Formula 1: a mistake by Leclerc gives Checo pole position and sends Verstappen to the fifth row at the Miami GP

Formula 1 in Miami started with emotions. A mistake by Charles Leclerc at the end of the 3rd qualifying round ended up being decisive in the aspirations of the two-time world champion Max Verstappen, who will start from ninth position in the Miami GP. Checo Pérez took pole position but Red Bull were left with a bitter taste in their mouths when they saw that the Dutchman will have to row from behind in the race which takes place this Sunday from 16:30.

Leclerc made a serious mistake in the corner and got confused when there were less than two minutes left in Q3, with Checo on pole, Fernando Alonso, 2nd, and Carlos Sainz, 3rd. As the Monegasque Ferrari was left in a dangerous place, the red flag was displayed which decreed the end of activities on Saturday.

Verstappen, in the Red Bull box, had dominated the entire qualifying session but in Q3 he failed his first attempt and was about to set a good time to get close to his teammate on the starting grid. Leclerc’s mistake shattered the double champion’s illusion.

Pérez, who is six points behind leader Verstappen in the World Cup standings, delivered the big shot in qualifying with a time of 1:26.841, after a very decent performance in free practice.

“I think it was my worst weekend until these qualifiers,” said Pérez, cheered by the big Latin American fans in Miami.

“It was one of those weekends where you struggle to find balance, confidence (…) But I managed to reset everything for qualifying”, congratulated the rider from Guadalajara.

Pérez and Verstappen evenly shared victories in the first four races of the season.

In Miami, the Dutchman clearly dominated free practice and the first two parts of the standings, but in the latter he was left without a last attempt to fight for pole position due to a crash by Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) in the absence of one minute and 36 seconds, which caused a red flag and the end of the session.