Max Verstappen says the F1 Miami sprint race has offered clues that defending his lead against the McLarens in the grand prix will be difficult

Kimi Antonelli, who at 18 years old became F1’s youngest pole winner in history when he started first in Saturday’s sprint race, qualified third for Mercedes. It is the first time he qualified higher than teammate George Russell, who was fifth behind current F1 points leader Oscar Piastri of McLaren.

He kept chipping away, and when the checkered flag flew at the end of qualifying for the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix, Max Verstappen was where he has been so many times before over his storied career.