Mercedes
Kimi Antonelli, 1st
"What an incredible feeling. After Friday, I don't think any of us expected to be standing here with the win, so to turn the weekend around like this is really special. The car felt great today, and I was able to control the race, but it definitely wasn't easy. There was pressure throughout and I knew I couldn't afford to make a mistake. I just tried to stay calm, focus on each lap and execute the race.
"A huge thank you to everyone here at the track and back at Brackley and Brixworth. We kept working after a difficult Friday and never gave up. To repay all that work with a victory feels amazing. I'm very proud of what we achieved today."
George Russell, 8th
"It was another difficult day for me today. I just didn't have the pace and I'm unsure why that is. My first stint wasn't great, and I was struggling initially on the Medium tyre but after the pitstop my pace felt stronger and I felt I could make some progress. However, once I caught up with the McLaren of Piastri, I just couldn't overtake and ended up stuck behind him for the remaining laps of the race.
"The time penalty from the opening lap cost me a couple of places but overall, the pace just wasn't good enough today for me to be fighting at the front. The lack of performance is something me and the team will look at and work on over the next couple of days. Hopefully we can make some improvements ahead of next weekend in Mexico and come back stronger for the rest of the season."
Toto Wolff, Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport
"That was an exceptional drive from Kimi. He and the team didn't put a foot wrong all afternoon, showing strong pace throughout along with making all the right decisions strategically. What makes today particularly satisfying is where we came from on Friday. We didn't look like we had a car capable of winning this race, but the team kept working, made good decisions and turned the weekend around. That is a credit to everyone here in Austin and back in Brackley and Brixworth.
"For George, it was a more difficult afternoon, and the result doesn't reflect the pace we know he has. He was hindered by a five-second time penalty that dropped him behind the McLarens and then he got stuck behind Piastri. We will look at this weekend overall, understand what we could have done differently and work together to make sure he can have a stronger weekend in Mexico."
Andrew Shovlin, Trackside Engineering Director
"Well done to Kimi and everyone in Brackley and Brixworth on the win. After Friday, a race victory simply didn't look achievable given our single-lap and long-run pace, so it's been a remarkable turnaround and a very satisfying result.
"For George, it was a frustrating afternoon. The penalty for going off track on the opening lap didn't help and, despite making a strong start to his second stint, he got stuck behind Piastri and couldn't find a way through.
"There were encouraging signs with the car pace, although since the update it does feel like the set-up window has become a little harder to hit. Operationally though, the team did a very good job. The strategy decisions weren't clear-cut, but we held our nerve, made the right call to stick with the one-stop, and the pit stops were solid.
"Most of all, Kimi should be incredibly pleased with his performances. It was a difficult Friday, but what he produced in qualifying, and the race today, was exceptional."
