An exciting start to the race weekend in Miami, the first of three American Races.
The qualifying session was full of close calls, as Fernando Alonso in the Aston Martin brushed against the wall with his rear tire during SQ1, fortunately escaping any serious damage to his car. Joining Alonso in the close encounters with the barriers were Daniel Ricciardo in the Red Bull Racing car and Lewis Hamilton in the Mercedes, both making contact with the wall during SQ2. Valtteri Bottas and Oscar Piastri narrowly avoided a potentially serious incident as well.
Logan Sargeant faced disappointment at his home race, qualifying in 19th position for the sprint race, only out qualifying his teammate Alex Albon whose lap time was deleted.
Mercedes’ misfortune persisted into the sprint qualifying, with both of their cars failing to progress beyond SQ2, marking another setback for the team.
The latest upgrades to the McLaren proved to be a talking point as the team showcased their potential during the qualifying sessions, but did not preform when it mattered most. Norris topped the timesheets in SQ2, however, despite their strong showing earlier, Oscar Piastri could only manage a disappointing 6th place, while Norris found himself in 9th position on the grid.
A fantastic qualifying session for Daniel Riccardo, making it into Q3 for the first time this season. The Australian driver will start on the second row in 4th place next to Sergio Perez.
The session finished with Verstappen on Pole, followed by the Ferrari of Leclerc, and the Red Bull of Sergio Perez.