After a brief break, F1 now heads west to the United States and Austin, Texas, for the penultimate round of the 2013 season.
The United States Grand Prix returned to the Formula 1 calendar last year, after a five year break, at the new Circuit of the Americas, the first facility in the country to be purpose built for Grand Prix racing. The weekend was a huge success with over 117,000 people turning up on race day.
Lewis Hamilton is the only driver on the 2013 grid to win a United States Grand Prix. Not only was he victorious last year but he also won the final F1 race to be held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2007.
The 2012 round saw Hamilton snatch the lead from Sebastian Vettel in the closing stages. After a slow start, the Brit reclaimed second from Mark Webber and hunted down pole-sitter Vettel.
The Red Bull driver's lead was cut considerably on lap 42 after he was held up by traffic in the twisty first sector. Hamilton was right on his tail and used DRS on the back straight to take the lead. He crossed the line 14 laps later to win by just 0.6 seconds.
2013 will be the 35th running of the United States Grand Prix and COTA (as the circuit is sometimes known) is the 10th venue to host the race. The undulating track layout was conceived by promoter Tavo Hellmund and Kevin Schwantz with the assistance from Hermann Tilke.
Construction on the circuit began in December 2010 and unlike other recent additions to the F1 calendar, it was completed well before the race date of November 18th. The 3.427 mile circuit design takes inspiration from the likes of Silverstone, Turkey's Istanbul Park and the Hockenheimring in Germany.
A lap of the Circuit of the Americas starts with a long start/finish straight, with drivers emerging from the pit exit to the right. There is a steep incline on the run to turn one and cars approach the tight first hairpin, a left-hander taken in second gear, at nearly 190mph.
It has a wide entry, similar to turn four at the Buddh International Circuit in India, to encourage overtaking and has a tricky blind apex - partly due to the 133 feet incline. The track then heads downhill for the fast, sweeping right-hander of turn two that is taken in sixth gear.
A short straight leads on to the left-right-left that makes up turns three to six.
The first two apexes are taken in seventh gear with the drivers braking for the third, which is taken in sixth gear. The first sector ends with a long right-hander taken at 130mph.
The second sector starts with a fifth-gear left before a tricky right-hander taken in third gear. Turn nine is a fourth-gear left that leads on to the flat-out left-hand kink of turn 10. A short straight follows before the heavy braking zone of the turn 11 hairpin, a left-hander that, like turn one, has a wide entry.
A good exit is crucial because a long back straight followers. This is where the first of two DRS zones will be and the detection point is just prior to turn 11. The 1.2 kilometre straight is followed by a slow second-gear left that concludes the second sector. Turns 13 and 14 make up a double-right before turn 15. This tricky second-gear left requires a late turn in to clip the apex.
A short blast on the power leads drivers on to the triple-apex right that makes up turns 16, 17 and 18. This complex of corners was inspired by turn eight at the Istanbul Park circuit in Turkey.
The 19th and penultimate corner on the circuit is a 90 degree left that is taken in fourth gear and at 110mph. The final corner is another left-hander, this time taken in second gear, with the pit entry to the left. A good exit is very important for the run to the start/finish line.
The high-speed nature of the circuit means Pirelli will bring the medium and hard compound tyres to the event.
Sebastian Vettel heads to the USA looking for his eighth consecutive victory and 12th win of the season. Will his incredible run of dominance continue? It looks likely.
The two titles may be wrapped up but there is still plenty to play for. Mercedes, Ferrari and Lotus are currently fighting for the runner-up spot in the constructors' standings - but the latter's fight will be impacted heavily by the news that Kimi Raikkonen will undergo back surgery and miss the final two races of the season.
Elsewhere, the battle for fifth and sixth in the teams' championship is still up for grabs as Force India and Sauber look to gain places and McLaren hope to hold on to their current position.
Marussia and Caterham continue to fight for the coveted 10th place, although the 'green machines' will need a bit of luck if they want to score a 13th place finish and take the position from their Banbury based opposition.
