(Reuters) – Team by team analysis of Sunday’s inaugural Miami Formula One Grand Prix (listed in current championship order):
FERRARI (Charles Leclerc 2, Carlos Sainz 3)
Leclerc started on pole, with Sainz alongside in Ferrari’s first front row lockout since Mexico 2019. Sainz was passed by Verstappen into the first corner and the Dutch driver then took Leclerc on lap nine. A late safety car allowed Leclerc to close the gap but Verstappen held on to win and cut Leclerc’s lead to 19 points from 27. Ferrari are six points clear in the constructors’ standings.
RED BULL (Max Verstappen 1, Sergio Perez 4)
Verstappen took his third win of the season, second in a row and 23rd of his career after starting third on the grid. He led from lap nine, apart from when he pitted on lap 26, and took a bonus point for fastest lap. Perez suffered a sensor problem on lap 20 that cost him time and a possible podium finish.
MERCEDES (George Russell 5, Lewis Hamilton 6)
Russell started 12th, and dropped to 15th after a slow start, but did a long stint on the hard tyre before pitting for mediums on lap 41 when the virtual safety car was deployed. Hamilton started sixth on mediums and pitted on lap 23. The seven times world champion collided with Alonso on the opening lap, dropping to eighth. He was passed by Russell late on with his team mate benefiting from fresher tyres.
MCLAREN (Daniel Ricciardo 13, Lando Norris retired)
Norris started eighth but crashed out after a collision with Pierre Gasly on lap 40 that triggered the safety car. Ricciardo started 14th and collected a five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage.
ALFA ROMEO (Valtteri Bottas 7, Guanyu Zhou retired)
Zhou was the first retirement of the race, pulling into the pits on lap seven with a water leak. Bottas continued his strong form, running in fifth place until a late mistake under pressure while braking allowed the Mercedes pair to slip through.
ALPINE (Esteban Ocon 8, Fernando Alonso 11)
An eventful race for the Alpine pair, with Ocon starting last after a crash in practice ruled him out of qualifying. Alonso gained four places at the start and crossed the line eighth but dropped to 11th due to a post-race five second penalty for causing a collision with Gasly. The Spaniard recognised he was at fault for the incident.
ALPHATAURI (Yuki Tsunoda 12, Pierre Gasly retired)
Gasly’s car was damaged in a collision with Alonso and then terminally when he and Norris made contact as the AlphaTauri was heading back to the pits. Tsunoda lost places at the start and was unable to recover them.
HAAS (Mick Schumacher 15, Kevin Magnussen 16)
Schumacher looked like ending the wait for his first points in Formula One but a late collision into turn one with Vettel dashed those hopes. Stewards declared a racing incident but Aston Martin blamed the younger German, who had to pit for a new front wing. Schumacher had passed Magnussen and was in ninth place. Magnussen collided with Stroll at turn two after the safety car restart, collecting a five second penalty, and stopped in the pits on the last lap.
ASTON MARTIN (Lance Stroll 10, Sebastian Vettel 17)
Both Aston Martin drivers started from the pit lane due to a fuel temperature problem. The safety car played into their hands and both could have scored but contact with the Haas drivers ended Vettel’s hopes. Stroll was promoted to 10th after Alonso’s penalty, Vettel did not finish but was classified.
WILLIAMS (Alex Albon 9, Nicholas Latifi 14)
Albon scored for the second time this season, after starting 18th on the medium tyre and pitting on lap 16 for hards. He finished 10th but moved up after Alonso’s penalty.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Peter Rutherford)
