Max Verstappen shows true colours after losing to Lando Norris at Miami Grand Prix
Max Verstappen took second place in Miami behind McLaren star Lando Norris.
Max Verstappen showed his true colours after the Miami Grand Prix by graciously accepting defeat to Lando Norris. Verstappen has been almost unbeatable since the start of last season but Red Bull didn't have the pace to catch the McLaren star, who finally broke his F1 duck after 110 races.
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Verstappen was once again the hot favourite going into the Miami Grand Prix weekend after picking up dominant wins in Japan and China. He proved his dominance on Saturday by comfortably winning the sprint race and qualifying on pole.
And while things were broadly going to plan for the Red Bull star in the early stages of the race, a clash between Logan Sargeant and Kevin Magnussen brought out a safety car midway through which allowed Norris, who hadn't pitted, to move from fourth to first.
From then on, the 24-year-old capitalised on McLaren's new upgrades package and opened up a staggering gap of almost eight seconds on Verstappen by the time he took the chequered flag.
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Rather than kick up a fuss, second-place Verstappen was happy to credit his rival and friend for getting off the mark with what is already proving to be a hugely popular victory among drivers and pundits alike.
"You win, you lose," the Dutchman told Sky Sports pundit Jenson Button during his post-race interview. "We're all used to that in racing. Today was just a bit tricky. It didn't feel fantastic on the medium [tyres]. We were pulling away but not like we should be.
"Once I made a pitstop and I heard the lap times McLaren were doing I was like, 'Wow, that's pretty quick'. Once they switched over to the hard tyres, they just had more pace - especially Lando. He was flying.
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"It was incredibly difficult for us but if a bad day is P2, I'll take it. And I'm very happy for Lando. It's been a long time coming and it's not going to be his last one so, yeah, he definitely deserves it today."
By prevailing in Miami, Norris became the first person since the start of last season to win a Grand Prix other than Ferrari's Carlos Sainz and Red Bull man Verstappen. Charles Leclerc took the final podium spot in Florida, with Sainz in fourth and Sergio Perez fifth.
Oscar Piastri may be congratulating his McLaren team-mate through gritted teeth, having raced in second place during the early stages of the Grand Prix before falling out of the points late on, having sustained damage in a collision with Sainz.
