Norris beat Verstappen by 7 seconds, after taking advantage of his only pit stop under a safety car – unlike his rivals – for a clash between Kevin Magnussen and Logan Sargeant.
Verstappen had won the previous two Miami GPs, but had already made his pit stop when the safety car was required. Earlier, he caused his own virtual safety car by hitting and dislodging the bollard at Turn 15, and admitted he struggled to get his car to turn.
It was only the second time Verstappen had been beaten in 2024, having retired from the Australian GP won by Carlos Sainz due to a brake problem.
“I mean, you win, you lose,” Verstappen told Sky. “I think we’re all used to that in racing, right?
“Today was just a little tricky. I think already on the mediums I didn’t feel fantastic. We were growing apart but not in the way it should be.
“And then once we made the pit stop and I heard what lap times McLaren was doing, I was like, ‘Wow, that’s pretty fast.’ Once they also put on the hard tires, they just had more pace, and especially Lando, he was flying. It was incredibly difficult for us during that stint.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB20, with a terminal in his suspension
Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images
“But if a bad day is P2, I’ll take it. And I’m very happy for Lando. This has been a long time coming. And it won’t be his last so yes, he really deserves it today.
When asked if McLaren’s updated car reflected his true pace, he replied: “I hope not!
“I mean, they came with an upgrade. Yes, for sure, it looks like it’s working. So we have a little work to do on our end.
“It was definitely not our best weekend in terms of race pace, but we will analyze everything and we will try to come back.”
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, who finished third, 2 seconds behind Verstappen, also praised Norris for his “incredible work”.
“I’m really happy for Lando,” Leclerc said. “He deserves it. Many times he came close but for one reason or another he didn’t get there, but today he did an incredible job.
“All weekend he was on it and already in Q2, I think there was a lap where I said to myself: ‘OK, they are very, very strong’.
“And we expected them to be strong, maybe not as strong as what they showed today. But he fully deserves it.
News Source : www.motorsport.com
Gn sports
