World Cup leader Charles Leclerc recorded the fastest time: 1.31.098. George Russell (Mercedes) took second place, followed by Verstappen. The Dutchman conceded just under two tenths of a second to Leclerc, who drives a new engine in Miami.
Verstappen drove relatively few laps (14) and was also brought in early. Russell’s teammate Lewis Hamilton came in eighth. It was striking that the Mercedes, with quite a few new parts, suffered a lot less from the bouncing on the straights.
Leclerc’s companion Carlos Sainz set the sixth fastest time on the medium band. He had made a big push on the softest tyre, but kept his Ferrari out of the wall.