What\u2019s different this year<\/p>\n
On the track, there\u2019s one more two-car F1 team, the U.S.-based Cadillac team, and one more race, the first Formula 2 race in the United States. With the ongoing war in Iran, April\u2019s F2 races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia got switched to May races in Miami and Montreal, the first F2 races in North America. This year\u2019s F2 driver lineup includes Californian IndyCar export Colton Herta as he prepares for what he hopes is an F1 ride with Cadillac F1.<\/p>\n
Off the track, there\u2019s an Official Miami Grand Prix Fan Fest at Miami Beach\u2019s Luumus Park, 1130 Ocean Dr., for which you need only to claim free tickets<\/a>. In addition to slot car racing, simulators for racing and pit stops, DJs, driver pop-ins, all manners of merch, food and drink, you can keep up with what\u2019s happening on the track via screens showing the action live.<\/p>\n The Fan Fest starts at 2 p.m. on Wednesday and Thursday; noon on Friday and Sunday; and 11:30 a.m. on Saturday. It ends \u2014 officially \u2014 at 6 p.m. each day.<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t to be confused with the Racing Fan Fest at Wynwood Marketplace, 2250 NW Second Ave., an event in its fifth year. This runs Thursday, 4 p.m. to midnight; Friday, 4 p.m. to 3 a.m. ; Saturday noon to 3 a.m.; and Sunday, noon to 9 p.m. Get your free tickets on Eventbrite<\/a>. Be one of the first 250 folks to show up on any given day and get a complimentary drink.<\/p>\n Since we were last here…<\/p>\n So far season, Mercedes has returned to the dominance it had during the Lewis Hamilton years, Kimi Antonelli winning the last two races after teammate George Russell took the season opener. The Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Hamilton run third and fourth in the driver points. Last year\u2019s Constructors Champion as top team, McLaren, run fifth and sixth, respectively, with 2025 world champion Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.<\/p>\n Red Bull\u2019s Max Verstappen, who won four straight world titles from 2021 to 2024, has had a sixth and an eighth sandwiching a DNF (did not finish).<\/p>\n The above breaks trends that began with Norris\u2019 upset 2024 Miami Grand Prix win that broke the Invincible Verstappen rampage. Going into that race, Verstappen had won 24 of the previous 28 Grands Prix. From then until the end of the 2025 season, Verstappen still won the most races, 13, but Norris won 11 and Piastri took nine. Russell ran first four times, Leclerc, thrice; Hamilton, twice; and Carlos Sainz, once.<\/p>\n There\u2019s one brand new team on the grid, U.S.-based Cadillac Formula 1, with experienced drivers Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, who have a combined 16 Grands Prix wins between them. Audi\u2019s a sort-of new team, the German car company entering F1 by taking over Sauber.<\/p>\n Track Times and Tickets<\/p>\n Gates open at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. on Sunday. The first serious wheels turning will be the noon Friday Formula 1 practice.<\/p>\n As for tickets, tou\u2019ll have to hit the secondary market. Even the three-day general admission tickets to the Miami International Autodrome at Hard Rock Stadium for Friday (F1 practice, F1 Sprint qualifying, F2 qualifying), Saturday (F2 Sprint, F1 Sprint, F1 Grand Prix qualifying) and Sunday (F2 Feature Race, F1 Miami Grand Prix) are sold out.<\/p>\n There\u2019s only so much anyone can do about the Golden Glades and Interstate 95 constipation that had even worldly Formula 1 drivers commenting on Miami traffic last year.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Formula 1 drivers love Miami. Except for one thing locals hate, too<\/a><\/p>\n Oh, and there\u2019s a PGA golf tournament at Trump National Doral this weekend also. That could mean a Presidential drop-in by the First Golfer, which would mean road-closing security measures that can turn a Sunday drive into a Sunday park-and-fume.<\/p>\n But, if you insist on driving, parking passes remain available<\/a> on the Miami Grand Prix website. Don\u2019t show up expecting to park without a pre-purchased pass. Also, for the College Football Playoff national championship game and Miami Open at Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens residents did what Little Havana residents around the Orange Bowl and Marlins Park have done for decades \u2014 use the lawn as a parking lot for supplemental income.<\/p>\n Also, if you drive, take note of these road closures: from 9 a.m. Thursday until 10 p.m. Sunday, the 2X exit of Florida\u2019s Turnpike, both directions; Northwest 199th Street from 14th Court to 27th Avenue and Northwest 27th Avenue northbound at Northwest 199th Street on Friday from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.; Saturday from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m; and Sunday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.