Max Verstappen survived a late onslaught from Charles Leclerc to win Formula One’s inaugural Miami Grand Prix.
The world champion started third, but raced past Carlos Sainz at the opening bend before taking Leclerc in the other Ferrari on lap nine.
A ten-lap shootout following a safety car period provided a dramatic end, but Verstappen held his nerve. Leclerc took the runner-up spot with Sainz completing the podium.
Sergio Perez took fourth ahead of George Russell. Lewis Hamilton started sixth and finished in the same position after he was usurped by a freshly-shod Russell with nine laps to run.
“Strategy has not been kind to me, man,” he said over the radio. Russell has now finished ahead of Hamilton at every race bar one, with the seven-time world champion 68 points behind Leclerc after just five rounds.
The stars of sport and showbiz flocked to Florida for F1’s first race at the Hard Rock Stadium, 15 miles north of Downtown Miami.
NBA great Michael Jordan, Grand Slam champions Serena and Venus Williams, former England captain David Beckham, Hollywood’s Matt Damon and pop star Pharrell Williams led the cast on a celebrity-fuelled and manic pre-race grid.
But when the lights flicked from red to green, the initial action on track provided less entertainment.
Hamilton has won six times and sealed two of his seven titles in the land of the free. But those triumphs will feel like a distant memory for Briton’s record-breaking star.
Hamilton’s Mercedes is no longer F1’s tour de force, and by lap 20 he was already half a second behind Verstappen.
Hamilton’s getaway was strong, drawing alongside former team-mate Valtteri Bottas on the short run to the opening chicane.
But Hamilton locked up, losing a spot to Pierre Gasly before Fernando Alonso’s front right wheel made contact with Hamilton’s left rear at the opening chicane.
“I’ve been hit from behind,” said Hamilton. His race engineer Peter Bonnington replied: “I don’t think we have suffered any damage.”
Hamilton fought his way back past Alonso on lap three to move up to seventh. Three laps later, he roared past Gasly for sixth, a dozen seconds behind Leclerc.
Up front the lead changed hands at the start of lap nine when Verstappen drew alongside Leclerc on the pit straight before roaring past his championship rival.
The race plateaued before suddenly coming to life with 16 laps left when Lando Norris and Gasly collided.
Gasly ran wide at Turn 8 and Norris sensed an opportunity in their duel for 13th, but the pair banged wheels with the young Briton sent into a high-speed pirouette as his right rear tyre fell off his McLaren.
Out came the safety car, with Russell, who had yet pit for new rubber, able to take effectively a free stop.
That promoted him to seventh, a place behind Hamilton, who was on 24-lap old rubber when the safety car came in.
Bottas ran wide at Turn 8, enabling Hamilton to move up one spot, but he could not keep Russell, on fresh tyres, behind. The two Mercedes cars fought for position, but Russell made the move to deal Hamilton another blow on a season proving unforgettable for the grid’s most decorated driver.
Bottas finished seventh, with double world champion Alonso eighth. Mick Schumacher was denied his first points in F1 following a late collision with Sebastian Vettel.
“It was very hard physically, but I am incredibly happy with winning in Miami,” said Verstappen following his third victory of the campaign.
“We struggled with the tyres in the first stint and it made our race difficult," said Leclerc.
“I thought I could get Max at one point but he was too quick. It has been tight with Max since the beginning of the season and that has been great to see.”
Why are asylum seekers being housed in hotels?
The number of asylum applications in the UK has reached a new record high, driven by those illegally entering the country in small boats crossing the English Channel.
A total of 111,084 people applied for asylum in the UK in the year to June 2025, the highest number for any 12-month period since current records began in 2001.
Asylum seekers and their families can be housed in temporary accommodation while their claim is assessed.
The Home Office provides the accommodation, meaning asylum seekers cannot choose where they live.
When there is not enough housing, the Home Office can move people to hotels or large sites like former military bases.
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
MATCH INFO
Everton 2 (Tosun 9', Doucoure 93')
Rotherham United 1 (Olosunde 56')
Man of the Match Olosunde (Rotherham)
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Results
6.30pm: Dubai Millennium Stakes Group Three US$200,000 (Turf) 2,000m; Winner: Ghaiyyath, William Buick (jockey), Charlie Appleby (trainer).
7.05pm: Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Cliffs Of Capri, Tadhg O’Shea, Jamie Osborne.
7.40pm: UAE Oaks Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,900m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Mickael Barzalona, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.15pm: Zabeel Mile Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Zakouski, James Doyle, Charlie Appleby.
8.50pm: Meydan Sprint Group Two $250,000 (T) 1,000m; Winner: Waady, Jim Crowley, Doug Watson.
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
LIKELY TEAMS
South Africa
Faf du Plessis (captain), Dean Elgar, Aiden Markram, Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Vernon Philander, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Morne Morkel, Lungi Ngidi.
India (from)
Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik (wkt), Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammad Shami, Jasprit Bumrah.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
MATCH SCHEDULE
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Tuesday, April 24 (10.45pm)
Liverpool v Roma
Wednesday, April 25
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid (10.45pm)
Europa League semi-final, first leg
Thursday, April 26
Arsenal v Atletico Madrid (11.05pm)
Marseille v Salzburg (11.05pm)
Brief scores:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
The specS: 2018 Toyota Camry
Price: base / as tested: Dh91,000 / Dh114,000
Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 298hp @ 6,600rpm
Torque: 356Nm @ 4,700rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
