Formula 1 has been planning to stage a new race in Miami for years, and after a 2018 proposal to use a wild street circuit around AmericanAirlines Arena was rejected, the sport has reached a new agreement to stage a race on the grounds of Hard Rock Stadium.
Via F1Mia.com:
“We are thrilled to announce that Formula One and Hard Rock Stadium have reached an agreement in principle to host the first-ever Formula One Miami Grand Prix at Hard Rock Stadium. With an estimated annual impact of more than $400 million and 35,000 room nights, the Formula One Miami Grand Prix will be an economic juggernaut for South Florida each and every year.”
According to the Miami Herald, Miami-Dade County commissioners still need to approve the deal, and some local community activists have protested the race. If the race is approved, it is currently planned to be held in May of 2021. The race would become the second American grand prix on the Formula 1 calendar, along with the race at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas.
Will the proposed circuit layout make for an exciting race? Initial fan opinion seems to be split, but it’s also difficult to predict how new F1 regulations set for the 2020 season will alter the sport. The Hard Rock Stadium circuit would feature two extremely long straights, a few heavy braking zones that could lead to overtakes, and some sweeping high-speed turns.
A parking lot course may also not be very much of a spectacle. Formula 1 races on some of the most breathtaking circuits across the world – and though not every course on the calendar can have a setting like Spa or Suzuka, the Miami track is already being compared to Sochi, a bland circuit that winds around the Sochi Olympic park.
