Formula One showed it could put on a spectacular show, but if the racing action does not match the hype, it will soon be a turn-off for most old and new fans. Red Bull has won 22 of the 27 races since the start of last season
There was plenty of glitz and glamour off-track at the 2023 Miami Grand Prix. However, the on-track action failed to live up to the pre-race build-up, leaving many teams with little reason to celebrate. That is apart from the Red Bull team, who continued their clean sweep of victories in 2023.
Whilst many headlines will focus on the brilliance of Max Verstappen as the World Champion overcame a disappointing qualifying to surge from 9th on the grid to a 3rd victory in 5 races so far this season, the bigger question for Formula One overall is this: What is happening with Red Bull’s rivals?
As Red Bull have continued from where they finished in 2022 by dominating every race so far in 2023, their main rivals over recent years, Mercedes and Ferrari, are currently further behind than before.
Ferrari, in particular, had a dismal Miami Grand Prix weekend. The Scuderia’s wows started in qualifying when Charles Leclercd, their main contender to challenge for pole position, crashed on his final lap, which consigned him to a lowly 7th on the grid. It was another mistake from Leclerc that adds to the growing reputation he is gaining of ‘either win it or bin it.’ This means he is super quick and talented, and when he gets it right, he can beat Verstappen and Red Bull. Unfortunately, however, he often pushes the limits too far and ends up crashing. This has been evidenced many times in his career, notably in qualifying at the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix and last season when leading the French Grand Prix.
Despite the qualifying mistake, the expectation was that Leclerc would climb through the field from 7th place and possibly grab a podium place in the race. However, that never materialised as Leclerc had a very subdued race where he struggled to get past and then pull away from the Haas of Kevin Magnussen in the early stages, and disappointingly finished in 7th place where he started.
Of equal concern to Ferrari was Leclerc’s teammate Carlos Sainz also failed to make any progress during the race. Sainz had a decent qualifying and started in 3rd place; however, the Spaniard fell backward during the race ending up in 5th place as he was easily passed and beaten by Fernando Alonso and George Russell.
Miami continued a growing trend for Ferrari of having great one-lap qualifying pace but being unable to maintain this in race conditions where they fall down the field.
Mercedes, meanwhile, seem to have the complete opposite problem, where they struggle during qualifying, meaning that most races become a damage limitation exercise. But, as in Miami, they seem better on race day. Lewis Hamilton, in particular, suffered a dreadful Saturday by qualifying in 13th place. George Russell faired a little better. He took advantage of the mistakes and misfortunes of others by quite fortuitously qualifying in 6th on the grid.
Going into the race and based on the pace shown over the weekend, Mercedes’s expectations were low. However, the car and both drivers came alive in the race. George Russell made steady progress from 6th on the grid to 4th, easily passing and beating Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz. Lewis Hamilton’s race was even more impressive as he battled through the field to finish in 6th place, gaining an impressive seven spots from his starting position. Hamilton even overtook Leclerc in the closing stages, who had started six places ahead.
Despite the race day improvement and positivity, Mercedes are not in Formula One to finish 4th and 6th, and over 30 seconds off the lead. The team have promised that a significant car upgrade is coming for the next race at Imola, and the hope for their fans is this upgrade is the start of the team being back to challenging for wins very soon.
Formula One’s significant rule change at the end of 2021 was intended to make the grid more competitive and allow multiple teams to challenge for victories. However, so far, it has had the opposite effect.
The astonishing fact is that Red Bull has won 22 of the 27 races since the start of last season. There seems to be very little chance of this form changing in the immediate future. In Miami, Formula One showed it could put on a spectacular show, but if the racing action does not match the hype, it will soon be a turn-off for most old and new fans.