<\/p>\n Other transportation options<\/p>\n There will be Park and Ride Shuttles operating from 30 minutes before the gates open until 30 minutes after the campus closes on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. These shuttles can also be used for those using Uber, Lyft, Waymo or public transportation, but if you\u2019re parking a car, you do need to buy a parking pass ahead of time.<\/p>\n If this feels like you, head for Lot 95 at the Golden Glades Park & Ride, 15890 NW Seventh Ave.; the Aventura Brightline station, 19796 W. Dixie Hwy; Lot 60 at Broward College South Campus, 7200 Pines Blvd.; or the Hard Rock Hotel, 1 Seminole Way.<\/p>\n Team\/Driver eventsAston Martin<\/p>\n Anybody want to put down prop bets on which ends first, Law & Order: SVU or the F1 career of two-time world champion Fernando Alonso? Alonso, 44, will do a live Q&A at Aventura Mall\u2019s Center Court on Thursday at 6 p.m. part of a partnership between Aston Martin and BOSS.<\/p>\n Cadillac<\/p>\n Want free Cadillac F1 swag? Be one of the first 15 people at these Cadillac Formula 1 Team headquarters on the chosen days.<\/p>\n Wednesday: Navi Coffee and Flowers, 3213 Grand Ave. in Coconut Grove, 10 a.m. to 11 a.m.<\/p>\n Thursday: The Wolf of Tacos, in the Miami Brightline station, 550 NW First Ave., noon to 1 p.m.<\/p>\n Friday: Chub\u2019s Diner, 3444 Main Hwy. in Coconut Grove, noon to 1 p.m.<\/p>\n Food from Chub\u2019s and The Wolf of Tacos will be among the chow at The Cadillac Formula 1 Team Headquarters in the Design District at Jungle Plaza, 3801 NE First Ave. You can RSVP for the gathering<\/a> which will run Saturday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Sunday, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., but entry is first come, come on in for music, food, drink and racing simulators.<\/p>\n In addition to music by DJ DZA, Berrakka, and Five Eleven and a Saturday night appearance by driver Sergio Perez, there will be watch parties for Saturday\u2019s F1 Sprint race, Miami Grand Prix qualifying and Sunday\u2019s Miami Grand Prix.<\/p>\n The team fathered by 1960s Formula 1 and Can-Am driver and designer Bruce McLaren celebrates its 1,000th Grand Prix this week by taking over part of Coconut Grove.<\/p>\n Based out of Regatta Harbour, 3395 Pan American Dr., there will be driving and pit stop simulators, merchandise and a watch party on Sunday. Thursday, there will be a signing session and Q&A with McLaren\u2019s IndyCar drivers Pato O\u2019Ward, Christian Lundgaard, Nolan Siegel and Ryan Hunter-Reay.<\/p>\n Wednesday, they\u2019ll start the week with a parade of classic McLarens \u2014 the M23, driven by Emerson Fittipaldi to McLaren\u2019s first world title in 1974; the MP4\/6, which Ayrton Senna took to the 1991 championship; the MP4\/14, Mika Hakkinen\u2019s ride during his 1999 championship year; the MP4-23, the first of Lewis Hamilton\u2019s world championship cars; and the MCL60, driven by McLaren during the 2023 season.<\/p>\n Driving these cars will be Fittipaldi, Hakkinen, 2013 Indianapolis 500 winner Tony Kanaan, Bruno Senna and current McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.<\/p>\n Pan American drive will be closed until Thursday at 4 p.m. Wednesday, S. Bayshore Dr. will be closed at 11 a.m. with all traffic rerouted to Tigertail Avenue until 10 p.m.<\/p>\n Williams<\/p>\n In addition to the Atlassian Williams fan zone at the Wynwood Marketplace (see above), driver Alex Albion will be appearing from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesday at the Hialeah Home Depot at 950 SE 12th St., where U.S. 27 becomes Okeechobee Road off State Rd. 112.<\/p>\n The overall event starts at 11 a.m. The first 200 fans to buy batteries (Duracell is a Williams sponsor) will get priority viewing for a Q&A with Albion and the day\u2019s three fastest times on a simulator will get a meet-and-greet with him. There also will be Williams merchandise, some autographed, given away as prizes.<\/p>\n![\"Drivers](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/F1_Race_Gallery_42.JPG\" "\\"F1_Race_Gallery_42.JPG\\"")
Drivers take off during the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix at the Miami International Autodrome on Sunday, May 4, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. Matias J. Ocner mocner@miamiherald.com <\/p>\n![\"Angel](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/F1_Race_Gallery_30.JPG\" "\\"F1_Race_Gallery_30.JPG\\"")
Angel Ocasio sits in an inflatable F1 car in the pool at The Beach Club inside Miami International Autodrome ahead of the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix at the Miami International Autodrome on Sunday, May 4, 2025, in Miami Gardens, Fla. D.A. Varela dvarela@miamiherald.com Beating (or dealing with) the traffic<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1777426208_355_CadillacF1Team_6593_HiRes.jpg\" "\\"CadillacF1Team_6593_HiRes.jpg\\"")
The Cadillac Formula 1 Team Miami Special Livery for the Crypto.com Miami Grand Prix. Cadillac Formula 1 Team Cadillac Formula 1 Team McLaren<\/p>\n