Sky F1's Jenson Button reveals ‘only thing’ that can save US GP after dull sprint

Verstappen could only qualify sixth for Sunday’s main grand prix but made up for a disappointing Friday qualifying with pole and victory in the sprint race. 

After two competitive qualifying sessions pointed to Red Bull not necessarily having it all their own way in Austin, Verstappen ultimately cruised to an easy win in the sprint race, pulling 9.4 seconds clear of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes in just 19 laps in his superior RB19. 

Aside from Verstappen having to defend aggressively to stay ahead of Charles Leclerc’s Ferrari at the start, and then hold off a brief threat from Hamilton in the early stages, the sprint race fizzled out into a rather forgettable affair. 

"The only thing that saves us for tomorrow is that Max starts sixth,” Button told Sky afterwards. 

"And we can say 'woh, he's that much quicker than everyone, it's going to be easy'. It's not going to be easy.

"Overtaking here isn't easy and they proved that in this race. It wasn't very exciting because it was difficult to overtake.

"It's still going to be a challenge for him tomorrow. I wouldn't want to come up behind Lewis. Would you?”

However, Hamilton is less confident about his chances of being able to keep Verstappen behind in the main grand prix.

"He has at least half a second on all the cars ahead of him, so that should be enough to get by,” the seven-time world champion admitted. 

"There is tyre degradation and strategy. But it is a track you can overtake [on] so it is likely he will be finishing high up.”

Hamilton added: "It will be helpful for us at the front [having Verstappen in sixth]. Ultimately, he will be breathing down our necks before too long, but it will open up for a good fight with Charles and Lando.

"We are all quite similar in pace. Hopefully we can have a good battle. If we can all keep Max behind that would be awesome, but if not, no worries."