The inaugural Miami Grand Prix saw Formula 1 enter a world of glamour, celebrity, and gimmicks - including police escorts to the podium and football helmets for those that finished in the top three.
While the occasion was welcomed and celebrated by some, former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone did not enjoy the spectacle. F1 visited the NFL franchise Miami Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium for round five of the 2022 championship, and it did not disappoint for many.
It became a must-attend event for celebrities from all walks of life as F1 looked to take advantage of the insane increase in popularity seen in the United States due to Netflix ’s docs-series Drive to Survive.
The Opening Party on the Wednesday night included a driver presentation on the podium, while the week’s festivities ended with the top three donning NFL-style helmets as they sprayed champagne atop the podium on Sunday. While approximately 242,955 fans arrived over the three days - including a record 85,280 on race day - Ecclestone thought the festivities fell flat.
“They are producing Formula 1: American Style,” the 91-year-old told Bloomberg. “It may well be that it’s good, because so many stupid things come out of America and everyone’s happy, but it wasn’t the way I ran things.”
In fact, the popularity of F1 in the United States has risen so dramatically over the last few years that there will be three races within the country from next season. After the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas was joined by the Miami race, 2023 will see the debut of the Las Vegas Grand Prix which is set to run around the iconic strip.
Ecclestone’s view was dismissed by Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei. The American suggested that F1 had become the latest popular trend - and he hopes it it is here to stay.
“Bernie can think what he wants,” Maffei told firstsportz.com. “But the reality is everyone wants to be there now.”
His comments were compounded by Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff. The Austrian suggested Ecclestone’s view was particularly archaic, stating: “Bernie was good in his time, he invented our sport, but technologies have changed.”
Miami may have proved a success in terms of spectators, but the drivers were not particularly pleased when it came to the track design. Red Bull star Sergio Perez called the track surface a ‘joke’ while McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo claimed drivers ‘literally have to just stay on that one line otherwise you’re not really on the track anymore.’
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The Australian added: “So instead of making it a kind of a good challenge, it just makes it a little bit, in a way, like one-dimensional.”
Reigning world champion Max Verstappen claimed the win in the 57-lap race as he passed Drivers’ Championship leader Charles Leclerc of Ferrari on lap nine. The Dutchman secured the lead and took the chequered flag for the third time in 2022 - ensuring he has won every race he has finished this season.
The 24-year-old is now 19 points behind Leclerc in the standings. The 22-race F1 2022 campaign - which is expected to return to a record 23 races in the near future once a Russian Grand Prix replacement is found - continues with the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona on May 22.
