Max Verstappen has contended that the advantage McLaren possessed in the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix exceeded the margin that Red Bull harboured during 2023.
McLaren’s status as the benchmark side was emphasised in Miami as Oscar Piastri headed Lando Norris in the reigning champion’s most dominant showing of 2025.
Despite missing out on pole position to Verstappen’s Red Bull, Piastri crossed the line with a considerable 37-second gap to George Russell, the nearest non-McLaren.
But while the McLaren duo repudiated that assertion, Verstappen has since concurred with Russell based on the blistering pace its rivals showed at the previous race.
“No, I think we never really had that gap,” Verstappen told media including Motorsport Week when probed on the topic.
“But it’s also a bit track-specific. Sometimes, I guess it works a bit better for them, because sometimes there is a bit more thermal degradation than others.
“The advantage will not always be that big in terms of that dominance.”
Red Bull’s ‘depressing’ gap to McLaren
Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko described the team’s 40-second deficit in Miami as “depressing”, a feeling that Verstappen has indicated would be shared elsewhere.
“I think the race pace was depressing for everyone except McLaren,” he admitted. “No one was even in the same league there, so that is, of course, a big concern.”
Verstappen not expecting miraculous Red Bull upgrade
Red Bull is poised to introduce more prominent changes to the RB21 this weekend at Imola to complement the smaller updates that came in the two preceding races.
Verstappen, who expressed scepticism at the revised floor bolted onto his car in Miami, conceded that Red Bull’s upgrades won’t be enough to get on McLaren’s level.
Asked what he expects from the developments, Verstappen replied: “A little bit. But we have already had a few races with some updates, so this is a little step forward.
“Hopefully we’ll find a bit more performance in the car. But I don’t expect to suddenly close the gap to McLaren.”
Likewise, Verstappen has insisted that the impending clampdown on flexible front wings from next month’s Spanish Grand Prix won’t erode the entire gap to McLaren.
“That will not give you eight-tenths to a second, of course, [as it was] at times in Miami,” the reigning F1 champion concluded.
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