F1 LIVE | Verstappen 'could have gone quicker' and Piastri's tough day

Max Verstappen has had a superb Saturday at the Circuit of the Americas as he won the Sprint and took pole position for the United States Grand Prix.

The reigning world champion avoided the chaos in the Sprint as both McLarens retired before taking pole position by three tenths of a second for the Grand Prix.

Verstappen completed just one flying lap in the top 10 shootout, and Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko feels he could've gone quicker with a second lap

He told GPblog: "Yes, it was better. In the second run, there were drivers who were so slow that we missed it (to be able to drive another round). Fortunately, it was enough. With a second set, I think we would have been even faster."

Oscar Piastri is leading the world championship with a 22-point lead over his teammate and title rival Lando Norris.

The Australian crashed out of the Sprint on the opening lap as the McLaren pair made contact. Qualifying was also difficult as Piastri qualified in sixth, behind Norris and Verstappen.

It was a lacklustre result for Piastri; he explained that he made very few errors despite qualifying outside the top five.

He told Sky Sports F1: "I didn't really make any mistakes, just didn’t feel like I really got into a rhythm for the whole session, just struggled. We’ll go and have a look at why. But that was obviously a battle."

The 56-lap United States Grand Prix will be a critically important event in the world championship, as there are just five races left after Austin. Piastri is 22 points ahead of Norris, with Verstappen 55 points off the pace.

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