Miami Grand Prix – Race: Max Verstappen again wins ahead of Charles Leclerc

On the grid, there were only 18 single-seaters because the two Aston Martins were forced to start from the pit lane due to a fuel temperature issue.

Despite a very tight first turn, everything went well, with no incidents to report. Max Verstappen was still able to slip ahead of Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari, while Fernando Alonso once again made an extraordinary start, even overtaking Lewis Hamilton! However, the Briton was able to regain his sixth position by the sixth lap.

On the ninth lap, Red Bull’s pit wall informed Max Verstappen that Charles Leclerc was starting to damage his right front tire. As a result, the Dutch driver positioned himself in the DRS zone to put pressure on the championship leader. This strategy paid off as the Ferrari driver failed to accelerate properly, giving the reigning world champion an opportunity to take the lead. The Dutch lion didn’t ask for more and therefore took the lead.

Eleven laps later, Sergio Perez began to pose a threat to Carlos Sainz. But it was at that moment that the Mexican complained over the radio that he was once again losing power. His engineer instructed him to perform some adjustments on his steering wheel, which allowed him to regain a normal racing pace. However, in the process, he lost nearly eight seconds to the Spanish Ferrari driver.

On the 25th lap, Charles Leclerc set the fastest lap of the race before diving into the pit lane. Two laps later, Max Verstappen did the same and was able to resume his progress, returning to the track just ahead of his teammate. As for the second driver shot, Carlos Sainz lost two seconds due to a stubborn right front tire. However, he still rejoined the track ahead of his rival.

Safety car!

With 15 laps to go, Pierre Gasly, previously hit by Fernando Alonso, collided with Lando Norris’ McLaren, spinning him out. This triggered the implementation of a virtual safety car procedure, before the actual safety car was deployed. This allowed many drivers to pit, starting with Sergio Perez, but especially George Russell, Esteban Ocon, and the two Aston Martin drivers who hadn’t made any pit stops since the beginning of the race. They made a great move as the Mercedes driver resumed in seventh place, just behind his teammate, and the Alpine driver in tenth position.

LAP 41/57

Contact between Norris and Gasly 💥

The McLaren driver goes spinning out of the race

⚠️ VIRTUAL SAFETY CAR ⚠️#MiamiGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/iA6UYaDCnS

— Formula 1 (@F1) May 8, 2022

On the restart, no incidents were to be noted, even though Carlos Sainz was forced to defend against Sergio Perez’s new medium tires. However, Valtteri Bottas then made a mistake, allowing both Mercedes cars to pass him. But the real battle was up front, as Charles Leclerc closed in on Max Verstappen. However, he was never able to launch an attack on his rival. Verstappen pushed so hard that he even set the fastest lap of the race.

With three laps to go, Mick Schumacher pulled off a huge takeout on Sebastian Vettel at the first corner, just as the young German was in a position to score his first point in F1. Impressive comeback from Esteban Ocon, who started last and finished eighth, just ahead of Fernando Alonso, who was penalized five seconds for his collision with Pierre Gasly. Alex Albon managed to make the most of it and secured another tenth-place finish.

The ranking of the Miami Grand Prix F1 2022.