The one and only FP session at the 2025 F1 Miami GP saw championship leader Oscar Piastri top the time sheets. The Australian finished a dominant 0.356s ahead of Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, while Max Verstappen rounded out the top three for Red Bull.
FP as it unfolded at the 2025 F1 Miami GP
Championship leader Piastri kicked off FP1 at the Miami International Autodrome. Teammate Lando Norris followed him in tow. The rest of the grid made their way onto the track to get crucial running in, ahead of sprint qualifying.
While Piastri set a steady 1:30.059, Norris radioed of something loose in his McLaren. He quickly retreated to the pits. In an unlikely scenario, he retrieved tools left in his McLaren, returning them to the pit crew before setting off on his practice runs. However, he was noted for his McLaren being in an ‘unsafe condition’ by the stewards.
The 2024 Miami winner then had a near-miss with Haas’ Esteban Ocon later in the session, on the run down to turn 17.
Numerous contenders challenged Piastri’s time early on, including reigning champion Max Verstappen and George Russell. The latter complained of heavy steering and the car “feeling so different” despite being at the top. He also experienced a sideways drift in the narrow turns 14/15 chicane, keeping his Mercedes within track limits.
Several drivers were experiencing lock-ups through the left-hander turn 17. This included championship leader Piastri, Alpine’s Jack Doohan, and Verstappen’s teammate Yuki Tsunoda.
On the contrary, both Williams drivers looked increasingly comfortable with their machine. Carlos Sainz had set a lap good enough to go second, 0.253s behind Russell. Albon placed comfortably in the top four, a strong sign ahead of the weekend.
While the grid looked to build strong pace on the medium tyres, the duo of pink Racing Bulls ran the hard tyre. Isack Hadjar continually found pace, sitting in the top ten at the halfway mark.
Meanwhile, the Ferrari duo of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton spent a chunk of the session in the garage. Although they were over eight-tenths of a second down on Russell, some changes to the rear of the car helped improve both drivers’ positions on the road.
With 15 minutes to go, drivers swapped their mediums for softs, turning up the heat as the clock ticked down. While Nico Hulkenberg and Fernando Alonso were the first to set quick laps, the big hitters soon followed suit.
Finally, it was Piastri and Leclerc who eventually set the quickest times on soft tyres, boding well for qualifying ahead. Verstappen and Sainz made it four different teams in the top four.
However, the fast runs were interrupted by a late off into the barriers at turn 12 by Oliver Bearman’s Haas. The rookie went slightly wide into turn 11, before taking too much kerb into the ensuing right hander. The resultant oversteer spun him around, sending him into the barriers.
The resultant red flag brought FP1 at Miami to an early end, with four minutes left on the clock. Accordingly, this impacted the qualifying spec laps of some drivers, such as Norris and Hamilton, who were down in 12th and 13th on the road.
Final classification – FP1 in Miami
- Oscar Piastri (McLaren)
- Charles Leclerc (Scuderia Ferrari)
- Max Verstappen (Red Bull)
- Carlos Sainz (Williams)
- Alex Albon (Williams)
- Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls)
- George Russell (Mercedes)
- Yuki Tsunoda (Red Bull)
- Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes)
- Fernando Alonso (Aston Martin)
- Liam Lawson (Racing Bulls)
- Lando Norris (McLaren)
- Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari)
- Nico Hulkenberg (KICK Sauber)
- Gabriel Bortoleto (KICK Sauber)
- Oliver Bearman (Haas)
- Pierre Gasly (Alpine)
- Esteban Ocon (Haas)
- Jack Doohan (Alpine)
- Lance Stroll (Aston Martin)
