Miami Grand Prix: Checo Takes Pole as Hamilton Has ‘One Of Those Days’

Mercedes fell short of expectations while Perez nabbed pole position.

The Miami Grand Prix is slated for Sunday, and racers took part in qualifying on Saturday ahead of the event.

Mercedes’s Lewis Hamilton left the track disappointed after a poor run during qualification landed him in the 13th position.

“It was one of those days,” said Hamilton, via Formula1.com. “You know, not the best, I was hoping there was a couple of moments where the car was feeling half-decent and I thought that maybe I would be able to get into Q3. But at the end there I went out, they put me out behind seven cars, or something like that, so when I got to the last corner I was like the last of the group. [I] had to back up and lost all my temperature in the tires, so when I started the lap I just had no grip.” 

Hamilton’s teammate for Mercedes, George Russell, qualified 10th for the race. It’s the first time in Hamilton's esteemed career he’ll be starting outside of the top six in a race in the USA. Heading into the Miami GP on Sunday, Hamilton is ranked fourth in the F1 standings. 

While Mercedes’s qualification wasn’t up to standards, Red Bull was delighted to see Sergio Perez take the pole position. 

POOOOOOOOLLLLLEEE!! 💪💪 Checo is on Pole Position for the #MiamiGP 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/5ejAFntFba

— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) May 6, 2023

Perez took control of pole position after registering a Q3 time of 1:26:841. Red Bull teammate Max Verstappen, the reigning F1 season champion, will start in ninth. 

The race will get underway at 3:30 p.m. EST on Sunday, May 7, 2023.