Qin Miao temporarily held on to his leading position, but by lap 19 Verstappen was already effectively first, and Qin Miao would fall behind him once he pitted.
The set of soft tires used by Qin Miao lasted 22 laps before pitting for a tire change, which was two laps more than the team had estimated.
The team's strategy for Qin Miao's tires was straightforward: if Qin Miao's speed consistently exceeded the team's expected pace, then there was no need to consider a pit stop; Qin Miao would stay on track until his speed dropped.
The later the pit stop, the longer the durability and speed of Qin Miao's medium tires would be, ensuring no losses.
When Qin Miao pitted in lap 22, Mercedes, who hadn't made any tire change mistakes for nearly half a season, surprisingly had a mishap.
During the initial attempt to lock the front right and front left tires, both were not properly secured, completing the tire change only after a second attempt.
