Verstappen-Leclerc still on the front row
Max Verstappen And Charles Leclerc they will start side by side on the front row again today at the start of the Miami GP. The Dutch driver had never obtained a pole start on a circuit where he has nevertheless won the two editions held so far in Florida and yesterday already in the Sprint he started in front of everyone. The start wasn’t the best due to a small clutch problem, but by moving to the right and braking very late Verstappen managed to maintain the lead of the race.
Leclerc had the chance to land the shot on the inside, but a possible accident could have jeopardized Qualifying and therefore the Monegasque preferred not to take risks. When asked about the revenge this evening at the first corner in the press conference, the Ferrari driver replied as follows: “The first corner is obviously always important. And Max has a remarkable race pace. So yes, it’s definitely an opportunity to attack, but only if there is an opportunity to attack. In the Sprint it was there. I couldn’t get through. In the race, if we can do that, I will be happy. If not, we will be a little more patient and try to conserve the tires to attack later.”
Carlos Sainz will start from the third spot on the second row of the grid on the clean side of the track. The Spaniard was five thousandths faster than Sergio Perez. In 2022 Verstappen immediately took second from third position, passing Sainz on the outside in Turn-1, putting himself in Charles Leclerc’s exhaust. “In the Sprint I made a very, very good start and almost overtook Checo and Daniel, but then I think Checo overdid it in Turn 1 and that cost us both a position. So, yes, I think there are things that can happen, although in recent years it is true that everyone seems to snap the same way at the start. It’s very similar. There are no longer the differences that were seen in the past. I believe that everyone, more or less, starts off well and it is difficult to make a difference” Sainz’s analysis.
