Formula 1 headed to the Miami Grand Prix for the second Sprint of the 2025 season and the first of three U.S.-based races on this year’s calendar.
For the first time in F1 Sprint history, a team secured one-two finishes in both the Sprint and the GP, and that was McLaren.
Once again, however, it was Oscar Piastri who ended the meeting on top to extend his lead in the Drivers’ standings to 16 points.
Who else starred, and who had a weekend to forget at the Miami International Autodrome?
Oscar Piastri – 8.5
Sprint Qualifying: P2, Sprint Result: P2
GP Qualifying: P4, GP Result: P1
Piastri was pipped by a sensational Kimi Antonelli in Sprint Qualifying but quickly made amends with a tough move at Turn 1 to take the lead in the short-format Miami race.
A Virtual Safety Car intervention cost him the Sprint victory and Piastri’s Saturday took another downward turn when he could only qualify fourth for the main event.
The Australian recovered well, capitalising on the Lap 1 drama between Verstappen and Norris to slot into third and quickly second after dispatching Antonelli.
In the face of a stern defence by Verstappen, Piastri methodically picked off the Red Bull driver to eke out an unassailable advantage once Norris emerged in second.
Three wins on the bounce and an extended title lead show Piastri is the real deal.
Lando Norris – 8
Sprint Qualifying: P3, Sprint Result: P1
GP Qualifying: P2, GP Result: P2
Norris banished his qualifying woes in Miami to trail McLaren team-mate Piastri by just one position in Sprint Qualifying and beat him in the Q3 top-10 shootout for the main event.
This gave the Briton a platform for a much-improved weekend, which included capitalising on a VSC to take victory in the Sprint.
Still, coming off second best to Verstappen once again in a lights-out situation cost Norris a double victory, and he took far greater time getting past the Dutchman than eventual GP-victor Piastri did.
A strong step in the right direction for Norris, but sadly, more points lost in the title race.
George Russell – 7
Sprint Qualifying: P5, Sprint Result: P4
GP Qualifying: P5, GP Result: P3
George Russell spent the majority of the weekend on the back foot compared to his team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, finishing behind the young Italian in both qualifying sessions.
In the race, Russell benefited from a fortuitously timed VSC to leapfrog onto the podium in the GP. A slightly poorer effort than the incredible standards Russell has set so far this season.
Andrea Kimi Antonelli – 9
Sprint Qualifying: P1, Sprint Result: P7
GP Qualifying: P3, GP Result: P6
Kimi Antonelli became a history maker as F1’s youngest-ever polesitter in Sprint qualifying, harnessing his raw speed and rapid development in unison.
Circumstances unfortunately conspired against the young Italian in the Sprint as he came off second best in a Lap 1, Turn 1 duel with Piastri, before an unsafe Red Bull release of Verstappen down pit-lane forced him to abort his stop and came back around a lap later.
Antonelli dusted himself off well to qualify third for the main event, but his race management was lacking slightly, as he dropped to sixth by the chequered flag.
Max Verstappen – 9
Sprint Qualifying: P4, Sprint Result: P17
GP Qualifying: P1, GP Result: P4
Arriving in Miami a day late after welcoming the birth of his baby girl Lily, didn’t slow Verstappen down as he did his best to fight Red Bull’s limitations all weekend.
An unsafe release pitting during the Sprint occurred through no fault of Verstappen, but he recovered brilliantly.
Another sensational pole position underlined his incredible credentials, and there was little that Verstappen could do but put up a fight against the McLaren onslaught in the GP. A Virtual Safety Car timed just right for Russell, costing the Dutchman what would have been a well-deserved pole position.
Yuki Tsunoda – 5.5
Sprint Qualifying: P18, Sprint Result: P6
GP Qualifying: P10, GP Result: P10
Yuki Tsunoda continues to get to grips with the Red Bull RB21, but still has a deficit to recover compared to Max Verstappen, especially in qualifying. It will take time for the Japanese driver, but work is needed to be done to continue performing at the level Red Bull requires.
Alex Albon – 9
Sprint Qualifying: P8, Sprint Result: P11
GP Qualifying: P7, GP Result: P5
Williams was mighty in Miami and Alex Albon was a consistent thorn in Ferrari’s side, something nobody would have expected coming into the 2025 season. A penalty for a Sfaety Car infringement robbed Albon of fourth in the Sprint but he made amends in the GP to take a brilliant fifth, beating a Mercedes and both Ferraris on pure pace.
Carlos Sainz – 7
Sprint Qualifying: P15, Sprint Result: DNF
GP Qualifying: P6, GP Result: P9
Carlos Sainz had a troubled start to the Miami GP, with his Sprint record, an SQ2 exit and a DNF after clipping the wall in the short-format race, not making for good reading. The Spaniard made amends with a glittering qualifying display, resulting in him placing his Williams sixth on the grid. A Lap 1 tangle with Albon damaged his front wing and Sainz was hampered from there, aggrieved when his Williams team-mate later passed him against team orders. Sainz fought valiantly to hold off the two Ferraris for as long as he could before eventually succumbing, finishing ninth. Luckily, a desperate last-lap lunge that nearly punted him and Lewis Hamilton out of the race went unpunished.
