In Miami the references change

Mercedes not first force For the first time in the season Formula 1 offers more than one surprise (even if some are partially announced). The biggest unexpected fact is undoubtedly that Mercedes was not the reference in terms of performance in the Miami Sprint qualifying. With the high temperatures, the perfect balance of the Brackley car seemed to be seriously in crisis, especially on the flying lap. The soft tire clearly had a tendency to overheat and a balance that was almost impossible to find made the task very difficult for the riders. But a Kimi Antonelli who appears increasingly unblocked and able to show his talent found a crazy front row, thanks to a truly champion’s final lap, able to get the most out of a soft tire not even tested during free practice and with only one attempt available. Russell, sixth and a good four tenths away, can’t help but take a bad blow and try to turn the weekend around as soon as possible, probably using the Sprint as an experiment. McLaren the best car on the track If Mercedes was not the leading force on the track, its place was taken (surprisingly, but in this case not too much) by McLaren. The single-seater from Woking arrived with a decidedly revised aero-mechanical look, a true B version of the car, and, as often happens with the team led by Andrea Stella, the package definitely paid off. The increase in load and the jump in performance in the slow section are evident from the data, also showing a good set-up compromise from a suspension point of view, given the high and complicated curbs of the slowest and most tortuous section of the Miami track. The hot temperatures then made the balance on the tires one of the fundamental points, and in recent years we have had more than once the opportunity to celebrate Norris’ ability precisely in terms of his ability to keep the tires in the perfect window. It is no coincidence that the reigning World Champion appeared significantly in better shape than his teammate, even though the latter was still just a whisker away from securing the entire papaya front row. McLaren is aiming to return to being a protagonist of the championship in the short term, both due to the important steps taken by the developments, and because the Woking engineers seem increasingly capable of deciphering and optimizing the Mercedes Power Unit, the more they see it on the track, also used by the parent company. For McLaren, the race pace and especially the tire degradation remain to be verified, given that the simulations carried out in free practice were carried out with a much higher fuel load than the direct competition. Ferrari disappointed, between soft tires and deployment, but the updates work At the home of the Maranello team there was undoubtedly an atmosphere of some disappointment. With medium tyres, until the end of SQ2, Leclerc seemed to be in control of the situation, with a pole within reach, or possibly a guaranteed front row. But in the third stage, in the only attempt available, some things didn’t work: the soft tire gave much worse sensations to both drivers, who struggled considerably in their last flying lap. Not only that, we noticed a strong power deficit in the first of the two major stretches of the track, with the gap line growing linearly for Leclerc, a typical situation of a power shortage. It’s difficult to say whether it’s a question of lacking power and energy, or something deriving from the greater effort on the soft tyres, but the 3 tenths left by Leclerc in the central sector are almost all due to this situation in the sprint. It seems no coincidence that Vasseur also spoke about the straight-line deficit in his interviews. However, this must not take away from the fact that if you were looking for confirmation on the updates you can only believe you have had it: Leclerc was the fastest in the high-speed corners of the first sector, highlighting a good aero-mechanical system, with an SF26 that was decidedly more stable than at the beginning of the season and with a notable level of load. In the slow and tortuous stretch the Monegasque was unable to beat Norris but by a few thousandths, confirming the positive nature of the Ferrari package, fast in both the slow and fast corners. Clearly the Power Unit front remains but must wait for the ADUO, but in the meantime the race pace shown in the simulation was very good and the Sprint will certainly be an interesting opportunity to evaluate the overall potential of the single-seater. First session with an uncertain outcome. RedBull also did well, significantly improving its package, although shining more in the slow than in the fast, where the impression is that there is still more of a problem, but that it seems to easily be fourth force, having left the rest of the group behind. The Sprint will be particularly interesting to see, to get the first feedback on the real hierarchies on the track. The notable fact to underline is that Miami will be the first occasion of the season where the winner does not already appear obvious, between a fast McLaren but to be verified, a Mercedes that is very close (with Antonelli) and a Ferrari that on the pace and thanks to the starts, can try to have its say in turn.

Automobile Magazine – F1 English News
2026-05-02 15:00:00