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The Live Sport Bible is here!Lawson escapes punishment as points stripped in F1 Miami drama
SEN • May 4th, 2026 10:56 am
Liam Lawson at the Miami Grand Prix | Photo: Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
Oscar Piastri concedes “not much has changed” and “more needs to be done” regarding changes to F1 rules after pulling off a dramatic podium finish in Miami.
It was a rollercoaster weekend for the McLarens, who were presented with a totally new car after a five-week hiatus from racing, but both drivers were frustrated by missed opportunities.
A one-two in the sprint race set the scene for a weekend of dominance but the Australian struggled in qualifying and was lucky to get out of Q1, clocking the 16th fastest time by just 0.2 of a second.
Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen | Photo: Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
He went on to secure seventh on the grid for the Grand Prix and thanks to an overtake opportunity on the penultimate lap, he finished third behind teammate Lando Norris and race winner Kimi Antonelli.
“It’s not been the most straightforward of weekends. Qualifying yesterday was a bit messy for both of us,” Piastri said afterwards.
“The pace seemed more encouraging today. Had to make a few overtakes, the end of the race was a pretty late charge. Very tricky around here in these conditions.
“Reducing the harvest in qualifying has helped a bit. It’s not fixed all the problems but it’s helping.
“The races are exactly the same. Today was my first proper experience of overtaking people and having to defend… it’s pretty crazy, to be honest.
“It’s a bit random, all the closing speeds are huge. Trying to anticipate that as the defending driver is incredibly tough to do.
“I wasn’t that pleased with one the moves George did but I found myself almost doing the same move five laps later, just because the closing speed is enormous.
“From that side of things, not much has changed. Some changes in the future are still needed for sure.”
There was post-race drama as Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc were hit with penalties.
The Ferrari driver - who was cited for three separate incidents over the course of the race - hit the wall on the final lap and was deemed to have driven in an unsafe manner.
A run-in with George Russell on the final lap was enough to land him a 20-second penalty that dropped his final position from sixth to eighth and stripped him of four championship points.
"The fact that he had a mechanical issue of some sort did not amount to a justifiable reason. We accordingly impose a Drive Through penalty on Car 16, given the number of times the car left the track and gained an advantage," said the stewards' report.
Meanwhile, Verstappen copped a five-second penalty for a pit exit breach but thanks to the sanction on Leclerc, it did not impact the four-time world champions' final position of fifth.
New Zealand's Liam Lawson will not face a grid-drop in next month's Canadian Grand Prix as he was cleared of wrongdoing as part of a lengthy meeting and post-race investigation by the stewards.
While Lawson accepted responsibility for the accident with Alpine's Pierre Gasly, on lap 8, it was found the crash was caused due to a failure of Lawson's gearbox. This subsequently left him unable to avoid the contact at turn 17.
Antonelli’s win is the young Italian’s third in a row and earned him a little spot of history becoming only the third driver to earn his first three victories in the sport in consecutive races alongside Damon Hill and Mika Hakkinen.
The 19-year-old is now 20 points clear at the top of the deriver standings ahead of Mercedes teammate George Russell who finished fourth in Miami.
"This is just the beginning. The road is still long. We are working super hard and the team is doing an incredible job," Antonelli said.
TOP 10
Kimi Antonelli / Mercedes, 2. Lando Norris / McLaren, 3. Oscar Piastri / McLaren, 4. George Russell / Mercedes, Max Verstappen, Red Bull
- Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari
- Franco Colapinto, Alpine
- Charles Leclerc, Ferrari
- Carlos Sainz, Williams
- Alex Albon, Williams
- additional reporting by Sport Nation
