Norris outpaces Verstappen to secure maiden victory in Miami

After 110 races in Formula 1, Lando Norris finally secured his maiden victory at the Miami Grand Prix, capitalising on a mid-race Safety Car and putting the MCL38’s extensive upgrades to work to beat Max Verstappen to the top step.

Max Verstappen had never been beaten in Miami, seeing the Red Bull driver charging into Turn 1 with plans of keeping it that way. 

The Dutchman was gifted a stress-free run to the first braking zone, with front-row starter Charles Leclerc slow off the line.

Although clear from the threat of the Ferrari, Verstappen’s own teammate nearly bowled him out after losing control at the opening turn.

Leclerc, Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz were almost three wide as they approached the Turn 1 Apex, with the Mexican also narrowly missing the “blue” Ferraris as they turned in.

Oscar Piastri was able to capitalise on the avoidant moves from the top four drivers, making up three places and splitting the Ferraris by Turn 3.

Instantly, the Alpines had formed a tense battle for P12, almost making contact with one another and the wall through Turn 14 and Turn 16, before running two-wide at Turn 17.

Ultimately, it was Pierre Gasly who ended on top, passing his teammate as they excited the tight hairpin.

Ocon lost two further places to Fernando Alonso and Alex Albon on the following lap, worsening the blow for the Alpine driver.

By lap three, Verstappen was over 1.5 seconds clear of Leclerc in P2, leaving the #16 defenceless against the charging McLaren behind.

Max Verstappen leads the field away at the start of the Miami GP. Image: Alexander Trienitz / LAT Images.

Piastri found himself six-tenths behind Leclerc, utilising the drastic DRS advantage down the back straight to make the overtake stick into Turn 17.

Leclerc’s focus then shifted to a battle with his teammate, with Sainz breathing down his neck into the first corner.

The Spaniard took to his radio to inform his team that he had pace, as Sainz ran five-tenths behind the #16.

Lewis Hamilton, the only driver in the top ten to start on the hard compound tyre, felt his tyres finally coming to.

Just as he had in the Sprint, the Mercedes driver was busy fighting a Haas.

Nico Hulkenberg had earlier capitalised on Hamilton’s Turn 17 lock up, passing the #44 in the process, however, Hamilton wasn’t letting him off easily.

The pairing nearly collided at Turn 11, the place where the eventual move would be made on Lap 11 as Hamilton cruised off into the distance.

Hulkenberg then had the second-running Mercedes for company, with George Russell challenging the Haas driver just metres later on the back straight.

He had to withhold, with his mission made more difficult on Lap 12 after locking up.

That didn’t stop Russell, however, with the young Brit replicating his teammate’s overtake at Turn 11. 

Alex Albon was the first driver to make a pitstop, rejoining the race on the hard tyre and in last place.

On Lap 13, others followed suit with Gasly and Hulkenberg relinquishing their medium tyres for the hard compound. 

Running a lonely race in P5 and P6, Perez and Norris were engaged in a battle of their own.

The upgraded McLaren had a look at a Lap-15 move on Perez, running five-tenths behind the Mexican, however, it wasn’t to be.

Lando Norris during the Miami GP. Image: Steven Tee / LAT Images.

Verstappen hadn’t formed the usual gap out in front, running around three seconds ahead of Piastri.

The Red Bull pit wall gave the Dutchman the all-clear to stop managing his tyres, however, the gap never grew. 

On Lap 18, the team called Sergio Perez into the pits for a 1.9-second stop, rejoining the race in P10.

This released Norris to hunt down Sainz, starting at a 5-second deficit.

Sainz started to drop off the back of his teammate, saving his tyres as the team made it clear team orders wouldn’t be coming into play.

Leclerc was then called into the pitlane to relinquish his 19-lap-old medium tyres, rejoining the race in P6 after a brilliant 1.9-second stop.

Norris began setting fastest sectors, earning the fastest lap as he made gains on the #55 Ferrari.

The coveted extra point was soon handed to Leclerc, who immediately began putting his fresh tyres to work as he passed Hamilton through Turn 11.

Out front, Verstappen made a rare driver error at Turn 14, running over the kerb and taking out the bollard.

The RB20 carried the bollard to Turn 16, disposing of it in a dangerous position on the racing line. 

The race was soon neutralised after a Virtual Safety Car was called, allowing the track marshals to clear the track.

