Winner of the Miami Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri said that he had fully anticipated the aggressive approach of Max Verstappen during their duel at the top of the race. The McLaren driver, who left fourth on the grid, quickly found himself in the hunter position behind the Dutch after his teammate Lando Norris was forced to get out of the track in the first turn.
Propelled in second position after an overtaking on Antonelli, the Australian was quick to hire a mano a muscular mano with the Red Bull driver. From the first seconds of this battle, Piastri looked for the opening, putting pressure on the reigning champion.
It was ultimately in the 14th round that the opportunity arose. By trying to defend his position at the entrance to the first turn, Verstappen blocked his wheels and drawn straight, leaving the field free to Piastri to take control of the race – which he no longer dropped until the finish.
After missing the victory during the sprint on Saturday, the McLaren driver was satisfied with his success during the Grand Prix, believing that he had managed his duel with Victapn with lucidity and composure.
« I won the race that I really wanted to win “Said Piastri. “” Saturday was a difficult day. The sprint took place as planned, but the qualifications were probably one of the most difficult sessions of the year. Winning the victory on Sunday is a good result. There was a little stampede in the first turn, which helped me a little. I was vigilant enough to prevent Max from exceeding me in turn 1. From there, I knew that we had a good advantage in terms of rhythm and that the car was clearly incredible today. »
Piastri has dug a gap of several seconds in Norris before the latter managed to reduce the gap in the last laps, leaving the championship leader to recognize that he had work to do to flatten certain difficulties.
« The first relay was very solid, then the difficult relay, I honestly had a little trouble “He said. “” It was a good thing to have dug this gap during the first relay. Towards the end, I started to regain control a little. But there are still things to work after this afternoon. »
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