Latest F1 news in brief

Anti-American team owner Gene Haas being interviewed in Austin says he expected more from Mexican Esteban Gutierrez while turning his back on American Rossi

Haas 'expected more' from Gutierrez – boss
Alonso could quit even with Mercedes offer
Ecclestone defends comments about Rosberg
Rosberg denies settling for second in Austin
Gasly 'cannot understand' Kvyat decision
Red Bull confirms Verstappen gearbox issue
New F1 Owner Liberty Media Pushing For More U.S. Grand Prix Circuits
Sainz Jr. says sixth place 'feels like a win'
No further action over Alonso/Massa clash
Vettel believes Ferrari matched Red Bull

Haas 'expected more' from Gutierrez – boss
(GMM) Haas boss Gunther Steiner has admitted a question mark is hanging over Esteban Gutierrez's future.

While the Mexican is backed significantly by Carlos Slim and has the support of the team's technical partner Ferrari, his place for 2017 seems much less secure than that of his teammate Romain Grosjean.

"Frankly, it is clear that we expected more when we made the agreement with him," Steiner is quoted by the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat in Austin.

"While it is true that he has had a lot of bad luck, particularly early in the season, when Grosjean collected most of the points and he (Gutierrez) suffered from technical problems that were not his fault.

"However, we have also seen quite a few opportunities to grab points in the second half of the season. So we will give him a few more races to show what he can do," he added.

Turun Sanomat said Kevin Magnussen and Felipe Nasr are among the candidates to replace Gutierrez, while the Mexican's future appears bleak because "Sauber is not interested in taking him back".

Fernando Alonso – It is because of him F1 will see far less passing going forward – they gave the cars more downforce and wider tires to make the cars faster because he was crying they were too slow and he was going to quit.

Alonso could quit even with Mercedes offer
(GMM) Fernando Alonso says even a plum seat at Mercedes or Red Bull would not convince him to stay in F1 if next year's cars do not excite him.

The Spaniard has warned repeatedly that his entire F1 career is riding on the 2017 regulations, because he is turned off by the current tire and fuel-saving formula.

"I have a contract for next season," Alonso told the Finnish newspaper Turun Sanomat in Austin, "and I'm sure that McLaren will build a good car and Honda will be more competitive than at present.

"So the only question mark is if I will enjoy driving the new kind of cars.

"If the rules had stayed the same, where you have to save everything from the first lap of the race, next year would have been my last in F1," he said.

"I would go even further and say that even if I win next year's championship, but I don't enjoy driving the cars, I finish my career," Alonso insisted.

So even in the case that he is offered a top Mercedes or Red Bull seat for 2018, Alonso said that is not among his criteria for staying on the grid beyond his 36th birthday.

"First I don't think they will, because they already have drivers for the next two years.

"At this moment, the idea of having the best car or changing the team does not motivate me," he insisted.

Ecclestone with Jean Todt and Christian Horner

Ecclestone defends comments about Rosberg
(GMM) Bernie Ecclestone has defended his claim that Lewis Hamilton would make a better winner of the 2016 world championship.

Notwithstanding Hamilton's win from pole in Austin, it is German Rosberg who is still much more likely to manage his now 26-point advantage to the finale in Abu Dhabi.

However, F1 supremo Ecclestone told British reporters at the US grand prix that he hopes Hamilton wins a third title on the trot because "there is nothing to write about" Rosberg.

Mercedes team chairman Niki Lauda slammed Ecclestone's view, insisting it is "very unfair" on Rosberg "especially at such a crucial stage of the world championship".

But when confronted with his quotes by the German newspaper Bild, Ecclestone said the reporting of what he said had lacked context.

The 85-year-old said: "It's a pity this newspaper wrote only half of what I said.

"I have nothing against Nico. He's an excellent driver but Lewis is a great ambassador for formula one around the world.

"Rosberg would be a worthy champion, because he's done a good job and got the most points. But look at the job Lewis does outside of the track.

"He goes on talk shows, red carpets, he carries the formula one brand everywhere in the world. For formula one and for me as a promoter, there is no one better," Ecclestone said.

