(Miami) There is Red Bull and the others. But above all, there is Max Verstappen and the others. No one was really surprised to see the Dutchman overtake, one by one, the eight cars left in front of him to win the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday, under the gaze of dozens of celebrities gathered at the autodrome.
Unsurprisingly, it was Sergio Pérez who took second place to give Red Bull a fourth double in five races this season. Fernando Alonso completed the podium… 26 seconds behind Verstappen. Domination, you say?
On Saturday, Verstappen confidently claimed he would finish “minimum second place”, even if he started 9e on the grid. The least we can say is that the double reigning champion is analyzing himself well: it only took him 15 laps to find himself behind his teammate, who had started in the lead.
The winner had a smile on his face and a joke in his heart at the press conference after the race, laughing with Pérez and Alonso.
PHOTO REBECCA BLACKWELL, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sergio Perez
“It was a good race! he exclaimed. I just had to stay out of trouble at first because the cars around me were trying to gain places. »
At the end of the race, Verstappen gradually approached Pérez until he overtook it with fluidity. This fight of the two Red Bulls for the first rank was in the very image of the season, while the two teammates arrived in Miami with two victories each on the clock. With this triumph and the fastest lap, Verstappen gave himself a 14-point lead over Pérez.
On Sunday, the Red Bull drivers opted for opposite strategies: Verstappen started on hard rubber, while Pérez was on medium.
“Quickly, I saw that the mediums were fragile, explained the Mexican, the mine low. I had to protect the tires to make it to 15e round. […] When I put the hard guys on, Max had really good pace and we weren’t able to create a gap.
“He was too close and we had a little struggle, but clean. Obviously, we put the team in front of us. It’s a good team result. »
Max won because he had the best car on the track.
Sergio Perez
Before the race, and then later on the podium, Verstappen was booed by Florida fans. The Dutchman, in great form on Sunday evening after his victory, offered an answer that made the journalists smile.
“If I drove behind, nobody would react. This kind of thing is normal when you win. […] It is very correct for me. As long as I stand at the top, that’s what’s important to me. They go home and can have a good evening. »
Alonso, subscriber in third place
Who would have thought, three months ago, that Fernando Alonso and his Aston Martin would occupy the third rank of drivers, ahead of Lewis Hamilton, after five races? The Spaniard, darling of the amateurs, had a race without much history, maintaining a good pace to ensure a podium.
PHOTO REBECCA BLACKWELL, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Fernando Alonso
“I liked the race,” he said. It was a bit of a solo race for us, with the Red Bulls ahead. There wasn’t much pressure behind it. »
The 41-year-old veteran has become a third-place subscriber this season; this is his fourth in five Grands Prix. “Obviously we want to be higher on the podium,” he said with a smile. One day we will have an opportunity to win a race, but for now it’s not happening because Red Bull is better, stronger and faster. »
As for his teammate, Lance Stroll, he started 18e on the grid. He tried hard to get a place in top 10, without success. He had to settle for the 12e place. The Quebecer didn’t have the heart to celebrate Alonso’s result during his meeting with the media.
It’s good for the team, but I’m pissed off with my weekend right now. No points. I wanted to get more out of it.
Lance Stroll
A little anecdote, by the way: at the end of the race, when Stroll overtook Alex Albon (Williams) to go from 14e at the 13e place, Alonso addressed the team into his microphone. “What position is Lance?” It was a nice overtake at turn one,” he said, prompting collective laughter in the Miami International Autodrome press room.
Asked about it at a press conference, Alonso noted that “at this circuit we have a big TV screen in some of the slow corners, so it was very easy to follow the track on the screen”. An explanation that made Max Verstappen smile at his side.
George Russell (Mercedes), Carlos Sainz Jr. (Ferrari), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), Pierre Gasly (Alpine), Esteban Ocon (Alpine) and Kevin Magnussen (Haas) completed the top 10.
There are still 18 races left in this Red Bull-dominated season. Several teams will make modifications to their car between now and the next Grand Prix, at Imola. Could this really have an impact on the rest of the championship?
As Alonso said, “it will be difficult, the gap is big”. “Our focus will be mostly on what’s going on behind,” he added, speaking of Mercedes and Ferrari. Because the real struggle among manufacturers is there.