The Miami Grand Prix has revealed a notable change in the Formula 1 landscape after a five-week break. The race winner, Kimi Antonelli, maintains his superiority, but team updates have shaken the competitive order, with Red Bull standing out for the improvements implemented.
At the start of the 2026 season, Mercedes was the clear dominator, with an average qualifying advantage of 0.56 seconds and 0.53 seconds in race pace. However, in Miami, this margin narrowed to just 0.35 seconds in qualifying, and in the race, the German team surpassed McLaren by only 0.02 seconds per lap.
The reasons behind Mercedes’ decline
One of the factors is due to Mercedes’ reluctance to introduce a large number of updates, limiting itself to minor changes. While Ferrari incorporated 11 new components, Red Bull and McLaren presented seven updates each, showing a visible impact on the track. Mercedes, for its part, plans to make a more comprehensive update package for the next race in Canada.
The Miami track has not traditionally favored the Silver Arrows, who had not achieved a podium until last year. Their profitability has been 0.22s lower than the season average, a factor that has contributed to their lower competitiveness.
Searching for leadership: Red Bull and McLaren close in
Red Bull has marked the difference with an increase of 0.92s per lap compared to the early races of the season. Adjusting for the characteristics of the circuit, the real increase remains at 0.7s. McLaren has followed a similar trend, improving by 0.80s per lap, highlighting a clear improvement compared to Japan.
McLaren’s gains have been evident when comparing its race pace with the second stint in Japan, where its time was 0.51s closer to Mercedes in Miami.
Ferrari: An ineffective update package
Despite the 11 new features introduced, Ferrari has only managed a minimal improvement, with a deficit of 0.46s per lap, which translates to an improvement of just 0.07s compared to its previous profitability. With Miami considered a favorable circuit, the adjusted numbers indicate a decline of 0.18s per lap.
Movements in the midfield
In the mid-field, Williams has stood out with an increase of 0.8s per lap, scoring valuable points, although the net impact is approximately 0.23s once adjusted. Alpine, on the other hand, presented six new components with an increase of only 0.24s.
Development issues for Haas and Audi
These teams have been quite affected with only three joint updates. Haas has lost 0.45s per lap, while Audi has fallen back by 0.16s, equivalent to an impressive decrease of 0.91s when adjusted for the circuit characteristics.
With the constant change in championship dynamics, the upcoming races will be crucial to see if the update efforts translate into results on the track. Competition is becoming increasingly intense as teams prepare for a new challenge at the Canadian GP.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
SourceID: SRC_f1b88eda0225fedb9ec81ea5f4e113590e304db8