A Q3 incident shuffled the grid into an unexpected order, and a Formula 1 veteran claimed yet another podium spot.
[adrotate banner=”10″]
Get 10% off all official F1 Merch at TheRaceWorks.com using code ‘EF1‘ at checkout.
About The Miami Grand Prix
Motorsports in Miami have come in all shapes and sizes over the years. The Homestead-Miami Speedway now hosts Nascar, Indycar, the AMA Superbikes Championship and the IMSA SportsCar Championship. Even Formula E made a brief appearance in 2015 at the American Airlines Arena (now known as the Kaseya Centre).
Discussions had been held with Bernie Ecclestone about bringing Formula 1 to Miami. However, it was something that never materialised whilst Bernie ruled the roost. In January 2018, Liberty Media were in control of Formula 1, and in January 2018 they announced an F1 Live event would be hosted in Miami. Just four months later, they announced to the world that a full race would be held in 2019. Cue the world coming to a standstill thanks to the Coronavirus pandemic, firmly slamming on the brakes for Grand Prix plans in Miami.
In 2021, the Miami Grand Prix was officially announced, with the debut race to be held in 2022 at the brand new Miami International Autodrome. It would be the 74th time that Formula 1 would race Stateside and attracted 240,000 spectators across the weekend. It may be one of the newest races on the calendar, Formula 1’s popularity in the USA is on the rise. As it stands, the Miami Grand Prix is set to be part of Formula 1 until 2041.
The 2023 Miami Grand Prix
The 2023 Miami Grand Prix weekend was certainly full of drama. Both McLaren’s were out in the Q1 qualifying session for the first time since Brazil 2018. The only American driver for 2023, Logan Sargeant, was starting from 20th and last on the grid. In Q2, Sergio Pérez made contact with the wall at Turn 4, but managed to survive and reach the final qualifying session. In Q3, Charles Leclerc spun out at Turn 7, his Ferrari colliding with the barriers. This brought out the red flags, and the remainder of the session was scrapped.
Pérez was on pole, and the rest of the field was left shaken up thanks to Leclerc’s incident. Fernando Alonso would start from second, with Carlos Sainz starting from third. Kevin Magnussen was starting from fourth in the Haas. Both Alpines had made it into the top 10 (with Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon starting from fifth and eighth respectively). Max Verstappen would start from ninth, not having been able to set a time in Q3 due to the session being red flagged.
With the usual and expected qualifying positions thrown out the window, the 2023 Miami Grand Prix was ready to provide a show for fans across the world.
It’s Light Out In Miami
As the race got underway, Pérez got a good start off the line, retaining his lead into the first corner. Verstappen, starting on the hard tyre compound, dropped a place at the start and was down to 10th. Nick de Vries locked up into the first corner and ran into the back of Lando Norris, sending them both to the back of the field. Verstappen passed Esteban Ocon in Turn 12 to reclaim ninth, pulling the same move on Valtteri Bottas one lap later to put himself into eighth.
On lap 3, Logan Sargeant came into the pits for a new front wing due to some endplate damage. In the same stop, switching his tyres from the medium to the hard compound. Charles Leclerc got ahead of Kevin Magnussen at Turn 17, with Verstappen snapping at their heels. As they blasted down the straight at the start of lap 4, Verstappen deployed the DRS. The Red Bull easily swept past both Magnussen and Leclerc into Turn 1. The defending World Champion was now comfortably into sixth place with 53 laps to go.
[adrotate banner=”10″]
Get 10% off all official F1 Merch at TheRaceWorks.com using code ‘EF1‘ at checkout.
Verstappen’s Charge & Speeding Sainz
Verstappen was slicing his way through the field, and his next target was the Mercedes of George Russell. On lap eight, the Dutch driver swooped past Russell through Turn 17 to claim fifth. One lap later, and in the same spot on the track, Verstappen passed the Alpine of Pierre Gasly and was now fourth.
The next car up the road was the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz in third. Verstappen continued to pump out fastest lap times, getting ever closer to Sainz. On lap 14, Verstappen made short work of the Ferrari through Turn 11, putting himself into the podium positions. Lap 15 saw Fernando Alonso being hunted down by Verstappen. As they approached Turn 11, Verstappen swept past the two-time world champion to claim second place.
Scheduled pit stops started to cycle through, with drivers coming into the pits for fresh tyres and most switching to the longer-lasting hard compound. Carlos Sainz, now hot on the heels of Fernando Alonso, made a dive for the pit lane at the end of lap 19. In an effort to waste as little time as possible, he approached the pit entry at a rate of knots, locking up as he desperately tried to slow the car down at the speed limit line. He rejoined the track in seventh place, but quickly got past Lewis Hamilton for sixth.
Middle Stint
At the start of lap 21, Pérez was called into the pits to change onto the hard tyres. In doing so, Verstappen took the lead, running on the opposite strategy to his teammate. Pérez rejoined in fourth place, whilst Sainz made his move to pass Nico Hülkenberg for fifth. Pérez slipped past Ocon just after Turn 10 to get back up to third, now with Alonso and Verstappen ahead.
The announcement was made that Sainz had earned himself a five-second penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Lewis Hamilton, who had started 13th, got himself up into sixth with a move past the Haas of Hülkenberg. Proceedings largely settled down for most of the middle stint. Fernando Alonso made his stop on lap 25, with Sainz flashing by as the Aston Martin emerged from the pit exit.
On lap 27, Alonso lunged down the inside of Sainz into Turn 11. Two laps later, he did the same with Ocon to get back into the top three. There was very little incident for the following 18 laps, but at the end of lap 45, Verstappen’s radio crackled into life for the call to “box, box”. The Dutchman finally came in to swap out his hard compound tyres for a brand new set of mediums that would see him through to the end of the race. Pérez regained the lead of the race as his teammate came out of the pit lane exit to re-join the track.
[adrotate banner=”10″]
Get 10% off all official F1 Merch at TheRaceWorks.com using code ‘EF1‘ at checkout.
Final Push
With 12 laps to go, it was Red Bull vs Red Bull. Verstappen had blistering pace on his new tyres, easily catching up to Pérez within a few corners. Verstappen tried to get around the outside of Turn 17, but couldn’t get past Pérez. As they both came down the start-finish straight at the start of lap 48, Verstappen tried to utilise DRS to make his move. The two Red Bulls were wheel to wheel through Turn 1, Pérez forcing Verstappen to take the outside line. But it would be to no avail, with Verstappen holding his nerve and snatching the lead away from his teammate.
As the chequered flag waved, Verstappen crossed the line to take the win. Pérez came home in second, and Fernando Alonso kept hold of third. Russell finished in fourth, with Sainz crossing the line in fifth. Hamilton took sixth, having made up seven places throughout the duration of the race. Leclerc, Gasly, Ocon and Magnussen rounded out the top 10, with valuable points being scored for Alpine and Haas.
Summary
With so many cars out of position at the start of the race, it was always bound to be something of an extravaganza. Verstappen’s mighty drive to take the win after starting ninth on the grid was nothing short of spectacular. Seeing Alonso back up on the podium for the fourth time in the first five races of the season was fantastic. Hamilton recovered well too, after a surprising Q1 exit.
All in all, the 2023 Miami Grand Prix was a tantalising and memorable display of straight-line speed, nip-and-tuck battles and bold overtakes.
Which Miami Grand Prix do you think is a race to remember? Let us know in the comments!