Lewis Hamilton Achieves Strong Fourth Place Finish at US Grand Prix
Lewis Hamilton matched his best performance of the 2023 Formula 1 season by securing a fourth-place finish at the US Grand Prix held at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin on Sunday. The seven-time world champion started the race from fifth position but skillfully maneuvered past his former Mercedes teammate, George Russell, to earn 12 valuable points.
Despite the commendable finish, Hamilton’s search for a podium spot with Ferrari continues. Since joining the iconic Italian team in January, this marks the fourth time the 40-year-old has landed in the top four, yet his only top-three finish remains a victory in the sprint race at the Chinese Grand Prix back in March.
In Austin, while Hamilton narrowly missed the podium, teammate Charles Leclerc managed to clinch a third-place finish after briefly holding second before being overtaken by McLaren’s Lando Norris in the closing laps. Leclerc has now made six podium appearances this season, including a notable second-place finish at his home race in Monaco, alongside five third-place finishes.
Ferrari showed resilience at the US Grand Prix, bouncing back after a challenging sprint qualifying where Hamilton and Leclerc finished eighth and tenth, respectively. After both McLarens faced retirements due to a first-lap collision, Hamilton and Leclerc capitalized on the situation, finishing fourth and fifth. Leclerc qualified in third for the main event, with Hamilton securing his fifth-place start.
Despite the improved outcomes from the weekend, Hamilton faces the potential of a career-first disappointment. With only five races left in the season, he risks achieving his least successful season in Formula 1 history. The seven-time champion has never had fewer than five podium finishes in a single season, and the US Grand Prix leaves him with the chance to only match his previous worst.
Since his debut in F1 in 2007, Hamilton has amassed an impressive 105 wins and 202 podium finishes. However, breaking into the top three has proven difficult in recent years. After winning at least one race in each of his first 15 seasons, he went without a victory in both 2022 and 2023, only securing a win at the British GP last year. He also claimed victory at the Belgian GP following Russell’s disqualification in July 2024, but a second-place finish in Las Vegas last November remains his only podium since that win.
In 2024, Hamilton managed to finish on the podium five times, but with Max Verstappen’s resurgence in the Red Bull and the McLarens of Norris and Oscar Piastri competing fiercely, it seems challenging for Hamilton to equal that count this season.
As he faces the real possibility of finishing a season without a podium finish for the first time in his illustrious career, or at least his lowest tally of top-three finishes, the pressure is mounting.
The 2025 Formula 1 season continues next weekend in Mexico, followed by races in Brazil, Las Vegas, and Qatar in November, concluding in Abu Dhabi on December 7.
