Fraser MasefieldKimi Antonelli came out on top of a race long Miami Grand Prix battle with defending champion Lando Norris to extend his lead at the top of the F1 standings.
Following on from race wins in both China and Japan, the nerveless Antonelli again converted a third successive pole position into victory from Norris and Oscar Piastri.
Mercedes teammate George Russell, who won the season opening Australian Grand Prix, finished in fourth ahead of Max Verstappen who recovered brilliantly from an opening lap spin.
Chaos at the start – what the drivers saw! 😵#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/uO337CKOJ3
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 4, 2026
Lewis Hamilton was fifth from Franco Colapinto and Charles Leclerc, who also recovered from a final lap spin and damage to his car as Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon rounded out the top ten.
“That was not an easy race at all but I’m so happy we were able to bring the victory home,” commented Antonelli on the official Mercedes press release.
“My start wasn’t as bad as in the Sprint, but we still lost a position. I then lost a place to Lando (Norris) before the Safety Car, but we were able to fight back.
“Our pace was strong, I was able to stay close, and then the team did a brilliant job with the strategy.
“The undercut worked out just about perfectly and, despite the McLaren coming out just ahead, we were able to get past with our tyres being up to temperature.”
With victory, Antonelli became the first driver in F1 history to win his first three races from pole position.
Max’s spin/save is even more satisfying in slow motion 👌 #F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/czEnKjyeqZ
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 4, 2026
“That was a tough afternoon for us out there,” added Russell. “The early laps felt OK and I thought that we were in the fight, but my pace wasn’t strong on the Hard compound.
“We did make some changes near the end of the final stint which helped but this place has never been my favourite, and it showed.
“We gained a couple of positions at the end at least so the result was potentially better than it could have been. Kimi did a great job and showed that the car could challenge for victory.”
It all means that the Italian youngster extends his lead at the top of the drivers’ standings to 20 points over Russell with Leclerc a further 21 points behind in third.
“Despite our great start to the season, we are not getting ahead of ourselves,” added a grounded Antonelli.
“This is just the beginning of the season and there is a long year ahead. We are working super hard and the team is doing an incredible job at the moment.
“Without all the men and women at Brackley and Brixworth we wouldn’t be in this position. We’re going to continue to work hard, bring performance to the track, and aim for another good weekend in Canada.”
Free practice for the Canadian Grand Prix weekend begins on Friday 22 May.
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Craig Scarborough