Oscar Piastri dominates Miami GP as Lewis Hamilton fumes over Ferrari race management

Independent

04-05-2025

Oscar Piastri crossed the checkered flag in South Florida on Sunday 4.6 seconds ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris. The papaya orange team dominated 37.6 seconds ahead of third-place finisher George Russell in a virtual safety car-riddled, overtaking display at the 2025 Miami Grand Prix.
Piastri, who qualified in fourth on Saturday, gained an advantage when a first-corner tussle between pole-sitter Max Verstappen and Norris had the latter falling down the leaderboard into sixth place. The McLaren driver, who secured his maiden win in Miami last year, unsuccessfully attempted to appeal to the stewards, claiming the four-time world champion pushed him off as Verstappen swept across the start.
'If I don't go for it, people complain. If I go for it, people complain,' Norris said post-race.
However, the 25-year-old British driver clawed his way back towards the top on pure pace. Norris closely follows his teammate and current leader, Piastri, in the World Drivers' Championship standings.
The threat of a rain-soaked race loomed throughout all 57 laps, but the race remained a dry, one-stop feature with a handful of Virtual Safety Car stoppages as a slew of rookies came rolling to a halt.
But it was the two Ferraris who stole the show. Lewis Hamilton, who finished third on Saturday's sprint race, and Charles Leclerc began the race at a disadvantage, with Hamilton failing to make it into the third qualifying session on Saturday for the first time since his switch to Ferrari.
Deemed the strongest driver pairing on the grid at the start of the season, the duo has been undermined by a slow car and messy team dynamics. On Sunday, the true cost of two star drivers was on full display.
Hamilton, who gained two places on his 12th place start, nearly completed a double overtake on both Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on lap 34, but failed to fully get past his teammate. In the laps that followed, Hamilton complained over the radio to the team that he was 'burning up' his tires behind Leclerc and asked, 'You want me to just sit here the whole race?' The former Mercedes driver reminded the pit wall of his self-imposed swap at the Chinese Grand Prix where he encouraged the team to favour Leclerc's faster pace: 'In China, I got out of the way,' Hamilton said. 'Have a tea break while you're at it,' he added.
The seven-time world champion made his feelings clear ahead of eventual team orders to swap: 'This is not good teamwork that's all I'm saying.'
But by lap 41 when Hamilton was ahead, his teammate wasn't happy stuck behind in the other Ferrari 's dirty air. After 10 laps of the Monegasque driver complaining about overheating tyres, the team swapped back — nearly risking Hamilton's demotion as he battled Sainz to the finish line. The new addition to the team, audibly frustrated, said over the radio: 'You want me to let him past as well?' Hamilton finished eighth, just three-tenths of a second ahead of Sainz's Williams.
Both Williams drivers, Sainz and Alex Albon, proved just how well the car is developing on Sunday. Albon, who finished fifth, outperformed both Ferraris and a Mercedes.
Further down the grid, Williams' former fellow group of back-of-the-field teams didn't have as lucky of a race. Oliver Bearman's Haas rolled back into the garage after an engine failure. Teammate Esteban Ocon taught a defensive masterclass, going wheel-to-wheel mid-race with Hamilton, but ultimately fell to 12th.
The 2025 F1 rookies didn't fair much better with Liam Lawson and Jack Doohan both retiring following a turn one collision. Gabriel Bortoleto 's engine failed as well, bringing out a Virtual Safety Car.
Kimi Antonelli, however, continued to show a similar pace as he had throughout the Miami Grand Prix weekend. On Friday, the 18-year-old became the youngest-ever F1 pole-sitter.
Antonelli's team, Mercedes, trails behind McLaren in the constructors' championship standings, followed closely by Red Bull. Piastri leads the drivers' standings by 16 points.