Indeed, Hamilton had the celebrity factor in full force in Austin, having invited Oscar winner Christoph Waltz, tennis star Venus Williams and skiier Lindsey Vonn to the US grand prix.

Ecclestone said: "I mean it when I say that Lewis is the best champion we have ever had."

But even with the diminutive Briton's explanation, F1 legend Lauda said he remains upset with what Ecclestone said about Rosberg.

"It would be better if he keeps it to himself," said the great Austrian, "or if that's what he thinks then say it after the season. But to say it now is unfair to Nico."

Nico Rosberg driving defensively

Rosberg denies settling for second in Austin
(GMM) World championship leader Nico Rosberg has denied settling for second place throughout the US grand prix.

Even with teammate Lewis Hamilton having won from pole in Austin, Mercedes' German driver can now finish second in Mexico and Brazil and third in Abu Dhabi and still win the 2016 title.

But Rosberg said throughout the weekend that he was still charging for race wins racing than 'playing it safe'.

"No, no, definitely not," he said after finishing second on Sunday.

"Flat out all the way to the end.

"Lewis did a great job this weekend, all the way through qualifying and race, so it just wasn't to be," Rosberg insisted.

However, even his bosses acknowledge that Rosberg can now afford to ease off slightly in order to keep his championship tilt on track.

"Nico is in a very good position in the world championship," said team boss Toto Wolff.

"But he also knows that he cannot afford any mistakes, which is why he was careful in the first corner."

Rosberg, however, argued that he simply "lost out a bit at the start" in Austin, adding that he is disappointed not to have won.

"Second place is ok," he said, "it's damage limitation."

Indeed, F1 legend and Mercedes team chairman Niki Lauda thinks second place was more than good enough for Rosberg in America.

"Lewis was simply faster and drove a flawless race," he said.

"Nico was second which is the next step in the world championship for him. Even if the other is unbeatable, he just has to be tactical.

"Lewis was unbeatable today, so Nico did everything right," Lauda added.

But according to other figures at Mercedes, Hamilton has redoubled his efforts to fight back in the wake of his supposed Suzuka 'meltdown'.

"Last week Lewis practiced starts in the simulator for about two hours," one engineer told Auto Motor und Sport.

Hamilton confirmed: "It's going well for him (Rosberg). I've just got to continue to do my job and hope for the best."

What can't Pierre Gasly understand about needing a Russian driver for the Russian GP?

Gasly 'cannot understand' Kvyat decision
(GMM) Pierre Gasly has admitted he "cannot understand" why Red Bull overlooked him for a Toro Rosso seat for 2017.

While Daniil Kvyat's future has looked bleak at times this year, the energy drink camp has decided to keep both of Toro Rosso's current drivers on board for next year.

Behind Antonio Giovinazzi in the GP2 standings, French 20-year-old Gasly is now the cream of Red Bull's young driver program but he has an up and down 2016 campaign.

Indeed, when explaining Kvyat's new deal, Christian Horner indicated that Red Bull is now having to look ahead for the next wave of young talent.

"We are looking at the 13 and 14 year olds," he said, "because otherwise there's not much there."

But Gasly told French television Canal Plus that he "cannot understand" Red Bull's decision.

"I talked a lot with Helmut (Marko) on Friday," Gasly said in Austin.

"He made it clear that things were moving in the wrong direction, but it was a complete surprise to me.

"On Saturday morning he told me about Kvyat, but honestly I cannot understand this decision. Especially as I had a long talk with Helmut but he did not explain to me the reason.

"Now we must continue to look ahead and explore other options, but I will prove to them that they made the wrong decision," Gasly added.

Max Verstappen

Red Bull confirms Verstappen gearbox issue
Red Bull has confirmed that a gearbox problem led to Max Verstappen's retirement midway through the United States Grand Prix.

Verstappen suffered the failure as he exited the hairpin after 31/56 laps, and initially cruised around before the team told him to stop the car.

Although he found a gap in the barriers, marshals could not push his car backwards, leading race control to deploy a Virtual Safety Car.

