Photo by: Marcel Heil on Unsplash

F1 Miami Grand Prix 2022 Preview

The 2022 F1 Grand Prix in Miami is soon upon us! This will be the very first Formula One race in Miami, and we couldn’t be more excited to see how this new track looks when the drivers start the race on Sunday.

Forgot what happened during the last race in Italy? Well, Red Bull looks formidable again, as it was a one/two for the reigning champions, with Max Verstappen in first place and Sergio Perez in second. It wasn’t a Ferrari or Mercedes in third place, either, but Lando Norris in the McLaren to the surprise of everyone.

Venue, time & where to watch the Miami Grand Prix race

The Miami F1 race will take place on the Miami International Autodrome, which is a new circuit built in the Hard Rock Stadium complex in Miami Gardens (which is home to the NFL team, Miami Dolphins).

The race will be comprised of 57 laps over a length of 5.412km, and as this is the inaugural contest, there is currently no track record. This has the feel of a street circuit with a beautiful layout that will not only feel good for the drivers with brand new tarmac, but fans are bound to love it too.

The track contains 19 corners, three straights, and even a few elevation changes found between the 13^th and 16^th turns. A top speed of 320km/h has been estimated, but hopefully that assessment is crushed by one of the Red Bulls or Ferraris!

The F1 Miami Grand Prix will start on Sunday 8^th May at 19:30 GMT. Be sure to check the full schedule below.

Drivers to watch in the Miami Grand Prix

Anticipation is high for the Miami race, as the United States has seemingly brought out all the stops for the competition on Sunday. In true American style, expect bigger and better than ever, with spectacle usually seen in the half-time show of the Super Bowl.

As always, Ferrari is still looking in prime position to take the chequered flag, especially with the news that the team will switch Charles Leclerc’s engine to a newer power unit. This is indeed a much-needed switch, with the Red Bulls breathing down the neck of Ferrari.

Charles Leclerc is still leading the drivers’ standings, for now… as 2021 champion, Max Verstappen, has been driving like a man on a mission lately and has no plans to let someone else take his title away.

As of now, Verstappen looks like the bookies’ favourite to take the win in Miami, with Leclerc and Sainz behind him. Although George Russell in the Mercedes has been solid all season, his teammate and seven-time champion, Lewis Hamilton, has struggled with changes to the car and hasn’t displayed the form we’ve come to know him for during his career.

Mercedes’ team boss, Toto Wolff, has recently apologised to Hamilton for the nearly undriveable car that he’s had to put up with. However, he is still assuring fans (and no doubt Lewis himself) that modifications are coming and the car has been adjusted in the build-up to the Miami F1 race.

“Miami is an exciting new challenge and a complete step into the unknown,” said Wolff. “The track looks demanding, with a real mix of low and high-speed corners, and it’s set to be a spectacular showcase for the sport to our growing US fan base.”

Indeed, the Americans seem to have an F1 passion like never before, thanks largely in part to the Netflix documentary series, “Drive To Survive,” which is a unique fly-on-the-wall look at the lives of Formula One drivers over the duration of the entire season.

Of course, the F1 Miami Grand Prix is not the only American contest on the schedule, with Austin hosting a race on October 24^th. The new and shiny circuit in Miami has captured the attention of the nation with major celebrities expected to attend and all the amazing display that comes with US sports events.

Everyone from The Rock to Michael Jordan to David Beckham will appear at the F1 race in Miami, so you just know there’s going to be a lot of Instagram posts featuring these behemoths of the celebrity world.

One of the most interesting promotional campaigns for the Miami Grand Prix was Sergio Perez’s road trip in an F1 car from New York to Miami. Check out the video here, which is pretty entertaining, as it’s not every day that you see an F1 racing car speeding through the city streets.

The 1,950-mile distance apparently takes 19 hours to complete in a typical car, but only 11 hours in an F1 car, according to the video. Did Perez really drive for 11 hours? Probably not, but it’s a fun idea anyway.

Which cars will the circuit suit?

A look at the weather is worth a mention, as despite sunny periods for most of the race weekend, thunderstorms have been predicted for Sunday morning. Things should clear up by race time in the afternoon and reach 30°C, but any dampness on the track is a cause for concern, especially on the gravel on the side, which makes life hard for the tires to spin out.

With 19 corners, the Red Bulls seem to have a big advantage, as these cars always perform better than every other team when it comes to the twists and turns.

As well, as we saw Charles Leclerc make a costly error in Italy that dropped him several places, you have to wonder if the Ferrari driver will get his act together or if Verstappen’s rapid ascension up the standings is a cause for alarm.

Predicted outcome for Miami F1 Grand Prix in 2022

Things just look so good for the Red Bull team at the moment, that it seems inevitable that either Verstappen or Perez will take the victory on Sunday, but most likely Verstappen.

It seemed odd that Verstappen and Hamilton were neck-and-neck for the championship last season, as now Hamilton’s chances are practically zero. He can still win back several races, but he’s just too far behind in the standings to be a real threat. This is a huge shame, as Hamilton is always a competitor, and not having a great car to drive renders his skills completely void.

The Ferraris are as lethal as ever, but more so in the hands of Charles Leclerc, as he alone has a competitive streak in him that rivals a younger Hamilton. If Leclerc can at least take second place in Miami, then he has the chance to keep Verstappen behind in the drivers’ standings.

It will be a bit of an unknown race for everyone involved, as the circuit is hugely unfamiliar to every driver, so it stands to reason that whichever driver is the most adaptable, he will come out the victor on Sunday.

With Red Bull absolutely surging at the moment, especially since the team has sorted out the issues affecting the car earlier in the season, expect Verstappen to take the chequered flag, with Leclerc second, and Perez third.

There’s a feeling that Mercedes will be better this time, so it wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibility that Hamilton could sneak fourth and Russell fifth, so watch out for that prospect in Miami.

Author: Joe Garland

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