Introduction
McLaren driver Lando Norris added his title to the listing of Components 1 race winners with a sensational breakthrough victory on the 2024 Components 1 Miami Grand Prix. He overhauled Purple Bull rival Max Verstappen to take the chequered flag.
Click on right here to subscribe to our print version!
Norris ran sixth within the early phases of the race, with fast-starting teammate Oscar Piastri, the McLaren man who initially seemed probably to trigger an upset. Nevertheless, a Security Automobile on the halfway level performed completely into the Briton’s fingers after he prolonged his opening stint.
Norris emerged from the pits within the lead, with Verstappen demoted to second after stopping underneath regular racing situations. Regardless of an preliminary assault from the latter on the restart, the Briton managed to keep up the place after which edged clear.
A cool, calm and picked up efficiency thereafter, and stability issues for Verstappen, meant there was no stopping Norris from banishing the demons of his near-miss on the 2021 Russian Grand Prix and turning into a race winner on the one hundred and tenth time of asking.
Verstappen settled for second amid his relative struggles behind the wheel, whereas Charles Leclerc accomplished the rostrum forward of Ferrari teammate Carlos Sainz, who clashed with Piastri late on in an incident that despatched the Australian again into the pits for a brand new entrance wing.
Sergio Perez wound up fifth within the second of the Purple Bulls, having accomplished one other cease underneath the Security Automobile, as Lewis Hamilton and George Russell salvaged some strong factors on a difficult weekend for Mercedes in sixth and eighth respectively.
Yuki Tsunoda gave RB one other reward within the seventh, whereas Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso crossed the road within the ninth. Esteban Ocon capitalised on Piastri’s issues to complete tenth and rating the Alpine group’s morale-boosting first level of the season.
Haas had been on target for one more top-10 consequence within the opening exchanges, however Nico Hulkenberg slipped down the order because the race developed, leaving him eleventh on the flag from Pierre Gasly’s different Alpine machine.
Piastri battled his approach again as much as thirteenth after that aforementioned entrance wing change, albeit being warned by McLaren to not spark one other incident and Security Automobile interval as Norris led, clearing Zhou Guanyu’s Kick Sauber simply earlier than the end.
After starring within the Dash, Daniel Ricciardo might do not more than fifteenth on Grand Prix day, adopted by Valtteri Bottas (Kick Sauber) and Lance Stroll (Aston Martin), whose fierce battle with Williams rival Alex Albon noticed him earn a 10-second time penalty for leaving the observe and gaining a bonus.
Albon was the ultimate finisher in nineteenth, behind the Haas of Kevin Magnussen, who served a 10-second sanction of his personal for a collision with Williams driver Logan Sargeant that put the house favorite out of the race.
Because the drivers headed again to the pits, Norris’s feelings got here out over the radio as he, his race engineer, and group boss Zak Brown revelled in a milestone second that additionally gave McLaren its first Grand Prix win since Monza in 2021.
Mario Isola, Motorsport Director, Pirelli:
First, I wish to congratulate Lando Norris on his first Components 1 win. He’ll always remember his feelings within the closing kilometres after which on the rostrum!
Regardless of the sudden twists caused by the Security Vehicles, first the digital after which the true one, the race adopted a surprisingly linear trajectory by way of tyre behaviour. It was a one-stop technique, with tyres that, no matter their band color, confirmed minimal degradation, thanks partially to the absence of graining. The efficiency distinction between the vehicles was additionally negligible, including to the race’s unpredictability.
That stated, the 2 compounds most used, the C2 and C3, allowed the drivers to push flat out for nearly your complete race, as could be seen from learning the chronology of the lap occasions. This made for an thrilling race, even when, on paper, it was constrained by technique. The VSC and SC ruined the plans on a number of pit partitions, whereas others have been luckier or cleverer, however that’s all a part of racing.
