2012 United States Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Lewis Hamilton won Formula 1’s first race at the Circuit of the Americas after passing Sebastian Vettel late on. Fernando Alonso finished third, keeping the championship alive as Red Bull secured the constructors’ title.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:35.657
Fastest lap	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Fastest-lap time	1:39.347 on lap 56
First	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Second	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Third	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
16 November 2012	Practice 1	09:00 – 10:30
16 November 2012	Practice 2	13:00 – 14:30
17 November 2012	Practice 3	09:00 – 10:00
17 November 2012	Qualifying	12:00
18 November 2012	Race	13:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel arrived at round 19 leading the 2012 F1 World Championship on 255 points, with Fernando Alonso on 245. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 422 points.

Race entries

The 12 teams kept the same race line-ups for the United States Grand Prix. Ma Qing Hua also took part in practice.

Free Practice

Austin’s new surface offered very little grip in FP1, leaving drivers learning both the layout and its limits. Sebastian Vettel adapted quickest as the track gradually improved. Ma Qinghua took Narain Karthikeyan’s HRT for the session, while several drivers had minor moments without causing a major interruption to familiarisation.

Sebastian Vettel remained quickest despite spending around half of FP2 in the garage with a water leak. Heikki Kovalainen suffered a puncture after contact with Jean-Éric Vergne, and Pastor Maldonado’s engine failed late on. Lewis Hamilton’s longer-run pace looked more competitive than the headline order, offering McLaren encouragement for the race.

Sebastian Vettel led FP3 again, but Lewis Hamilton reduced the gap as teams gained confidence on the new circuit. Sergio Pérez and Charles Pic collided, damaging the Marussia’s floor, although no penalty followed. Jean-Éric Vergne broke his front suspension over a kerb and stopped, bringing another disruption to Toro Rosso’s preparations.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2012 United States Grand Prix FP1, 16 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:38.125	30
2	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+1.418s	28
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+2.212s	29
4	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+2.403s	29
5	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+2.525s	30
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+2.841s	26
7	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.898s	29
8	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+2.911s	28
9	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+3.034s	32
10	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+3.348s	29
11	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+3.658s	29
12	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+3.700s	28
13	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+3.708s	29
14	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+3.755s	23
15	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+3.873s	27
16	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+4.414s	30
17	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+4.463s	25
18	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+5.163s	23
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+5.318s	28
20	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+5.397s	23
21	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+6.339s	24
22	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+6.423s	29
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+8.792s	13
24	23	Ma Qing Hua	HRT	+10.434s	19

Free Practice 2 Classification

2012 United States Grand Prix FP2, 16 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:37.718	17
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.757s	36
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.765s	35
4	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+1.030s	31
5	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.068s	32
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.311s	33
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.730s	32
8	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+1.813s	38
9	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.935s	36
10	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+2.397s	30
11	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+2.448s	32
12	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+2.512s	35
13	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+2.568s	32
14	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.608s	35
15	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+2.717s	30
16	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+2.798s	32
17	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+2.982s	34
18	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+3.712s	35
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+4.758s	38
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+4.934s	33
21	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+5.128s	38
22	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+5.820s	38
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+6.735s	16
24	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+7.396s	20

Free Practice 3 Classification

2012 United States Grand Prix FP3, 17 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:36.490	18
2	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.258s	20
3	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+0.511s	21
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.690s	21
5	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.757s	24
6	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.772s	27
7	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.808s	18
8	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+0.925s	20
9	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.005s	20
10	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.048s	20
11	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	+1.079s	21
12	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.270s	21
13	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	+1.275s	26
14	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+1.463s	23
15	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	+2.057s	23
16	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	+2.163s	22
17	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	+2.263s	11
18	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	+3.199s	12
19	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	+3.917s	23
20	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	+4.263s	19
21	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	+4.521s	19
22	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	+4.976s	19
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	+7.073s	21
24	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+7.553s	23

Qualifying

Sebastian Vettel headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Lewis Hamilton second and Mark Webber third.

Sebastian Vettel took pole ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Mark Webber. Ferrari deliberately broke the seal on Felipe Massa‘s gearbox to incur a penalty, moving Alonso onto the cleaner side of the grid.

Qualifying Classification

2012 United States Grand Prix Qualifying, 17 November 2012

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:36.558	1:35.796	1:35.657	20
2	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:37.058	1:36.795	1:35.766	20
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:37.215	1:36.298	1:36.174	20
4	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	1:37.486	1:36.906	1:36.587	28
5	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	1:38.051	1:37.404	1:36.708	26
6	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:37.927	1:37.102	1:36.794	22
7	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:37.667	1:36.549	1:36.937	24
8	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	1:37.756	1:37.066	1:37.141	20
9	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:37.968	1:37.123	1:37.300	24
10	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:37.537	1:37.011	1:37.842	26
11	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	1:37.520	1:37.604	—	20
12	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:37.565	1:37.616	—	12
13	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:38.104	1:37.665	—	15
14	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	1:38.434	1:37.879	—	17
15	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:38.500	1:38.206	—	16
16	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:38.418	1:38.437	—	15
17	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:38.862	1:38.501	—	16
18	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	1:39.114	—	—	9
19	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	1:40.056	—	—	12
20	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	1:40.664	—	—	11
21	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	1:40.809	—	—	7
22	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	1:41.166	—	—	7
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	1:42.011	—	—	12
24	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	1:42.740	—	—	10

Romain Grosjean received a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change, and Felipe Massa received the same penalty when Ferrari broke the FIA seal on his gearbox in order to maximise Fernando Alonso‘s grid position.

