Charles Leclerc says Ferrari "couldn't have dreamed for better" after claiming his third victory of the Formula One season at the United States Grand Prix.
The Monagasque started fourth on the grid but slipped ahead of Lando Norris and Max Verstappen on Turn One at the start of a dominant performance.
His Ferrari team-mate Carlos Sainz claimed second place but failed to put Leclerc under any pressure as he coasted along at the front of the pack.
It is the 87th time the Italian team have achieved a one-two in their F1 history, while Leclerc took his eighth win in his career.
The 27-year-old, however, was pleased with the way the team overcame what he said had started as a tough weekend in Austin.
"Very happy, it hasn't been an easy weekend until now. I have been struggling with the feeling in the car, but I had the confidence in the race and the feeling was better," he said.
"We said in the sprint race we weren't scared, but we felt that the others will improve, but today we still had the upper hand, so really happy with how it went today, a one-two for the team. We couldn't have dreamed for better.
"Very happy [to get the first Ferrari one-two in the US in 18 years], and now we are still targeting the title, it's still a long way to go, but it's a good start to this triple header."
Leclerc now sits just 22 points behind Norris, who finished fourth behind Verstappen, in the drivers' championship, while Ferrari are just 48 points off McLaren in the race for the constructors' championship.
Having snuck in front of the two title challengers so early in the race, Leclerc was happy that he was able to hold onto his lead throughout.
"It was a pretty good Turn One, that is exactly how I wanted to do, we had a good launch, and I knew it would be tight," he added.
"[Saturday], I was a bit of a victim being in the wrong place at the wrong time, [on Sunday] I gained from it and that helped a lot in our first stint because we had a lot of mega pace.
"In the second stint it was all about managing behind, but we did a great job, the pace of the car this weekend was really good and that's thanks to the engineers.
"They've been working like crazy to bring the upgrades that we had in Singapore, and it seems to be paying off. Everything worked out well, and we are really, really happy."
Las Vegas Grand Prix: To be a champion, you must race 'on the limit', says Verstappen
Max Verstappen explained that his quest for a fourth world championship title has seen him race "on the limit" ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix.
Verstappen has the chance to become one of the greatest to grace the sport under the bright lights of Sin City this weekend, should he finish ahead of McLaren's Lando Norris.
Though the world championship isn't officially decided yet, after a phenomenal wet weather performance in Brazil last time out, Verstappen is within touching distance.
He has a 62-point lead over Norris with two races and a sprint left, and if the Briton finds himself 60 points behind after Las Vegas, his title bid will officially come to an end.
The pair have exchanged battles on the track this season, most notably at the United States and Mexican Grands Prix last month, with Verstappen criticised for his driving.
"I know on track if you want to win, if you want to be a champion, you do need to be on the limit," the Red Bull driver told BBC Sport.
Should he emerge victorious on Sunday, he would become the sixth driver in history to win at least four world titles, after Michael Schumacher (seven), Lewis Hamilton (seven), Juan Manuel Fangio (five), Alain Prost (four) and Sebastian Vettel (four).
"Of course, the championship is in the back of my mind, naturally," he says. "But I will always try to get the best result out of it first and then see what’s possible.
"I always demand a lot from myself. I always try to get the best possible result out of it. I hate making mistakes.
"I put that pressure on myself every weekend. If you want to win a championship, you cannot afford bad results."
But Verstappen's season has been far from plain sailing, with Red Bull's remarkable mid-season dip allowing McLaren and Ferrari to close in.
Prior to his win in Interlagos, the Dutchman had gone nine races without a pole position and 10 without a win, his worst streak since the penultimate round in 2020, when he went 17 qualifying rounds without a pole and 11 consecutive races without a victory.
After winning seven of the first 10 races of the 2024 season, Verstappen said he was surprised by the other teams' slow start to the campaign.
"We started really dominant, but I also feel like some teams didn’t start as well as they should have compared to last year, so we were a bit surprised about that," he said.
"We felt it’s a bit weird how the others are not really making the step forward. So then I guess they got their stuff sorted out.
"I already said from the beginning of the year that I was not entirely happy with how the car was handling."
Despite a fourth title almost being sealed and 62 wins already in the bag, Verstappen has revealed that he plans to explore the world of motorsport before he retires.
He is relaxed about his future, though he has been open-minded about where he might drive in F1 in coming years and how much longer he will stay.
"It is not like when I started in F1. I had that target, seven titles, 100-plus wins. At the time, Michael (Schumacher) was the record-holder. It’s not how I see life any more.
