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Carlos Sainz was left fuming with Williams on his team radio after he was knocked out of Sprint qualifying in Miami.
On Friday, the 2026 Formula 1 season resumed around the Miami International Autodrome, with Mercedes looking to continue their early-season dominance.
However, championship leader Kimi Antonelli was pipped to Sprint pole by Lando Norris, who clocked an impressive lap time of 1:27.869.
Meanwhile, Norris‘ teammate, Oscar Piastri, will start from third. Championship contender George Russell endured a tough day as he only managed to put his Mercedes in sixth place.
Further down the grid, it was another dismal session for Sainz as he only managed to put his Williams 15th, one place behind teammate Alex Albon.
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Carlos Sainz blasts Williams on team radio after dismal Miami Grand Prix Sprint qualifying
Following the session, Sainz was far from happy as he unleashed a furious message on his team radio.
The Spaniard stated that Williams are still ‘three steps’ behind where he expected the team to be.
Sainz blasted: “We are three steps behind where we should be, every lap!
“And I’m not happy with this. It can not be that, after one hour and a half of practice and we are still in this state!”
Top spot secured 🔥 But will Antonelli take it away tomorrow?
Read the full Sprint Qualifying report here 👇
READ MORE: Carlos Sainz admits he ‘shouldn’t enjoy’ why 2026 F1 regulations are ‘one of my favourites’
It has been well documented that Williams have struggled in 2026, with the FW48 proving to be problematic.
Both Sainz and Albon have previously been vocal about the FW48, which is said to be massively overweight and is also struggling with a chassis problem.
However, it looked like Williams had turned a corner after a much-improved FP1, with Sainz finishing in 10th place and Albon in 12th.
But the troubles made an untimely return as both Williams drivers were knocked out of SQ2 and will start the Sprint behind Oliver Bearman’s Haas and the Audi duo of Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto.
Sky Sports pundit Naomi Schiff said: “You can tell the drivers are getting more and more impatient; there could be more problems. That car is very overweight.”
Speaking after the session, Sainz stated that although he failed to make it out of SQ2, Williams have taken a step in the right direction.
As per Spanish news outlet SoyMotor, Sainz said: “We’ve taken a step in the right direction. We’ve been able to fight to get into SQ2.
“On my side of the garage, we’ve had a lot of problems with the energy, with the management on the out lap and the push lap, and we haven’t maximised it. And even so, we’ve made it to SQ2.
“In China and Japan, with perfect laps or perfect energy, we stayed in Q1. That’s the positive side.”
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