Red Bull took a double points finish but no podium or win at the Miami Grand Prix.
Despite starting on pole position, Max Verstappen finished fourth after being overtaken on track by both McLaren drivers and then jumped by George Russell in the pit-stop phase, with an attempt by Red Bull to get a penalty imposed on Russell after the race unsuccessful.
Yuki Tsunoda finished 10th, with the Japanese driver finishing where he started the race despite getting a time penalty for speeding in the pit-lane.
With six races and a quarter of the F1 season completed following the Miami Grand Prix, Verstappen is the only driver not driving for McLaren to win a race so far in 2025.
The Dutchman has 99 points in the Driver’s Championship and sits third in the standings, with the reigning four-time champion sitting 6 points ahead of 4th placed Russell, 16 points behind Lando Norris in second and 22 points behind early leader Oscar Piastri.
Team-mate Tsunoda sits 11th in the standings after picking up nine points in races with both Red Bull and their junior team RB.
In the Constructor’s Championship, Red Bull sit third after this opening run. The Milton Keynes-based team are currently 11 points ahead of fourth placed Ferrari, 36 points behind second placed Mercedes and 141 points behind the comfortable championship leaders McLaren. The Woking-based team are currently over 100 points clear of the rest of the grid, having won the full Miami Grand Prix by over 35 seconds to the next best team’s car.
A mixed Saturday had seen Verstappen denied points during the sprint by a ten second penalty for a collision in the pit-lane while Tsunoda was promoted into the points after Verstappen, Alex Albon, Liam Lawson and Ollie Bearman all got penalties.
Verstappen then swiped pole in the qualifying session, edging out Norris and Piastri to take his third pole position of 2025.
In the race, Verstappen initially held onto the lead, with the Dutchman resisting an early charge by Norris to maintain the advantage. The Dutchman had locked up into turn one, allowing Norris to move alongside and challenge but Norris went off track, with the stewards ruling Verstappen’s defence had been legal unlike what had happened in Saudi Arabia in the previous race.
Norris fell down the order and instead this saw Piastri emerge as the lead McLaren, with the Australian later passing Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes to jump to second.
Piastri soon began putting in faster laps than Verstappen and by lap 10, the McLaren was able to catch up to the Red Bull that had lead the opening phase of the race.
This lead the cue to a frantic multi-lap battle where Verstappen attempted to resist Piastri’s attempts to pass. He managed a few laps where he was able to keep Piastri behind until the start of lap 14, when Verstappen had a lock-up into turn one, which allowed Piastri to scoot past and take the lead.
Norris had been able to close up on Verstappen during his battle with Piastri, with the McLaren having got ahead of Albon and the two Mercedes after initially losing positions to them. This lead to another mutli-lap battle, in which Norris at one point passed Verstappen off track and gave the position back.
But at the start of lap 18, Norris got past Verstappen to go into second, with the two McLarens able to make the most of their clear air by bolting off.
With expected rain not coming, proceedings duly continued as a one-stop race.
Verstappen’s day then had a further hiccup when a virtual safety car was deployed following the breakdown of Bearman’s Haas on lap 29. Russell pit during this period, and the ability to make his pit-stop during the VSC meant the Mercedes jumped the Red Bull in the order.
When the Sauber of Gabriel Bortoleto limped to a halt, it lead to yellow flags and later a VSC. Verstappen initially queried if Russell had broken yellow flag rules, which would’ve given the Mercedes a penalty. This wasn’t issued in the race, with Russell taking third ahead of Verstappen in the fourth.
Red Bull protested this after the race, but this appeal was unsuccessful, with Russell maintaining his third place position and Verstappen confirmed as staying in fourth place.
As for Tsunoda, he had a fairly quiet afternoon where he was not involved in many battles with cars ahead or behind and was mainly on course to finish in the 10th place where he qualified. The key moment in his day however came when he made his pit-stop, with Tsunoda caught speeding in the pit lane.
Tsunoda was just able to hold onto his 10th place, finishing just over 5 seconds ahead of 11th place Isack Hadjar in the Racing Bulls, which became just over a tenth in practice with the penalty.
