Miami GP

The Red Bull driver held off a late push by Charles Leclerc to clinch his second win in three weeks.

It was Verstappen’s second straight win, coming weeks after finishing first in Italy at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. George Russell of Mercedes (59 points) and Sainz (53) round out the top five. After 57 laps in Miami on Sunday, he accomplished his goal.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen won the Miami Grand Prix at the Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday, after passing the Ferrari of Formula 1 World Championship rival ...

Guanyu Zhou was the first retirement of the race when his Alfa Romeo broke down. Hamilton finished sixth, ahead of Bottas, Esteban Ocon, the penalised Alonso and Alex Albon’s Williams. With three laps to go, Verstappen escaped Leclerc’s DRS range and sealed his third win of the year. Perez also pitted for a new set of mediums, but none of the front trio stopped. As soon as he got into DRS range of Leclerc, Verstappen grabbed the lead at Turn 1 on Lap 9. Leclerc was running 4.5s behind Verstappen when he pitted on Lap 25, rejoining in fourth.

Max Verstappen won the first-ever Miami Grand Prix having pried the lead off Ferrari's pole-sitter Charles Leclerc early in the race, and defended it on a ...

Alonso – now holding a five-second penalty for contact with Gasly – led Schumacher and Ocon at the back of the top 10. "I think I’ll stick to racing," he said when asked by Willy T Ribbs if he was fit enough to step into the boxing ring, "but I appreciate a lot of boxing. Tsunoda was however promoted to 12th after the post-race penalties for Alonso and Ricciardo. That left Williams driver Latifi in P14. The podium saw the top three celebrate in front of Miami Dolphins legend Dan Marino – and his statue. Then, on Lap 41, Gasly – who had previously been tapped at the final corner by Alonso – went wide at Turn 8, rejoined, and clashed with Norris, ripping the McLaren’s rear-right tyre off and sending him into a spin. Leclerc prepared his rebuttal, tailing the Red Bull throughout the next lap – but the reigning champion was now in a commanding position. Leclerc was next to pit, a swap to hards taking 3.2 seconds, as he emerged in P4 on Lap 25. A sensor issue was to blame and Perez was back – but had lost considerable time (and some engine power to boot) to Sainz ahead. Perez attempted to pass Sainz on Lap 52 but locked up, both drivers avoiding contact, while Leclerc was under half a second behind Verstappen in the chase for the lead. On Lap 6, he took P6 off Gasly and the seven-time champion was back where he began. Hamilton lamented the fact that he couldn't pit during the VSC but was promoted to P6 when Valtteri Bottas went wide at Turn 17 on Lap 49. Perez took the opportunity to pit for new mediums from P4, emerging there, with hard-shod Verstappen, Leclerc and Sainz ahead.

Max Verstappen beat Charles Leclerc to victory in Formula 1's first Miami Grand Prix, winning after passing on-track early on and then defying considerable ...

Leclerc came closest to making a pass with a look to the inside of Turn 11 at the end of the long, curving run from the ‘marina’, but was pinched on the inside line and lost ground – never getting alongside the leader. Leclerc was able to set competitive times at this stage, but could not do so consistently and with Verstappen able to cover him off each time anyway, so Ferrari called him in to switch to the hards at the end of lap 24 – just after he had reported his car was “so difficult to drive”. But a serene had no chance to play out after the safety car was called out on lap 41 after Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris collided – putting the McLaren driver out just past the start of the long, meandering acceleration zone that follows the fake marina at Turn 8. The Red Bull was steadily able to build a lead, aided by Leclerc locking up and sliding deep at Turn 17 on lap 12, which cost him a second and meant at the end of that tour Verstappen’s lead had reached 2.6s. At the end of lap eight, Leclerc slid exiting the Turn 17 hairpin and Verstappen arrived right on his gearbox – moving alongside as they ran down the pit straight and then taking the lead with a simple pass into Turn 1, Leclerc opting not to fight too hard. Leclerc had a 0.8s lead at the end of the first lap of 57 and quickly moved to pull clear of Verstappen’s DRS range by the time it was activated on the third lap.

Max Verstappen edged past Charles Leclerc, and Mercedes had a topsy turvy weekend. But was the track actually successful?

