Kimi Antonelli Wins Miami GP to Extend Formula 1 Standings Lead
Kimi Antonelli won the Miami Grand Prix and stretched his lead at the top of the formula 1 standings. The race changed quickly after early incidents, and the final classification rewarded the driver who kept clear of the chaos.
Antonelli Takes Miami
Antonelli finished ahead of Lando Norris in second and Oscar Piastri in third. That front result became the cleanest answer in a race that started three hours early to avoid severe weather and then moved through multiple accidents, retirements and a late shuffle in the order.
At the first corner, Max Verstappen and Antonelli both locked up while Norris took evasive action to avoid crashing into Verstappen and making contact with the pit lane wall. One corner later, Verstappen spun after getting on the power too quickly, and the race had already split into survival and recovery modes for the front-runners.
Gasly And Hadjar Crash
Six laps later, Pierre Gasly's Alpine rolled upside down after Liam Lawson locked up his brakes and crashed into the side of Gasly's car at turn 17. Lawson retired after the impact, and Nico Hulkenberg was also pulled out of the race as the Virtual Safety Car came before the full Safety Car.
Isack Hadjar also went out at the tight hairpin after clipping the inside barrier and breaking his steering. By the restart, just 18 cars were left on track, and Verstappen used the neutralised phase to pit and move onto a different strategy from the front-runners.
Leclerc Slides To Sixth
Charles Leclerc finished sixth after spinning and suffering damage on the final lap while chasing Piastri. George Russell and Verstappen both got past him before the line, leaving Lewis Hamilton seventh after a race that had already been compromised on the first lap by contact with Franco Colapinto's Alpine.
Stewards said they would investigate Verstappen's pit entry line incident after the race. For Antonelli, the result meant more than the Miami win itself: he left with the lead at the top of the standings intact and widened after a race where others lost ground every few laps.