United States Grand Prix Fact-file:
Location: Austin, Texas
Track Length: 3.427 miles
Direction: Anticlockwise
Turns: 20
Laps: 56
Gear changes per lap: 58
Full throttle: 60%
First race: 1959 - Sebring (2012 Circuit of the America)
Lap record: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 2012: 1m39.347
Tyre compounds: Medium and hard
2012 race winner: Lewis Hamilton, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
2012 pole position: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 1m35.657
2012 fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing: 1m39.349
Live on: Sky Sports F1 (Highlights BBC One)
 |
| (c) Octane Photographic |
The United States Grand Prix returned to the Formula 1 calendar last year, after a five year break, at the new Circuit of the Americas, the first facility in the country to be purpose built for Grand Prix racing. The weekend was a huge success with over 117,000 people turning up on race day.
Lewis Hamilton is the only driver on the 2013 grid to win a United States Grand Prix. Not only was he victorious last year but he also won the final F1 race to be held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in 2007.
 |
| (c) Octane Photographic |
The 2012 round saw Hamilton snatch the lead from Sebastian Vettel in the closing stages. After a slow start, the Brit reclaimed second from Mark Webber and hunted down pole-sitter Vettel.
The Red Bull driver's lead was cut considerably on lap 42 after he was held up by traffic in the twisty first sector. Hamilton was right on his tail and used DRS on the back straight to take the lead. He crossed the line 14 laps later to win by just 0.6 seconds.
2013 will be the 35th running of the United States Grand Prix and COTA (as the circuit is sometimes known) is the 10th venue to host the race. The undulating track layout was conceived by promoter Tavo Hellmund and Kevin Schwantz with the assistance from Hermann Tilke.
Construction on the circuit began in December 2010 and unlike other recent additions to the F1 calendar, it was completed well before the race date of November 18th. The 3.427 mile circuit design takes inspiration from the likes of Silverstone, Turkey's Istanbul Park and the Hockenheimring in Germany.
A lap of the Circuit of the Americas starts with a long start/finish straight, with drivers emerging from the pit exit to the right. There is a steep incline on the run to turn one and cars approach the tight first hairpin, a left-hander taken in second gear, at nearly 190mph.
It has a wide entry, similar to turn four at the Buddh International Circuit in India, to encourage overtaking and has a tricky blind apex - partly due to the 133 feet incline. The track then heads downhill for the fast, sweeping right-hander of turn two that is taken in sixth gear.
 |
| (c) Octane Photographic |
The second sector starts with a fifth-gear left before a tricky right-hander taken in third gear. Turn nine is a fourth-gear left that leads on to the flat-out left-hand kink of turn 10. A short straight follows before the heavy braking zone of the turn 11 hairpin, a left-hander that, like turn one, has a wide entry.
A good exit is crucial because a long back straight followers. This is where the first of two DRS zones will be and the detection point is just prior to turn 11. The 1.2 kilometre straight is followed by a slow second-gear left that concludes the second sector. Turns 13 and 14 make up a double-right before turn 15. This tricky second-gear left requires a late turn in to clip the apex.
A short blast on the power leads drivers on to the triple-apex right that makes up turns 16, 17 and 18. This complex of corners was inspired by turn eight at the Istanbul Park circuit in Turkey.
The 19th and penultimate corner on the circuit is a 90 degree left that is taken in fourth gear and at 110mph. The final corner is another left-hander, this time taken in second gear, with the pit entry to the left. A good exit is very important for the run to the start/finish line.
The high-speed nature of the circuit means Pirelli will bring the medium and hard compound tyres to the event.
Sebastian Vettel heads to the USA looking for his eighth consecutive victory and 12th win of the season. Will his incredible run of dominance continue? It looks likely.
 |
| (c) Octane Photographic |
Elsewhere, the battle for fifth and sixth in the teams' championship is still up for grabs as Force India and Sauber look to gain places and McLaren hope to hold on to their current position.
Marussia and Caterham continue to fight for the coveted 10th place, although the 'green machines' will need a bit of luck if they want to score a 13th place finish and take the position from their Banbury based opposition.
United States Grand Prix Fact-file:
Location: Austin, Texas
Track Length: 3.427 miles
Direction: Anticlockwise
Turns: 20
Laps: 56
Gear changes per lap: 58
Full throttle: 60%
First race: 1959 - Sebring (2012 Circuit of the America)
Lap record: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 2012: 1m39.347
Tyre compounds: Medium and hard
2012 race winner: Lewis Hamilton, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes
2012 pole position: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, 1m35.657
2012 fastest lap: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing: 1m39.349
Live on: Sky Sports F1 (Highlights BBC One)
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