Hard tyre stint 'made the difference' for Verstappen
Max Verstappen acknowledged that Red Bull's decision to start him on a set of hard tyres for a long first stint in the Miami Grand Prix had made a big difference to his prospects of victory.
Verstappen had been caught out in the final round of qualifying by a red flag for Charles Leclerc hitting the barrier. It meant Verstappen hadn't had a chance to set a time in Q3.
It left him starting the race from ninth on the grid, while his team mate Sergio Perez was on pole position alongside Fernando Alonso on the front row.
With the weather a concern after overnight rain, the team chose medium tyres for Perez to ensure he kept the lead of the race at the start and had the best chance of using clear air at the front to pull out a big lead.
Verstappen meanwhile was allotted the more durable hard compound to allow him to work his way through traffic, with the pair then switching compounds for their latter stints.
“We didn’t know what the weather would do,” Verstappen pointed out. "But we were quite confident that this [strategy] would pay off, and luckily it did today.”
The tyre choice worked to perfection for Verstappen, who dismissed the cars ahead with clinical efficiency and was up to second place by the time Perez made his pit stop on lap 20.
“It was a good race,” Verstappen told the media in parc ferme after the chequered flag. “I stayed out of trouble at the beginning and then just had a clean race, picked the cars off one by one.”
But while Perez had kept the lead, he wasn't able to pull away at the front. Verstappen was then able to extend his run on his original tyres, and Perez was barely able to match him even on a set that was 20 laps younger.
“I could stay out really long on the hard tyres and that’s where we I think made the difference today,” Verstappen confirmed. When he did pit, he came back out behind Perez but instantly retook control of the race.
“Yesterday was of course a bit of a setback,” he said. “But today we just kept it calm, kept it clean and for sure winning a race from P9 is always very satisfying.
“[It was] a good little battle with Checo at the end. We all kept it clean, that’s most important, and a great win today."
Team principal Christian Horner rejected suggestions that Red Bull had favoured Perez with the strategy call despite the pair being closely matched in the drivers championship.
"The highest probable points score was actually for Max to start on the on the mediums," Horner told Sky Sports F1. "You can see that the data was coming up with the same answers.
"To be honest with you today, I think with the pace he had, it wouldn't have mattered if Max had started on the soft, the medium or the hard tyre," he added. "But it made it an interesting race.
"He had to manage that tyre early on, but his pace - as it has been all weekend - has just been outstanding."
The gap between Verstappen and Perez in the title fight is back up to 14 points after Miami, with Verstappen having also picked up the bonus lap for fastest lap in the closing moments.
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