The Formula 1 of 2024 Miami Grand Prix begins this weekend at the Miami International Speedway, a street circuit located in and around the Miami Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium complex.
The race is the sixth round in Record F1 calendar for 2024and the first of three races in the US this season, the others being the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, and the Las Vegas Grand Prix.
The Miami Grand Prix will include a Sprint race in addition to the main race. It will be the second Sprint race of this season after the first took place during the Chinese Grand Prix. The Sprint race is an independent points race that takes place on Saturdays, before the qualifying session for the main race. It has its own qualifying session that takes place on Fridays, after a single free practice session.
The Miami Grand Prix was held for the first time in 2022 and has already managed to become a favorite among drivers. The track has a high rating in terms of maximum speeds, as cars comfortably exceed 320 km/h on the final straight. It stretches 3.36 miles in length and features a mix of 19 low- and high-speed curves, along with three DRS zones.
Miami International Speedway, home of the Miami Formula 1 Grand Prix
Several small adjustments were made to the track between the first race in 2022 and the second edition last year. These included resurfacing the track with a new aggregate before 2023, offering better grip to drivers with the aim of increasing overtaking opportunities.
Pirelli has named its intermediate compounds C2, C3 and C4 for this weekend. Most teams will likely follow a one-stop strategy, although this could change if the degradation is greater than expected.
The weather off the coast of Miami is very variable, although the forecast is currently for good conditions for Saturday’s Sprint and qualifying sessions, as well as Sunday’s main race. The ambient temperature is expected to reach 83 degrees.
At the weekend, Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen leads the 2024 Drivers’ Championship with 110 points. Fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez is second with 85 points, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is third with 76 points. In the Constructors’ Championship, Red Bull leads with 195 points, against 151 for Ferrari and 96 for McLaren. Last year’s winner in Miami was Verstappen driving for Red Bull.