Miami Grand Prix FP1: Charles Leclerc fastest, Max Verstappen improved, Mercedes reliability woes
F1 NewsFriday, 01 May 2026 at 19:35
Charles Leclerc topped the only practice session for the 2026 Miami Grand Prix as Max Verstappen was second fastest while Mercedes had to deal with reliability issues.
Ferrari showed up for the 2026 Formula 1 season reboot with a fully revised SF-26 targeting Mercedes' lead and from what we have seen over the 90 minutes of running that they have done a decent job.
As a result, Leclerc posted the fastest lap time, 1:29.310, which was almost three tenths clear of Verstappen who was second fastest in the Red Bull RB22 that was sporting a major upgrade and a Macarena rear wing.
Oscar Piastri, in a heavily upgraded McLaren MCL40, was third fastest 0.448s off the pace of Ferrari as Lewis Hamilton was fourth fastest after a mistake on his flying lap, and ended up 0.019s behind the Australian.
Then came the Championship leader, Kimi Antonelli, who was fifth fastest in the un-upgraded Mercedes, 0.769s off the pace with his session ending a bit earlier as his team reported an issue with his power unit.
That was not the only issue Mercedes suffered during the session as Russell suffered from turbo noise all session long which was also reported by Carlos Sainz in the Mercedes-powered Williams.
Russell ended the session sixth fastest behind his teammate and ahead of reigning F1 Champion Lando Norris who was seventh fastest, 0.898s off the pace after his inability to put in a clean lap together.
Pierre Gasly was eighth fastest ahead of Isack Hadjar in ninth as Sainz completed the top ten.
Buildup towards FP1
With the end of April came the end of the imposed break caused by the cancellation of the 2026 Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix which could not take place due to the war in the Middle East.
As such, Formula 1 lands in Miami with anticipation of how the revised 2026 regulations may look like as they get implemented for the first time.
With this weekend being a Sprint format, FP1 will be the only practice session which meant the FIA extended it 90 minutes so teams and drivers have enough time to get used to the changes in the rules with tweaks to harvesting, deployment, superclipping, revised start procedure to avoid bogging down.
There have also been changes to wet weather situations in terms of the amount of energy deployed and the temperature of the wet tyre blankets which will get its first test on Sunday if the weather forecast of rain on Sunday turns out to be true.
On the other hand, the long April break meant that teams have had time to work on their 2026 packages and understand them well especially those chasing Mercedes like McLaren and Ferrari in an attempt to catch up.
Red Bull Racing also have a mountain to climb with their RB22 so let's see what they have come up with in terms of solutions while Aston Martin/Honda will be a team to watch as they try to fix their disastrous situation despite Honda warning not to expect much.
Mercedes should retain their edge despite changes to he rules, but let's wait and see how the situation behind them evolves.
Tyres and Car upgrades
In terms of tyres, Pirelli have their softest range in Miami with the C3 (Hard), C4 (Medium) and C5 (Soft) available for the teams and drivers.
Looking at car submissions, McLaren have really delivered a brand new MCL40 this weekend with new front suspension, new engine cover, new side inlet, new floor body, new cooling louvres, revised rear wing, and finally new rear suspension.
With Mercedes just bringing tweaks to their tailpipe and front brake drum, Red Bull Racing have a raft of changes on their RB22 with a new front wing, new front suspension, new engine cover, new sidepod inlet, new floor, new rear suspension and most interestingly a new rear wing which copied the Ferrari Macarena design.
Speaking of Ferrari, they also have a huge upgrade package on their SF-26 this weekend. They brought a new front wing endplate, new front suspension, new floor body and edge, new diffuser, new rear suspension, revised rear and beam wings, and a new rear wing endplate.
Alpine, Williams, Cadillac, and Racing Bulls all have major upgrades as well with Audi and Haas presenting minor changes for now
FP1 Session Highlights
The session started in clear and hot conditions as track temperatures were at 54 degrees Celsius while air temperature was 30 degrees.
Sainz was the first driver to hit the track for Williams followed by both Ferraris and the VCARB of Liam Lawson.
With every minute making a difference, soon all other drivers made their way out on track looking to check their car upgrades as well as the effect of rule changes.
With five minute gone, Mercedes and Aston Martin - both having virtually no upgrades remained in their garages. Alpine also took their time going out.
Soon, Hamilton had a rear lock that sent him off track.
Steady on, Lewis! 😮💨
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
Hamilton with an armful of oversteer early on in this session 💨#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/hp7eeBBV80
Soon after that, Gasly reported that it smelled "very strange" in his car. The team responded that they would look into it.
Russell then asked his team to check the turbo on his Mercedes reporting that it was making a lot of noises.
He then duly returned to the pits for a checkup and added: "It's making a noise a bit like a steam train. I don't know what it is or where it's coming from."
Meanwhile the action out on track continued to ramp up with drivers putting in their timed laps.
Checo's on a flyer in the Cadillac! 👀
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
The American team begin their first F1 session on home soil 😎🇺🇸#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/c5FLwDEnN4
With over 20 minutes gone from the session, Aston Martin finally made their way out on track with both Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll.
After a brief look into the #63 W17, Mercedes sent Russell back out on track for some more running. However, he soon locks up and not looking comfortable in the car and quite a bit off the pace of Antonelli.
Soon after we got the first view of the Red Bull version of the Macarena rear wing on the RB22.
The Red Bull Macarena wing in all its glory! 🤩💃🔃#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/f3GJo66dGl
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
Verstappen reported that he was not happy with the shifts on the gearbox of his RB22 saying they are "horrendous, up and down".
And it wasn't only Verstappen complaining about the shifts as Hadjar soon came on the radio complaining about the downshifts.
Antonelli had a snap in Turn 15 but managed to keep his Mercedes out of the barriers as he looked out of shape on that particular lap. Verstappen and Esteban Ocon soon after had off moments at Turn 14 but kept going.
Antonelli then complained about Stroll in the Aston Martin saying he was weaving in front of him.
"He was weaving in front of me" 🔀
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
Kimi Antonelli wasn't too impressed with this moment with an Aston Martin out on track 😢#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/FJdCNNSX4y
Then Sergio Perez radioed: "Tell Stroll to look into his mirrors."
Gabriel Bortoleto soon had a moment in Turn 1, messing up his braking and ending up in the run-off area. Arvid Lindblad also was out of shape there earlier after locking up. Valtteri Bottas also ran wide there after a major lockup.
Nico Hulkenberg soon fell prey to the same corner which also happened to Alex Albon.
Off goes Bortoleto at Turn 1 💨
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
He gets his Audi slowed, turned around and back out onto the track promptly 👇#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/Vur5U9zxTm
Piastri soon pitted after reporting he had smoke in the cockpit that smelled like brake smoke.
The Sainz reported over the team radio that his turbo - a Mercedes turbo - was making a lot of noise.
Norris had a moment with Albon who was in his way while the McLaren was on a hot lap that got ruined.
Leclerc, on the other hand, was already pushing hard getting very close to the barriers at the exit of Turn 16, but got away with it.
Here's your Top 5️⃣ with five minutes to go! 👇
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 1, 2026
Leclerc ⏱️ 1:29.443 🟣
Verstappen
Hamilton
Piastri
Antonelli#F1 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/NjGReagJ92
With four minutes remaining, Antonelli was already out of the car and chatting with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff.
But it was then revealed that there was an issue with the Italian's power unit.
Hamilton had a close call with an Audi and just managed to avoid but ran off and ruined his lap.
The session was concluded with practice starts.
Miami Grand Prix FP1 Classification
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