We take the same and start again ? Despite the announcement of the departure next year of engineer Adrian Newey, the Red Bull team and its leader Max Verstappen will still be the favorites this weekend for the Miami Grand Prix, the sixth round out of 24 of the Formula season 1.
Indeed, Red Bull continues its overwhelming domination this year despite the heavy atmosphere within the Austrian team, torn apart by an internal war which came to light in February after accusations of “inappropriate behavior” at the regard of an employee targeting director Christian Horner, who has since been cleared by an internal investigation.
Announced on Wednesday, the departure of Newey, architect of the success of the team he joined in 2006, a year after its creation, and with which he won six manufacturers’ and seven drivers’ world titles, would be linked to these power struggles according to the BBC.
However, Verstappen, who won the first two editions of the Florida race, contested around the Hard Rock Stadium, the home of the Miami Dolphins American football team, does not seem perturbed by these upheavals and will aim for the hat-trick on Sunday at the end of a weekend which will be marked by the second of six sprints of the season.
“I have good memories on this circuit! With the humidity and heat, it’s always one of the most physical races of the season. With the sprint, it will be important to better understand the data collected on the car to refine the settings,” explained the Dutchman.
His retirement in Australia at the end of March after a brake problem is already forgotten for the three-time world champion, who won four of the first five Grands Prix of the season and is leading the championship with 25 points ahead of his teammate Sergio Pérez .
The Mexican will be the first of the pack of pursuers who will try to make Verstappen falter. With four podiums in five races, Pérez, still very supported in the United States, is off to a good start to the season.
Ferrari wants to bounce back
Ferrari, which will display a special livery in Miami with touches of blue to mark the 70e anniversary of the presence of the prancing horse brand on the American market, will want to bounce back two weeks after missing the podium for the first time of the season in China.
“We struggled a bit during the first sprint weekend in Shanghai, but the circuit is very different here so we hope to do better and I think we have the potential. Once again, we will have to maximize the single free practice session to prepare for qualifying where we struggled more than we should have recently,” underlined the French boss of the Scuderia, Frédéric Vasseur, who dreams of recruiting Newey when he will be free at the beginning of 2025.
McLaren, who had won a good second place in China thanks to the Briton Lando Norris, should also join the fight, while the Spanish veteran Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin) will try to repeat his performance from last year, when he had finished third behind the two Red Bulls.
Mercedes, which did not do better than fifth place this year during the Grands Prix, was rather successful in China during the sprint, with second place for seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. But the German team will above all want to raise its head in the race to show that it can be competitive…and why not become a credible destination for Verstappen, if he were to leave Red Bull due to the current turmoil.
Alpine, which announced Thursday the appointment of Frenchman David Sanchez as executive technical director of the team, is still chasing its first points in 2024 but despite developments on its car, it will be difficult for the French team to open its counter in Florida.