Winners and Losers from the 2022 Miami Grand Prix

By Joe Murphy

Another round in the books, and the standings remain as tasty as ever. Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc had yet another duel as they put on another two horse race, as the title swung back towards the favour of the reigning Dutch World Champion. There was more to this race, however, and many personnel will be delighted with how their race went. Others, not so much. So let’s get stuck into it…

Winner – Max Verstappen

The biggest winner from this weekend has to be the man who took a maximum points haul from the events in Florida. From when he took the lead in the opening laps, he looked to be coasting to a clear victory. The Safety Car (and we’ll get to that) meant he had to fight again for his win, but he did so successfully, despite an immense amount of pressure from the man from Monaco, behind him. Despite his relative youth, the Red Bull man yet again demonstrated his experience and kept a mature head to close the gap on top spot, to a mere nineteen points.

Loser – Mick Schumacher

From the biggest winner to the biggest loser, it was such a sad weekend for Mick Schumacher. He is now seemingly the new George Russell when it comes to races, as he can’t catch a break at present. He was running in the points for the majority of the race, and deservedly so. However, in a desperate move to remain in ninth, he sent his Haas into the side of an overtaking Sebastian Vettel and ruined both German’s races in the process. There are promising signs for Mick, who can take solace from the fact that he outdrove his veteran teammate across most of the weekend. However, he will be bitterly disappointed to have left his team’s home race empty handed. It was without question, his best chance to date. Here’s hoping that he breaks his duck sooner rather than later.

Winners – Mercedes

5th and 6th is about as good a finish as the Silver Arrows can expect this season. That being said, both drivers did excellently to bring home a decent haul of points. In a car that is at the level of say an Alpine or a McLaren, George Russell in particular took advantage of the Safety Car to yet again finish in the top five. He remains the only driver to have accomplished this feat every race so far this campaign. Despite not having the same strategy, Lewis Hamilton showed audiences of the United States that he still has ‘it’, with a solid drive. Despite not quite getting the rub of the green, it’s a positive result for Lewis, as it is for his younger British counterpart. Should the cars ahead encounter problems, the Mercedes pair look to be the ones who can capitalise most. I expect both to stand on the podium again before the season break in August.

Losers – McLaren

Had Lando Norris’ pit stop been half a second quicker, it might have been a completely different story. The cards didn’t really fall for the Orange team over much of the weekend. On Sunday, this was compounded when Lando encountered his first DNF of the season after a damaged Pierre Gasly clipped the young McLaren driver. Gasly himself was nursing his car after being tagged by Fernando Alonso just a lap prior. Across the garage, Daniel Ricciardo could only manage thirteenth in what was another disappointing race for the Australian. McLaren, it seems, appear to have taken a step backwards, as supposed to having closed the gap to the front runners.

Winner – Alex Albon

Another couple of points for Alex Albon and two more for Williams. Every point scored is precious, especially when fighting at the bottom of the table and the Constructor will be hugely grateful to the young Thai driver for effectively carrying the points scoring, with Canadian teammate well off the points positions. Whilst the car remains undoubtedly one of the slowest on the grid (if not the slowest), it’s positive to see Albon take advantage of the DNF’s and penalties of others to score something for his team.

Loser – Pierre Gasly

His afternoon was going rather well, but seemed to tank as soon as a Spaniard rammed into the back of him, for which the Veteran did receive a five-second penalty. However, it still has to be considered a poor weekend for Alpha Tauri and, more specifically, their more experienced driver. A weekend that promised so much could have delivered a decent handful of points. However, they have come away empty handed.

Winner – Valtteri Bottas

One mistake. That was the only thing Valtteri Bottas did wrong on Sunday. He qualified in an excellent position Saturday and held his own to be the first car behind the Red Bull and Ferrari pair. If two of them had come together, he would have been the one to take a podium. The Finn had built a gap to his former teammate but the aforementioned Safety Car scuppered his efforts. While ultimately he may have ended up in seventh, it is still a strong weekend for Bottas as his seamless transition to Alfa Romeo continues. He has never been so competitive against Lewis Hamilton and it’s great to see!

Winner – Estaban Ocon

Despite a crash early on in the weekend, a bonus, mini entry for Estaban Ocon who deserves recognition for his efforts that went somewhat under the radar in the fallout of this race. Yet another car to take advantage of the incident, the Alpine driver turned last place at lights out to a solid eighth by the chequered flag. Spain awaits next, and with all the focus scheduled to be on the hometown hero who happens to be his veteran teammate, the Frenchman needs to continue to hone his craft and keep his consistency. Something which has always been a strength of his.