The way Max Verstappen did his 360 at the Miami Grand Prix has split opinion between Formula 1 pundits Martin Brundle and Juan Pablo Montoya.
On one side, there is the argument that Verstappen performed a “genius” move to minimise the damage from his Lap 1 spin. On the other side of the fence, it is being called “pure luck” for Verstappen.
Martin Brundle and Juan Pablo Montoya disagree on Max Verstappen spin
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Miami GP polesitter Kimi Antonelli, Charles Leclerc and Verstappen battled for the lead into Turn 1.
Leclerc flew around the outside into T1, Antonelli locked up and found the run-off, while Verstappen mounted the kerb and spun.
Verstappen was able to execute a picturesque 360-degree spin, leaving him pointing in the right direction. He was still in the top 10 at the end of the first lap.
In the opinion of Sky F1’s Martin Brundle, that was all skill from the four-time world champion.
“Pinched to the Turn 2 apex by Leclerc, Verstappen was too eager on the throttle and looped around, an unusual mistake for him for which he would hurriedly apologise to the team on the radio, before that we saw some of his genius in the recovery,” Brundle wrote in his Sky Sports Miami GP column.
“In front of the whole pack except Leclerc, he deftly used the throttle, brakes, and steering wheel to execute a full 360-degree turn, pointing nicely down the racetrack and somehow maintaining some forward speed.
“I can’t tell you how hard that is in these plus-sized F1 cars full of fuel in the heat of battle.
“This dramatically minimised the chances of being run into and kept him in ninth place at the end of the lap.”
Brundle’s view is not shared by seven-time grand prix winner Juan Pablo Montoya.
Appearing on the BBC Chequered Flag podcast, Montoya suggested that there was no skill involved at all from Verstappen.
“For me, everybody was saying Max was unbelievable, how he controlled his spin – I think that was pure luck,” claimed Montoya. “But I don’t have anything against Max, excuse me.”
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Having pitted behind an early safety car, Verstappen led the Miami Grand Prix for a time, but soon found himself under attack from Antonelli and Lando Norris. The pair came through, despite valiant Verstappen defence.
Oscar Piastri, Leclerc and George Russell also passed Verstappen in the closing stages. Again, Verstappen looked to stand his ground, which included contact with Russell at Turn 1, resulting in front wing damage for Russell.
The stewards had a look, but decided no further action was required.
Norris claimed that Verstappen “ruined his own race” by defending how he did on older tyres. Montoya was singing from a similar hymn sheet.
“He raced hard, and I appreciate the way he raced hard, but I think at the end of the race, the way he was racing people when he was trying to defend position, you know once the guy gets you, the best way not to get passed by more and more people is stop fighting, and just get in line,” said Montoya.
“He kept fighting and bringing more people over. I was like, ‘Why are you hurting yourself?'”
Verstappen would score a P5 result in Miami, his and Red Bull’s best result of F1 2026 so far.
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Originally published by Planet F1 —
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