2023 Miami GP Race Review
An unusual starting grid produced an interesting Grand Prix in Miami, with drivers regularly moving up and down the field throughout the race.
Max Verstappen's victory was a return to regular service, as the Dutchman came back from 9th place on the starting grid and made light work of the field.
The reigning World Champion's decision to start on the hard tyres was crucial to his success, allowing him to extend his opening stint and finish the race on the faster medium compound.
Verstappen maximised his strategy by minimising his time in dirty air, whilst teammate Sergio Perez struggled with graining on the opening sting.
Fernando Alonso executed another impressive race for Aston Martin, showing strong pace throughout and taking his fourth podium of the season.
The Spaniard finished ahead of George Russell in 4th, who was pleasantly surprised with his speed in the W14.
Ferrari's performance in qualifying - though a secondary headline after Leclerc's crash - seemed more than enough to make the Italian squad podium contenders in Miami.
However, despite an encouraging first stint, Carlos Sainz's chances of securing a podium quickly evaporated after making the switch to hard tyres.
This drop-off in performance demonstrated the unpredictability of Ferrari's SF-23, which Charles Leclerc could only bring home in 7th place.
The Maranello squad's expectations are certainly higher than P5 and P7, but that was all they could manage in the streets of Miami.
F1news.live Staff
Lewis Hamilton recovered from a lowly P13 qualifying position to finish in P6, showing impressive pace in his final stint and making a series of overtakes.
Considering Mercedes' qualifying pace, the Silver Arrows will be pleased with their pace on Sunday.
Slightly further behind, the Alpine duo of Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon can be satisfied with the A523's competitiveness on Sunday.
The French squad executed a strong race with both drivers, near-optimising their afternoon and within touching distance of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
Pierre Gasly narrowly missed out on a top 6 finish, forced to settle for 8th place ahead of his teammate Esteban Ocon - securing a double-points finish for Alpine.
Kevin Magnussen completed the top 10 in his VF-23, spending much of his afternoon ahead of Charles Leclerc in more rewarding points-paying positions.
Unfortunately for the Dane, his pace was not enough to keep the likes of Hamilton and Leclerc at bay.
In any case, Magnussen will be pleased to take home his second point of the year and confirm his comments post-Baku about the potential of Haas' package.
Yuki Tsunoda executed another encouraging race to finish P11 for AlphaTauri, confirming the step forward taken by the AT04 in Baku.
Further behind, the likes of McLaren, Alfa Romeo and Williams will be generally disappointed with their pace.
In a field with established top-four teams, the lower midfield must execute near-perfect races to bring home points in 2023.
The ever-evolving F1 grid could have another shake-up at next week's Imola GP as teams prepare to introduce their first major updates of the season.
With much of the grid so closely matched, mid-season development will be crucial in determining success and failure this season.
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