After a first day of free practice, Ferrari is in ideal conditions in Miami. Mercedes has taken center stage with a George Russell, thanks to a W13 “reinvigorated” by the modifications, so the pressure right now is not on Charles Leclerc, who was second behind the silver arrow by just 106 thousandths.
However, the team from Maranello does not care so much about the times, but about the preparation work for a weekend on a very difficult and treacherous track. The Monegasque is pleased to have completed the work program that the team had drawn up, while his rival for the title Max Verstappen did not manage to complete a full session.
“I would say it was a positive day,” Leclerc introduced. “We concentrated on finding our rhythm little by little and we learned a lot about the characteristics of this new circuit. It is certainly a challenge, but driving it is very nice, my favorite part is the one that goes from turn 11 to 16, in the second section”.
“As far as we are concerned, we were able to complete the program by taking all the tests that we had planned. It seems that all the drivers are very close to each other and therefore I would say that the conditions are in place for an interesting weekend.”
Being a completely new track, there are no statistics so far. This means that the first driver to cross the finish line will become, for the first time, the historic winner of an event that promises to stay on the calendar for at least a decade.
“The tarmac will give a lot of spectacle too,” admitted Charles Leclerc. “There is a lot of grip on the ideal line and very little on the outside, and that makes overtaking quite difficult. This circuit is also very aggressive with the tires, and I think that careful management during the race can make the difference,” concluded the Monegasque.
