10 Storylines to Track Ahead of F1’s US Return at the Miami Grand Prix
From Kimi Antonelli’s title charge to Max Verstappen’s uncertain future, here’s what matters in F1’s return to Miami.
10 Storylines to Track Ahead of F1’s US Return Hearst Owned Formula 1’s extended Spring break will conclude with the fifth iteration of the Miami Grand Prix, the first of three planned visits to the US this year. After such an unusually lengthy recess Autoweek takes a look at some of the key things to track this weekend in Miami Can Antonelli sustain momentum? Kimi Antonelli joined an exclusive club in Japan by immediately following up his maiden victory with career win number two, and in the process became the youngest driver to sit atop the Drivers’ Championship.
Antonelli’s win came via a slice of fortune with the timing of the Safety Car, but his pace on used Medium tires was impressive, and doubly so his speed thereafter on the Hard compound—continuing a trend seen across the latter stages of 2025 as well. Antonelli captured the attention in Miami 12 months ago when he scored a surprise Sprint Race pole position, and while his Sprint Race and Grand Prix unraveled—albeit with some factors out of his control—it will surely give the Italian youngster further confidence that he can target a hat-trick. He heads into Miami nine points clear of Mercedes teammate George Russell in the standings.
NurPhoto What impact will the rule changes have? Formula 1 was never going to take an axe to its new regulations, and there is also caution of not overreacting to the data sample that has come from three grands prix. A reduction in recharge limits should ensure drivers do not have to undertake excessive harvesting during qualifying, while the deployment tweaks should also be a step in the right direction in terms of minimizing the excessive closing speeds.
But there remains the risk of unintended consequences, or of different venues providing different challenges. Back-to-back Sprint events at semi-permanent circuits in Miami and Montreal are followed by the always quirky Monaco, so it won’t be until Barcelona in mid-June when Formula 1’s 2026 regs are put through their paces at a regular event on a conventional circuit. Matters may also simply settle down as a consequence of teams and drivers gaining a greater understanding of the regulations.
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