WEEKEND WARM-UP: All the paddock chatter as the 2021 United States Grand Prix build-up begins

Excitement was in the air as Formula 1 returned to a Circuit of The Americas venue last visited by the championship back in 2019 – with plenty to talk about on Thursday at the Texan track.

The title fight rages on, with the battle for supremacy between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen at the forefront of everyone’s minds, as the pair prepare to go toe-to-toe at a track where Hamilton has won five of the eight Grands Prix.

READ MORE: ‘We just have to focus on our side’ says Verstappen as he brushes off worries about improved Mercedes pace

Elsewhere, uncertainty remains over the final race seat of 2022 to be filled, with Alfa Romeo’s Antonio Giovinazzi admitting on Thursday that it was hard not knowing if he would partner Valtteri Bottas at the team next year – while the drivers also reflected more generally on the challenge of taking on the Circuit of The America’s swooping undulations.

Join Will Buxton and Lawrence Barretto in the video above as they round up what everybody's talking about ahead of the United States Grand Prix.