F1 returns in two weeks time for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at Imola in Italy, which is the first part of a triple header alongside races in Monaco and Spain.
Milton Keynes City Council have announced plans to boost support for carers that live alongside vulnerable adults.
The City Council’s Shared Lives service matches local people with adults who have support needs. Once trained and approved, which usually takes 12 weeks, carers earn a weekly fee of up to £700 depending on the level of care they provide.
According to the City Council, “Shared Lives Carers can choose to offer support for a few hours at a time, short breaks over several days, or longer-term live-in arrangements. Full-time placements come with additional benefits, including paid respite periods.”
As part of their support structure changes, the City Council announced last week that they will also cover the full cost of council tax for eligible carers.
Shared Lives is a nationally recognised service that provides an alternative to supported living or residential care for adults with learning disabilities, autism, mental health conditions, or other needs. By spending time in a stable, family-based environment, these vulnerable adults are better able to develop life skills and maintain their independence.
There are already 45 approved Shared Lives Carers across Milton Keynes and the City Council is working to expand the scheme to help more residents.
Councillor Donna Fuller, Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Communities, said, “Shared Lives is like fostering but for adults who need a little extra help to live independently. We match vulnerable adults with carers based on shared interests and lifestyles, allowing them to thrive as part of your family. If you have a welcoming home and you’re caring, patient, and a good communicator, you may have what it takes to be a Shared Lives Carer. Please do get in touch with our team to find out more.”
To learn about Shared Lives in Milton Keynes, visit: www.milton-keynes.gov.uk/sharedlives
Northampton Saints will be in the final of rugby union’s European Champions Cup after a 37-34 win away at Irish side Leinster.
An eventful game at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium saw the Saints pull off a big result to beat the pre-tournament favourites, with the Saints registering five tries on their way to success.
The Saints had reached a 27-15 lead at half-time, having scored four first-half tries along the way. Thomas Freeman’s run of three tries, plus a further one from Henry Pollock had tilted the contest in the Saints’ favour.
It looked like Leinster had taken control when they came from conceding Freeman’s first try to lead, with the Irish side looking to build on a platform for success that had seen them comfortably win their previous two knockout round ties.
But an extraordinary final 15 minutes of the first half tilted things in Northampton’s favour, scoring three tries in less than ten minutes.
A huge amount of drama took place in the final minutes of the contest. A try and conversion had cut the Saints’ lead to three points before in the final minutes of regular time, Leinster thought they had scored a try that would’ve won them the contest only for it to be ruled out following a lengthy review.
The Saints would have Alex Coles sent to the sin-bin, leading to a lengthy rearguard action from the Saints to try and hold on to win.
But it would ultimately pay off for the Saints, who picked up a victory that saw the Saints avenge the heartache they’d suffered when beaten by Leinster at the same stage of this competition last year.
The Saints will be in the final at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on May 24th, with this being the first time the Saints have reached the European Champions Cup final since 2011. They will face either Bordeaux or Toulouse, who face off in their semi-final in South West France later today (04/05).
Midsummer Place will be hosting commemorative events on Thursday 8 May to mark 80 years since VE Day.
Plans to mark 80 years since the end of the Second World War include a two-hour musical journey through the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, brought to life by the Ragdolly Annas.
Taking place in the heart of the Midsummer Place Boulevard, the event has been designed for care home residents, blending together music, memory, and movement to provide visitors with an experience in keeping with the celebrations.
In partnership with Ragdolly Annas, the event starts with the announcement of war before chronicling key historical moments leading up to VE Day, the jubilant post-war celebrations, and a snapshot of life in the decades that followed. The journey is soundtracked by iconic songs from the 1950s and 60s.
“We’re really proud to be hosting such a meaningful and uplifting event at Midsummer Place,” says Kirsty McGiff, Marketing Manager at Midsummer Place. “It’s a wonderful opportunity to bring the community together, in commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of V E Day.”
The event be running twice during the day on 8 May: 11:00am (starting after the two minute silence) and 2:00pm.