The VSC allowed a small batch of back-markers to capitalise on the reduced pitstop loss, with the likes of Alonso and his rivals stopping by.

On Lap 23, the race leader pulled into the pits, donning a fresh set of hard tyres and undergoing a slight front-wing adjustment before rejoining in P4. 

It was a four-way battle for P12 between Ocon, Hulkenberg, Alonso and Gasly, however, the quartet was soon invaded by the #63 who filed out of the pitlane and into the think of it. 

Alonso, running fresh mediums, passed the Haas for P13, setting off for Esteban Ocon.

Esteban Ocon leads Fernando Alonso during the Miami GP. Image: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images.

The race leader and Sainz both pitted on Lap 27, rejoining in P4 and P5, however that would be an unfortunate choice was an incident unfolding just a lap later.

Logan Sargeant and Kevin Magnussen collided at Turn 2, with the Williams driver spinning and ending his home race in the barriers.

Magnussen escaped with front wing damage and was able to continue running in the Miami Grand Prix.

The race restarted on Lap 33, with Norris dashing to the line from Turn 19, having Max Verstappen for company.

The Red Bull driver seemingly made a mistake at Turn 8, allowing the gap to grow to 1.4 seconds.

The battle between Piastri and Sainz became a tense one after the duo made contact at Turn 11.

The Australian encouraged the Ferrari to run wide after Sainz attempted an overtake into the popular corner, also banging his rear wheel into the Spaniard’s sidepod.

The Ferrari driver and his pit wall were calling for the #81 to give the position to Sainz, however, race control deemed no investigation necessary.

The Spaniard was audibly frustrated, driving out of anger as he made multiple attempts over the next few laps.

However, on Lap 40 at Turn 17, Sainz finally got past the McLaren.

It wasn’t a clean move, with Sainz’s hard tyres barely managing the overtake around the sharp hairpin.

As a result of the mid-corner struggle, Piastri made contact with the Spaniard’s rear wheel, significantly damaging his front wing. 

The incident was to be investigated after the race.

Oscar Piastri battles with Carlos Sainz during the Miami GP. Image: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images.

Piastri was called into the pits, dropping all the way back to last place after requiring a front-wing change.

The 23-year-old set the fastest lap, however, running in P19, no extra point would be awarded.

Daniel Ricciardo had Lance Stroll for cautious company, with the duo tussling across Lap 46.

At Turn 3, the Canadian passed the Australian, demoting Ricciardo to P16.

With 10 laps remaining, Lando Norris had built a gap of over five seconds to Verstappen, with the Red Bull driver clearly unhappy with the handling of his RB20.

The front-running Aston Martin pulled off a move of his own, finally passing Ocon into the braking zone at Turn 11. 

The two Australians were racing wheel-to-wheel through Turn 17, continuing into the first sector of the next lap.

As the battle heated up, Piastri was reminded that, with his teammate in the lead, causing a Safety Car would be catastrophic.

As a result, the #81 settled down, however, still passing Ricciardo on Lap 55.

Beginning, the final lap with a 7.5-second interval to second place, the win was only Norris’ for the taking.

The #4 crossed the line to claim his maiden victory in Formula 1, deafening his engineer’s ear as he screamed with excitement.

Lando Norris celebrates on arrival in Parc Ferme after winning the Miami GP. Image: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images.

Behind him, a troubled Max Verstappen crossed the line in second, with Charles Leclerc less than two seconds behind, completing the podium places in Miami.

Carlos Sainz, still caught up with a post-race investigation, finished in P4 after closing in on his teammate in the late stages of the 57-lap race.

Sergio Perez held out over Lewis Hamilton as they crossed the finish line, separated by just 1.9 seconds.

Along with the race leader, Yuki Tsunoda was another driver who gained an advantage under the Safety Car, finishing the Miami Grand Prix in P7 to end his weekend with two points finishes. 

George Russell was a fair while back on the RB driver, ending his day in P8 with Fernando Alonso for company.

In tenth place, Esteban Ocon scored Alpine’s first point of the season, a welcomed reward for the Frenchman who valiantly held out in the tense mid-field battle. 

Lando Norris and McLaren will be able to celebrate for the next 7 days before heading to Imola for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix from May 17-19.

Miami Grand Prix Results:

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