2022 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix highlights

F1 Grand Prix of Miami
Introduction

 

Max Verstappen won the inaugural 2022 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, having pried the leadoff Ferrari’s pole-sitter Charles Leclerc early in the race, and defended it in an enthralling late-race battle.

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Red Bull’s reigning champion took P2 off Carlos Sainz into Turn 1 at the start and soon began to close in on Leclerc. The Ferrari driver lost the lead to his rival on the main straight at the start of Lap 9 of 57 and pitted from mediums to hards on Lap 24, causing Verstappen to react with his stop two laps later. It seemed that Verstappen would cruise to victory in front of Miami Gardens’ marina…

That was until the Lap 41 caution, a VSC-turned-Safety Car triggered by a clash between Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris, which sent the McLaren driver into a spin as his right-rear tyre ripped off. Perez took the opportunity to pit for new mediums from P4, emerging there, with hard-shod Verstappen, Leclerc and Sainz ahead.

The Lap 47 restart saw Verstappen lead away but struggle to build up a gap to Leclerc. It was equally difficult for Sainz, who was being hounded by medium-shod Sergio Perez for the final podium place.

Perez attempted to pass Sainz on Lap 52 but locked up, both drivers avoiding contact, while Leclerc was under half a second behind Verstappen in the chase for the lead. But neither Perez nor Leclerc could make headway, and the win – narrow as it was over the Ferraris – would be Verstappen’s.

Rounding out the top five was George Russell, who started 11th and pitted during the VSC, using the benefit of newer tyres to pass teammate Lewis Hamilton on Lap 54. Hamilton lamented the fact that he couldn’t pit during the VSC but was promoted to P6 when Valtteri Bottas went wide at Turn 17 on Lap 49.

The Alfa Romeo driver seemed destined for P5 having started there, but his late mistake left him seventh. The Alpines were next, Esteban Ocon finishing eighth from Fernando Alonso in ninth – the latter having been penalised by five seconds for contact with Gasly.

Alonso was given a further five-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage on the penultimate lap, promoting Alex Albon to P9, Lance Stroll to P10, and demoting the two-time champion to 11th.

Kevin Magnussen retired late on after contact with Lance Stroll (P10 after having started in the pits), as did Sebastian Vettel – who started in the pits and was tapped out of the race by Mick Schumacher (P15).

Gasly did not finish after his contact with Norris (DNF), while Zhou Guanyu was the first retiree, having been pulled into the pits on Lap 7.

Despite starting on the front row, Ferrari couldn’t convert their advantage to a Miami Grand Prix win – while Max Verstappen has now made it two wins in a row.

Mario Isola – Head of F1 and car racing at Pirelli commented:

A strong performance from the tyres here meant that the race gravitated towards a one-stop strategy, whereas we had previously anticipated a two-stopper. This was also thanks to the fact that temperatures were notably cooler today compared to previous days. The teams were able to stretch their first stints, probably in the expectation of a safety car or other opportunity, but in the end that only came towards the end of the race, after nearly everybody had stopped. A few drivers tried to take advantage of that by changing tyres, with three drivers running all three compounds during the race. However, Verstappen and Leclerc fought hard for the race win and fastest lap even on used hard tyres in the closing stages. It was an exciting finish to an eagerly-anticipated Grand Prix: we hope that all the podium finishers enjoyed their special Pirelli American Football helmets!

2022 Formula 1 Miami GP Race Results

PosNoDriverCountryTeamTimePointsOverall
1.1Max VerstappenNetherlandsRed Bull Racing1:34:24.2582677
2.16Charles LeclercMonacoScuderia Ferrari+3.786s1897
3.55Carlos SainzSpainScuderia Ferrari+8.229s1548
4.11Sergio PerezMexicoRed Bull Racing Honda+10.638s1260
5.63George RussellGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+18.582s1059
6.44Lewis HamiltonGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+21.368s836
7.77Valtteri BottasFinlandAlfa Romeo F1 Team+25.073s628
8.31Esteban OconFranceAlpine F1 Team+28.386s424
9.23Alexander AlbonThailandWilliams Racing+32.365s23
10.18Lance StrollCanadaAston Martin F1 Team+37.026s12
11.14Fernando AlonsoSpainAlpine F1 Team+37.128s02
12.22Yuki TsunodaJapanScuderia AlphaTauri+40.146s010
13.3Daniel RicciardoAustraliaMcLaren Racing+40.902s08
14.6Nicholas LatifiCanadaWilliams Racing+49.936s00
15.47Mick SchumacherGermanyHaas F1 Team+73.305s00
16.20Kevin MagnussenDenmarkHaas F1 TeamDNF014
17.5Sebastian VettelGermanyAston Martin F1 TeamDNF04
18.10Pierre GaslyFranceScuderia AlphaTauriDNF06
19.4Lando NorrisGreat BritainMclaren RacingDNF031
20.24Zhou GuanyuChinaAlfa Romeo F1 TeamDNF01

2022 Constructor Standings

PosPictureTeamPoints
1.Red Bull Racing759
1.Scuderia Ferrari554
3.Mercedes-AMG F1 Team515
4.Alpine F1 Team173
5.McLaren Racing159
6.Alfa Romeo Racing55
7.Aston Martin F1 Team55
8.Haas F1 Team37
9.Scuderia AlphaTauri35
10.Williams Racing8

Here are the team-by-team highlights:




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