all eyes will be on Sebastian Vettel who has to start from the pit lane after taking a full engine change penalty.

• 19:33

  Other drivers taking penalties post-qualifying include Jenson Button who had a five place gearbox related drop, and Daniil Kvyat who also fell foul of the power unit penalties.

• 19:34

  Starting Grid

  1	N Rosberg	Mercedes
  2	L Hamilton	Mercedes
  3	V Bottas	Williams
  4	F Massa	Williams
  5	D Ricciardo	Red Bull
  6	F Alonso	Ferrari
  7	K Magnussen	McLaren
  8	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari
  9	A Sutil	Sauber
  10	P Maldonado	Lotus

  The full grid is available to view here.

• 19:35

  Adrian Sutil's top ten position is good news for Sauber, who are hoping to pick up some points this weekend. It's only the third from last race, it's not too late to start finishing in the points.

• 19:36

  

  Previously, the optimum strategy around this track has been a one-stop, but Pirelli's soft tyres are a bit softer this year and they reckon it will be two stops that make up the ideal strategy. A three stop is also possible but perhaps not recommended.

• 19:38

  Hamilton currently has a 17 point lead in the championship, he'll be hoping to extend that today whilst, of course, Rosberg intends to minimise the gap as the season counts down to its double points finale.

• 19:39

  Hamilton will also be looking for his fifth consecutive race victory, and to bring his season total up to ten so far.

  2014 Race Wins

  Pos	Driver	Total
  1	L Hamilton	9
  2	N Rosberg	4
  3	D Ricciardo	3

• 19:40

  Jenson Button on the grid: "It’s alright, can’t really compare it to Sochi that was a stand out track. I think this is where we expected to be. Seventh was alright, twelfth is a bit rubbish. We’ll see what we can do. It’s really windy out there, that’s going to affect us a lot."

• 19:43

  Adrian Sutil on the grid: "It was a hard year so far, it’s the first time I'm in Q3. I know qualifying is just qualifying but still it’s a great feeling and it was good for the whole team to have this motivation push. We’re happy, we’ll do our best today, it’s good to have a higher starting position."

• 19:44

  Circuit Data

  Circuit of the Americas
  Local timezone	-05:00 GMT
  First race	2012
  Number of laps	56
  Circuit length	5.513km
  Race distance	308.405km
  Start offset	0.323km

• 19:44

  Tweet from @sarahholtf1: Cars on the grid? Check. Celebs on the grid? Check. We are about ready to go racing folks in the US of A.

• 19:45

  A handful of braking data for the hard left that follows the very long back straight.

  Braking Analysis

  Turn 12
  (forecast data from Brembo)
  Initial speed	323km/h
  Final speed	81km/h
  Stopping distance	104m
  Braking time	1.81s
  Maximum deceleration	5.51g
  Maximum pedal load	142kg
  Braking power	2198kw

• 19:47

  Derek Warwick, driver steward: "Exciting good start, Bottas can do a good job running into the first corner with Lewis. As long as these guys don't take each other off we'll be alright, we'll have a good afternoon. It's been the most boring weekend I've had for a long while, be careful what you wish for but let's hope for an exciting race."

• 19:47

  And now the national anthem, with drivers heading to the front of the grid to stand about and listen.

• 19:52

  Ricciardo is bouncing around on the grid, literally. Headphones in, hopping from foot to foot, getting himself psyched up for the race.

• 19:52

  Valtteri Bottas, making his way from garage to grid: "I really hope for the best, I hope we can get a bit lucky, you never know what’s going to happen in front. On pure pace, we know we can be third or fourth but if something happens, you never know."

• 19:54

  

  23°C
  Track	34°C
  Humidity	44%
  Wind speed	6.1mps

• 19:55

  A few drivers have mentioned the wind being a problem, at 6.1mps that is higher than normal.

• 19:59

  Sebastian Vettel has taken up his position in the pit lane, he's got the medium tyres on that car. Kvyat and Hülkenberg have also taken on the white sidewalls, with the rest of the field on soft tyres.

