F1 Stock Watch: Who Gained and Lost More After the US Grand Prix?

Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli easily converted pole to a victory in the 2026 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. As soon as he nailed the start, Antonelli just had to take care of his tyres and focus on the road ahead.

But there were ups and downs behind him, with drivers going through their own challenges. Some did better than expected, while others had to settle for a stock drop. Let's see which those drivers are.

Antonelli didn't clinch the title in Austin, but he wasn't really expected to, anyway. The important thing is he did what he was supposed to, which is to win the race. 

Now, the young Mercedes driver puts himself in prime position to win the championship in Mexico City. He just needs to finish at least in ninth place in the next race, which isn't too much to ask for.

After going through a brief podium drought, Leclerc has compiled two P2 finishes in the last two races. The Ferrari driver still wants to fight for wins, though. The positive sign for him is that the SF-26 is looking like it's getting there soon.

Lawson has scored points for the Racing Bulls in three straight weekends, and four of the last five races. Most importantly, he's scoring on weekends when his teammate, Arvid Lindblad, isn't. Lawson is helping Racing Bulls increase their lead over Alpine, their nearest midfield rival.

We're saying this for a while now, but Lawson has done way more than enough to keep his seat in 2027.

It was a rollercoaster weekend for the Prancing Horse. Ferrari topped the three practice sessions in Austin, underwhelmed in qualifying, and then brought the fight on Sunday. The straight-line speed is still lacking, as evident in Leclerc's battle with Verstappen at the start. But this Ferrari car is coming alive towards the end of the season.

Russell already knows that the championship is out of reach, but we would've loved to see him fighting out there. A poor qualifying had him start the race in sixth. Then, he ran wide at Turn 12 of the opening lap while defending from McLaren Oscar Piastri, resulting in a five-second penalty for gaining a lasting advantage. 

In the end, Russell had to settle for an eighth-place finish, more than 54 seconds behind his Mercedes teammate.

Colapinto qualified three spots below his Alpine teammate on Saturday. Then, he had to take a 10-place grid penalty for exceeding his season allocation for control electronics units. 

In his first stint on Sunday, the Argentine driver made good progress on the hard tyres. However, towards the middle of the race, Colapinto was sandwiched into Turn 1 between Linblad on the outside and Gasly exiting the pits on the inside.

Colapinto made contact with Lindblad, which apparently did enough damage for him to retire the car. It was the Argentine's third DNF in the last four races. His recent points drought continues to cripple Alpine's midfield battle against the Racing Bulls.