Hamilton’s Hopes At COTA Shattered, Faces Uphill Battle In 2024 US Grand Prix

The last time Lewis Hamilton secured pole position at the Circuit of the Americas, Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel were still in the championship fight. In fact, the then-Ferrari drivers finished second and third, respectively, in the standings at the end of that year, with Hamilton emerging victorious.

It was so far back in time, circa 2018, that Daniel Ricciardo was far from closing in on what would turn out to be his final year in Formula 1, as seen a few weeks ago.

However, any chances of Hamilton bagging a pole at Austin, in the beating heart of the F1 Grand Prix at Texas, were nullified by the fact that it was Hamilton himself who faltered in the midst of Q1. Going wide at Turn 12 during the critical stages of the first round of qualifying meant that the British racing icon’s lap time would be deleted, and that was pretty much that. It’s one thing to have a dominant chance at scoring points in a Formula 1 Grand Prix and something quite different to fancy a chance from P16 on the grid, where Hamilton will be, whether it’s the formation lap or the rest of the race.

This is why it only makes sense to contend with the fact that the 2024 US Grand Prix at COTA is likely going to be a long race for Hamilton, the pole-sitter here back in 2018.

To make matters worse, in a double blow for the Mercedes team, George Russell also had a disastrous day. Approaching the end of turn 19 during the dying moments of Q3, Russell went straight into the barriers, spoiling all the hard work he had done until that point and prompting a premature end to qualifying. While Lando Norris was the fastest at that point and thus hung onto pole, having already aced Singapore before, it wasn’t so good for Max Verstappen, who had been holding onto second place.

However, not improving his lap time didn’t help Verstappen one bit.

The Mercedes garage was filled with sullen faces and a dull feeling, and rightfully so. Besides having tens of thousands of fans in the United States, Lewis Hamilton has been a six-time winner at the venue. He was primed to finish a lot better than what he managed this time around.

Hamilton will have to work hard to avoid remaining a backmarker in the next few hours at Austin, Texas. It’s exactly the kind of grid position that does no justice whatsoever to a great driver of his caliber.

But then, isn’t that how Formula 1 works out at times? You win some; you lose some. Given the racing titan that he is, Hamilton will hopefully put all his energy into play to emerge clear of the embarrassing position he finds himself in.

But having said all the above, it’s worthwhile to remember that the last time around F1 went racing at COTA, Hamilton suffered a DNS and was marked nineteenth at the venue. Even Ferrari’s Leclerc didn’t manage to score any points whatsoever.