Verstappen's team-mate, Daniel Ricciardo, who had recently pitted, in turn lost out as the Mercedes drivers completed free pit-stops.

"Once I jumped out it was in neutral and the car suddenly got stuck; normally you can press a button on the top, and that apparently didn't work," the Dutch teenager commented after the race.

"[I think] that's why the VSC came out. Otherwise they could have pushed it into the gap."

Verstappen spoke about two other standout moments during his race, the first when he stated that he was "not here to finish fourth" after being told to look after his tires behind Kimi RÃ¤ikkÃ¶nen.

"As a racer you always want to go forward, and that's why I passed Kimi," he said.

"Once I arrived to Nico it was difficult to get close. He was also in the draft of Daniel. You get stuck behind and can't do your own race. I backed off a bit to save the tires and it worked pretty well."

He also made his second pit-stop when mechanics were not ready for him.

"They told me to push hard the lap before and I thought that was the indication to box," he said.

"I drove into the pit lane [at the end of the lap] and realized that they didn't box me. It was definitely my fault, and it was not very clever, but ultimately it didn't make different to the end result."

New F1 Owner Liberty Media Pushing For More U.S. Grand Prix Circuits
The U.S. Grand Prix has had 10 homes, more than any other grand prix, and according to Formula One’s new owners, Liberty Media, "that number is about to increase," according to Paul Weaver of the London GUARDIAN. There is talk of another race — perhaps two, with L.A., Las Vegas and New Jersey "among the possibilities."

The U.S. staged three races in '82, in Detroit, Las Vegas and Long Beach, Calif. Circuit of the Americas co-Founder & Chair Bobby Epstein is "as excited as everyone else about the changing world of Formula One but he has mixed feelings about the prospect of more races" in the U.S.

He said, "If we have more races here we will be competing for a limited base of fans, and we could be weaker for a number of years. Five or 10 years down the road we would build a bigger audience overall. But there could be some pain first." Epstein, who is impressed by the way Melbourne and Montreal promote their race weekends, added, "We are competing for the entertainment dollar. Promoters have to become more creative. I would like to see more money spent on promoting the sport. I think fees should be lower so we can lower the ticket prices."

He would "also like to see more cars on the grid and, most of all, an American driver." Guardian

Bernie knows better

ECCLESTONE DOUBT: REUTERS' Alan Baldwin reported F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone has "dampened hopes" of more races being held in the U.S., at least in the near term, after the sport's takeover by Liberty Media.

Ecclestone: "I think it will be difficult to get more races. I tried in New York. The trouble with the Americans is (that) you want to do a deal with them and they want guaranteed profit before they start. I said, 'If I knew that was going to happen, I wouldn’t need you.'"

Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei has spoken of Las Vegas and Miami as possible future venues "for the long term."

Ecclestone, who has for months been talking to would-be promoters of a Las Vegas race, said that "there had been a lot of meetings and joked he should have secured the concession to provide the mineral water."

He said, "They are professional meeting people, the Americans, aren’t they? They love meetings. Seven in the morning."

Autoweek magazine reported in July that entrepreneur Farid Shidfar had an agreement in principle with Chinese investors "to fund a Las Vegas race, but Ecclestone saw little progress."

Ecclestone: "They are still behind him. You want them up front. That’s the problem. They came over to see me last week and he called me back, must have been Monday, with another story" Reuters

NEW HIGH: The 2016 U.S. F1 Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas set a new weekend attendance record, organizers revealed. This year's event drew 269,889 spectators over three days. The new record stopped a downward trend, which saw attendance figures decrease year after year since the inaugural U.S. Grand Prix at the venue in '12.

This year's attendance beat the previous best of 265,499, set in '12, by 4,390. COTA also said that close to 80,000 attended Taylor Swift's concert at the track on Saturday. HJ Mai, SBD Global

Felipe Massa chasing Carlos Sainz Jr. in Austin

Sainz Jr. says sixth place 'feels like a win'
Carlos Sainz Jr. says his sixth-place finish in the United States Grand Prix, the joint-best result of his Formula 1 career to date, "feels like a win".

