Max Verstappen Puts Red Bull on Miami GP Front Row After Key Upgrades: “We’ve Turned a Corner”
· Yahoo Sports
Front row for the Miami Grand Prix. That sentence would have seemed like a stretch when Max Verstappen was doing damage limitation in Sprint qualifying on Friday, starting fifth on the Sprint grid and spending Saturday trading paint with Lewis Hamilton in the race itself. By Saturday evening, the story looked considerably different.
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Verstappen had arrived in Miami carrying a Red Bull that was, by his own admission, “still not where I want it to be,” six tenths off Lando Norris‘s Sprint pole time despite the team shipping several upgrades to Florida, including an adaptation of Ferrari‘s flip-flop rear wing concept.
The improvements were serious but expectations were still low. Grand Prix qualifying changed that. Verstappen put it on the front row, and afterwards explained exactly what shifted.
Red Bull’s Push Finally Paying Off
“For me, it’s been two things,” Verstappen said. “For sure, the car has not been great in the previous races, but also from my side I never felt comfortable with the layout of the car, and over the last few weeks the team has been pushing flat out to try to bring upgrades to the car and making me feel more comfortable with a lot of things in the car.”
That combination – hardware improvements meeting a driver who can finally trust what the car will do – is what actually produces lap time. One without the other doesn’t get you to the front row. “It really pays off,” the four-time champion added. “I feel more in control of the car again, and then I can push a bit more. Then the upgrades are working. To be on the front row is way better than I expected heading into this weekend.”
MIAMI, FLORIDA – MAY 01: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (3) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB22 Red Bull Ford on track during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at Miami International Autodrome on May 01, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Sam Bloxham/LAT Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202605020008 // Usage for editorial use only //What Sunday Actually Needs
The bigger question is whether qualifying pace converts to race pace when the lights go out, and the Dutchman is staying grounded. “Let’s first start with a good start. I’ve not had a lot of them this year,” he said.
There’s also a wildcard looming over Sunday’s race entirely: a meeting was held on Saturday at the Miami Grand Prix to discuss potentially altering the timetable due to the risk of thunderstorms.
Weather in South Florida has a way of changing in the blink of an eye.
Still, Verstappen’s read on his race position was bullish. “Race pace looked alright in the Sprint once I was in clean air. Tomorrow is a completely different day,” he said. “From here, there’s like light at the end of the tunnel and we can push on and try to close the gap further.”
F1 returned to Miami after an unexpected five-week hiatus and a fresh round of regulatory changes. Teams are still learning what these cars want, and the ones who figure it out fastest keep gaining ground. Red Bull appears to have found something. Whether that something lasts beyond Saturday evening is the question Sunday will answer.