"Maybe when I was a bit younger, yeah, I wanted to drive F1 as long as I could. But now when you have already achieved so much, it is not about wanting to drive forever.
"I also want to enjoy life. I definitely don’t want to be racing in F1 until I’m 40 years old. You only live once, and I don’t want to spend half of it racing cars."
DRIVERS TO WATCH
Max Verstappen – Red Bull
Verstappen has the chance to become only the third driver in the competition’s history to break the 3,000-point barrier (2,979.50 currently), something only Hamilton (4829.50) and Vettel (3098) have achieved.
The Dutchman has scored 72.24% of Red Bull's points in 2024, the widest gap to the second driver of any team this season in Formula One (44.49 – 27.76% for Sergio Perez). On the other hand, Mercedes is the team with the smallest percentage difference between its drivers in terms of total points (0.52 - George Russell's 50.26 and Hamilton's 49.74).
But, if either Verstappen or Perez achieve the fastest lap at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Red Bull (99) will become the fifth team in Formula One history to achieve 100 fastest laps after Ferrari (263), McLaren (170), Williams (133) and Mercedes (109).
Oscar Piastri – McLaren
Piastri has scored points in 23 consecutive F1 grand prix. It is the seventh-best historical run in the competition (also 23 for Fernando Alonso between Europe 2011 and Hungary 2012) and the best of any McLaren driver.
The Australian is the only driver on the grid to have finished 100% of races in 2024. Not only is this the longest current run, but if he finishes in Las Vegas, it will be the 11th longest streak in Formula One history, equalling Perez's record between France 2022 and Singapore 2023 (26).
However, Piastri will be aiming to return to the podium places having gone three races without a top-three finish since ending the Singapore Grand Prix in third. It is his worst streak since the first seven races of the season.
CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS
Drivers
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) – 393
2. Lando Norris (McLaren) – 331
3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) – 307
4. Oscar Piastri (McLaren) – 262
5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) – 244
Constructors
1. McLaren – 593
2. Ferrari – 557
3. Red Bull – 544
4. Mercedes – 382
5. Aston Martin – 86
Russell: Drivers 'a bit fed up' of FIA leadership
George Russell says a number of Formula One drivers are "probably a bit fed up" of governing body FIA.
The Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA), which Russell is the director for, put out a statement after the last race in Brazil to raise concerns about multiple issues.
The GDPA asked president Mohammed Ben Sulayem to "consider his own tone and language", having previously punished Max Verstappen for using bad language at a press conference.
Speaking ahead of this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix, Russell confirmed the FIA had yet to respond to the letter as he expressed further disappointment.
"We recognise everybody's working as hard as they can to do the best job possible," Russell told reporters. "There is obviously a huge amount of change within the FIA quite regularly, so it's clearly not the most stable of places.
"And maybe that's why it's been a bit challenging to get some of the changes that we've wanted implemented. Of course, everyone has their own side to their own story.
"I think if we feel that we're being listened to and some of the changes that we are experiencing, requesting, are implemented, because ultimately we're only doing it for the benefit of the sport, then maybe our confidence will increase.
"But, I think there's a number of drivers who feel probably a bit fed up with the whole situation. And it only seems to be going in, to a degree, the wrong direction."
Russell also said he and his fellow drivers were not aware of race director Niels Wittich being removed three races before the season ends.
"Talking as a fellow driver as opposed to my role with the GPDA, everybody felt with certain things that have happened that we wanted to stand united," he said.
"At the end of the day, we just want to be transparent with the FIA and have this dialogue. And the departure of Niels is a prime example of not being part of these conversations. [The letter] is kind of us putting the pressure back on them."
Sainz to team up with Williams for Abu Dhabi test
Carlos Sainz will team up with Williams early to drive their FW46 car in next month's post-season test in Abu Dhabi, the constructor has announced.
Sainz agreed to join Williams in July after losing his Ferrari seat to seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who stunned the Formula One world by exercising a break clause in his contract with Mercedes earlier this year.
The Spaniard is currently fifth in the drivers' championship standings, with his two race wins for the year coming in Australia and Mexico.
On Friday, Williams confirmed he will join the team for post-season testing on December 10, two days after the campaign ends with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
"This early opportunity will allow both Carlos and Williams to begin building their relationship," a team statement read.
"The test session will provide a valuable chance for Carlos to begin integrating into his new team environment, and he will drive the FW46 for the first time."
Hamilton is not expected to take part in Ferrari's post-season tests, due to his ongoing commitments with Mercedes.
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