Two Mercedes lead the opening practice as Miami hosts the Grand Prix
George Russell and Lewis Hamilton topped the first practice session in Miami, the fifth round of the 2023 calendar. Russell briefly faced a lengthy delay due to a technical issue, yet his best lap stood at 1.30.125, narrowly quicker than teammate Hamilton by two-tenths.
As soon as Russell hit the track, he alerted the pit wall, saying, “I have vibrations. Can you adjust the settings for me?” The team replied with a negative, and he pressed for possible adjustments, asking, “Even if you spare half an hour?” After returning to the garage, it became clear the issue was tire-related, and engineers began work replacing the steering box on the W14.
Meanwhile, Hamilton secured the second-fastest time, keeping pace with the early pace-setters despite trailing World Championship leader Max Verstappen, who set the early benchmark after starting ahead on the Hard Rock circuit. Red Bull appeared strong on the first laps of the session.
Ferrari introduced a suite of aerodynamic updates, including a revised flat underside and a new version of the single-column wing, during the Miami test. Marc Gené confirmed that a back-up development item was fitted to Charles Leclerc’s car in the opening session to compare it with the previous configuration, while Carlos Sainz prepared to test the Scuderia’s major innovation in the afternoon batch.
Hülkenberg’s accident and red flag
Max Verstappen improved his time by running the soft Pirelli tires for the first time, registering 1.31.054, before Nico Hülkenberg crashed at high speed into Turn 3, causing a heavy impact on the Haas and triggering the weekend’s first red flag with about 25 minutes remaining.
RED FLAG CAUSED BY HÜLKENBERG!
Hülkenberg crashes into the wall. The Miami asphalt showed its unpredictable nature as the session paused. The moment was shared across social media with reactions from fans and commentators alike. DAZN Spain captured the event live on May 5, 2023.
The session continued with 15 minutes left, and two Red Bulls led the way again, closely followed by Ferraris and Sainz and Leclerc pressing for strong finishes. Fernando Alonso arrived in Florida with Aston Martin, bringing some new ideas and improvements that could pay dividends in the heat of the track conditions, where temperatures rose and degradation increased.
As the morning progressed, Russell and Hamilton rode the pace early, while Leclerc and Verstappen stayed close in the field. Sainz completed the top five, and Alonso finished the morning in seventh, just over a second behind the leaders.
Forecasts for Sunday suggested a 60% chance of rain, but the session ended in warm, dry conditions. The teams and fans awaited FP2, with live coverage available on the SPORT website and the DAZN platform, scheduled to begin at 23:30 local time in Spain and offering a detailed view of the evolving weekend dynamics.