Max Verstappen's close ally surprised on radio after learning Kimi Antonelli bagging pole for Miami GP sprint

Max Verstappen finished fourth on the grid for the 2025 Miami Grand Prix sprint after a heated qualifying session on a warm Friday afternoon. The Red Bull Racing ace, who just became a father to daughter Lily, narrowly missed out on the pole to 18-year-old Kimi Antonelli, sparking a surprised reaction from his longtime race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase.

The Italian prodigy stunned the paddock with a 1:26.482 lap in SQ3, securing a sensational P1 start ahead of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Verstappen, despite a solid final effort, fell short by 0.255s and settled for P4. After the session, a surprised Lambiase radioed in:

"P4 Max, P4. That's two and a half tenths to Antonelli P1, then Piastri."

Run in temperatures around 120.2°F, the SQ1 in Miami sprint qualifying saw Max Verstappen set an early benchmark of 1:27.953, but that was quickly beaten by Norris and Antonelli. As the pit lane became congested in the dying moments, several drivers failed to cross the line in time. Bearman, Bortoleto, Tsunoda, Doohan, and Stroll were all eliminated.

Verstappen bounced back in SQ2 with a 1:27.245, briefly regaining the top spot before being pipped by Norris. Pierre Gasly clipped the wall but carried on without damage, while Carlos Sainz had his lap time deleted for track limits, eliminating him alongside Lawson, Gasly, Ocon, and Hülkenberg.

In the final segment (SQ3) Max laid down a strong opening lap of 1:27.070, but George Russell immediately bettered him with a 1:26.791. Verstappen improved to 1:26.737 on his final run, but Antonelli pulled out a stunner to go over two-tenths clear. Norris and Piastri also tried to snatch the pole but couldn't match the young Mercedes driver.

Speaking after the session, Max Verstappen acknowledged the issues that cost him lap time:

"I think what we also did in Q3 was good. The tyres holding on quite well, but fortunately, already from FP1... just struggling with a lot of understeer in the car and around here with all these low speed corners, you just lose quite a bit of lap time."

He also discussed the struggles he faced between corners 11 and 16 which slowed him down:

"I think you can see in the first sector we're quite competitive because that's where a few high speed corners are. But as soon as you get to the low speed, we just lack quite a bit of grip... P4 is all right... Of course, not where I want to be, but you also need to be realistic with the limitations that we have at the moment."

Earlier in the day, Max Verstappen was third fastest in the sole practice session at Miami, posing the best lap time of 1:27:558, slower than his sprint qualifying runs. The Dutchman remains hopeful but realistic about Saturday's race, especially with soaring temperatures likely to influence tire performance across the 19-lap sprint.

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Max Verstappen summoned by stewards after alleged rule breach in sprint qualifying

Max Verstappen ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Miami Practice. Source: Getty

Moments after the sprint qualification, Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing were summoned by the FIA stewards for not complying with the race director's instructions during SQ1. As per the official document, the incident reportedly involved a suspected breach of Article 33.4 of the FIA Sporting Regulations and Article 12.2.1 (i) of the International Sporting Code—relating to non-compliance with the Race Director’s Event Notes (Item 1, Document 10).

If proven, the infraction could carry significant sporting consequences for Verstappen. The Red Bull #1 driver was found slowing down on the racing line just as Lance Stroll approached the final hairpin at the end of a flying lap. This forced the Aston Martin driver to swerve inside and brake late in the final sector. Stroll described it as "dangerous" on team radio.

The block cost Stroll valuable time, with just a tenth separating him from a spot in SQ2. Stroll, who was eliminated in 16th, didn't mince his words while speaking to F1TV (via Motorsport):

"So, Verstappen just completely in the middle of the track in the last corner. I had to brake on the inside of the track. We lost like three or four-tenths just there… I hope they investigate it because if we can just all do that and drive on the line, it's not so fun for the guys on push laps."

The stewards' summons cited Max Verstappen for allegedly driving "unnecessarily slowly" and particularly race director's instructions about track positioning in qualifying laps and not impeding other cars. As of now, no further penalty has been confirmed.

The sprint race is scheduled for Saturday (May 3) from 12:00 to 12:30 local time.