• 20:00

  The grid is clearing of personnel slowly, tyre blankets coming off and engines starting to rev up for the formation lap.

• 20:00

  Nico Rosberg leads the field away, up that steep climb to the first left hand blind corner. Epic challenge!

• 20:02

  Vettel is actually still in the garage, keeping those tyre blankets on for as long as possible whilst the rest of the field make their way round.

• 20:03

  There he goes, lining up at the end of the pit lane just as Rosberg takes up his first place position.

• 20:04

  Race started.

• 20:04 Lap 1

  Great start for both Rosberg and Hamilton, the Williams drivers run wide around the first corner but keep it clean.

• 20:04 Lap 1

  It's a great few corners for everyone. Daniel Ricciardo has dropped back to seventh. Massa has got ahead of Bottas for fifth place.

• 20:05 Lap 1

  Safety car deployed.

• 20:06 Lap 1

  Sergio Pérez and Adrian Sutil have collided.

• 20:06 Lap 2

  Magnussen, Hülkenberg, Button, Gutiérrez and Vettel have all taken the opportunity to pit.

• 20:07 Lap 2

  Sergio Pérez has made his way back to the pit lane with the front wheel hanging off. Sutil's Sauber is in pieces out on track.

• 20:07 Lap 2

  Replays show Pérez gets it wrong, hitting the back of Kimi Räikkönen in the Ferrari and ending up in the side of the Sauber. Lots of debris out on track.

• 20:08 Lap 2

  The Force India crew have pushed the car back into the garage, it looks totally trashed but Pérez is taking his time getting out of the car.

• 20:08 Lap 2

  He's out, helmet off and he heads straight out the back of the garage.

• 20:09 Lap 3

  Incident involving Sergio Pérez and Adrian Sutil will be investigated after the race - causing a collision.

• 20:09 Lap 3

  Vettel came in under the safety car, did one lap on the soft tyre and came in again to go back on the mediums. Strategy at work!

• 20:10 Lap 3

  Team radio from Jenson Button: "Could you see any debris on the car? I ran over some debris but didn't have chance to tell you."

  They say no.

• 20:11 Lap 3

  Tweet from @MercedesAMGF1: Drivers advised to stay wide through T16 to avoid debris swept to the apex - carefully does it please chaps

• 20:12 Lap 4

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	0	N Rosberg	0
  2	0	L Hamilton	0
  3	1	F Massa	0
  4	-1	V Bottas	0
  5	1	F Alonso	0
  6	-1	D Ricciardo	0
  7	1	K Räikkönen	0
  8	2	P Maldonado	0
  9	5	JE Vergne	0
  10	6	R Grosjean	0

• 20:13 Lap 4

  Replay of team radio from Adrian Sutil: "****ing Pérez just kicked me off the circuit."

• 20:13 Lap 4

  The safety car coming in this lap. Rosberg starts backing them up.

• 20:13 Lap 4

  Track is clear.

• 20:14 Lap 5

  Rosberg rounds the final corner and crosses the line to start the fifth lap. A clean restart for the front runners.

• 20:14 Lap 5

  The two Williams drivers run side by side into that first corner but Massa retains the position. Alonso and Ricciardo also have a side by side moment and Daniel Ricciardo moves ahead of the Ferrari.

• 20:16 Lap 6

  Romain Grosjean is up into tenth place, with both Lotus drivers in the points. Kevin Magnussen and Jenson Button have some work to do to get back into the top ten.

• 20:17 Lap 7

  DRS enabled.

• 20:17 Lap 7

  Sebastian Vettel moves past Esteban Gutiérrez for fifteenth, but then he runs wide allowing the Sauber to close the gap again.

• 20:18 Lap 7

  Nico Hülkenberg is next in line for Vettel.

• 20:19 Lap 8

  Incident involving Esteban Gutiérez, Jenson Button, Pastor Maldonado and Jean-Éric Vergne under investigation - speeding behind the safety car.