Toro Rosso racer Sainz Jr. jumped from 10th to eighth at the start and benefitted from the mid-race Virtual Safety Car to hold fifth position.

Sainz Jr. initially fended off the approaching Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso, but was overhauled by Alonso on the penultimate lap of the race.

He nonetheless equaled his best result of sixth place, achieved in Spain earlier this season, but made clear that Austin was more rewarding.

"Today's result is a very special one, a top, top, top result!" said Sainz Jr.

"What a boost and what a way to motivate the team and keep our heads up. I don't know what this track has, but I just get such a good feeling every time I race here! It's a weekend I will always remember!

"To equal my best result in Formula 1 makes me very happy.

"It is a bit more special than the one in Barcelona because here we didn't think we really had the car to do so – our simulations before the race said we would only finish in P11 or P12.

"We were able to make the tires last during the first stint, staying close to the Williams [of Massa] and then managed to create a good gap to Fernando on the Softs.

"We also got a bit lucky with the VSC period, which was great news for us.

"We knew it was going to be very difficult to get to the end on the Soft tire, but we committed to that – during the last two laps I had no tire left and just had to hold on to it as best I could!

"I'm so happy, you just can't imagine what's going on inside me now, even if I'm not showing it on the outside, I'm delighted! I will definitely celebrate with champagne, for me this feels like a win!"

Daniil Kvyat finished 12th after being penalized for a clash with Sergio Perez.

Alonso took out Massa but F1 did not penalize their 'pet' driver

No further action over Alonso/Massa clash
No further action will be taken over the clash between Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa in the closing stages of the United States Grand Prix, it has been confirmed.

Alonso and Massa were squabbling over sixth position at the Circuit of the Americas when the McLaren-Honda driver dived up the inside of the Williams at Turn 15.

Alonso continued and went on to snatch fifth from Toro Rosso's Carlos Sainz Jr., while Massa was forced to make an extra stop with a puncture, but still took seventh.

After looking into the incident, the stewarding panel ultimately determined that no further action was warranted, meaning the results of the race remain unchanged.

Alonso and Massa offered different views post-race.

"I think that I was side-by-side with him," said Alonso.

"It's not that I was coming from behind or any crazy thing, there was not the space to turn in, but the stewards will decide – hopefully it remains as a race incident."

"I was doing the corner and he dived inside," added Massa.

"I was already entering the corner and he just hit my car, and I had a puncture. It just destroyed my opportunities I had on that moment, so it's his responsibility."

Meanwhile, Daniil Kvyat was given two penalty points, bringing his total for the 12 month period up to seven, after clashing with Sergio Pérez at the hairpin on the first lap.

Kvyat also took a 10-second time penalty in the race.

Sebastian Vettel was 43 seconds behind at the finish and out-to-lunch

Vettel believes Ferrari matched Red Bull
Sebastian Vettel believes Ferrari was able to match rival Red Bull for much of the United States Grand Prix, despite missing out on a podium to Daniel Ricciardo.

Vettel retained sixth position at the start and stretched out his first stint, running longer than his frontrunning rivals, slotting back into sixth when he made his stop.

Vettel subsequently moved into fifth when Max Verstappen retired before being promoted to fourth when teammate Kimi Raikkonen was forced to park his car after a pit-stop issue.

Vettel was 14 seconds behind third-placed Ricciardo when he elected to make an additional stop with a few laps remaining, posting the fastest time after taking on Super Soft tires.

"Overall the car was better today than yesterday," said Vettel.

"We were a match for Red Bull for the majority of race, obviously some laps they were quicker, so it was a decent day, just a shame we couldn't get both cars into points."

Raikkonen was left to rue the pit-stop problem which prompted his exit.

"Obviously we had some issue with the pit-stop, the tire was never tightened 100 per cent," he said.

"The car was behaving pretty good, apart from on the second set [of tires], for whatever reason. They were new tires, but they didn't really have the grip I expected.

"Once we put the Super Softs back on the car was good again, but obviously none of those things matter in the end, because we didn't finish. It was one of those weekends.

"Always ifs and buts, but the fact is we didn't finish."