- Max Verstappen took pole position at the Miami Grand Prix from Lando Norris
- The Dutchman bet his rival by 0.045 seconds on the week he became a father
- Lewis Hamilton was bounced out in Q2 and qualified a disappointing 12th
Max Verstappen is the daddy on and off the track. Having become a father for the first time a few days before, he took pole for the Miami Grand Prix.
The Dutchman arrived in Florida late after his girlfriend Kelly Piquet gave birth to baby Lily, but he put sentiment aside to pip McLaren’s Lando Norris by six-hundredths of a second.
‘Becoming a dad has not slowed me down,’ smiled Verstappen. ‘I never listened to these silly things. I just do my thing.
‘There have been enough drivers who have been champions after becoming dads. I don’t know where the idea comes from.’
Norris can take a positive out of yesterday after winning the sprint race earlier in the afternoon with the help of a timely safety car, which put him ahead of team-mate and championship leader Oscar Piastri.
And in qualifying for Sunday’s main event – for which rain is on the radar – Piastri was only fourth fastest, as he defends a nine-point advantage. Mercedes’ teenager Kimi Antonelli split the two McLarens.
Max Verstappen claimed pole at the Miami Grand Prix – the week he became a first-time father
He pipped his title rival – McLaren’s Lando Norris – to the top spot by just 0.065 seconds
Lewis Hamilton endured another nightmare session, qualifying P12 after being eliminated in Q2
Lewis Hamilton endured another depressing session. The seven-time world champion was eliminated in Q2 for the first time in his six-race Ferrari career, and will start 12th.
Verstappen had missed media duty on Thursday after welcoming his daughter Lily in Monaco, with Red Bull announcing his absence hours before he was supposed to appear.
There were concerns that the reigning world champion, who is hunting a fifth consecutive drivers’ title might even miss out on qualifying, but the 27-year-old touched down in Miami on a private jet on Friday afternoon.
Formula 1 posted a video of the 27-year-old arriving at the circuit on X, with the caption: ‘The paddock’s newest Dad has arrived!’
The F1 star announced the birth alongside an Instagram post, where he wrote: ‘Welcome to the world, sweet Lily. Our hearts are fuller than ever – you are our greatest gift. We love you so much.’
While Lily is Max’s first child, model Piquet, 36, already has a daughter, Penelope, born in 2019, from her previous relationship with Formula One driver Daniil Kvyat, 30.
Verstappen will join Nico Hulkenberg as the only drivers with children on the F1 grid.
Asked if he had any advice for Verstappen as a new parent, the Kick Sauber driver responded: ‘I hope it’s a good sleeper.’
Verstappen joins Nico Hulkenberg as the only drivers on the grid currently with children
Verstappen welcomed his first daughter Lily with girlfriend Kelly Piquet in Monaco
Announcing the birth of daughter Lily, Verstappen described his child as ‘our greatest gift’
Meanwhile, his rivals banished any suggestions that he will be any less competitive following his daughter’s birth.
Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton said: ‘I just wish him all the best. It’s such an amazing, special thing. I spoke to him briefly in Saudi and saw how excited he was. Big congrats to him.’
Hulkenberg added: ‘I feel once we step in the car – visor down, go out – even for me, I tend to forget what goes on outside because we’re just so focused and so driven to perform and maximise.
‘I just personally feel it’s added benefit because it’s giving me so much outside of work and outside of being in Formula 1. So I would even say it’s kind of been helpful for me, if anything.’