While Perez didn’t go as planned in practice, Verstappen was the clear favorite for pole. The Dutch world champion was fastest in two practice sessions and also dominated Q1 and Q2. Ironically, the Red Bull driver made a mistake in the decision in his first attempt at pole position. He didn’t get a second because Leclerc flew off the track and qualifying was canceled 96 seconds before the end. In the end, Verstappen was only ninth without a timed time.
“We always push the limit. Now it was small mistakes that resulted in ninth place for me. This is very disappointing because the whole weekend has been positive so far. In hindsight, it’s easy to say that you should have gone out earlier,” said Verstappen, who is only six points ahead of his team-mate Perez in the World Cup. With regard to the race, he was combative: “At least a second place, but of course I hope to win.”
Perez “got nothing together”
It is Perez’s second pole position this season and the third of his career. The sprint and race winner in Baku did not expect that at all. “It was my worst weekend before qualifying, I couldn’t get anything together against Ferrari and Max and I kept pressing the reset button. In qualifying we went forward step by step. We made a few small changes and got the loop done when it mattered,” explained Perez.
In addition to the 33-year-old, Alonso, Sainz and fourth-placed Dane Kevin Magnussen (Haas) also benefited from the turbulent qualifying. “It was a good, but also difficult qualifying. The setups didn’t work that way at first. But then it went. I enjoyed every lap. It was a lot of fun driving,” said the Spaniard. Due to the starting position, compatriot Sainz expects an “exciting and thrilling race. The podium would be good.”
Mercedes disappoints again in Miami
Mercedes, however, experienced a nasty surprise. George Russell did not get better than sixth place, Lewis Hamilton only got 13th place and thus the worst qualifying of his career on a US circuit. This means the Brit has a tough race ahead of him. The course around the NFL stadium of the Miami Dolphins doesn’t offer many chances to overtake.
“In the end the car is too slow. We also sent him (Hamilton; note) into a traffic jam, and nothing worked. That was our worst race track last year. The car is too much on the cutting edge. It’s also very tight in midfield, so you’re a loser right away,” explained Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff.
The weather could ensure a bit of a mix-up, isolated rain showers are announced. The safety car could also shake up the classification. “Here one can assume that there will definitely be safety car phases. There is also a risk of rain. So it can be a very turbulent race,” said Red Bull Motorsport Advisor Helmut Marko.