Charles Leclerc – 7
Sprint Qualifying: P6, Sprint Result: DNS
GP Qualifying: P8, Sprint Result: P7
Ferrari had a weekend to forget and a frustrating one for Charles Leclerc, especially. Doing the best he could with what could possibly be classed as the fourth-best car in Miami, Leclerc’s Sprint Qualifying result of sixth was undone when he aquaplaned into the wall on his way to the grid, caught on Intermediate tyres in conditions that were far to wet. Again, in the GP sessions, Leclerc did the best he could, which amounted to seventh by the time the chequered flag fell on Sunday.
Lewis Hamilton – 6
Sprint Qualifying: P7, Sprint Result: P3
GP Qualifying: P12, GP Result: P8
Hamilton was on the back foot compared to Leclerc all weekend, but not by the startling margin seen in Saudi Arabia. An inspired pit call as the weather changed in the Sprint landed Hamilton a third-place result, but his Saturday ended with his first Q2 exit in red. Still, Hamilton recovered well enough to finish behind Leclerc after a confusing driver swap saga that clouded Ferrari’s difficult weekend.
Isack Hadjar – 7
Sprint Qualifying: P9, Sprint Result: P10
GP Qualifying: P11, GP Result: P11
With the two Williams enjoying space in the top-10 for the majority of the weekend, things were going to be tricky for Isack Hadjar to pick up points for Racing Bulls. Still, Hadjar threatened to crack the top-10 throughout the weekend, succeeding in the Sprint sessions and just missing out in the main event. Another impressive weekend by the rookie.
Liam Lawson – 5
Sprint Qualifying: P14, Sprint Result: P13
GP Qualifying: P15, GP Result: DNF
Another weekend came and went for Liam Lawson being beaten by his team-mate. Sure, the margins are close but Lawson must act quickly to get on the level of his team-mate. Being hit by Jack Doohan at the start of the GP was no fault of his own, but the move punting Fernando Alonso into the wall in the Sprint was clumsy.
Esteban Ocon – 8
Sprint Qualifying: P12, Sprint Result: P12
GP Qualifying: P9, GP Result: P12
Esteban Ocon’s highlight of the weekend was a ninth-place finish in GP qualifying, which he called Haas’ best of the year. At a circuit where the Haas team didn’t fare well, the Frenchman fought admirably throughout.
Oliver Bearman – 4
Sprint Qualifying: P20, Sprint Result: P14
GP Qualifying: P20, GP Result: DNF
A weekend to forget for impressive rookie Oliver Bearman, finishing last in both qualifying sessions. An unsafe release marred his impressive fightback in the Sprint, and a technical failure ended his GP early. One to move on from.
Pierre Gasly – 6
Sprint Qualifying: P13, Sprint Result: P8
GP Qualifying: P18, GP Result: P13
Pierre Gasly had an off weekend by his standards, with penalties around him helping elevate him to eighth in the Sprint. Out-qualified by Doohan for the first time, his GP yielded no points as Alpine were off the pace all weekend.
Jack Doohan – 5
Sprint Qualifying: P17, Sprint Result: P16
GP Qualifying: P14, GP Result: DNF
Doohan fumed that Alpine screw him over in Sprint qualifyng and made ammends in the GP one-lap shootout to best team-mate Gasly for the first time in 2025. But he undid all his good work with Lap 1, Turn 1 incident that took him straight out of the race. No points again has put his future in jeopardy.
Nico Hulkenberg – 8
Sprint Qualifying: P11, Sprint Result: P9
GP Qaulifying: P16, GP Result: P14
Nico Hulkenberg out-performed his Sauber in the Miami Sprint sessions and it’s cruel that he couldn’t replicate that in the GP to pick up some scarce points for Sauber. Saturday afternoon and Sunday’s action brought the German back down to earth.
Gabriel Bortoleto – 7
Sprint Qualifying: P19, Sprint Result: P15
GP Qualifying: P13, GP Result: DNF
A tale of two halves saw Gabriel Bortoleto trail Sauber team-mate Hulkenberg through the Sprint segment of the weekend, but put in an impressive showing to out-qualify the one-lap specialist for the GP. Sadly, Bortoleto’s Sauber failed him in the race and he failed to finish.
Fernando Alonso – 5
Sprint Qualifying: P10, Sprint Result: DNF
GP Qualifying: P17, GP Result: P15
What can you do when the car fails you? Aston Martin hit rock bottom in Miami and Fernando Alonso’s weekend suffered hugely as a result. But 10th in Sprint Qualifying was a highlight among a series of Miami lowlights.
Lance Stroll – 6.5
Sprint Qualifying: P16, Sprint Result: P5
GP Qualifying: P19, GP Result: P16
Lance Stroll capitalised on the Sprint chaos to deliver Aston Martin unlikely points, but the team’s shocking pace came to roost for the remainder of the weekend.
READ MORE – Seven key talking points from the 2025 F1 Miami Grand Prix
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