Struggling Russell surprised at rival's improved pace: 'That's damn impressive'

The German team have had plenty of joy to start the 2026 season, winning the opening three races of the campaign to underline their credentials as title favourites.

However, after a five-week hiatus from racing, which saw regulation tweaks made by the FIA, Mercedes' lead looks to have been wiped out.

Charles Leclerc led the way for Ferrari during the only practice session of the sprint weekend, before Lando Norris and McLaren flexed their muscles with a fantastic Sprint Qualifying pole position, shocking Russell in the process, who could only qualify in sixth place.

"Pretty surprising how big a jump McLaren and Ferrari made. That's pretty damn impressive," Russell said to F1TV after Sprint Qualifying.

The Brit also spoke on the issues he has been facing around the Miami circuit: "Just overheating the tyres a lot. In that twisty section in the middle, I struggled to get the right balance with the car.

After the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, F1 returned after five weeks, with Miami hosting the second sprint weekend of the 2026 season.

An extra 30 minutes was added to the only practice session of the weekend due to the long layoff and regulation changes. Leclerc impressed in that session after Ferrari brought 11 updates to South Florida.

However, McLaren then played their hand during Sprint Qualifying, and Norris threw down a lap time that no one else could match, stunning the rest of the grid. Kimi Antonelli's fine lap saw him go into P2, while McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri rounded out the top three.