• 20:20 Lap 9

  Tweet from @NickHeidfeld: @danielricciardo one of the best overtakers (not starters) out there for sure. So many good moves already this year. #F1

• 20:21 Lap 9

  Hamilton remains within a second of race leader Rosberg.

• 20:23 Lap 10

  The top ten drivers are all on the softs, and none have stopped yet. When they come in, those than pitted under the safety car may get a chance to start moving up the order.

• 20:24 Lap 11

  Grosjean pulls alongside Vergne to attempt taking ninth place from the Toro Rosso driver, but he's on the outside into the following corner and gets pushed wide. Vergne remains ahead.

• 20:25 Lap 11

  Incident involving Jenson Button - no further action warranted.

• 20:25 Lap 11

  5 second stop/go penalty for Pastor Maldonado, Esteban Gutiérrez and Jean-Éric Vergne - speeding behind the safety car.

• 20:26 Lap 11

  Vettel reports on the radio that he's struggling for grip on these tyres. We're not likely to see an epic rise to fortune for him then.

• 20:29 Lap 13

  Team radio from Nico Rosberg: "Front left is finished."

• 20:30 Lap 13

  Fastest Laps

  N Rosberg	Mercedes	1:43.270
  L Hamilton	Mercedes	1:43.458
  F Massa	Williams	1:43.775
  V Bottas	Williams	1:43.926
  D Ricciardo	Red Bull	1:44.182

• 20:31 Lap 14

  Ricciardo is catching the Williams duo now, with Bottas immediately in his sights.

• 20:31 Lap 15

  Felipe Massa dives into the pit lane and Daniel Ricciardo follows, leaving Bottas to circle by himself.

• 20:32 Lap 15

  They rejoin the action with Massa in ninth and Ricciardo tenth. The Red Bull driver will be looking to get the undercut on Bottas for when the second Williams pits.

• 20:33 Lap 16

  Race leader Nico Rosberg comes in to the pit lane, putting Hamilton into the lead.

• 20:33 Lap 16

  Maldonado and Vergne also come in for their first stops of the afternoon.

• 20:33 Lap 16

  Bottas takes his turn in the pit lane, and he rejoins side by side with Ricciardo, but the Red Bull has the momentum putting him ahead.

• 20:34 Lap 16

  Incident involving Kevin Magnussen and Esteban Gutiérrez under investigation - unsafe release.

• 20:35 Lap 16

  One to Watch

  D Ricciardo	vs.	V Bottas
  5th	+0.7s	6th

• 20:35 Lap 17

  Hamilton comes in to the pit lane and he rejoins in second place, with Rosberg sweeping past to retain his lead.

• 20:36 Lap 17

  

  Pastor Maldonado took his five second stop/go during that first round of pit stops.

• 20:37 Lap 18

  Kimi Räikkönen pits and that leaves just Daniil Kvyat as the only driver yet to come into the pit lane, he's riding high in sixth now.

• 20:37 Lap 18

  Yellow flags as Nico Hülkenberg has come to a halt at the side of the track, the Force India stricken on the grass.

• 20:37 Lap 18

  Both Force India drivers retired from this race then.

• 20:38 Lap 19

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	ROS	1:44.559
  2nd	HAM	+2.5
  3rd	MAS	+8.7
  4th	RIC	+10.4
  5th	BOT	+11.8

• 20:39 Lap 19

  Vettel and Alonso have been scrapping for position, with Fernando getting ahead of Sebastian for ninth place.

• 20:39 Lap 19

  The two McLaren drivers are now back in the points, Button still trailing his teammate Magnussen, 7th and 8th respectively.

• 20:40 Lap 19

  Battle for 12th

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  12	E Gutiérrez	-
  13	R Grosjean	+0.315
  14	JE Vergne	+0.310

• 20:40 Lap 20

  Grosjean dives down the inside of Gutiérrez and has to take avoiding action to keep it clean. The loss of momentum allows Vergne to get through as well, dropping Sauber down to 14th. Vergne now sets off after Grosjean in the Lotus.

• 20:41 Lap 20

  Track is clear and DRS is enabled.

