FIA announce Red Bull F1 star to start Miami Grand Prix from pit lane

Isack Hadjar, Max Verstappen, Red Bull, Australia, 2026 — Photo: © IMAGO

Miami Grand Prix

FIA announce Red Bull F1 star to start Miami Grand Prix from pit lane

One Red Bull star won't be allowed to start from the grid on Sunday

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Sunday 3 May 2026 17:40 Updated: 17:48

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The FIA have confirmed that Red Bull F1 star Isack Hadjar will start the Miami Grand Prix from the pit lane following a disqualification from qualifying.

Hadjar initially finished Saturday's qualifying in ninth, meaning he was set to start today's 57-lap event from the fifth row, but the 21-year-old was summoned to the stewards following the session after his RB22 was suspected to have some 'illegal' elements.

Officials discovered that the floor boards on his Red Bull F1 car extended two millimeters beyond the legal reference volume on both sides, breaching this season’s technical standards.

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As a result, the Frenchman was disqualified from qualifying altogether, but was granted permission from F1's governing body to start the race, meaning he was set to line up P22.

But as the new start time of 1pm local time (or 6pm BST) grew closer, the FIA confirmed that Hadjar would in fact have to start the Miami GP from the pit lane as a result of Red Bull's decision to make changes to his power unit after qualifying.

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After Saturday's qualifying, the FIA confirmed that Red Bull had used the 4th Energy Store (ES) and 4th Control Electronics Unit (PU-CE), with the Power Unit element and the control electronics unit on Hadjar's vehicle replaced without the approval of the FIA Technical Delegate during Parc Ferme.

As a breach of Article B8.2.2 (read with B8.2.3) and B3.5.3 of the FIA F1 Regulations, Hadjar will now be required to start the race from the pit lane.

Ahead of Sunday's main event which was brought forward in hope of avoiding thunderstorms and lightning, an announcement from the FIA confirmed: "As the abovementioned parts were replaced in breach of parc ferme conditions without permission, the relevant driver must start from the Pit Lane per Article B3.5.3b of the FIA F1 Regulations."

F1 Red Bull FIA Miami Grand Prix Isack Hadjar Miami International Autodrome