FORMULA 1 CRYPTO.COM MIAMI GRAND PRIX 2025 - Pre Race Thread

I don't mind the 6 sprint weekends per year. Changes things up a bit. They should rename in the Weimerica Grand Prix. Because that is what it is. Let the rich tossers have fun I guess. But we should not be having these events at the expense of legacy tracks.

 

I agree. It’s really sad because it originally could have been something but once they changed the location it all went down hill. Then the influencers and poseurs made it all one giant vip lounge where people are more interested in being seen than seeing a race. Sadly, it’s a terrible track with even worse viewing areas.

Just like Miami, it’s all flash and no substance.

 

Barber, where Indycars are racing this weekend, would be a fabulous old school track for a GP but of course this is a pipe dream, not enough hotels etc and the Liberty folks are obsessed with street races and shallow hype.

 

OK, this is just silly. Who thought a white T shirt with random logos was a good idea? This looks like knock off Temu item for $1.99

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

I have a similar shirt Ferrari produced and team wore from 2011 etc. Placement is almost random.

 

Best race of the year in FL has been and gone already, 24h of Daytona

You're entirely right on Miami being a narcissistic hell hole, especially these days. Seems like every crypto bro, "life coach", course seller, cokehead/dealer, general scam artist and their collective self inflated ego has taken up residence there. Shame really because the idea of a waterfront property with your own dock for boat/jetski is a nice idea, lol.

 

So, win 4 races and you can put your car on a stand ?

 

Barber is fantastic, but that's because they take pride in the facility, and have their own thing going on with branding, the museum, etc. It feels like Liberty doesn't want races to be F1 @ Barber Motorsports, where the track gets equal, or potentially higher billing because that would lessen their leverage to extract ever-increasing fees. To them, it's better just to have the "Spanish Grand Prix" and award it to the highest bidding location, track quality be damned.

 

Besides Miami and Las Vegas for tackiness reasons, I could do without Singapore, and oh no even Monaco - a legacy track - now the cars are too big to pass.

 

Not only those characters you've mentioned....there are hundreds if not thousands of corrupt politicians Officials and public servants whom illicitly enriched themselves by corruption and travelled to Miami with tons of $100 Bills stuffed inside their underwear ( documented case ) and purchased condos in South Beach
Venezuelans, Colombians and Brazilians are notorius for that.

 

As a Floridian like you that’s the truth!

 

I liked your post BUT the best race in Florida is the 12 hours of Sebring

 

Lame circuit. Happy to see the drivers toss this out and rate it poorly.

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/why-f1-drivers-dislike-the-miami-gp-circuit-and-how-it-could-be-improved/10718052/

Why F1 drivers dislike the Miami GP circuit and how it could be improved
The Miami International Autodrome’s fast, flowing opening sector gets generally favourable reviews but there’s work to be done elsewhere

“It’s probably at the bottom of my list of preferred circuits,” said Lewis Hamilton, the dismissive tone and matching facial expression indicating that no elucidation would be forthcoming.

Pity the poor scribbler who had clearly accepted a commission from some outlet or other to write a story talking up the Miami race, spending the most recent grand prix weekends doggedly working the rounds of press conferences for positive quotes. Some drivers saw the motive behind the otherwise incongruous line of questioning and generously did their best to facilitate; the majority were lukewarm at best.
Lewis was stone cold.

“As an event?” our colleague pressed, wearily.
“Same."

Since the Miami Grand Prix joined the Formula 1 calendar in 2022 in the first blaze of post-Drive to Survive American audience growth, the temporary track around the Hard Rock Stadium has elicited mixed feelings at best.

From day one of the inaugural edition, F1’s drivers complained about the layout and surface (which had to be patched up during the opening weekend). The organisers have had to mitigate both this and the logistical difficulties of assembling the circuit without causing traffic issues which could sour relations with local businesses and residents.

There were also reported issues surrounding VIP catering – over which anybody not blessed with such a pass need not have fretted unduly for the poor celebs and hangers-on going hungry and athirst. Tuning up both this and the track surface was a major focus before the race’s second outing.

The new surface has quietened many complaints about racing practicalities but some elements of the layout remain problematic for drivers, particularly the section between Turns 13 and 16 – including the chicane which Max Verstappen famously said would be better taken “in a go-kart”.