• 20:42 Lap 21

  Incident involving Kevin Magnussen and Esteban Gutiérrez under investigation - no further action warranted.

• 20:43 Lap 21

  Vettel complains that his engine is not delivering, that all weekend they've been going two seconds faster than he is right now. Not a happy Red Bull driver.

• 20:43 Lap 21

  Daniil Kvyat still has yet to pit, the Toro Rosso man up to sixth place, which is 11 up on where he started. As he dives into the pit lane, he drops all the way down the order. Shame.

• 20:44 Lap 22

  Alonso and Button are putting on a great show, the two of them fighting for eighth place. Button made a mistake which allowed the Ferrari through, and then the opposite happened to put things back in order.

• 20:45 Lap 22

  Alonso isn't going to let it go, however, he's right on the tail of the McLaren as they round onto the long back straights.

• 20:45 Lap 23

  Tweet from @pirellisport: Williams of Massa and Bottas (third and fifth respectively) are the highest placed cars on the soft tyres. Rest of top 10 on mediums.

• 20:46 Lap 23

  The fight at the front has closed up yet again, with Hamilton just inches behind his teammate. Late braking into the corner isn't quite enough to make the difference but there's going to be a move any second now.

• 20:47 Lap 24

  Fernando Alonso is still battling to get past Jenson Button, who is defending magnificently from the feisty Ferrari.

• 20:48 Lap 24

  They crest the first corner hill and Alonso dives to the inside but locks up. He just has enough pace and control to take the position and it's seventh for Fernando.

• 20:49 Lap 25

  In a very similar move, Hamilton takes to the inside of his teammate, makes the most of the DRS and dives into the lead.

• 20:49 Lap 25

  Replays show Hamilton came from a long way back, braked supremely late and forced Rosberg to back away running wide off track as he avoided his teammate.

• 20:51 Lap 26

  Vettel won't be happy to be fighting with Romain Grosjean for pace, but the pair have the same engine on board. They're switching ninth and tenth positions back and forth.

• 20:52 Lap 26

  Grosjean takes the inside line into that tricky first corner and gets the position. Ninth place. Vettel is visibly struggling to get that car to behave.

• 20:53 Lap 27

  Alonso has moved on to the next McLaren mountain ahead. Magnussen has nothing to defend down the home straight as he jinks to the inside but then makes the switch round the following corner to move ahead.

• 20:54 Lap 27

  Sebastian Vettel has come in for another pit stop, he's not been happy with the grip recently so a fresh set of medium compounds goes on the Red Bull.

• 20:54 Lap 28

  Kevin Magnussen gets the call to come into the box and there he goes, in for his second pit stop of the afternoon.

• 20:57 Lap 29

  Jenson Button loses a position to Vergne, and then is called into the pit lane. "Are you sure?" he jokes, having been told not to come in previously in favour of his teammate.

• 20:58 Lap 30

  Grosjean comes in for a brief visit to the pit lane, and makes his way out as Vergne comes in for his own pit stop.

• 20:59 Lap 31

  Valtteri Bottas is the next one to come in, it's a busy afternoon in the pit lane!

• 21:01 Lap 32

  From fourth place, Daniel Ricciardo is instructed to box this lap, and he comes in for a super smooth stop by the Red Bull mechanics. He rejoins ahead of Bottas.

• 21:03 Lap 33

  Felipe Massa is next in. The front pair have only stopped once so far, with Hamilton keeping a steady 2.5ish second gap to his teammate.

• 21:03 Lap 33

  A slow stop by the Williams crew, just over three seconds, and that allows Daniel Ricciardo to jump Massa for third place.

• 21:04 Lap 34

  Lewis Hamilton is the first of the Mercedes pair to come in, he's told he's pitting to cover the field as they react to what everyone else is doing.

• 21:06 Lap 34

  Next lap round and it's Nico Rosberg coming in for his second stop of the afternoon.

• 21:07 Lap 35

  Just the smallest of margins slower for Rosberg and he rejoins in second place.

