Russell delighted with P5 after having lacked pace on a single lap

F1 Grand Prix, GP Miami, Miami

Having slightly lacked pace compared to his young team-mate Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes driver George Russell was left to rue his ability to keep his front tyres in the right temperature window over a single lap.

Having become the 14th Italian to set the fastest lap in a grid-deciding session, Andrea Kimi Antonelli endured a slow getaway from the grid, having suffered some wheelspin. As a result, he found Oscar Piastri alongside, and he slightly ran off the track, and dropped to fourth.

He then collided with Max Verstappen, and although he was able to continue, he was left without any points in the sprint. He then displayed a strong performance in the main qualifying session to wound up third, 0.002s off the front row.

His team-mate George Russell stayed out of trouble to finish fifth in the Miami F1 Sprint, but he slightly struggled in qualifying, ending up fifth after complaining about grip at the front axle of his W16.

The Briton commented: "Qualifying has been a strength of mine since the beginning of the season, but it has not clicked for me either yesterday or today.

"I am therefore relatively happy to take P5 on the grid for tomorrow’s race because we know how tight the field is. To end up just under two tenths from pole is a bit of a surprise given the confidence I’ve been lacking on the single lap.

"The car is obviously quick as Kimi did another great job in Qualifying. I am really proud of how he has performed; he has been consistent, and we’ve got another chance to score some solid points for the team tomorrow."

Despite his relative lack of pace over a single hot lap, Russell has been left hopeful that he will be able to perform better in the main race on Sunday.

"We will reset tonight, and I’ll make sure I am performing at my best tomorrow. The Sprint was a little disappointing as we finished only one place ahead of where we started by virtue of a time penalty. We should have perhaps made the call to go to slicks earlier and we could have gained a couple more positions.

"That said, the Grand Prix is where the big points are scored. It may be mixed weather conditions again and we will be ready to take advantage of any opportunities that come our way."