F1: How the grid will line up for the USGP

Lewis Hamilton will start today's United States Grand Prix from pole position as he bids to close the 33-point championship gap to Mercedes Formula 1 teammate Nico Rosberg. Hamilton took his first pole position at Circuit of The Americas, a track where he has won three times in four starts, by two-tenths of a second in qualifying.

Both Mercedes drivers will start the race on soft-compound Pirelli tires, having set their fastest times in Q2 using them, although they set their Q3 times using super-softs.

Hamilton has had difficulties with his starts in 2016, most recently dropping to eighth at the start of the Japanese Grand Prix two weeks ago, but is confident going into Sunday's race.

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"Honestly, I feel great," he said when asked whether he had any anxiety about the start. "I was in the factory last week, I worked very hard on the sequence, the process that we have now and I'm even more comfortable. The [practice] starts this weekend have been fantastic, so I plan to carry that through."

With fourth-placed Max Verstappen also starting on the soft-compound Pirellis, there is some strategic variation among the Mercedes and Red Bull drivers as Daniel Ricciardo will start on super-softs.

Ricciardo said yesterday that he's hopeful the extra grip of the super-softs will be an advantage off the line, while Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is pleased to have both strategic options covered.

"It was not clear strategically which was the best route to take, but both drivers showed a preference for the tire they were starting on and, from a team perspective, tactically it makes sense," said Horner.

"It covers both options for us strategically. It's not obvious which is the better strategy, so rather than putting all your eggs in one basket [it is logical] to split your odds. One of the advantages [for Ricciardo] is the start and he will be out of synch with the others, so it's an interesting tactic."

The rest of the top 10 will start on super-soft rubber, while Force India driver Sergio Perez will be the best-placed of those with a free tire choice having just failed to make Q3.

The driver most out of position on the grid is Jenson Button, who blamed McLaren's bad timing for failing to escape Q1 after hitting traffic and will start 19th.

THE GRID:

Originally on Autosport.com