The important thing is that we’re able to race, and I will be able to race as well.” Ocon said on Sunday that he felt “50%” after the race, still feeling the after effects from Saturday’s crash. That was a shame not to see that implemented.” “When the car and tires are in the right window the car, except for the bouncing, feels really good to drive. Sainz and Esteban Ocon crashed in the same turn a day apart from each other, but both said the crash was harder than it should have been. So, I’m just grateful for everyone continuing to keep their heads down and for the amazing hard work that everyone is putting in.” There was improvement in terms of how the team was finishing. George Russell previously highlighted that Imola was “the first weekend where I’ve been truly struggling with my back and, like, chest pains from the severity of the bouncing. With over 20 laps to go, the AlphaTauri star had contact with Fernando Alonso and was running slower. Typically the cause is related to the cars’ aerodynamics. Meanwhile, the Ferrari star appeared to struggle despite running in the top two spots consistently throughout the afternoon, saying at one point “The car is so difficult to drive,” before pitting for hard tires. Weather, including the heat, aside, numerous drivers complained about the track, and Mercedes had a topsy turvy weekend that leaves everyone wondering if they have found a possible fix for the porpoising.

Lewis Hamilton said the late pit stop Mercedes offered him and he declined to take felt like an unnecessary risk as he once again bemoaned the timing of a ...

Russell's tyre advantage was clear to see and he eased past the seven-time world champion on the following lap. I was like, 'you guys make the decision'. Either way, we've just been unfortunate with the timing of the safety car today." With the safety car still out Hamilton was asked by Mercedes if he wanted to make another stop, to which he replied: "You tell me, man!

Lewis Hamilton questioned Mercedes' strategy at the Miami Grand Prix after he was overtaken by team-mate George Russell in the closing stages.

To be fair, everyone was on the same strategy as him except his team-mate because he had a bad qualifying. "It was just a bit unfortunate on the safety car but at least we got points today. We are finishing and reliability is good. "But if you had told me after Friday we would finish P5 and P6 that far behind P1 I would have been disappointed so we have a fast race car in there we just don't have the key to unlock the performance. "That's what your job is, make the decision for me. You have all the details.

The victory cut Leclerc's lead over Verstappen to 19 points in the championship, while the Monegasque's Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz completed the podium.

A crash between Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris on Lap 41 triggered the safety car, and when racing resumed on lap 47, Leclerc pushed hard to retake the lead. But we had a good launch and I saw the opportunity to go around the outside [of Sainz] in turn one, so I tried. "I didn't even do a [practice] start, so I didn't know what to expect in the actual start.

After the fifth race of the year, Lewis Hamilton is sixth in the drivers' standings on 36 points, with fellow Briton fourth on 59.

There's more to come and it’s frustrating." I think there’s good respect between us and I was pushing as hard as I could." We just have to keep trying. You’ve got all the details right there in front of you. "We’re finishing and reliability is good. Make the decision for me.

Max Verstappen turned up the heat in the Formula 1 title battle by claiming his second win on the bounce as he defeated Ferrari's Charles Leclerc in the ...

The trio analyse the track action and and how the event stacked up against other F1 races on the calendar, and if it lived up to the hype. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz managed to hold off a down on power Sergio Perez to secure the final podium spot, while George Russell charged from 12th to fifth, taking advantage of the safety car and fresher tyres to leapfrog team-mate Lewis Hamilton. F1’s first visit to Miami created plenty of hype pre-event and it resulted in a bumper crowd witnessing Verstappen overhaul polesitter Leclerc, in a race spiced up by a late safety car, after a collision between AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly and McLaren’s Lando Norris.

The seven-time world champion said he was surprised to be asked if he wanted to pit for fresh tyres during a Safety Car period after 41 laps of the ...

There’s more to come and it’s frustrating." “It’s good when you battle with our team-mate," Hamilton said. You’ve got all the details right there in front of you.

Max Verstappen secured his third win of the 2022 Formula 1 season in Miami after again beating early leader Charles Leclerc. But unlike their Jeddah duel in ...

After several years of planning and preparation, and with hype levels at an all-time high, the inaugural Miami Grand Prix is finally set to take place this weekend. But what does that actually mean and how can the team lift itself out of such a drastic competitive slump? The top three finishers in Formula 1’s first Miami Grand Prix wearing Pirelli-branded NFL helmets atop the gigantic podium.

