McLaren “cost themselves” Miami GP win with "hesitant" strategy call, says Jolyon Palmer

Former Formula 1 driver Jolyon Palmer has argued that Mercedes won the Miami Grand Prix with Kimi Antonelli because they were proactive when McLaren hesitated.

McLaren’s Lando Norris was leading the race at the Hard Rock Stadium with Antonelli in second, but he lost the lead when Mercedes successfully pulled off an undercut. The Brackley outfit initiated the strategy by pitting Antonelli for fresh tyres, with the Italian immediately putting in a blistering out-lap. When McLaren pitted on the next lap, the damage had already been done.

“Antonelli had the winning strategy and it was simple. It was just an undercut,” Palmer told F1 TV in the post-race show. “It was one lap, pitting earlier than the McLaren. Lando would be fuming because you're out there, you're just driving. You're monotonously ticking through the laps, being consistent, being quick, making sure the guy behind is one-and-a-half, two seconds back out of range. 

“When that guy just pits one lap sooner, puts on fresh tyres, goes quicker, you're helpless as a driver. The pit crew did a good job. 2.2 seconds, I think, was Norris's stop. So, it was as good as it could have been, but they were just caught out. 

“They weren't proactive and they cost themselves the race win. But on the flip side, Mercedes were proactive and they won the race because it wasn't straightforward because of the rain.”

Lando Norris, McLaren, Oscar Piastri, McLaren, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes

Photo by: Ryan Pierse / Getty Images

McLaren seemed to be holding out for the expected rain, but it never came.

“The weather chatter was kind of laughable at times,” Palmer continued. “But if you take the average of the communication, I think McLaren were more convinced that the rain was going to be a factor than other teams. And that's why when Mercedes pitted George, it was very early. And I think McLaren, they stayed out with Oscar, didn't they? At that point, they stayed out with Lando, but Oscar was in the fight with George and Charles. And I think they were thinking, ‘Hang on, you guys are really setting yourself out for this isn't going to rain. It might still rain.’ And that would have really scuppered anyone that pitted early. 

“Basically the weather forecast didn't help McLaren. They sort of dithered. They weren't sure. They were hesitant to pit early. But by the time Kimi pitted, it seemed more clear that the weather was just passing and it wasn't going to hit. 

“And ultimately a couple more tenths on the car would allow them to escape a bad decision. But they had the pace in the car.”