Red Bull’s Verstappen outmanoeuvres Ferrari’s Leclerc in a gripping sprint to pole at the Miami GP. Norris’s early promise for McLaren fades by the session’s end. A riveting qualifier sets the stage for an electrifying race day.
Lando Norris initially led the pack in SQ1 and SQ2 with impressive times, but a switch to soft tyres in the final stretch saw him lose crucial seconds, leaving him trailing behind Max Verstappen. Verstappen, despite a challenging RB20 and a tight chicane manoeuvre, secured pole position with a lap time of 1m27.641s. Charles Leclerc made a remarkable recovery to second place after practice setbacks, narrowly missing the top spot by just over 0.1s.
Sergio Perez claimed the third spot, edging out Daniel Ricciardo, who narrowly avoided a collision with the Turn 16 wall. Fernando Alonso, after an earlier mishap, ended up eighth, behind the likes of Carlos Sainz, Oscar Piastri, and Lance Stroll.
Norris, despite his swift times in the latter sectors, could only surpass Nico Hulkenberg, with his first sector gap being significant enough to not challenge Verstappen’s lead.
SQ2 saw Mercedes drivers George Russell and Lewis Hamilton eliminated early, with Hamilton making contact with the wall on his final attempt. They were followed by Esteban Ocon, Kevin Magnussen, and Yuki Tsunoda, who, along with Verstappen and Norris, completed only one flying lap in the segment.
Alex Albon’s efforts to climb out of the elimination zone were in vain as his time was deleted for cutting the chicane, relegating him to the bottom of the standings. This incident placed him behind Pierre Gasly, Zhou Guanyu, Valtteri Bottas, and Logan Sargeant.
Post-session investigations loomed for Bottas due to a near-miss with Piastri and for Hamilton over a potential Mercedes pit violation. Additionally, several drivers faced scrutiny for not adhering to the race director’s instructions on out-lap speeds, though such infractions typically result in no penalties.
