ART’s Maini “in a good place” after becoming first Formula 2 pole-sitter in Miami

Credit: Formula One

Over the course of his Formula 2 career, Kush Maini has often been left searching for pace, sometimes leaving race weekends with more questions than answers. It is a fact he has openly admitted in the past, often seeing strong qualifying pace wither away on race day. 

His one-lap pace, though, has held him in good stead all the way, and it was on display even at the season opener in Albert Park, when he qualified seventh for his new team, ART Grand Prix. 

Despite leaving the weekend with no points on the board, it was the clarity down at ART, who understood and diagnosed the root cause of Maini’s stall in the pit lane at Albert Park, and utilised the near two-month break to rectify the issues with their package. 

“The thing is, leaving Australia, we knew what had gone wrong,” Maini said, speaking to DIVEBOMB and other media after the qualifying session. 

“We had a bit of time to reset, and you know, I trained quite hard physically and mentally, and I think it all paid off. And yeah, I'm just happy that we knew what went wrong, and we could rectify it, and work with the team to give me the best car possible to fight for pole,” the Indian reiterated, relieved to be back at the sharp end.   

Heading into a new venue with no prior data or references, it was on Maini and ART to rely on their respective one-lap pace strengths to make the difference. The French team often found themselves in a similar vein of form, with Fridays being their strongest suit, as Victor Martins often came within milliseconds of several pole positions. 

Maini, too, has been a proponent of strong one-lap pace in the past, often qualifying in the top 10 during his time at Campos, Invicta Racing or DAMS. It’s a trend he has kept up all through his F2 career, one that is only pushing ART closer towards the top in qualifying sessions. 

Maini's one lap pace has always been his stronger suit | Credit: Formula 2 via X

On a new track, it was this speed which came in handy for Maini and ART, albeit by a margin of just 33 milliseconds from Invicta Racing’s Rafa Câmara, who was running more downforce on his car. While it is an exploratory weekend, and drivers will definitely make a step up as they gain more knowledge of the conditions, Maini and ART were glad to have landed the first blow this weekend. 

“I would say for sure ART have been very strong in qualifying like you've seen last year, I think Victor (Martins) is a great driver as well,” Maini said, backing up the team’s hard work to be quick over one lap in the past. 

“But overall, in a new track, it's almost a very level playing field. I mean, you have your simulations, and it does matter how good it is. But in the end, as you've seen, you know someone like Rafa (Câmara) was on higher downforce versus us, and in the end, it was two hundredths of a second.

“So, in the end, I would say it's a great leveller, a new track. You don't even know what ride heights to run in the first run. You're always learning more and more. So yeah, I would say I definitely have confidence in my team, because they're hard-working and they're great. But nothing is taken for granted, where it's just given that I'll be on pole,” Maini concluded, summing up his first experience at the Miami International Autodrome. 

For Maini, a driver in his fourth Formula 2 experience, learning a completely new track is no easy feat. The outcome is often dependent on the simulator preparations ahead of the weekend, coordination between driver and race engineer, and even figuring out details on the fly during practice sessions. He also references the situation to “being a guinea pig” on his first laps around the track during free practice.  

“It’s very much in the unknown, and you almost have to figure it out as you go,” Maini mentioned to DIVEBOMB, summarising his preparation for the race weekend. 

“And it also shows the amount of work you put in with your team, and if your engineer gets you and the work you do on the simulator. So it's a lot of things, but yeah, I would definitely say it’s a challenge today to be at a new track, especially in Formula 2 with great drivers on the grid, and to take pole. It definitely feels great,” Maini reflected, looking back at what he did right to get to the top. 

The key to taking an F2 pole position is to manage the super soft tyres, ensuring the rear tyres do not lose grip over the course of a lap. With the top four separated by only a tenth of a second, and the top 10 by 0.3 seconds, even a single slide or a mistake can leave you further down the order. Fourth-placed Alex Dunne was on a fast lap; however, a lock-up into Turn 17 cost him a chance at taking pole position.    

