Max Verstappen Secures Pole Position at Miami Grand Prix Qualifying

MIAMI, Florida – Max Verstappen claimed pole position in Qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix on Saturday, narrowly edging out McLaren’s Lando Norris and Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli in a highly competitive session. Verstappen solidified his top spot after a dramatic lap, finishing just 0.065 seconds ahead of Norris and 0.067 seconds faster than Antonelli.

Oscar Piastri of McLaren took P4, followed by George Russell in P5. Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon from Williams impressed by qualifying P6 and P7, respectively. Meanwhile, Charles Leclerc, Esteban Ocon, and Yuki Tsunoda filled out the top ten. A notable surprise was Lewis Hamilton, who was eliminated in Q2 for the first time this season.

After the session, Verstappen expressed his excitement about achieving pole position, saying, “It’s been a great Qualifying. I think we improved the car a tiny amount which helped me to rotate it a bit better.” He noted a brief moment of oversteer but managed to recover quickly, finishing with the fastest time. “It worked out well, so I’m very happy to be on pole,” he added.

Verstappen also reflected on the precarious weather conditions leading up to the race, mentioning rain earlier in the day, which created uncertainty for Sunday’s race. “Let’s see, race pace I don’t know, we have to wait and see about the weather,” he said. “In the race, it’s a whole different story, but we’ll try to maximize everything we can.”

Lando Norris, who qualified second, acknowledged the tight competition, stating he felt confident in his car’s performance but lamented a lock-up at Turn 17 that cost him crucial time. “The pace was there, the car’s feeling good,” Norris explained. “I was hoping Max would get slowed down a bit, but clearly he didn’t.”

Oscar Piastri shared similar sentiments about his Qualifying experience. “Both laps in Q3 were a bit messy, just at different points of the lap which was a shame,” he said. “I think the pace was looking very strong and in Q2 I felt comfortable. It’s just a shame I didn’t capitalize on it when I needed to.”