There is likely no way to ever match the hype and intensity of the Miami Grand Prix’ debut in 2022, but Formula One and race organizers are aiming for the event to remain a high-profile fixture of the sport’s calendar. 

The main event—set for Sunday after two days of practice, qualifying, and ancillary events—will be back at the track developed outside of Hard Rock Stadium (above), as will the faux marina that is designed to help provide that South Florida feel and stands as one of the race’s most distinguishing features. But the challenge for the Miami GP will be to move fully beyond the initial novelty status and solidify its position as a core part of F1. 

The initial race two years ago drew an average audience of 2.6 million, representing the most-watched live F1 race in U.S. history, while secondary ticket prices soared to as much as $32,000. Last year’s average TV audience for the Miami GP fell to 1.96 million, but it still ranks as Formula One’s second-largest live American viewership total.

This year, Miami GP organizers slashed the price of a three-day Campus Pass general admission ticket to $450, down from $590 a year ago, while the resale market for a single-day pass for Friday’s preliminary events has fallen to as low as $20. Secondary pricing for a single-day ticket for Sunday now begins at less than $200, roughly a third of the low-end pricing typically seen two years ago. 

Still, the Miami GP is also quickly becoming a core part of the local sports scene.

“Miami loves events like this. It’s one of the best weekends of the year for all of South Florida,” Jason Shatsky, CEO of TicketRev, a Boca Raton, Fla.–based ticket marketplace, tells Front Office Sports. “There’s a lot of excitement around the fact that F1 is in town.”

Who’s Who

Celebrity sightings have also been an integral component of the Miami GP scene, as the first race drew the likes of Michael Jordan, Tom Brady, and David Beckham, while last year featured Patrick Mahomes, Lindsey Vonn, Serena and Venus Williams, and Shaquille O’Neal.

This year is slated to draw arguably the biggest celebrities of the moment: Travis Kelce and his girlfriend, pop icon Taylor Swift, who are reportedly joining Mahomes and his wife, Brittany. Given Swift’s halo effect on the NFL universe during that league’s 2023 season, F1 officials would certainly relish a similar boost in Miami. 

“The aspect of wanting to see and be seen [at the race], that’s parallel to the entire city, and there are tons of networking events, parties, celebrations, and brunches all surrounding this race,” Shatsky said. “And some people [drawn to the event] don’t even end up going to the race.”

As Formula One takes over South Florida for the Miami Grand Prix, the investment in the race, its operations, and the fanfare that comes with it is a prime example of continued interest in the sport from U.S. stakeholders.

F1 now has three events in the U.S., which all seem set for long runs in their locales, but each one has its own unique draw. The Las Vegas Grand Prix is owned and operated by Formula One, a clear indicator of belief in the market by Liberty Media, F1’s American parent company. In Austin, the U.S. Grand Prix is managed by Circuit of The Americas, the track that was built with F1 in mind upon opening in 2012. And the Miami Grand Prix falls under the stewardship of Stephen Ross (above), the billionaire owner of the Dolphins.

Las Vegas is a street race that caused plenty of headaches in the lead-up to its debut, and COTA hosts many other motor-sports events in Austin year-round, but Miami is different altogether. The race takes place on a temporary track that is annually constructed outside Hard Rock Stadium. This year, that meant more than 1,000 workers on-site every day since the March 17 conclusion of the ATP/WTA Miami Open that is also held at and around the football venue.

Return on Investment

A source tells FOS that Ross, who bought a majority stake in the Dolphins in 2008 for $550 million, has privately invested more than $1 billion into improvements at Hard Rock Stadium and its surrounding area during his ownership tenure. During negotiations to bring F1 to South Florida, Ross was said to have offered to fund the $40 million necessary to build out the race’s infrastructure, according to the Miami Herald. That was back in ’19, at which time Forbes valued the Dolphins at $2.76 billion. This week, a USA Today report claimed that Ross recently turned down a $10 billion offer to buy the Dolphins, Miami GP, and Hard Rock Stadium. 

While Ross appears to be getting his money’s worth as a race owner and operator, there’s continued intrigue from U.S. power brokers on the team side of things, too. This week, 12 members of Congress wrote a letter to Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei raising anti-competitive concerns about the struggles of Michael Andretti’s efforts to enter F1 after securing a partnership with General Motors.