Russell won qualifying. Verstappen got pole.

Faster in two sectors out of three isn't enough when you lose four-tenths in the first five corners.

Max Verstappen took pole position in Miami by six-hundredths of a second. George Russell was faster than him through Turns 6 to 17. The mathematics don't add up until you look at Sector 1.

Key Finding

Russell was quicker than Verstappen through 67% of the lap and still started fifth.

Russell won two sectors. Verstappen won one.

RUS vs VER — sector-by-sector breakdown

The green bars show where Russell was quicker — Sectors 2 and 3. The red bar in S1 is the problem.

▲ RUS faster▼ VER faster

S1: -0.376s · S2: +0.072s · S3: +0.123s

Key Finding

Russell was quicker than Verstappen through 67% of the lap and still started fifth.

Verstappen posted a 28.2 through the opening sector. Russell managed a 28.6. That's 0.376 seconds lost before the chicane at Turn 6, which is where Russell started winning the lap back.

He clawed back seven-hundredths in Sector 2 and another twelfth in Sector 3. Final deficit: 0.065 seconds. He'll start fifth.

The speed trace shows where the time went

RUS (Lap 19) vs VER (Lap 17) — fastest laps compared

The blue line pulls ahead early — that's Verstappen through Turns 1 to 5. Russell never fully closes the gap.

RUS (Lap 19)VER (Lap 17)

Fastest laps: RUS Lap 19, VER Lap 17.

Key Finding

Russell was quicker than Verstappen through 67% of the lap and still started fifth.

Turns 1 through 5 at Miami are a sequence of medium-speed direction changes over bumpy asphalt in 41-degree track temperatures. The Red Bull carries more speed through that section than the Mercedes can manage without the rear stepping out.

Russell made up the difference everywhere else. It wasn't enough.

Key Finding

Russell was quicker than Verstappen through 67% of the lap and still started fifth.

Three red flags interrupted the session. Leclerc had a lap deleted for track limits at Turn 17. By the time the grid was set, the driver who'd been fastest through two-thirds of the circuit was nearly half a second down the road.

At Imola next week, there are fewer long corners and more hard braking zones. That might suit Russell. Or it might not matter if he loses another four-tenths in the first sector.

Alistair Drum

@@alistair_drum

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