McLaren brought 10 updates to Miami for Lando Norris, while his teammate, Oscar Piastri had half of them. Before falling down to P17 after a collision with Carlos Sainz that led to wing damage, Piastri was catching up to Max Verstappen for first.
First, Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase told the Dutchman to hurry up ahead of the imminent threat of Piastri. Then, later in the race, Norris increased his race lead to 7.612 seconds ahead of the reigning world champion. Undoubtedly, McLaren are emerging as Red Bull’s closest competitor so far this season.
Miami’s race weekend showed that Red Bull’s dominance may decline, with McLaren and Ferrari becoming strong contenders. This could provide some thrilling races later in the season.
Furthermore, Miami showcased Williams’ struggles. Logan Sargeant suffered a crash with Kevin Magnussen, ending his race on lap 28. Adding insult to injury for Williams, Alex Albon claimed Miami was one of the most challenging races he has experienced with the team. After an unlucky lock up at Turn 11, Albon spun and quickly fell down the order. On re-entering the track, he found himself at the back of the pack.
Written by Frankie.
Featured Image Credit: Aljazeera
The Fastest Sector 