What happened in the 2012 United States Grand Prix?

Vettel led away, while Webber passed Hamilton into the first corner. Alonso gained three places at the start, immediately improving his prospects after a difficult qualifying session.

Hamilton passed Webber and began closing on Vettel. Webber later retired with an alternator failure, leaving the leading Red Bull and McLaren to fight for victory as Alonso ran third.

Hamilton used DRS on the long back straight to pass Vettel into Turn 12. He retained the advantage through the closing laps, securing what would be his final victory for McLaren before joining Mercedes.

Alonso finished third ahead of Massa and Button. Vettel extended his drivers’ championship lead to thirteen points, while Red Bull‘s constructors’ title became secure. The drivers’ crown would be decided at the final race in Brazil.

Further down the points places, Romain Grosjean, Nico Hülkenberg, Pastor Maldonado and Bruno Senna completed the scoring positions. Sebastian Vettel set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2012 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 273 points, followed by Fernando Alonso on 260. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 440, with Ferrari on 367.

2012 United States Grand Prix race results

The 2012 United States Grand Prix was held on 18 November 2012, with a scheduled start of 13:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	56	1:35:55.269	25
2	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	56	+0.675	18
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	56	+39.229	15
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	56	+46.013	12
5	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	56	+56.432	10
6	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	56	+1:04.425	8
7	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	56	+1:10.313	6
8	12	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	56	+1:13.792	4
9	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	56	+1:14.525	2
10	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	56	+1:15.133	1
11	15	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	56	+1:24.341	0
12	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	56	+1:24.871	0
13	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	56	+1:25.510	0
14	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	55	+1 Lap	0
15	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	55	+1 Lap	0
16	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	55	+1 Lap	0
17	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	55	+1 Lap	0
18	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	55	+1 Lap	0
19	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	55	+1 Lap	0
20	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	54	+2 Laps	0
21	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	54	+2 Laps	0
22	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	54	+2 Laps	0
Ret	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	16	Alternator	0
Ret	17	Jean-Éric Vergne	Toro Rosso	14	Suspension	0

2012 United States Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	56	1:39.347	199.772
2	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	56	1:39.402	199.661
3	9	Kimi Räikkönen	Lotus F1	56	1:39.474	199.517
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	56	1:39.672	199.121
5	4	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	55	1:39.709	199.047
6	3	Jenson Button	McLaren	54	1:40.150	198.170
7	14	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	55	1:40.315	197.844
8	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	51	1:40.428	197.622
9	11	Paul di Resta	Force India	55	1:40.594	197.296
10	10	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	55	1:40.625	197.235
11	15	Sergio Perez	Sauber	53	1:40.701	197.086
12	18	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	53	1:40.719	197.051
13	19	Bruno Senna	Williams	53	1:40.745	197.000
14	16	Daniel Ricciardo	Toro Rosso	53	1:40.772	196.947
15	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	54	1:40.923	196.652
16	12	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	53	1:41.048	196.409
17	25	Charles Pic	Marussia	54	1:42.481	193.663
18	21	Vitaly Petrov	Caterham	55	1:42.824	193.017
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Caterham	50	1:43.072	192.552
20	24	Timo Glock	Marussia	40	1:43.324	192.083
21	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	13	1:43.599	191.573
22	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	51	1:44.508	189.906
23	22	Pedro de la Rosa	HRT	43	1:44.664	189.623
24	17	Jean-Eric Vergne	Toro Rosso	12	1:44.775	189.423

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2012 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2012 United States Grand Prix.

2012 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	273
2	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	260
3	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Lotus F1	206
4	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	190
5	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	167
6	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	163
7	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	107
8	Romain Grosjean	French	Lotus F1	96
9	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	93
10	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	66
11	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	58
12	Nico Hülkenberg	German	Force India	53
13	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	46
14	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	45
15	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	43
16	Bruno Senna	Brazilian	Williams	31
17	Jean-Éric Vergne	French	Toro Rosso	12
18	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	Toro Rosso	10
19	Timo Glock	German	Marussia	0
20	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Caterham	0
21	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Caterham	0
22	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Lotus F1	0
23	Charles Pic	French	Marussia	0
24	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian	HRT	0
25	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish	HRT	0

2012 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	440
2	Ferrari	367
3	McLaren	353
4	Lotus F1	302
5	Mercedes	136
6	Sauber	124
7	Force India	99
8	Williams	76
9	Toro Rosso	22
10	Marussia	0
11	Caterham	0
12	HRT	0

2012 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2012 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	18 March
2	2012 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	25 March
3	2012 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	15 April
4	2012 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	22 April
5	2012 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	13 May
6	2012 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	27 May
7	2012 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	10 June
8	2012 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	24 June
9	2012 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	8 July
10	2012 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	22 July
11	2012 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	29 July
12	2012 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	2 September
13	2012 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	9 September
14	2012 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	23 September
15	2012 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	7 October
16	2012 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	14 October
17	2012 Indian Grand Prix	Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida	28 October
18	2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	4 November
19	2012 United States Grand Prix	Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas	18 November
20	2012 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	25 November