Lewis Hamilton claims he made the opportune tire call to secure a podium in the F1 Miami GP sprint

Lewis Hamilton has revealed that he made the call to switch to slick tires during the F1 Miami GP sprint in a move that propelled him to a podium. The sprint was as chaotic as interesting as it started under intermediate conditions. With the sprint not having as many laps as a normal race, it would not have been an easy call for any driver to pit and change tires early and risk losing positions.

During the race, Hamilton was struggling in the traction zones as his Ferrari just didn't have the pace to compete with the cars upfront. Not only that, the driver was being harried by Alex Albon's Williams, who was lining up the Brit for a move. The driver ultimately found himself in a position where a gamble on slick tires appeared to be the right call.

This was exactly what Lewis Hamilton did as he jumped into the pits. With Max Verstappen getting involved in the pits with the Mercedes of Kimi Antonelli, the Ferrari driver was able to capitalize and jump up the grid, even overtaking the limping Red Bull on the way.

Talking about the switch in the post-race interview, Lewis Hamilton revealed he was the one who made the call. He said,:

"I’m so happy with that! It’s been a tough year so far, but to have… I never thought it was going to rain in Miami. It was the first time that we’ve all been on track in the wet here, and what a race it provided us."

"I really, really did struggle on the inters. I think everyone was struggling on them. I made that call at the end, I was like, I’m coming in because I was going nowhere, so take the risk, take the gamble, and it paid off. I wish we had another couple of laps to give these guys a bit of a fight. But big congrats to McLaren as always," Lewis Hamilton added.

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Lewis Hamilton's fellow Brit Lando Norris wins the sprint

Lewis Hamilton's fellow Brit, Lando Norris, made the most of the late race safety car to jump into the pits and secure the win. Norris was right behind teammate and race leader Oscar Piastri before the switchover moment, but had to wait another lap because the team couldn't double stack.

However, with the safety car coming out at the perfect time, Lando could pit and come out in the lead still. The driver admitted after the race that he got lucky, as he said:

"My luck in Miami seems pretty good at the minute, so I’m happy. The pace was still very good. It’s always just difficult these races. You never know when to box. You box early, it paid off for Lewis and he had a good strategy. Or do you stay out later and maybe get the safety car."

He added:

"It’s worked two years in a row. I probably would prefer if this happened tomorrow rather than today, but I’ll take it. I’m happy. Good job by the team. It was good fun."

The results are certainly a boost for both drivers, and it would be interesting to see how they approach qualifying.