Hamilton downbeat: "Tomorrow will be tough, tyre wear is aggressive"

Lewis Hamilton missed out on pole position for the 2021 United States Grand Prix. The seven-time World Champion had to settle for P2 going into Sunday's race in America. Hamilton insists Max Verstappen's strong lap in Q3 wasn't a surprise for him.

The weekend started well for Mercedes with both Bottas and Hamilton in the top two places. But since then, Red Bull have improved to the expectation of Hamilton.

"We saw signs of it all weekend, so it's [Red Bull's performance] not a surprise. We looked good in FP1, the wind changed direction today and struggled to keep up with these guys. Not my favourite of days but we can fight tomorrow," Hamilton told Sky Sports after qualifying for the United States Grand Prix in Austin.

For the seventh time this season, the two title rivals start a race alongside each other on the grid. Over the season, both drivers have touched each other on several occasions. Hamilton is concerned about the strength of Verstappen's starts to races in 2021.

"I'll give it everything I can tomorrow and hope I get a good start. They've had better starts than us this year, Max in particular, but I'll give it my best at the start and into turn one is an opportunity. I'll give everything I can. Tomorrow will be tough, tyre wear is aggressive. It'll be interesting to see what different strategies we can do. They've got two Red Bulls up there and I'm there on my own," Hamilton added.