New Delhi: Formula One is back after a short two-week break, stopping at Miami before heading to Europe. Over the last three years, the Miami Grand Prix has turned out to be an attractive race, with celebrities swarming the paddock. Starting in 2022, over the last three seasons, there have been two winners of the race in the United States, with Max Verstappen winning the first two times before Lando Norris scored his first win in F1 in the 2024 season.
Standing as the defending champion, Norris is second in the Driver’s Championship as well. For most of the season, McLaren have been the strongest of all teams, taking four wins in the season so far. They have a strong claim over both the driver’s championship and the constructors’ championship. Miami GP, though, could be a turning point in the season.
5) Will Oscar Piastri prevail, or will Lando Norris reclaim top spot?
Oscar Piastri has come of his age this season, winning three races in the season so far, coming into the race with back-to-back wins. He is leading the driver’s championship, but with just ten points ahead of his teammate Lando Norris and just 12 points ahead of defending Driver’s Championship winner Max Verstappen. The Australian driver’s performance has made him one of the favourites to take home the championship this season.
So far in the season, he has four podium finishes and has been in the points in all five races. Except for his home race, the opening weekend in Australia, where he finished ninth, Piastri has been flawless. His biggest challenge to the title is Norris. Last season, Norris exposed the cracks in Red Bull’s dominance in the same venue. For Norris, the call isn’t for raw speed but consistency, and a win here could bring back the confidence that has been missing for the last two races.
4) Can Ferrari turn their fortunes after the first podium of the season?
Before the start of the season, all spotlights were on Ferrari. They were fierce competitors for the Constructors’ championship, missing the title by just a few points. Along with this level of performance, they also welcomed seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton in the season. The story for the team in red was far from a bed of roses. Both Charles Leclerc and Hamilton have shown glimpses of the team’s full potential but haven’t been threatening.
Hamilton secured his first win with Ferrari after winning the Chinese Sprint race and had finished sixth in the Sunday race, but both Ferraris were disqualified due to after post-race weight issue. However, at the Saudi Arabian GP, Leclerc secured Ferrari’s first pole position ever, holding off Norris from overtaking in the closing laps of the race, giving fans and the team a glint of hope. Where the team needs to improve is in the qualifying, having missed the pole position by over three tenths.
3) Can Red Bull record their third win in Miami?
For Red Bull, the Miami GP is an interesting weekend for the team. Sprint race week means they have limited time in practice, which Verstappen recently pointed out was when he tried different combinations with the car to find the correct configuration for qualification. The opportunity to learn is limited, which might apply to every tea,m and it is tricky if there is a limited time for setting up the car or if there is a poor correlation with the simulator, both of which are true for Red Bull.
Plus, Red Bull have lately shown signs that less the degradation of tyres, the better it is that they perform, while McLaren are better in conditions like this. It has been something that Helmut Marko confessed that was better for McLaren. Further the Miami layout is trickier than Jeddah and causes tyres to degrade more. However, Verstappen showed pace in Jeddah and won the Japanese Grand Prix and consistently fought for podium finishes.
2) Time for George Russell and Kimi Antonelli to step up
Kimi Antonelli became the youngest F1 driver ever to take a pole, claiming the spot during the Miami sprint race. It shows that the car has the potential to go fast around the track. Even in the Sunday races, Mercedes have been consistent with George Russell claiming three podium finishes, finishing second during the Bahrain GP.
However, that is as far as the two Mercedes have gone. The duo have managed to take the Mercedes to the second place in the Constructors’ title race. Russell is looking at a contract extension, arriving in Miami in the fourth place in the title race, standing just 14 points behind Verstappen.
1) Has Carlos Sainz found the right combination to score consistently?
Carlos Sainz finished ahead of Alexander Albon in Jeddah and behind the top four teams. Having moved to Williams this season, Sainz has scored only five points so far, failing to finish the race on two occasions. In the Chinese GP, Sainz managed to take one point home after three cars were disqualified, post-race. While the Spaniard was impressive last season, by his admission hasn’t found his ground yet.
However, all may have changed after the Saudi Arabian GP, where he seemed to have found some pace. Sainz had noted before the season, noted that he would require five races before he could judge the pace of the car better. The 30-year-old showed promise, and as F1 heads to Europe, Sainz has a chance to climb the standings, where he currently stands in 15th place, scoring consistently.
In the sixth race of the season, McLaren have the upper hand in both the titles but aren’t unchallenged with Mercedes Red Bull and Ferrari keeping close tab. Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
