Carlos Sainz has criticised Max Verstappen’s aggressive first-lap overtaking at the Miami Grand Prix, calling the Red Bull driver’s move on him “borderline” after Verstappen recovered from an opening-lap spin to charge through the midfield.
Verstappen spun at Turn 2 on the first lap, then immediately set about making up positions with a forceful dive up the inside of Sainz into Turn 17. The move pushed Sainz wide and prompted a sharp radio message from the Williams driver: “He pushed me off. He thinks he can whatever he wants just because he’s racing the midfield.”
Verstappen went on to finish fifth, while Sainz brought his Williams home in the points alongside team-mate Alex Albon in a double-points finish for the Grove squad.
“Almost Like a Launch” Into Turn 17
Speaking after the race, Sainz elaborated on his frustration with Verstappen’s overtake and the broader aggression he felt from multiple drivers on Sunday.
“Verstappen did a bit of a crazy move into 17, nearly took me off,” Sainz said. “From there, Alex and another Haas [came by]. So, my good start was to the bin in one lap.”
He added that the racing throughout the field felt unusually combative: “But then I kept it calm. People were racing really hard today; I don’t know why they woke up wanting to crash many people out there.”
On Verstappen specifically, Sainz suggested the three-time world champion was exploiting the fact that midfield teams wouldn’t put up sustained resistance against a leading car.
“[He was] not disrespecting, but what he did into 17 was almost like a launch, knowing that we’re in the midfield, we’re not going to fight him and we’re going to have to let him by at some point,” Sainz explained. “But, what he did there was borderline.”
“A Bit of Frustration from the Spin”
Sainz acknowledged that Verstappen’s aggressive approach likely stemmed from the Dutchman’s urgency to recover from his early mistake.
“Probably it was a bit of frustration from the spin and trying to get back to the front as much as possible,” he said. “But it’s racing, I’m not going to criticise it too much. It’s just at that point it felt like we were going to crash, and he took me off track, and I lost three positions. So, it was a bit frustrating.”
Verstappen faced multiple stewards’ investigations during the Miami Grand Prix and was handed a five-second penalty post-race for crossing the white line at pit exit. The penalty did not affect his final classification of fifth.
Williams will take encouragement from their points finish as the season continues, while Sainz and Verstappen’s Turn 17 clash adds another chapter to the Spaniard’s history of on-track tension with the Red Bull driver.