Antonelli and Ferrari overtake McLaren, but watch out for rain during the race

In Miami, Mercedes rediscovered itself as less dominant, downsized by the massive updates of the competition, but despite everything found itself in pole position thanks to an extraordinary Andrea Kimi Antonelli. Max Verstappen will start alongside him, with a Red Bull that the updates have finally begun to tame. Ferrari is third with Charles Leclerc, with the consolation of having put McLaren behind them and with the awareness that the rain expected in the race could be a significant variable. Here comes Antonelli again For Antonelli the weekend in Miami is increasingly taking on the characteristics of that of his first victory in China. After a botched Sprint, with a slow start followed by a lack of attention, the Italian driver immediately redeemed himself in qualifying, taking pole position with a super lap, half a second faster than the time set on Friday. The Italian puts Mercedes ahead of everyone, despite the W17 being practically the same as Melbourne, awaiting the developments expected for Canada. The credit also goes to the team, capable of improving compared to the Sprint both in the hybrid delivery strategies and in the set-up. Evidently however, the changes are not enough for Russell, who is four tenths behind his teammate, justifying himself with his lack of harmony towards a track that has never suited him. The scorching asphalt certainly doesn’t help the Englishman, causing the tire temperature to skyrocket with every correction he makes, amplifying his difficulties. Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU / AFP via Getty Images Red Bull’s leap Antonelli thus finds himself the opportunity to further extend himself in the standings. To do this he will first of all have to hold his position at the start, with Max Verstappen ready to attack from second place. The front row was a difficult result to predict on the eve of Red Bull, who is now starting to catch up on the delay accumulated last year, when the world race pushed them to invest more hours in the wind tunnel on the 2025 project. During the break the RB22 has become lighter, also receiving important updates to the bottom and bodywork, in addition to the inverted mobile wing, which Mekies assures has been in the pipeline since before Ferrari showed its. Red Bull, however, has not only improved in weight and aerodynamic efficiency. The steps forward can also be seen in balance and handling, relegating Verstappen’s negative comments from March to a distant memory. This can be seen from the very respectable pace expressed by the Dutchman in free air during the Sprint race, which lays good conditions for the Grand Prix. Furthermore, the risk of rain certainly doesn’t scare Max Verstappen, who has an above-average sensitivity to wet conditions. Ferrari overtakes McLaren Ferrari has to settle for third place with Charles Leclerc. Just like in Friday’s qualifying, the SF-26 gains a lot in braking and cornering, but loses on the straight between less than optimal energy management and a lack of horsepower from the Mercedes engines. However, the Rossa is also missing something else, with Leclerc complaining of unpredictable behavior from one lap to the next and generally worse sensations compared to Friday, perhaps due to the gusts of wind. Furthermore, Ferrari continues to not make the same leap in Q3 that its rivals manage, the exact causes of which remain difficult to identify, although tire exploitation and hybrid mapping are among the suspects. In Maranello it will be important to delve deeper into the issue, in a Formula 1 where performances are starting to converge and overtaking is becoming more complicated, making it a priority to start from the front. Photo Luca Martini/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images The big disappointment in qualifying is McLaren, a distant relative of the victorious team in the Sprint, perhaps destabilized more than others by the gusts of wind. Lando Norris is three tenths slower than Friday, without throwing any high notes for the entire session, only being noticed for the correction in the big snake in Q2. Yet, after the victory in the short race, the world champion praised the updated MCL40, which is more predictable and capable of inspiring greater confidence, making driving easier. However, McLaren demonstrated what it is capable of, keeping hopes alive ahead of the race and the rest of the season. Photo by Clive Mason/Getty Images Watch out for the rain The Grand Prix remains open to any verdict, even more so given the real risk of rain, officially declared by the FIA. In this scenario, from this year the regulation allows teams to work on the cars even in parc fermé, but only to modify some set-up parameters, above all the height from the ground and the incidence of the wings. Basically, having more downforce is an advantage in the wet, but with the 2026 cars the reasoning is not so obvious. In fact, in case of rain, it is only allowed to open the front wing and in some areas, which in Miami correspond to the starting straight and the return straight. Furthermore, the power and torque of the electric part are limited, while the Boost button is completely deactivated, theoretically complicating overtaking. It is difficult to predict what kind of spectacle will result, but the hope is that we can at least witness a race, the outcome of which is no longer as obvious as it would have been a month ago.

Automobile Magazine – F1 English News
2026-05-03 09:13:00