To some extent this is unavoidable though, since the amount of real estate is finite and the circuit has to manoeuvre around a stadium as well as the elevated highway ramps which dictate that slow-speed section and chicane. The critical focus here detracts from those areas of the track which are regarded as successful, particularly the first sector which loops around the stadium and ends with the multi-apex Turns 6-7-8.

“Pretty mega” is how Esteban Ocon described Miami’s first sector, and he previously counted himself among the circuit’s critics after his shunt at Turn 13 during practice for the inaugural event.

“You can really push the edge in terms of lines and kerb usage,” said Ocon’s former Alpine team-mate Pierre Gasly of the opening sector and its positives.

The track designers evaluated 30 different permutations before alighting on this one and it’s easy to see why that first sector is so effective. Unfortunately, its layout then dictates the route back towards the start.

"I think the part of the track from Turn 12 to 15 is probably not really made for these Formula 1 cars,” said Fernando Alonso, “but it’s the same for everybody.

“You just try to survive that sector but it’s not really a sector where you can push or find a tenth of a second or something like that, you just go in the middle of the track and it’s not super interesting.”

The challenge in using this area of the campus is the entrance and exit ramps and flyover sections of the Florida Turnpike and NW 203rd Street. Safety regulations dictate caps on speed and clearance around all that concrete, hence the fiddly chicane – to which the circuit designers added a crest as a ‘mistake generator’.

While drivers are always liable to complain about such elements, they do have their benefits in terms of potentially spicing up the racing. In that context the present layout in that area arguably represents the most effective use of the space.

So if Miami is to remain “an awkward track with awkward corners” as Alex Albon describes it, is there another way to resolve some of the drivers’ complaints? Potentially yes.

Over the first three editions, criticism of the track surface has proceeded hand in hand with complaints about tyre behaviour in Miami’s burgeoning spring heat. Last year Pirelli’s soft-compound rubber – the C4 compound – proved so sensitive to overheating that Lando Norris, Hamilton and George Russell swapped to mediums in Q3.

But the medium and hard compounds, as well as being less temperature-sensitive, were less prone to degradation and graining, making a one-stop race the optimal strategy. This naturally has the effect of making races more likely to be processional, as demonstrated in the early rounds this year – which is why the Miami compounds will actually be a step softer, with C4 becoming the medium choice.

Pirelli changed the C4 this year to make it less prone to degradation, so the outcome remains uncertain.

One way the organisers could get over the temperature issue would be to hold the race at night – and Miami Grand Prix president Tyler Epp is on record as saying this is a possibility he is evaluating. Moving the race’s calendar slot to a cooler time of year would be difficult, owing to the Miami Open tennis tournament and the requirements of the football season.

But hosting the race at night, or at least in the evening, could play to the event’s ambitions to be F1’s party capital – although the impact on neighbours would have to be considered and mitigated.

In terms of its effect on the on-track action, a time change could be transformational. As Ocon pointed out, lower temperatures would put the tyres under less duress and change the approach to the entire course.

“With 20 degrees less it would be super nice and flowing,” he concluded.

 

Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

LOLLL

 

I agree, and I have to say the same about Las Vegas...but that is even worse because it is at night.

 

That is an insane ticket price. If I was a multi multi millionaire I still wouldn't pay that absurd price.

 

Lol, I had free tickets last year and still didn’t go!

I’d much rather hop on a plane and see a proper track even if it cost much more.

 

Hate to say it, and perhaps it speaks poorly to my taste, but I kind of like it! I think the red at the sleeve edge is a nice touch. Oh well. Don't think I'll look to buy one anyways!

 

Agree. I lived outside of Orlando for a little while, and attended the 24hrs a few times with my wife. We had an amazing time. Great sounds, great access, and can see much of the track from high in the grand stands.

And it's funny just walking around the track and seeing famous drivers strolling around on their scooters! (Rubens Batrichello)

 

Racing Bulls pink livery.

Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

George Barber is a real enthusiast. He’d make sure it’s done right but in addition to the lack of adequate local accommodations the F1 traveling circus could never be set up there in “the style to which it has become accustomed.”

 

And doesn't got a grand for a parking lot seat
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Image Unavailable, Please Login



Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login


Image Unavailable, Please Login

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date