Piastri completes hat trick of wins to stretch F1 lead

MIAMI – Oscar Piastri won the Miami Grand Prix in an utterly dominant McLaren one-two on May 4 to complete a hat-trick and stretch his Formula One championship lead over teammate Lando Norris to 16 points after six rounds.

The win from fourth on the grid was the Australian’s third in a row, after Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, and fourth of the season. McLaren have so far been beaten only once, in Japan. Briton George Russell finished third for Mercedes, but a lengthy 37.644 seconds behind.

“Two years ago, at Miami, we were the slowest team. I think we were lapped twice. Now to have won the Grand Prix by over 35 seconds to third is an unbelievable result,” said Piastri after another flawless drive.

Red Bull’s world champion Max Verstappen was fourth, overtaken by both McLarens and maintaining a sequence dating back to the race’s debut in 2022 of the driver starting on pole position in Miami failing to win.

Alexander Albon of Thailand was fifth for Williams, ahead of Italy’s Kimi Antonelli in a Mercedes and the Ferrari pair of Charles Leclerc of Monaco and Briton Lewis Hamilton. Spain’s Carlos Sainz made it a double points finish for Williams in ninth and Red Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda of Japan was 10th despite a five-second penalty.

The start provided an immediate talking point with Norris challenging Verstappen for the lead but then having to go off after making contact at Turn 2 and losing three places, with Antonelli second and Piastri third.

“He forced me off. What am I meant to do? Just drive into the wall or something? I was completely alongside,” said Norris over the team radio. Stewards took a look and decided no further action was needed.

“Max put up a good fight as always and I