Max Verstappen claims inaugural Miami Grand Prix title

REUTERS: Sunday’s inaugural Miami Grand Prix Formula One race in Miami Gardens, Fla., lived up to its billing as a heavyweight battle between the series’ two points leaders – Charles Leclerc of Ferrari and Max Verstappen of Red Bull.

Verstappen came away with the victory, the second in a row and third of the year for the 2021 F1 drivers’ champion. His earlier wins had come in Saudi Arabia and Italy.

Leclerc, who led the championship by 27 points at the start of Sunday, had won in the season-opener in Bahrain and Race 3 in Australia. He finished second on Sunday, 3.7 seconds behind Verstappen.

Carlos Sainz finished third in his Ferrari while Sergio Perez was fourth for Red Bull. Fifth was George Russell in a Mercedes. He was followed by teammate and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton.

“It was an incredible grand prix,” Verstappen said. “Very physical as well. I think we kept it exciting until the end. It was an incredible Sunday for us.”

The two Aston Martin cars of Lance Stroll and Sebastian Vettel started the race from the pits. It was discovered that their fuel was too cold and they opted to start from the pits to avoid a penalty. They had qualified 10th and 13th, respectively, and started last and second to last.

The only American-based team, Haas F1 Racing, had a so-so day. Mick Schumacher appeared to be on the verge of collecting his first points but while running ninth, he made contact with Vettel and slipped to a 15th-place finish. Kevin Magnussen finished 16th for Haas.