(Motorsport news) Red Bull’s Max Verstappen put on a champion’s performance at the United States GP to fend off Lewis Hamilton in his pursuit of his first World Championship. The 24 year old racing driver proved just why he deserves to be the favourite to win the elusive title by performing when it truly mattered and displayed nerves of steel right until the race’s 56th and final lap to win at Circuit of the Americas for the first time in his career.

It looked like Mercedes and Hamilton will regain their Championship lead when the seven time title holder overtook Verstappen in the race’s first corner, but a brilliant strategy by Red Bull ensured the Dutch racing driver went into the opening stop first, ensuring that Verstappen had regained his lead by the time Hamilton went into the pits.

Mercedes’ strategy was to ensure Hamilton stayed on the track longer, which meant that by the time fresher tyres were installed on his car, the 36 year old would take advantage of the superior performance to regain the lead. However, the British racing driver simply could not get into DRS range against Verstappen, despite having the faster car which eventually led to a second place finish for Mercedes and Hamilton.

This is a particularly big win for Red Bull and Max Verstappen, especially considering that the team had not won at Austin, Texas since 2013 and with only five races to go, a 12 point lead is a significant advantage heading into Mexico. The result is one that many had hoped for before the race weekend began, but few would have placed their money on it, especially considering how much more dominant Mercedes have looked in the last few races.

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Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said “I think it was some interesting strategy games and great racing. At the end, we thought we had a sniff at it but it wasn't enough, the moment you get close to the other car is difficult. They went for a super aggressive first stop. That was bold, we did that in Bahrain. They then covered it in the second stint and we thought that was enough to get them but they deserved to win today."

With Formula 1 heading to the Autodromo Hermanos Rodríguez in Mexico it will be Red Bull and not Mercedes who will be favourites at a track that has been a happy hunting ground for the team over the years. With the title already 12 points away from Lewis Hamilton and Verstappen being the favourite in Mexico, a win for the Dutch driver might make this unpredictable season a little more straightforward.

Ferrari and McLaren also continued their battle at the United States GP with Charles Leclerc finishing in fourth position, closer to third placed Sergio Perez of Red Bull than Daniel Ricciardo, who finished fifth. Carlos Sainz finished in seventh position, enabling Ferrari to reach within three-and-a-half points of McLaren for the third place in Constructors Championship.

The Mexican GP will be held on Monday, 8th November at 12:30 am IST.