Max Verstappen won the inaugural Miami Grand Prix on Monday (Hong Kong time) after coming from behind to pip Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to the chequered flag and claim his third win of the season. The Red Bull driver also bagged fastest lap on the newest stop on the Formula 1 circuit, on a day when tyre issues and intense heat left all the drivers exhausted. Leclerc’s Ferrari teammate Carlos Saniz took third, just ahead of Red Bull’s Sergio Perez, with Mercedes’ George Russell rounding out the top five. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was sixth. Ferrari retained the lead in the constructors’ standings on 157 points to Red Bull’s 151. But it was a day to forget for China’s Zhou Guanyu, who lasted just six laps in his Alfa Romeo before having to retire from the race with a technical issue. There was better news for teammate Valtteri Bottas, who finished in the points in seventh place. Victory saw Verstappen slash Leclerc’s overall lead to 19 points after five races, and the Dutchman made the win happen with a crucial overtake on Sainz at the start to seize second place before then blasting past Leclerc on the ninth of the 57 laps. “It was an incredible grand prix,” said Verstappen, who has won every race he has finished so far this season and was handed his winner’s trophy by Dolphins NFL quarterback great Dan Marino. “[It was] very physical but I think we kept it exciting until the end.” Chequered flag! 🏁 @ValtteriBottas brings it home in P7 after a big battle of a race. Six more points for the team here in Miami! #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/zhk6O5kQdW — Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN (@alfaromeoorlen) May 8, 2022 Leclerc was right on Verstappen’s tail with five laps remaining, with the safety car bunching up the pack, after struggling with the medium tyres on his opening stint. “On the hard [tyres] we were very competitive and towards the end I thought I could get Max at one point but today they had the advantage in terms of pace,” Leclerc said. Further down the points, Alpine’s Esteban Ocon finished eighth in a stirring fightback after being unable to take part in Saturday’s qualifying because of a practice crash that forced the team to change his car’s chassis. Double world champion teammate Fernando Alonso was ninth and Alex Albon 10th for Williams. There was heartbreak for Mick Schumacher, who had been having his best race to date and looked like taking his first point in Formula One until he collided with Aston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel. Vettel and teammate Lance Stroll both started from the pit lane after a fuel temperature problem stopped them from going to the grid.