Damon Hill claims Oscar Piastri got ‘very lucky’ during Miami Grand Prix qualifying

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Damon Hill thinks Oscar Piastri can count himself “very lucky” after qualifying for the 2026 F1 Miami Grand Prix, after the McLaren racer survived an early scare during Q1.

McLaren had emerged as the team to beat at the start of the Miami GP weekend, as Lando Norris scored pole position for the F1 Sprint and then won the dash earlier on Saturday. But the gains that McLaren found with their updates in Florida appeared to vanish in qualifying.

Just hours after Norris won the Miami Sprint in a McLaren one-two by 3.766 seconds ahead of Piastri, the papaya pals could only set the fourth and seventh-fastest laps in qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Norris’ fastest time was a 1:28.183, while Piastri produced a 1:28.500.

Four different teams in the top spots in qualifying for the Miami GP… But who’s taking the win? 🏆

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Damon Hill thinks Oscar Piastri was ‘very lucky’ to get out of Q1 at the Miami Grand Prix

Norris also trailed by 0.385s as Mercedes ace Andrea Kimi Antonelli took pole for the Miami GP, while Piastri’s effort left him 0.702s adrift of the Italian’s fastest time. Even Red Bull racer Max Verstappen out-qualified the McLaren duo to secure P2 with a deficit of 0.166s to pole.

READ MORE: How to watch the 2026 Miami Grand Prix, plus weather forecast

Life could even have been a lot bleaker for Piastri after Q1 in qualifying for the Miami GP, as the 25-year-old only advanced to Q2 by 0.213s over Racing Bulls rookie Arvid Lindblad. The Australian took the risk of staying on a used set of tyres and nearly paid a very heavy price.

Piastri’s race engineer, Tom Stallard, suggested over the radio that he was “safely through” to Q2, which the Melbourne native replied was “an ambitious word” for his situation. Hill also felt Piastri was “lucky” to get into Q2 by the margin that he held over Lindblad at the death.

Hill said on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra (02/05, 21:19): “Well, I think Oscar can count himself as a very lucky boy there, because that was a bit too close for comfort.”

Piastri was only 0.093s away from the elimination zone before he had crossed the finish line to set his fastest effort during Q1 in qualifying for the Miami GP on Saturday. Multiple other drivers were also still circulating on track at the time, but neither could eclipse Piastri’s time.

It proved to be only a hiccup, as Piastri easily advanced to Q3 with the fourth-fastest time in Q2. But the Australian did not have the speed to rival the frontrunners when it came to the top-10 shootout in Miami, and P7 on the Miami GP grid marks his worst qualifying this year.

Piastri’s previous worst qualifying performances in the 2026 F1 season had been P5 for the Grands Prix in Australia and China. The Melbourne native qualified P3 for the Japanese GP before the five-week break from the cancellation of the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.