On the main straight, where American rapper LL Cool J introduced each driver to fans before the American national anthem, a makeshift gantry was erected with its back to the grid.

Meanwhile, Will.i.am led the orchestra in a performance of his and Lil Wayne’s new F1 song “The Formula”, which was released on Saturday’s Miami Grand Prix weekend.

Due to the revised format, riders were called 23 minutes before the scheduled start of the race, compared to 16 minutes before the more traditional anthem ceremony used in Baku.

But the changes were met with a lukewarm reception by drivers, who expressed reservations at a Friday night briefing because they felt the process was too long and they did not want to see it repeated.

Russell calls out distracting ‘performance’

Mercedes driver George Russell called it a “distraction”, saying: “I guess it’s the American way of doing things in sport. Personally, it might not suit me.

“I’m here to race. I’m not here to put on a show. I’m here to drive and I’m here to win.

“It was very distracting because we were out in the sun for half an hour in all our work clothes.

“I don’t think there’s any other sport in the world where 30 minutes before you go out to do business, in the sun, with all the cameras on you, and do some show.

“In the entertainment industry, I can relate to that. But like I said, we just want to do our best for the sport. We’re open to change. But I guess we don’t want to see it every weekend.

“What I love about every game is the national anthem, it lifts you up and it’s a tribute to the country we’re playing in. It’s mixed feelings about the extras.”

F1 intends to use occasional ceremonial introductions, with the championship experimenting with a similar spectacle for the US Grand Prix at the 2017 Tour of the Americas, when famed boxing announcer Michael Buffer welcomed the drivers.

Norris: Drivers have exposed enough

McLaren’s Lando Norris believes the entire circuit is against the idea, adding that there needs to be a limit on the time drivers spend on TV shows and audience participation.

He said: “No driver likes it, but at the end of the day it’s not for us.

“We do a lot of things. It’s probably the only sport where we get so close to the fans.

“We do a lot of publicity for our fans. As drivers, we all just want to sit back and focus on what we need to focus on instead of watching so much TV or whatever.

“But at the end of the day, it’s a business, so it’s something we have to do. But there’s more and more stuff like this, and no driver likes it.

“We said, ‘You can’t just keep throwing stuff in and make us do more and more’.

“We do a lot. There’s a limit to what we should be doing. We’re here to stay focused on the work we’re doing and not be in front of the camera all day.”

Meanwhile, criticism on social media cited footage of three-time F1 champion Jackie Stewart appearing to be prevented from entering the grid by safety.

Alonso: Miami fans don’t deserve special treatment

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc was less critical but called for an adjustment to the timing, while Fernando Alonso believed F1 needed to be unified so the American race could not be treated differently.

Quoting fans in other countries who were equally enthusiastic, he said: “I understand everyone’s point of view, but I’m not a big fan of that kind of thing before a race.

“If we have to do that, I think we need to cancel some of the other things that we’re doing, like parade circles or something like that, because it’s really in the run-up to the engineers and the strategy meeting.

“If we do it, we have to do it everywhere because I don’t think the fans in Miami are any better than the Italian fans in Imola, Spain, Mexico or Japan.

“We need to have everyone have the same rules and the same program before the game.”

Miami Grand Prix winner Max Verstappen says he wants to stay out of the spotlight.

Hamilton backs experiment organizers

However, seven-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton expressed his support for the show as he embraced the work of F1 owner Liberty Media in experimenting with the format.

He said: “I think it’s great. I love Sun!

“I think it’s cool that the sport is growing and evolving and not just doing what they’ve done in the past.

“They’re trying new things; they’re trying to improve the show, and I’m all for it.

“I grew up listening to LL Cool J, he was there. That was cool.

“And then you look over there and you have Will.i.am. Who is an amazing artist. You have Serena and Venus (Williams, the tennis champion) standing there.

“I think it’s cool, I’m fine with that.”

Asked if the ceremony posed any risk of distracting him, Hamilton replied: “I’ve been focused and in shape since last Sunday.”