• 21:08 Lap 35

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	1	L Hamilton	2
  2	-1	N Rosberg	2
  3	2	D Ricciardo	2
  4	0	F Massa	2
  5	-2	V Bottas	2
  6	0	F Alonso	1
  7	3	P Maldonado	1
  8	0	K Räikkönen	1
  9	8	D Kvyat	1
  10	-3	K Magnussen	2

• 21:09 Lap 36

  Pastor Maldonado sneaked his way into the top ten but takes his turn in the pit lane which drops him back towards the rear of the field. Only Esteban Gutiérrez is behind him, with 15 runners remaining in the race.

• 21:10 Lap 37

  Vettel uses his time wisely and gets control of his Red Bull long enough to get past Romain Grosjean and take tenth place, the last of the points positions.

• 21:10 Lap 37

  Nico Rosberg sets the fastest lap of the race so far, a 1:42.381, a second faster than Hamilton.

• 21:11 Lap 37

  All the drivers have stopped twice now except Alonso, Räikkönen and Kvyat, who are running 6th to 8th.

• 21:12 Lap 38

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	HAM	1:42.618
  2nd	ROS	+2.8
  3rd	RIC	+8.9
  4th	MAS	+10.7
  5th	BOT	+17.4

• 21:13 Lap 39

  Vergne complains over the radio about some astroturf that is lifting up, wondering if there should be a safety car to sort it out.

• 21:14 Lap 39

  Incident involving Pastor Maldonado under investigation - speeding in the pit lane. 5 second stop/go penalty.

• 21:17 Lap 41

  Vettel is chasing down a McLaren now, Magnussen is keeping a wary eye on the Red Bull behind.

• 21:17 Lap 41

  Team radio to Daniel Ricciardo: "Mercedes are quicker than us at the moment... they might start racing so it might get messy."

• 21:18 Lap 41

  Vettel attempts a wild lunge to the inside of the McLaren in front but he can't make the following corner and drops back behind Magnussen again. They're fighting for ninth place.

• 21:19 Lap 42

  Tweet from @WilliamsRacing: The astroturf on the exit of T19 is lifting so both drivers being warned to keep clear of it

• 21:20 Lap 42

  Daniil Kvyat has pitted for his second stop of the afternoon.

• 21:21 Lap 43

  Grosjean runs wide at turn nineteen, and that allows Jenson Button to move ahead. Meanwhile, Vettel gets the job done on Magnussen.

• 21:21 Lap 43

  Kimi Räikkönen, having a very quiet race, comes in for a pit stop, super quick by the Ferrari crew in only 2.7 seconds.

• 21:23 Lap 44

  Alonso follows his teammate's lead by taking his stop. All drivers have been in at least twice now.

• 21:23 Lap 44

  Vergne is sandwiches by two Lotus drivers, which looks an uncomfortable place to be.

• 21:24 Lap 45

  Alonso rejoins just behind Vettel, and there's a great scrap between those two as the Red Bull driver remains ahead... just.

• 21:24 Lap 45

  Down the back straight they go and Alonso has nothing to offer Vettel, who brakes late and defends his position. Round the next few corners, Alonso locks up and loses the momentum.

• 21:26 Lap 46

  Alonso's closed the gap again, now staring at the rear wing of the Red Bull. He pulls alongside and down the long straight he finally gets the pace to scoop sixth place.

• 21:27 Lap 47

  Hamilton is the next driver to get a warning about the loose astroturf at turn 19. Lots of drivers have been running wide at that corner over the course of the race.

• 21:29 Lap 48

  Button is still asking whether there's damage on his car, he's at the head of a train of cars for ninth place.

• 21:30 Lap 48

  A new fastest lap for Fernando Alonso, who sets a 1:41.474.

• 21:31 Lap 49

  Of the 15 runners, 14 are still on the lead lap with just Esteban Gutiérrez being lapped.

• 21:32 Lap 49

  Daniil Kvyat comes from nowhere to outbrake Kimi Räikkönen and sneak through into 12th place.

• 21:32 Lap 49

  Sebastian Vettel gets a late call to come in for a fresh set of soft tyres, which drops him down to 14th.

