2023 F1 Miami GP: What does the starting grid look like?

Red Bull driver Sergio Perez will lead the pack on Sunday for the 2023 F1 Miami GP after securing his second pole position of the season.

The Mexican driver was not the favorite to take the pole despite being in the fastest car on the grid.

Throughout the weekend, he looked behind his teammate Max Verstappen and the Ferraris. However, he managed to set a lap in Q3 while Verstappen and Charles Leclerc aborted their attempt.

Later on, the Monegasque driver crashed on his quali lap, bringing out the red flag and ending the session. Perez will be joined by Aston Martin driver Fernando Alonso once again, just like in Jeddah. Below is the starting grid for the Miami GP:

1) Sergio Perez

2) Fernando Alonso

3) Carlos Sainz

4) Kevin Magnussen

5) Pierre Gasly

6) George Russell

7) Charles Leclerc

8) Esteban Ocon

9) Max Verstappen

10) Valtteri Bottas

11) Alex Albon

12) Nico Hulkenberg

13) Lewis Hamilton

14) Zhou Guanyu

15) Nyck de Vries

16) Lando Norris

17) Yuki Tsunoda

18) Lance Stroll

19) Oscar Piastri

20) Logan Sargeant

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“I think it’s been my worst weekend up to qualifying" - Sergio Perez after his pole in the Miami GP

Sergio Perez has stated that he was not happy with his performance at the Miami GP race weekend, saying that he was having "the worst weekend" until qualifying.

Speaking to F1.com, he said:

“I think it’s been my worst weekend up to qualifying. I just couldn’t figure out how to pull those tenths that I was missing all the time to Max and to the Ferraris. I was just re-setting everything. We did a small change into qualifying that really made everything became more alive. I think with this tarmac we were just playing a bit with the tools, and we put the lap in when it mattered.”

He added:

“It wasn’t coming together. It’s one of those weekends where I was struggling for balance and confidence. This tarmac is very sensitive to temperatures, so…I’m enjoying it. I’m just thinking race by race. I will go out… for my team because they’ve done a tremendous job and see what happens tomorrow. Tomorrow is a new opportunity, starting from the pole. We are the ones that have [something] to lose, but we will just go out there and try to enjoy this amazing crowd."

It will be fascinating to see if Alonso, Sainz or Verstappen can challenge Perez at the Miami GP on Sunday and stop him winning his second race in a row.