Max Verstappen Gave Everyone a Tire Masterclass Performance at the Miami Grand Prix

However, Verstappen and Red Bull had already defied mathematical principles this season. In Saudi Arabia, Verstappen started from 15th on the grid due to a driveshaft issue but fought his way to second place. With the RB19 package's tremendous advantage, taking a win from ninth seemed possible, and Verstappen executed a brilliant tire management strategy to secure his third win of the season and 38th F1 victory.

Max Verstappen's chance at pole position at the Miami Grand Prix evaporated when he slipped at Turn 5 during his first flying lap in Q3. Later, Charles Leclerc's crash at Turn 7 – the same spot where he hit the wall in FP2 – halted the session. Verstappen was disappointed but determined to recover and prevent his teammate Sergio Perez from taking the championship lead. Verstappen aimed for at least second place after qualifying.

The Miami circuit proved to be a challenging track due to the newly resurfaced asphalt. Last year, the track was jet-blasted to remove surface oils, but the aggressive clean-up resulted in track break-up. This year, the organizers opted not to clean the track, leading to low-grip conditions during the opening sessions. Although off-line driving was still treacherous, the low-grip conditions did not cause many errors. Verstappen couldn't rely on the cars ahead of him to make mistakes, so he needed to make up ground himself. After discussing with his engineers, Verstappen decided to try a different tire strategy, while Perez and the other top seven starters went for the medium-hard approach.

Perez needed to avoid a repeat of the start in Saudi Arabia, where Fernando Alonso briefly took the lead. Perez covered Alonso and worked to create a lead to ward off Verstappen's charge. This time, Perez got off to a better start, covering off Alonso and quickly breaking the one-second barrier to build a lead. He knew he had to cover off Verstappen, who was charging through the field with an alternate tire strategy.

Verstappen was not the quickest off the line in Miami, losing out to Bottas, who took advantage of his slow start. But Verstappen wasted no time in making up ground, passing Bottas and Ocon in quick succession before joining the fight between Magnussen and Leclerc. On lap four, Verstappen made a bold three-wide move to take two places, placing him behind Russell's Mercedes. Despite being held up slightly by Gasly, Verstappen eventually made his way past and climbed into fourth place.

Meanwhile, Perez initially struggled with graining on his right front tire, which caused him concerns about hitting his target for tire life. However, as the race went on, Perez's confidence grew, and he was able to push harder. Red Bull boss Christian Horner believed that Perez could have pushed harder from the start but acknowledged that it was only in hindsight that he realized this.

As Perez extended his lead to 2.4 seconds on the 12th lap, Alonso was embroiled in a tussle with fellow Spaniard Sainz for third. Verstappen was closing in, quickly dispatching Sainz on the 14th lap and Alonso on the following lap. With 43 laps still to go, Verstappen had already secured his place on the podium. Meanwhile, Perez was struggling to maintain his lead, with his front-right tire rapidly deteriorating.

On lap 20, he made the decision to switch to the hard tires to take him to the end of the race. Though Perez's pace was initially faster on the new tires, Verstappen's consistent high 1m31s lap times kept him ahead. Verstappen was allowed to lean on his tires more as the race progressed, while Perez was focused on balancing outright pace with tire management.

On lap 32, Perez had narrowed the gap to 14.8s, but both drivers were now managing their tires. Verstappen was concerned he might not hit his target pitstop lap and began conserving just as Perez made his own pitstop. However, Verstappen received a call to start pushing again and re-extended his lead before his own pitstop on the 45th lap, quickly reclaiming his previous lead.

The 18.5-second gap between Verstappen and Perez was quickly closed when Verstappen switched to the medium tire on lap 45. Perez took the lead, but the two were separated by just 1.6 seconds, putting Verstappen within DRS range by lap 46. Despite Perez's valiant effort to defend his position, Verstappen managed to reclaim the lead on the 48th lap, leaving Perez with no hope of staging a comeback on his now-worn tires. Perez accepted his fate and no longer attempted to fight, allowing Verstappen to take his 38th Formula 1 win, crossing the finish line 5.4 seconds ahead of Perez.

Alonso had a relatively lonely race, only having to make one move to pass Sainz after their pitstops. Despite some frustration at not being able to break into the top podium positions, he was happy to secure his fourth podium finish of the season. Russell also had a strong performance in the race, atoning for Mercedes' difficult Saturday. He followed Verstappen past Gasly and battled with Sainz over fourth place. However, Sainz struggled with Ferrari's tire management issues, leaving the team with zero flexibility in how much they were able to push.

In a strategic crossover move, Hamilton yielded to his teammate Russell, who was on an alternate strategy, to aid his push past Sainz. Within five laps, Russell made his move on the Ferrari driver, claiming fourth place and setting his sights on securing a strong points finish for Mercedes. However, Sainz's speeding penalty, incurred during his lap 18 stop, cost him time but did not result in a loss of position as he had built up a comfortable gap to Hamilton in sixth.

Hamilton's slow-burn strategy paid off in the latter half of the race, as he passed Stroll for ninth and then made a series of late overtakes to finish in sixth place, ahead of Gasly and Leclerc. Despite the pre-race spectacle in Miami, with Hamilton enjoying the festivities, the race ultimately saw the familiar sight of a Red Bull domination. Verstappen showcased his tire-management prowess to take a decisive victory over Perez.

As the Formula 1 circus heads to Imola for the next race, fans may be hoping for a change in outcome and perhaps a surprise contender to emerge, but they should expect a very different atmosphere and aesthetic compared to the colorful and boisterous Miami event.