McLaren chief executive officer Zak Brown talking to Sky Sports: "Yeah, it's been a bit of a challenging Friday for us, Oscar [Piastri] lost his time, Lando [Norris] I didn't think optimised his lap. I think actually Mercedes are the fastest, Lewis [Hamilton] was on a flyer, [George] Russell made a little bit of a mistake so I think they might be the team to beat this weekend. I think it shows how close it is and anyone who thinks this championship is over or we've got the dominant car, I think we've got four cars capable of winning this weekend."

On upgrades: "We only had the one hour and then obviously the qualifying so we didn't get a lot of time. The upgrades now were in the increments, the milliseconds, not even the tenths, so the data has been good but we weren't expecting some giant leap forward. I think Mercedes has a new floor this weekend and you have to say I think that's looking pretty strong this weekend."

On Lando Norris' mood: "He's a little grumpy with himself but that easily translates to a pretty awesome race. I think he kind of lost two and a half tenths but I think [George] Russell lost a bit of time, I think Leclerc had a small... it was a hard track, the bumps, the new surface so I think if everybody put together their perfect lap, Lewis [Hamilton] was on pole."

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This is how the drivers' championship stands before lights out in the sprint race.

Max Verstappen, on pole for the 19-lap event, is 52 points clear of Lando Norris with six races to go in the 2024 season. Charles Leclerc sits in third spot, 86 points behind Verstappen and 34 points off second-placed Norris.

Nico Hulkenberg is the newcomer in the top 10 after he finished ninth at the Singapore Grand Prix. The German can add to his tally today, along with his Haas team-mate Kevin Magnussen, if the pair manage to stay inside the top-eight drivers in the sprint.

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Every little helps when the F1 title is still on the line at this stage in the season, so while Saturday's sprint prizes are maybe not as glitzy as the main event, any advantage will be welcomed by the likes of Max Verstappen and Lando Norris.

Here are the drivers who are starting in the top eight; first will receive eight points, second place gets seven points, third will pick up six and so on down to P8.

Yuki Tsunoda and Franco Colapinto, who is taking part in his first sprint, are the two drivers who have maybe the best chance of disrupting the order from ninth and 10th respectively.

1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull)

2. George Russell (Mercedes)

3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari)

4. Lando Norris (McLaren)

5. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari)

6. Nico Hulkenberg (Haas)

7. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

8. Kevin Magnussen (Haas)

It's hot, sunny, with absolutely no chance of a shower in Austin for today's sprint race and qualifying session. Yeehaw indeed.

The tyres for Austin are in the middle of the Pirelli range, with the C2 as the hard, the C3 as the medium and the C4 as the soft.

Ferrari were competitive on the yellow mediums during yesterday's first practice and opening two sprint qualifying sessions, but the pace was slightly lacking when the Italian team switched to the softer red rubber.

There is a singer called 'Shaboozey' on the grid. Any race in the United States always attracts the star names but I'll admit, I have no idea who this chap is. Any young kids following along, help us out.

Andrew Benson
BBC F1 correspondent in Austin

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McLaren Racing chief executive officer Zak Brown says he "still has questions" about a controversial adjustment device on the Red Bull.

Formula 1’s governing body the FIA has put a seal on a device in the Red Bull’s cockpit that can be used to adjust the height of the car’s front floor.

McLaren are concerned that the device could be used to adjust the car's settings between qualifying and race, when changes are not allowed.

Brown said: "Being able to run the car lower is a competitive advantage. From what we can see, it is the only team that has the ability to adjust the ride height from inside the cockpit, and that raises questions.

"It’s very clear that if you modify your car without permission, it is against the regulations, so they have decided to put a seal on it."

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Sky Sports: "Every car has a tool that they can adjust the front of the bib, what we call the front of the floor being called the bib.

"Ours is located at the front of the footwell. It’s been there for I think for over three years, you've got to have the pedals out, other panels out and pipework out to be able to get to it.

Read the full story here

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The eyes of the Austin paddock have been fixed on Red Bull this weekend, following the news they are to make changes to their car as a result of discussions with governing body the FIA.

On Thursday, the constructors' champions confirmed the existence of a device in the cockpit that their rivals believed could be used to adjust the height of the front of the car's floor.

The media were lined up to question Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, who put his team's case forward, while McLaren CEO Zak Brown also added his views on the technical controversy...

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A battle can't always be won alone; sometimes you need support from your fellow soldiers.

Unfortunately for Max Verstappen and Lando Norris, any thoughts of a helping hand in the sprint from a team-mate will be a difficult prospect, after Sergio Perez and Oscar Piastri both failed to make it into SQ3.

Australian Piastri was the first to fall in SQ1 when his lap time was deleted for exceeding track limits after running wide at Turn 19. The early exit means the McLaren driver starts way down in P16.

In SQ2, Perez found himself on the cusp of danger in 10th place with no time left to complete another lap and try and improve. The Mexican then had to watch Yuki Tsunoda swoop by in the RB and take his place, dropping him down the order to P11.

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George Russell, running Mercedes' upgraded package in Austin, was looking good for pole position in yesterday's SQ3 session but the 26-year-old was pipped right at the end by Max Verstappen; the Dutchman securing the front slot on the grid by just 0.012 seconds.

Lando Norris was unable to match his rival's pace on this occasion and found himself 0.250 seconds away from Verstappen's pole marker. The Briton will line up in fourth in Austin, sharing the second row with Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in third.

Carlos Sainz finished fifth, with Nico Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen sitting in the points places in sixth and eighth. The two Haas cars are separated by the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton, who had an unlucky break with a brief yellow flag when Williams' Franco Colapinto spun at Turn 12.

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Sprint qualifying in Austin was a miserable one for Alex Albon as he was eliminated from SQ1 and also out-qualified by his short-term team-mate Franco Colapinto, who made it into SQ3 - the first Williams driver to do so this season - and will start in 10th place.

Albon was lining up down in 18th for the 100km race, so the team have made some set-up changes to his car under parc ferme conditions, meaning a pit-lane start for the 28-year-old.

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Hello, folks. Saturday night Formula 1 is back with us and instead of another practice session, we get what could be a competitive fight between the top teams. Or, it could just be a procession as no-one wants to get in any trouble for main qualifying later on. We'll find out shortly.

Lights out for the 19-lap sprint race are at 19:00 BST.

Qualifying for tomorrow's United Sates Grand Prix gets under way at 23:00 BST.

Live commentary of both sessions is available on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra, BBC Sounds, via most smart speakers and at the top of this page using the 'listen live' tab.

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Max Verstappen celebrating a race victory used to be a regular sight in Formula 1. But since the Spanish Grand Prix in June, the Dutchman has had to stand on the lower steps of the podium, albeit while keeping his championship advantage intact.

With Lando Norris experiencing what he called a "shocking" lap yesterday in the significantly upgraded McLaren, Verstappen - who has won three sprints already this season and is also running an updated car - has the chance from pole position to land a blow to the Briton's title challenge, if the 100km race goes his way, of course.

Will anyone take a risk in the shorter dash today in the pursuit of some championship gains?