• 21:32 Lap 50

  Four stops so far for Vettel.

• 21:33 Lap 50

  Romain Grosjean runs side by side with Button, the pair narrowly avoiding contact. Button clings on to eighth place but it can't be long before someone gets past.

• 21:34 Lap 51

  Distracted by the car in front, Grosjean is hustled by Vergne who brakes so late into the first corner he pushes the Lotus wide. Romain also loses a place to his teammate as well.

• 21:35 Lap 51

  Varying radio responses to that move.

  To Vergne: "Good job, keep your head down."

  From Grosjean: "WHAT WAS THAT?"

• 21:35 Lap 51

  Daniil Kvyat has something wrong with the car as he drops back and fights to keep the car on track.

• 21:37 Lap 53

  Kvyat does come into the pit lane, after complaining he can't steer the car.

• 21:38 Lap 53

  Incident involving Romain Grosjean and Jean-Éric Vergne will be investigated after the race - forcing another driver off track.

• 21:38 Lap 53

  Kvyat's pit stop involved a fresh set of tyres, plus a quick spot of debris removal, and the Russian is back out on track, albeit now in last place.

• 21:39 Lap 54

  Vergne makes his way past Button, as the train starts to break up.

• 21:39 Lap 54

  Kimi Räikkönen comes in for a late pit stop, with just three laps left to go.

• 21:40 Lap 54

  Button is losing place after place now, Maldonado and Vettel both getting past. Romain Grosjean looks to be struggling to control his car, running wide at turn 12 and then turn 20 as well.

• 21:42 Lap 55

  Lewis Hamilton finds himself behind the big train of cars all battling for position. He's warned to be careful as he asks for blue flags.

• 21:44

  Lewis Hamilton wins the United States Grand Prix!

• 21:44

  Rosberg follows on for second, with Ricciardo rounding out the top three.

• 21:47

  Race Winner

  Driver	L Hamilton
  Team	Mercedes
  Race time	1:40:04.785
  Race distance	308.405km
  Average speed	184.895km/h

• 21:48

  Pastor Maldonado managed to get past Vergne on the final lap for ninth place, but has a five second penalty to take which will drop him back to tenth.

• 21:48

  Driver Positions

  Pos		Driver	Stops
  1	1	L Hamilton	2
  2	-1	N Rosberg	2
  3	2	D Ricciardo	2
  4	0	F Massa	2
  5	-2	V Bottas	2
  6	0	F Alonso	2
  7	11	S Vettel	4
  8	-1	K Magnussen	2
  9	5	JE Vergne	2
  10	0	P Maldonado	2

• 21:49

  Hamilton thus extends his championship lead, with Rosberg clinging on to his coat tails. Five race victories in a row for the Brit.

• 21:51

  Rosberg congratulates his teammate in the podium green room, but then quite aggressively questions COO Rob Thomas about why Massa was such a threat to them in the first stint.

• 21:51

  Ricciardo takes to the podium with a beaming smile and plenty of energy, waving his hat to the crowd.

• 21:52

  Gap Analysis

  Pos	Driver	Gap
  1st	HAM	1:43.492
  2nd	ROS	+4.3
  3rd	RIC	+25.5

• 21:53

  Retirements

  Driver	Reason	Lap
  A Sutil	Collision	1
  S Pérez	Collision	2
  N Hülkenberg	Loss of power	18

• 21:55

  The points haul means that Ricciardo can no longer mathematically win the championship, which was a long shot anyway. The podium sprays out on the podium as the two remaining contenders celebrate their tenth 1-2 victory of the season.

• 21:59

  A great race today in Austin, there was such great racing in the middle of the field that it felt like we weren't missing teams. Scrapping here there and everywhere. Shame for Sauber after what was such a promising grid spot.

• 22:02

  Things are still heading in Hamilton's directions, but it's the Brazilian Grand Prix next, in just one week's time, and we all know anything can happen at Interlagos.

• 22:03

  The championship can't be won in Brazil but the points could still swing in either direction. Join me back here next weekend to find out what the next installment of F1 2014 brings!