As all the time, the post-race evaluation holds immense worth. The info gathered over the three days of this Grand Prix will present us with invaluable insights. These insights might information us in compound choice and improve our understanding of the intricate interplay between the tyres and varied observe surfaces. That is the great thing about Components 1-a sport that gives a relentless studying curve, paving the best way for steady progress.
The day on the observe:
As simply predicted, the one-stop technique was the one believable one, however the Digital Security Automobile on lap 22 after which the true one on lap 28 clearly upset the plans, giving those that had not but pitted the possibility to take action whereas shedding considerably much less time than those that had already modified tyres. This reshuffled the pack, after which the order remained comparatively static within the early phases after the restart, a minimum of among the many leaders.
On the beginning grid, the most well-liked compound was the C3, with 15 drivers going for what, on paper, was the quickest technique: a primary stint on the Medium and a second on the Exhausting. Hamilton, Alonso, Ricciardo, and Magnussen opted for the C2, hoping to run as lengthy a primary stint as attainable, whereas Bottas gambled on the C4.
A complete of 1110 laps have been accomplished, with solely Sargeant (Williams) failing to complete the race. The C3 did essentially the most work (562 laps, 50.6%) with barely increased mileage than the C2 (504 laps, 45.4%). The C4 was solely utilized by the 2 Sauber drivers, Bottas for the primary 11 laps and Zhou from his pit cease to the chequered flag, and it proved to be as much as the duty each by way of degradation and efficiency.
Other than the sight of a model new Components 1 race winner on the rostrum within the form of Lando Norris, there was additionally a novelty when it got here to the Podium Cap, which Pirelli supplies to the highest three finishers within the Grand Prix, in addition to the consultant of the profitable group, who right this moment was McLaren Crew Principal Andrea Stella. For the Miami occasion, Components 1’s International Tyre Associate ready a particular cap in turquoise, a color suggesting the waters in entrance of town’s seashores, together with stylised palm timber on the height, an emblematic component of Miami, alongside the flag of the USA of America.
2024 Components 1 Miami Grand Prix Race Outcomes
PosNoDriverCountryTeamTimePointsOverall
1.4Lando NorrisGreat BritainMclaren Racing1:30:49.8762583
2.1Max VerstappenNetherlandsRed Bull Racing+7.612s18136
3.16Charles LeclercMonacoScuderia Ferrari+9.920s1598
4.11Sergio PerezMexicoRed Bull Racing +14.650s12103
5.55Carlos SainzSpainScuderia Ferrari+16.407s1083
6.44Lewis HamiltonGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+16.585s827
7.22Yuki TsunodaJapanVisa Money App F1 Crew+26.185s614
8.63George RussellGreat BritainMercedes-AMG Petronas+34.789s437
9.14Fernando AlonsoSpainAston Martin F1 Crew+37.107s233
10.31Esteban OconFranceAlpine F1 Crew+39.746s11
11.27Nico HulkenbergGermanyHaas F1 Crew+40.789s06
12.10Pierre GaslyFranceAlpine F1 Crew+44.958s00
13.81Oscar PiastriAustraliaMcLaren Racing+49.756s041
14.24Zhou GuanyuChinaKick Sauber F1 Crew+49.979s00
15.3Daniel RicciardoAustraliaVisa Money App F1 Crew+50.956s05
16.77Valtteri BottasFinlandKick Sauber F1 Crew+52.356s00
17.18Lance StrollCanadaAston Martin F1 Crew+55.173s09
18.45Alexander AlbonThailandWilliams Racing+76.091s00
16.20Kevin MagnussenDenmarkHaas F1 Crew+87.533s01
17.2Logan SargeantUSAWilliams RacingDNF00
2024 Constructor Standings
PosTeamPoints
1.Purple Bull Racing239
2.Scuderia Ferrari187
3.McLaren Racing124
4.Mercedes-AMG Petronas64
5.Aston Martin F1 Team42
6.Visa Money App F1 Team19
7.Haas F1 Team7
8.Alpine F1 Team1
9.Kick Sauber F1 Team0
10.Williams Racing0