16:23
Williams paying tribute to Zanardi on its car today.
All teams are carrying messages to the late racer.
Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, 2026 Miami F1
© XPB Images
F1 Miami LIVE: Antonelli snatches pole in tight grand prix qualifying
Live text coverage of Saturday's sprint and main qualifying action from the 2026 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix
Key Moments
- Antonelli takes pole
- Antonelli tops Q1, Verstappen fastest in Q2
- Hulkenberg, Lawson, Haas, Williams out in Q2
- Lindblad, Aston, Cadillac, Bortoleto out in Q1
The 2026 Formula 1 season resumes this weekend, as the series makes its first of three visits to the United States of America, beginning with the Miami Grand Prix.
A recent addition to the calendar, the circuit around the Miami Dolphins' NFL stadium marks the fourth round of the 2026 season and the first race in five weeks.
The war in Iran forced F1 to cancel the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, meaning no racing took place in April. However, this offered the 11 teams plenty of time to work on car development.
More significantly, this weekend's Miami Grand Prix sees the debut of new engine regulations aimed at improving the qualifying spectacle, as well as safety, following the scary shunt for Ollie Bearman at the Japanese Grand Prix.
Reigning world champion Lando Norris will started on pole for today's sprint, having topped a tight sprint qualifying on Friday evening in Miami, and went on to take a dominant win.
The vastly updated McLaren appears to be working well this weekend so far, with Oscar Piastri third after a scrappy lap in the sister car.
Mercedes looks to be on the back foot, as it elected against any major updates ahead of a significant package of upgrades for the Canadian Grand Prix in a few weeks.
Championship leader Andrea Kimi Antonelli was second on the grid in sprint qualifying, while team-mate George Russell was sixth. They finished fourth and fifth on the road, but Antonelli was dropped to sixth because of a track limits penalty.
Ferrari's updated car looked like it was delivering across Friday, but Charles Leclerc only came away with a best of fourth in sprint qualifying, which he converted to third in the sprint.
Max Verstappen was much happier with his Red Bull after Friday, claiming that he can "trust" it more than in the opening three rounds.
Qualifying for the grand prix concludes Saturday's track action.
2026 F1 Miami Grand Prix: Saturday schedule
Sprint - 5pm BST
Qualifying - 9pm BST
02 May 2026
16:27
F1 Miami timetable changes to be discussed amid thunderstorm threat
Due to threats of thunderstorms on Sunday, a meeting will be held after F1 qualifying to discuss possible schedule changes.
F1 Miami timetable changes to be discussed amid thunderstorm threat
Sunday's Miami GP is at risk of being affected by thunderstorms
16:15
Penalty - Arvid Lindblad
Racing Bulls driver Arvid Lindblad will start the sprint from pitlane for a parc ferme violation.
Lindblad has impressed in his early F1 races
16:09
Ex-F1 driver and Paralympic gold medalist Alex Zanardi has died
Before we go any further with today's action, we got the news this morning that former F1 driver, two-time CART champion and Paralympic gold medal winner Alex Zanardi passed away suddenly on 1 May.
Zanardi suffered life-changing injuries in a CART crash in 2001, but continued car racing afterwards and took up handcycling too.
He was an inspirational figure in the world of motorsport and parasports.
Crash.net sends its condolences to Zanardi's family.
Ex-F1 driver and Paralympic gold medalist Alex Zanardi has died
Alex Zanardi, pictured in 2015, has died at the age of 59
© XPB Images
16:05
McLaren “didn’t luck into” Miami F1 sprint qualifying pole, but Mercedes warning issued
McLaren has a vastly updated car in Miami, which seems to be delivering the goods.
Oscar Piastri backed the pace seen by the McLarens, but did issue a warning about Mercedes still coming into today as the favourite.
Oscar Piastri, McLaren, 2026 Miami F1
© XPB Images
16:02
Lando Norris starts from pole position, marking the first non-Mercedes pole of the 2026 season.
That said, it's still a Mercedes power unit leading the way!
16:01
Miami F1 sprint build-up
Good afternoon and welcome to our live coverage of the 2026 Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix.
We are sprinting in just under an hour. Who's excited?