Max Verstappen made it two wins on the trot in Formula 1's Miami Grand Prix, as Red Bull continued its fightback against Ferrari in front of a ...

Then in time for Miami, a document was issued to say this - and checking to see if a driver’s underwear was FIA homologated -would now form part of the rigorous scrutineering carried out at each event. Several drivers were quick to push back in Florida, calling it a “personal choice” as to what they wear even if they did appreciate the FIA acting on grounds of safety. The cameras cut to Carlos Sainz in second practice just as he lost control of his Ferrari and backed it into a wall. But the consolidation in Miami does offer Sainz a platform upon which he can now rebuild and gain momentum to at least provide better cover for Ferrari in the constructors’ championship. The team did appear to also get much closer to finding a remedy for its persistent porpoising in the opening practice session. But the porpoising returned massively in qualifying to prevent Russell from fighting for spot inside the top 10. While he was vanquished immediately by the rapid-starting Verstappen, nursing a sore neck and having already brained himself climbing through a gap in the fence, Sainz kept hold of third place at the flag after keeping Perez behind. But it is clear we now need to respond.” That was the assessment from Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto after the Scuderia chalked a 2-3 result in Miami. But with the Red Bull driver ultimately triumphing by close to 3.8 seconds, it ends the early trend of the 2022 season in which Verstappen and Leclerc had taken it in turns to win. Leclerc admitted that his lap for pole was good rather than great, but with Verstappen bailing out of his final flier after making a mistake, the Ferrari seized the advantage. The decline in pace as Leclerc managed his rubber allowed Verstappen to close. But for the second round in a row, he hasn’t been fazed by a little adversity.

Max Verstappen beat Charles Leclerc to victory in Formula 1's first Miami Grand Prix, winning after passing on track early on and then defying considerable ...

Leclerc came closest to making a pass with a look to the inside of Turn 11 at the end of the long, curving run from the 'marina', but was pinched on the inside line and lost ground – never getting alongside the leader. Leclerc was able to set competitive times at this stage, but could not do so consistently and with Verstappen able to cover him off each time anyway, so Ferrari called him in to switch to the hards at the end of lap 24, just after he had reported his car was "so difficult to drive". But a serene had no chance to play out after the safety car was called out on lap 41 after Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris collided, putting the McLaren driver out just past the start of the long, meandering acceleration zone that follows the fake marina at Turn 8. The Red Bull was steadily able to build a lead, aided by Leclerc locking up and sliding deep at Turn 17 on lap 12, which cost him a second and meant at the end of that tour Verstappen's lead had reached 2.6s. At the end of lap eight, Leclerc slid exiting the Turn 17 hairpin and Verstappen arrived right on his gearbox, moving alongside as they ran down the pit straight and then taking the lead with a simple pass into Turn 1, Leclerc opting not to fight too hard. Leclerc had a 0.8s lead at the end of the first lap of 57 and quickly moved to pull clear of Verstappen's DRS range by the time it was activated on the third lap.

Miami Gardens delivered a Superbowl-esque Formula 1 event, with Max Verstappen beating championship rival Charles Leclerc to victory – but it wasn't so ...

It meant AlphaTauri failed to score with either car for the first time this year. It was also a score for Williams on the 45th anniversary of the team’s F1 debut. Alex Albon has been outdriving his Williams all year – and another stellar result looked to be on the cards with strong form in practice. Pierre Gasly ran well in the top 10, but contact with Fernando Alonso caused damage and he then collided with Lando Norris before retiring. And that confidence took another hit when he crashed heavily in practice. Sebastian Vettel thought points were possible, but those hopes were extinguished when Mick Schumacher hit the German with, as Aston Martin boss Mike Krack described, an “over-ambitious” move.

Lewis Hamilton left Miami feeling that a pair of unfortunate incidents cost him a chance at finishing higher than P6 yet, while the Mercedes driver felt ...

As for the effects of the contact with Alonso, Hamilton said: “The car definitely didn’t feel the same as it did on the laps to the grid. Team mate Russell managed to overhaul Hamilton at the end of the race, having pitted for medium tyres during the late Virtual Safety Car. That triggered lengthy discussions on the radio between Hamilton and his side of the garage over whether he could have done the same – with Hamilton heard answering tersely to engineer Pete Bonnington when asked which strategy he would prefer. “I was giving it everything but a bit stuck behind a few people at the beginning.