The shopping centre said, “Visitors are warmly encouraged to come along and enjoy the uplifting atmosphere, whether you’re watching the joyful dancing, tapping your toes to the music, or simply soaking up the celebration. Why not grab a cup of tea or coffee, treat yourself to a slice of cake, and enjoy the entertainment from our food court? It’s the perfect excuse to take a break, show support.”
For updates on all the latest news, visit Midsummer Place or follow us on social media and visit https://midsummerplace.co.uk
Red Bull did pick up points in the sprint race at the Miami Grand Prix despite a penalty for Max Verstappen, with Yuki Tsunoda getting points after three other drivers also got penalties.
It had looked as though Red Bull would pick no points from the sprint. Reigning world champion Verstappen was handed a ten second time penalty for a collision with Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes in the pit lane after he was released too early in a pit-stop in a wet-dry race, with the penalty sending Verstappen from fourth on the road to 17th and last after the race ended behind the safety car.
Tsunoda had finished 10th on the road, which became 9th after Verstappen’s penalty and thus seemingly looked set for no points in a race where only the top 8 finishers get points. But after the race, Alex Albon, Liam Lawson and Ollie Bearman all received five second time penalties for various infringements, bumping Tsunoda to 6th and handing him 3 points.
Ahead of the full Miami Grand Prix race later today (04/05), Verstappen sits third in the Driver’s Championship on 87 points, with the Dutchman 10 points behind second placed Lando Norris and 19 behind championship leader Oscar Piastri.
Tsunoda is in 11th with 8 points, while the Milton Keynes-based Red Bull team sit third in the Constructor’s Championship. They are 8 ahead of fourth placed Ferrari, 26 points behind second place Mercedes and 111 behind leaders McLaren.
The Miami Grand Prix was hosting a sprint for a second year in a row on a the circuit in the car park around the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. But the sprint would be a delayed start, with a heavy shower seeing proceedings start half an hour behind schedule.
When the race got going, Verstappen began in 4th but was able to skip ahead of Antonelli to take third on the opening lap after the pole-sitter went off track in a battle with Piastri.
Tsunoda had started last after a set-up change meant a pit-lane start, which became back of grid as two formation laps meant the race was considered to have started, and he had stayed near the back in the first half of the 18-lap race.
As the race progressed, however, conditions began to brighten up and the track began to dry. Red Bull opted to pit Tsunoda onto dry weather tyres to get an early sign of whether the track was dry enough, with the fact it was allowing him to climb the order when others made the switch.
Verstappen, however, had a major issue when he made the change. An error with Red Bull’s pit stop system saw Verstappen released into Antonelli, who was pitting in his Mercedes, and the two made contact in the pit lane. This damaged Verstappen’s front wing, while the team were handed a penalty for the error in the form of a ten second time penalty for the Dutchman.
As if that wasn’t enough, a safety car was then summoned after a collision between Lawson and Fernando Alonso put the Aston Martin into the wall, with the race finishing under the safety car.
As the safety car had bunched the pack up, it meant that a ten second penalty dropped Verstappen down the standings. He had finished fourth, having been overtaken by Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton just before the safety car, but the penalty sent him all the way down to 17th and last position.
Tsunoda had been promoted from 10th to 9th following that, but a few hours after the sprint finished, the results were tweaked with a multitude of penalties.
Williams’ Albon was handed a 5 second time penalty for breaking the speed limit behind the safety car, Lawson was handed a 5 second time penalty after the Racing Bulls driver was deemed guilty of crashing into Alonso’s Aston Martin, and the Haas driver Bearman was handed a 5 second penalty for an unsafe release into the path of Sauber’s Nico Hulkenberg.
These three penalties saw all of them ejected from the points, with all of Albon, Lawson and Bearman having finished in the top 8 and been in line for points.
Tsunoda was duly reclassified sixth in the new order, earning three points for his efforts.
For the full Miami Grand Prix, the race begins at 9pm tonight (04/05). Qualifying was held after yesterday’s sprint race, with Verstappen pipping McLaren’s Norris to take pole position and Tsunoda starting 10th.
