Raceday Recap: “Bienvenidos a Miami”
Miami is arguably one of the most exciting races of the year: many celebrities show up, the sprints are exhilarating, and as the first US race of the season, it gets all of the American fans excited. This year’s Miami Grand Prix was a fun one, so let’s debrief it together!!
Lando Norris won the sprint race on Saturday, a celebratory result that inspired hope in fans that he could win the GP 2 years in a row. Sunday’s qualifying went well for many drivers, with Max Verstappen starting on pole, Lando Norris beside him in the front row, rookie Kimi Antonelli in an impressive P3 and Lando’s teammate Oscar Piastri in P4. George Russell performed strongly for P5, with both Williams cars right behind after an incredible session, with Carlos Sainz in 6th and Alex Albon in 7th. Charles Leclerc achieved P8, followed by a surprising P9 result for Haas’ Esteban Ocon and Yuki Tsunoda bringing up the rear in 10th. From the first turn, the heat was on and tensions were high as Max sped away, Lando close behind ready to overtake. On lap 1, the first yellow flag was announced due to a track hazard after Jack Doohan punctured one of his front tires. The start to the race foreshadowed a lot of tension throughout the rest of the race, especially towards the front while the McLarens advanced on Max Verstappen and repeatedly tried to overtake him.
The final result after 57 laps of extreme competition. Photo courtesy of RacingNews365.
By lap 9, the McLarens finally caught up to Max and started to advance to take the lead of the race. In lap 10, Fernando Alonso spun out, but then locked back in and continued his drive. In lap 14, Piastri overtook Verstappen for P1, but Piastri was pushed off the track after Verstappen’s late breaking. However, the stewards decided that this was not a track limits penalty, and the investigation was called off. Just a few laps later, Norris overtook Verstappen for P2, pushing Max further down the grid. All was calm until the entrance of a virtual safety car in lap 28 when Ollie Bearman suffered an engine failure and had to retire his car. Bortoleto faced a similar issue in lap 33, also resigning the race due to engine issues.
After 57 laps of pure speed, Oscar Piastri crossed the line in first place for his 3rd consecutive win of 2025. It was a McLaren 1-2 with Lando Norris in 2nd, while George Russell slipped past Verstappen at the last second to secure the third podium spot. It was a hard-fought race for Williams as Alex Albon finished 5th, but Carlos Sainz got passed by both Ferraris towards the very end of the race, a disappointing end to a long battle to stay ahead. He argued that Hamilton touched their cars together, but no action was taken by the FIA. Kimi Antonelli claimed P6 ahead of both Ferraris, with Leclerc in 7th, Hamilton in 8th, and Sainz behind in 9th. The last driver in the points was Yuki Tsunoda, completing the same race finish as his qualifying placement from the day before.
All in all, the Miami Grand Prix was exciting, frantic, and full of surprises. Next week is the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola, Italy, so ciao for now! As always, thanks for reading.
Lights out and away we go,
Lucy xx
