Following a four-week absence, Formula 1 action resumed at the Miami Grand Prix, with Friday's running marking a crucial return to on-track activity.

An extended 90-minute Free Practice 1 session provided all teams with a valuable opportunity for preparation as the recently amended 2026 regulations were introduced for the first time at Round 4's Sprint weekend, taking place at the Miami International Autodrome.

McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team introduced its first phase of MCL40 developments in the Sunshine State, with upgrades delivered to the front and rear brake ducts, bodywork, floor and rear wing. While it's difficult to accurately assess such a comprehensive package in one 90-minute practice session and Sprint Qualifying, early indications suggest the package is working as intended.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, who both spent extra time on the simulator in Woking looking to extract further performance potential throughout April, completed 35 laps each while both using a set of Soft and Hard tyres. This allowed the team to collect valuable data and learnings to be taken into the remaining competitive sessions of the race weekend, with a focus remaining on key areas such as extracting further performance from the power unit.

Sprint Qualifying saw defending World Champion Lando Norris put in a strong lap on the Medium compound to top the opening SQ1 stint, with teammate Oscar also driving well to record a P3 lap. With both drivers safe in SQ2, attention turned to the final round of Sprint Qualifying, with all 10 drivers due to run on the Soft tyres. Lando secured Sprint Pole with a strong lap time of 1m27.869s, followed by Oscar in P3 on the grid, thanks to a 1m28.108s lap.

Today's performance with the upgraded MCL40 at this phase of the development pathway is an encouraging and promising sign that the hard work and dedication shown by the entire team trackside and in Woking has performed well. With plenty of competition sessions remaining this weekend, where further learnings will be gathered, including the exhibition of how the car performs in terms of race pace, the team looks to gather valuable points while competing at the front of the grid.

Lando Norris: "We came into this weekend having put a lot of hard work into these upgrades, but you can never be certain what to expect until the car is on the track. I'm incredibly happy for the whole team because, from the very first lap, it felt like we had taken a step forward. It gave me the confidence I've been looking for, allowing me to really push and exploit its potential straight away.

"It's a great start, and it feels good to be right in the mix, but we're keeping our feet on the ground. It was incredibly close out there with several teams looking quick, and we know there are still plenty of unknowns, especially when it comes to race pace. We are still learning how to get the most out of this new package, but we've started as well as we could have asked for. For now, I'm happy with what we've achieved, and we will focus on making further improvements ahead of the sprint and Grand Prix Qualifying tomorrow."

Oscar Piastri: "I'm happy with that. The car had good potential, which was really nice to see. We still have things to improve, but the new package is a good step, so thank you to the whole team for their efforts. Congratulations to Lando as well - we didn't luck into today's result, the potential is there.

"The Ferraris looked strong throughout the day, so qualifying where we have is a really good effort. Whilst we expect the Mercedes to remain competitive, they haven't looked as dominant so far, but there's still a lot of track action to go. We'll take the learnings from today and see what we can do in the Sprint, before we switch our focus to GP Qualifying."

Neil Houldey, Technical Director - Applied Engineering: "We're pleased with today's result and performance across the opening day of running in Miami. The car has been great for both drivers, and the first phase of our development upgrades has shown promising signs.

"To come away with a Pole and third on tomorrow's Sprint grid, given where we were in the first few races, is a strong step forward. Credit to the team at the factory for this first step, from aerodynamics and design through to manufacturing, and to the crew at the track who finished putting the package together, ready for today's sessions.

"Now we need to carry this momentum into the rest of the weekend and aim to score as many points as we can. The pace is encouraging, the execution has been excellent, and the focus is on converting this step into results while continuing to gather and exploit further performance from the entire package."

Check out our Friday gallery from Miami here.