It’s the ability of not to go past the limit of the tyres, especially with track temperatures nearly at 60°C in Miami, which Maini emphasises as a key factor in his quest for the top honours in qualifying. 

“We go from the medium (from free practice) to the super soft compound, so it's much less durable. So, through the lap, with the heat we had on track, you definitely have to manage your rear tyres a bit, and not ask too much of them. Because, as soon as you ask too much and you have a micro slide, it just goes downhill. So I think that was the main thing trying to drive Just under the limit, and not going past it,” Maini mentioned, on his approach during the session. 

Maini’s first flying lap saw him sit fourth in the order, but it was his final lap when he breached the 1:40s barrier, setting a 1:39.888 that was good enough to fetch pole. The Indian did not set a purple sector in his flying lap, yet emerged top of the pile, a fact he reflected on after stepping out of the car. 

“I think it's too difficult in Formula two with these conditions to nail every single sector. I think you're always gonna have that occasional slide or whatever, but I think with the conditions that they were, I think I'm very happy with what we achieved,” Maini concluded, summing up his session. 

He would also mention having to take a different approach and tone down his tyres, rather than requiring too much warming up during the session, due to the high track temperatures in Miami. 

“I think obviously Sector two and three were where I made the difference, but I think in general, with being a new track, putting it together and also trying to just understand what the tyres are gonna be like through the lap,” Maini mentioned, where he was able to find time to his competitors. 

“I think we came into this race thinking that it's gonna need a lot of warm-up, because it's quite a low-energy track. But in the end, because of the heat, we actually toned it down a lot to keep the rears alive for the whole lap,” Maini mentioned, summing up how he had to adapt during the session. 

The Alpine factor: Testing, simulators, and a different beast

Maini has served as an Alpine junior since his second F2 season in 2024. Currently one of the three drivers backed by the French team in the championship alongside Dunne and Gabriele Minì, he is also a reserve driver for the Alpine F1 team. 

This opportunity opens him up to not just simulator work, but even rare opportunities to take part in Alpine’s TPC (Testing Previous Car) programmes, as he had done so during the post-season test at Abu Dhabi in 2025, and at Zandvoort during his month-long break in April. 

Such opportunities, as Maini mentions, often give him plenty of confidence and self-belief, after a tough spell of results in F2, to once again get back the enjoyment of driving a race car and be close to the top. 

“I would say it's a massive help. Working with the engineers in Formula One, with a lot more opportunities to change things in the car, and to optimise the car to what it can be, what you want it to be. Even on the simulator, just trying different things and giving your feedback, and the feeling compared against the best in the world in the end, it’s massive,” Maini mentioned, dwelling on the Alpine F1 set-up opening up valuable opportunities. 

“Not only that I would say also obviously with the TPC stuff, being in the car driving it, you know sort of like Sometimes when F2 isn't going great, like last year (2025), to jump in to the car in Abu Dhabi in the rookie test and battling there with with someone who's been there the whole season, Just gives me my confidence as a driver back,” Maini expressed, on his positive end to a difficult year. 

While Maini has taken part in TPC tests in Austria and Imola before, the latest round of testing at Zandvoort helped Maini find his rhythm once again, getting him back into a strong frame of mind for the upcoming weekends. 

“The two days of testing in Zandvoort came at a great time. There was quite a big break, so like I've said in the past, I think every time I jump into an F1 car, it's always been quite straightforward, and we've been very strong,” Maini said, speaking on his testing regime in the break. 

“We've obviously had our moments, but it's been very tough to stay consistent, especially last year (in F2). But I always knew that with everything around me working well, with the right team believing in me and pushing me forward, this is where we can be, and where we should be. 

“And I'm just glad I found a new home in ART which which makes me feel like I enjoy racing in F2 again, so I'm just in a good place right now And yeah, hopefully we can keep it like that,” Maini concluded. 

Maini will start 10th for the F2 sprint race, which gets underway at 10:00 local (15:00 BST), and while he believes overtaking will be possible, it will be interesting to follow his progress and see how he fares during the 23-lap sprint.