Hamilton and Leclerc Disqualified from US Grand Prix 

Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton (L) speaks with Ferrari's Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc after the Sprint race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on October 21, 2023 ahead of the United States Formula One Grand Prix. (AFP)
Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton (L) speaks with Ferrari's Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc after the Sprint race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on October 21, 2023 ahead of the United States Formula One Grand Prix. (AFP)
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Hamilton and Leclerc Disqualified from US Grand Prix 

Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton (L) speaks with Ferrari's Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc after the Sprint race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on October 21, 2023 ahead of the United States Formula One Grand Prix. (AFP)
Mercedes' British driver Lewis Hamilton (L) speaks with Ferrari's Monegasque driver Charles Leclerc after the Sprint race at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, on October 21, 2023 ahead of the United States Formula One Grand Prix. (AFP)

Mercedes accepted their punishment after Formula One stewards disqualified Lewis Hamilton from second place in Sunday's US Grand Prix along with sixth-placed Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc.

The governing FIA had reported both drivers to stewards after their cars failed post-race checks on the under-floor wooden planks at Austin's Circuit of the Americas (COTA).

Stewards imposed the standard penalty after both teams acknowledged the measurements carried out by the FIA were correct.

Mercedes had stated that the high wear on the skid pads was probably due to the bumpy track and the race being run to a sprint format for the first time.

That meant a 100km race on Saturday and only one practice session instead of the usual three.

"Set-up choices on a sprint weekend are always a challenge with just one hour of free practice, and even more so at a bumpy circuit like COTA and running a new package," said Mercedes principal Toto Wolff.

"In the end, all of that doesn't matter; others got it right where we got it wrong and there's no wiggle room in the rules.

"We need to take it on the chin, do the learning, and come back stronger next weekend."

The race was won by Red Bull's Max Verstappen, the 50th victory of the triple world champion's career and record-equaling 15 of the season.

Mercedes had brought an upgraded car to Texas and Hamilton, whose teammate George Russell moved up to fifth, had looked more competitive.

"We can take a lot of positives from the car performance today," said Wolff.

"This is a circuit where only a few races ago we wouldn't have performed well because of the fast, sweeping corners. The upgrade seems to have made the car happier in those areas and it is working well. Directionally, it's a very good sign."

The disqualifications meant Leclerc's teammate Carlos Sainz moved up to third.



Swiatek Wins Bronze at Paris Olympics for Poland's 1st Tennis Medal at Any Summer Games

Iga Swiatek of Poland returns a shot to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia during their women's bronze medal match, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Iga Swiatek of Poland returns a shot to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia during their women's bronze medal match, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
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Swiatek Wins Bronze at Paris Olympics for Poland's 1st Tennis Medal at Any Summer Games

Iga Swiatek of Poland returns a shot to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia during their women's bronze medal match, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Iga Swiatek of Poland returns a shot to Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia during their women's bronze medal match, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

Iga Swiatek used a towel to wipe tears from her eyes at the Paris Olympics after earning a bronze for Poland's first tennis medal at any Summer Games by beating Anna Karolina Schmiedlova of Slovakia 6-2, 6-1 on Friday.
The match took just 59 minutes, and Swiatek played much more cleanly than she did a day earlier in a straight-set loss to Zheng Qinwen of China in the semifinals, The Associated Press reported. That result ended Swiatek's 25-match unbeaten streak at Roland Garros, the clay-court facility used for the French Open each year and for the 2024 Olympics.
After losing to Zheng on Thursday, Swiatek skipped any questions from print reporters in the mixed zone area for interviews. Her face flushed and eyes red, Swiatek did not break stride as she passed journalists, saying only: “Sorry. Next time.”
The No. 1-ranked Swiatek was a popular pick to leave Paris with gold, in large part because she has won four of the past five French Open titles, including the last three in a row. She also won the 2022 U.S. Open.
Schmiedlova defeated both the reigning Wimbledon champion, Barbora Krejcikova, and the runner-up there and at the French Open this year, Jasmine Paolini, on her way to the semifinals, before losing to Donna Vekic of Croatia. Schmiedlova is a 29-year-old who is ranked 67th and has one fourth-round appearance at a Slam. That came last year at Roland Garros.