Max fifth after thrilling Miami Grand Prix: 'Perhaps we were overdoing it'

Published on 03 May 2026 by Kees-Jan Koster

Max Verstappen finished fifth in the Miami Grand Prix. After a spin on the opening lap and an early pit stop during a safety car period, Max fought his way back impressively through the field. Following intense battles with, among others, Charles Leclerc and George Russell, he ultimately came home in fifth place. Championship leader Kimi Antonelli won the race, having started from pole position.

The start of the race was dramatic for Max. After the first corner, he spun, completing a 360-degree turn to regain control of the car. He explained: “I lost the rear on entry to that corner. Of course, you try to be first into the corner, but it just snapped. Then I tried to correct it, firstly to keep it out of the wall, but once I saw how it had snapped, I tried to do a 360 as quickly as possible.”

A few laps later, the safety car came out and Max pitted early. Asked whether there was anything left in the tyres, the four-time world champion replied with a laugh: “I do not think so, perhaps we were overdoing it a bit.” He added: “We still need to analyse a few things. To be honest, when the safety car came out, it was actually perfect because it bunches everyone back together on the medium tyres. I did not have severe flat spots either, so I could carry on. But that stint on the hard tyres was just a bit too long. In any case, the hard tyres did not really work for us.” Finally, Max noted that this weekend was an improvement over recent ones: “We found some pace, but in this race we were still lacking a bit.”

Three hours earlier than scheduled, the lights went out in Miami. Max and Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) both made mediocre starts, but Max still managed to take second place into the first corner. On corner exit, however, he ran over the kerbs, lost control and spun. After a spectacular 360, he regained control, but dropped several positions, crossing the line in ninth at the end of the opening lap. Up front, Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc had taken the lead ahead of Antonelli, Lando Norris (McLaren), Oscar Piastri (McLaren) and George Russell (Mercedes).

The four-time world champion quickly set about fighting his way forward. He became embroiled in a tough battle with Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls), which was fiercely contested. Lawson eventually let Max through for eighth place after defending incorrectly. At the front, a battle for the lead was also unfolding. Leclerc and Antonelli exchanged the lead several times before Antonelli dropped back and then came under pressure from Norris, who moved into second place.

That fight was halted by a safety car on lap six. Oracle Red Bull Racing driver Isack Hadjar crashed, and Pierre Gasly (Alpine) also ended up in the wall. Hadjar crashed on his own, but Gasly was hit by Lawson and even flipped over. Fortunately, both drivers were unharmed, but a safety car was required to clear the track. Max took advantage by making a pit stop and switching to hard tyres, although this dropped him to sixteenth place. On exiting the pit lane, Max may have just crossed the white line, and he was summoned to the stewards after the race.

Racing resumed on lap 12 when the safety car came in. Max immediately began his charge through the field. The 71-time Grand Prix winner carved through the midfield and was already up to seventh by lap 21. Meanwhile, the battle for the lead continued, with Norris overtaking Leclerc to take first place. Antonelli also joined the fight, leading to a back-and-forth battle for second.

That contest did not last long, as the pit stop cycle began. Russell was the first of the front-runners to pit on lap 21, followed shortly by Leclerc. A slow stop from Ferrari meant Russell emerged ahead of the Monegasque. The other leading drivers then made their stops, but not before a flying Verstappen overtook Hamilton on track. By lap 29, after all the front-runners had pitted, Max led the race thanks to his early stop and strong recovery drive. Behind him were Antonelli, Norris, Alpine driver Franco Colapinto (yet to pit), Russell, Leclerc and Piastri.

After the pit stops, the tyre advantage of Antonelli and Norris became clear. Both attacked Max, and although the four-time world champion defended strongly, he was unable to hold off the Mercedes and McLaren on fresh tyres. They passed him, taking first (Antonelli) and second (Norris). From that point on, Max focused on tyre management. Leclerc, on newer hard tyres, closed in lap by lap. Max held him off for a long time, but by lap 46 the Monegasque was within a second. A lap later, Leclerc made his first move, briefly passing Max, only for the positions to swap back a few corners later as Max retook the place in the fast sections. However, later on lap 47, Leclerc made the move stick and took third place. On worn tyres, Max could no longer defend and soon had to let Piastri through as well, dropping to fifth.

In the closing laps, Russell also closed in, leading to an exciting battle for fifth place. Max defended well, and the Brit struggled to find a way past. There was even slight contact between them, causing minor damage to Russell’s front wing. Nevertheless, Russell eventually overtook Max on the penultimate lap.

In the end, Max still finished fifth. After Leclerc was passed by Piastri for third, the Monegasque spun. Although he managed to straighten the car, he hit the wall and lost significant speed, allowing Russell and Max to catch up through the final corner. Russell passed Leclerc first, and Max followed him across the line. He secured fifth place by three tenths after a thrilling race. The big winner of the day was Antonelli, who took victory ahead of Norris and Piastri, further extending his championship lead.

Check the Max Verstappen Miami Collection, with T-shirts, hoodie, sweater, shorts, cap, bucket hat, drink bottle, mug, tote bag and scale models (1:2 and 1:4) of Max's special Miami helmet: https://store.verstappen.com

Results Grand Prix Miami: