The Miami Formula 1 circuit was something that filled the drivers’ mouths with criticism on its debut last weekend, with them being particularly concerned about the tarmac and how narrow the second sector was. Race winner Max Verstappen already spoke harshly after qualifying and added more after the race.
“We can still improve the track in some places. The first sector was quite good, but it would be nice to make the second section a bit faster. The cars are so wide, long and heavy today that the chicane is quite tricky.”
“At the beginning the grip was better than expected, but during the race it got worse,” said Verstappen, who is calling for action to be taken for next season as he says new circuits such as Saudi Arabia have managed it better.
But to the others they also expressed their desire to see some improvements for 2023 , for example George Russell, who asks for a new asphalt: “They have to do something. On the one hand, there are safety problems and, on the other, the races are also pretty bad.”
McLaren driver Lando Norris agrees with his compatriot’s opinion: “Honestly, it’s a great track, but the tarmac is not at Formula 1 level.”
Over the weekend, Norris noted that the track was “tearing apart” so that it “literally turned into crap”.
“They should resurface the track with a product that we know works and gives us good grip and a better ride,” explained the Englishman. “We got here and everyone was expecting a great race, but with this tarmac it wasn’t possible, every time you went off the track you lost two seconds straight away.”
Fernando Alonso, however, was positively surprised by the level of grip in the race: “I think the appointment was better than we would have expected on Friday. However, the overtaking didn’t go very well, because I think the part between turn 11 and 16 is too slow for these cars.
In the “slowest drivers’ parade in history”, the Spaniard was able to gain an advantage heading into the race, noting that the outside of the first corner had “a lot of grip”, which he used his experience to come back from. two positions at the start.
