Setting the Pace: Charles Leclerc Makes a Statement in Opening Practice in Miami
The only Practice session of the weekend saw the old-school style 90-minute session see the light of day again after the tweaks to the 2026 regulations. With this being a sprint weekend, the extra 30 minutes were crucial for teams to adjust to the tweaks and get their cars to handle the Miami heat. We saw Charles Leclerc top the times in the blistering heat of Miami with a 1:29.310, his Ferrari teammate running P4, the team clearly proving they can turn their podium momentum into top of the board times. Dutch favourite Max Verstappen only managed P2 with the gap to first being a measly 0.312 seconds, meaning for once he is the hunted instead of the hunter.
The Upgrade War
The fastest McLaren on track today was Oscar Piastri in P3, with McLaren bringing a huge upgrade package to Miami to try and break Mercedes’ winning streak, and hopefully to reset their season. His teammate, and reigning World Champion Lando Norris only managed P5 today after a few setbacks including a near-miss with Alexander Albon in the final sector during a flying lap. Could the McLaren’s be faster than what the timings show? Cadillac have took a differrent approach to the weekend. Instead of bringing upgrades, they’ve actually shedded weight to help generate more downforce on this very high-speed circuit. With these 2026 cars, every gram is missed lap time, and this ‘diet’ could be their path to a points finish, something they haven’t managed yet.
The Mercedes Crisis
Championship Leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli suffered a power unit failure during the final minutes of the extended session, resulting in the young Italian not making it out on track for soft-tyre runs, something which will evidentely show during Sprint Qualifying later on this afternoon. There is a bit of irony there in the fact that the champinship leader, the one being hunted, is sidelined by his own’s team’s manufactering during the most crucial session of the weekend. As well as Antonelli’s issues, George Russell was suffering issues of his own in the form of a noisy turbo, leading Russell to audition for Thomas the Tank Engine on the radio with his expert impression of a steam train. Could this be the start of Mercedes’ downfall at the hands of their own power unit factory?
Aston Martin also suffered a heavy blow as no green was seen on track for the first 20 minutes of the session due to power issues in the Aston Martin garages. The paddock is very high-tech but it shows even the pinnacle of motorsport can be halted by a simple power-cut.
Rising Talent
After a 50G crash in Japan, 20 year old Oliver Bearman has recovered his confidence and took P13 today, with his fastest lap being a 1:31.109. He was on fire today during his flying laps, weaving his way through the slower cars and ultimately placing faster than his teammate in P13. After the crash in Japan, the FIA has announced that the regulations have been tweaked to mandate slower closing speeds and avoiding another horrific accident like that one.
It was strange for Pierre Gasly today as he reported a strange smell in his cockpit shortly after departing the Alpine garage for his frst runs. After a while of speculating, and no answer to what this smell was, the Alpine mechanics called Gasly back into his garage to inspect the car for potential powertrain leaks.
It’s going to be a 4-way fight for pole position during Sprint Qualifying. Who do you think is going to take the top spot?
