Mark Hughes
Miami showed Verstappen exploiting F1 rules to max – again
Max Verstappen preserved his lead at the start of the Miami GP by knowing the letter of the F1 law – probably costing Lando Norris the win
Mark Hughes
Grand Prix editor
In previous lives Mark raced cars, worked at Jim Russell racing school, got a university degree which he never used, tried working in industry, didn’t like it, left and joined Motoring News in 1988 as a junior club race reporter. Went freelance in ’96, concentrated on F1 from 2000. Grand Prix editor of Autosport for 10 years.
Latest articles from Mark
F1
The two key questions posed by McLaren's Miami GP dominance
McLaren crushed the opposition in the Miami Grand Prix, with Piastri taking his third straight win in a race that looked like Norris's to lose. Mark Hughes answers the main questions from the sixth round of the 2025 season
F1
MPH: Can Red Bull do a 'McLaren' and turn F1 on its head again?
One year ago McLaren scored a shock Miami win, but it proved a changing of the F1 guard – can Red Bull do the same to fight back in Florida this weekend, asks Mark Hughes
F1
MPH: If F1 wants equal engines, where does artificial competition stop?
Fears that one engine manufacturer will dominate F1 from 2026 are likely to see strugglers allowed to catch up. If power units are to be artificially equalised, how much of a technical competition will it be? asks Mark Hughes
F1
Norris must deal with Piastri's pace – or suffer Mark Webber's fate
As Oscar Piastri moved into the championship lead, his manager Mark Webber's example should serve as a warning to Lando Norris, says Mark Hughes
F1
How gaming the system cost Verstappen in Saudi Arabian GP
Max Verstappen lost his chance of winning the Saudi Arabian GP after being penalised for his Turn 1 incident. But would he have stayed on track given him a chance of winning or was it all lost at the start? Mark Hughes analyses the Jeddah race
F1
MPH: Will youth trump experience in Saudi GP with a tyre twist?
When does a rookie have the edge over an F1 world champion? Perhaps in Jeddah, says Mark Hughes, where the unsettling effect of a softer tyre compound is less likely to faze younger drivers than the likes of Carlos Sainz and Lewis Hamilton
F1
Why isn't 2025 F1 season as close as predicted? The past explains why
McLaren's breakthrough in a near-four-year-old ruleset shows F1 rules convergence is a myth – just like Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull and Renault did in 2013, writes Mark Hughes
F1
Why F1 superstars were out of sorts as Piastri took control in Bahrain
Oscar Piastri and McLaren's MCL39 car showed that they were a duo in sync at the 2025 Bahrain Grand Prix, writes Mark Hughes. The same couldn't be said for many of F1's other big names
F1
MPH: F1 in 'crisis meeting' as engine civil war threatens to erupt
Friday's summit in Bahrain between the FIA, teams and manufacturers may have been dressed up as a gathering to discuss the idea of a return to V10 engines. But make no mistake: they're crunch talks as the 2026 rules continue to create problems, says Mark Hughes
F1
Why Verstappen's latest Suzuka win was different from all the rest
While Max Verstappen winning at Suzuka is nothing new, his 2025 victory stood out from those previous, as Mark Hughes explains
F1
Mark Hughes: How Verstappen cracked the McLaren code in Japan
McLaren's dominance came to an end in Japan as Max Verstappen put on a masterclass to show the Woking team's seasons will not be the cakewalk some suspected. Here's how the world champion defeated his rivals
