Hours following the conclusion of Sprint Qualifying at the Miami Grand Prix, Bottas was hit with a three-place grid penalty by race officials for impeding Oscar Piastri during the session. After being eliminated in SQ1 after placing 18th, the penalty means Bottas will start Saturday’s F1 Sprint race at the back of the field.

Lando Norris appeared poised to take his third consecutive sprint race pole after topping the timing sheets in each of the first two sessions on Friday evening.

As he has for each of the grands prix this season, Max Verstappen drove his Red Bull to the pole position for the noon race with a lap of 1:28.595. Verstappen won the first Sprint race, at F1’s last stop, China, but did so from the fourth position after McLaren’s Lando Norris took pole.