The biggest challenge for any new Formula 1 promoter is always the second race. A brand new event on the calendar always creates a huge buzz and fans may rush to snap up tickets for the latest grand prix on the calendar.

But the novelty factor wears off quickly, with the second year usually offering a reality check of what the strike potential of a grand prix is. The following year’s grand prix suffered time and time again from declining attendance, and organizers had to redouble their efforts to persuade fans not to take their interest elsewhere in what had become the next big thing.

Miami didn’t appear to be escaping the phenomenon either, as it was noted weeks before the game that tickets were still available and TV footage throughout practice over the weekend showed the stands empty.

After criticism of fake piers and high ticket prices in the first year, discounts and the impression that the venue looked far from full at times fueled the narrative that the Miami hype was over.

There is also a potential fallout, with two more American races on the F1 calendar, an identity battle. With Austin gaining ground and Las Vegas promoted by F1 until 2032, Miami faces its toughest challenge yet.

But when it comes to measuring the success of the 2023 Miami Grand Prix, there are many key factors proving that Miami’s second class is not only successful but prosperous.

Crowdstrike fans watch start of Miami Grand Prix

Photography: Steven Tee / motorsport pictures

Sold out at the last minute due to increased ticket supply

While tickets for the Miami Grand Prix sold out ahead of the inaugural race’s debut in 2022, this year’s sell-out was much later as not all tickets were on the market at the same time.

Tom Garfunkel, CEO of the Miami Dolphins and managing partner of the Miami Grand Prix, believes there is a need, if any, for more tickets. However, he wanted to make sure people had a pleasant experience without overcrowding.

Speaking to selected media, including Autosport, about the eventual sell-out, he said: “So what we do is hold on to the tickets on purpose. They let out.

“We’ve added a few campus passes in the last week or so. Last year, we sold 85,000 tickets, and today depending on demand and the rooms we have here, we might have sold 150,000. But I hope everyone has a good one experience.

“It’s hard to get people in and out, making sure there’s no lines, making sure they’re tracking as much traffic as possible and all those things. So we’re hoping to grow a little bit every year as our operations get better.”

Last year’s Miami Grand Prix sold 242,955 tickets and this year 270,000 have been confirmed. Although this year 2023 tickets did not sell out until the day before the game, all grandstand tickets and higher-end tickets, such as hotel suites and clubs, sold out earlier in the year.

It does show that the trend towards making F1 more than just a race for fans, especially American fans, is paying off.

The scene is full of fans

Photography: Mark Sutton/ motorsport pictures

Paddock Club Improvements

Miami’s new paddock club can accommodate about 6,000 people a day, with suites topping out at $12,000 per game weekend. A calculation of income says it all.

Stepping up in this regard is the biggest shift from the inaugural event, when there were big issues with the service and quality of the food on offer.

Hard Rock Cafe chief executive Jim Allen told Autosport that the overall quality of the food and the event itself had improved since the first race as organizers learned from their previous mistakes.

“I think with anything in life, when you do it the first time, you know it. The second time you want to learn from what happened last time, there is no doubt that we collectively learned a lot last year Stuff. I think this year is much better.

“It’s not just the event itself, it’s the walking distance. The quality of the food in the paddock is frankly amazing. So I think all of those things help one step at a time.”

Fans watch drivers parade

Photography: Andy Horn / motorsport pictures

empty stands

One of the hardest things to gauge is the empty grandstands, especially during practice whenever TV cameras show overhead views or wide-angle shots of the track.

Garfunkel believes the reason behind the empty seats isn’t that tickets aren’t selling — it’s that fans often leave to enjoy the other amenities the grand prix has to offer. In fact, this view holds true when the grandstands are packed at key moments of track events – such as qualifying and the race.

Garfunkel added: “We have a lot of amenities for people and a lot of places for them to eat and drink. So sometimes when you see the stands don’t look like they’re completely full, I think it’s because people are doing other things. Thing, just sitting in the shade. They’re out drinking and watching TV somewhere.”

LL Cool J announces drivers for the grid

Photography: Mark Sutton/ motorsport pictures

cater to american fans

The list of celebs at this year’s Miami Grand Prix is ​​impressive, including actors Tom Cruise, Vin Diesel, Latino musicians J Balvin, Shakira, rappers, LL Cool J, Diddy, DJ Harley Germany, athletes Roger Federer, Serena Williams and Lindsay Vaughan, and business people tycoons Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos.

LL Cool J’s driver introductions were taken to another level by a mature orchestra conducted by Will.i.am, which included the Miami Dolphins cheerleaders – even if the moment wasn’t to everyone’s taste.

For most European F1 fans, and most F1 drivers, pre-race celebrations like driver introductions are considered excessive and unnecessary distractions, but for American audiences, it’s fun.

Allen also stressed the importance of combining exercise and recreation.

“I think you need the entertainment factor,” he said. “Quite frankly, when we partnered with Steve Ross for Hard Rock Stadium, the conversation was: we don’t want to be just football, we want to be an entertainment venue.

“We have everything from football to concerts to tennis to Formula One. So, it’s very exciting.”

Aston Martin team principal Mike Clarke also acknowledged how different the sports industry is in the US, and believes F1 teams need to learn how to adapt to the US market.

In an interview with Autosport, he said: “The biggest mistake you can make is if you just take your product (to the US) and try to adapt it to that market – I think you really need to adapt to the US market, Because it’s very different.

“Teams have to understand how sports entertainment works here. It’s very, very different to Europe.

“For example, I went to a basketball game in Orlando because I was there for Christmas, and while the game was fun, it was probably less important than all the entertainment you had. I think we need to learn that .”

Podium: Race winner Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, second Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing, third Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin F1 Team

Photography: Red Bull Content Pool

The second grade curse is not a real curse

There is no doubt that the second year of any event or competition is usually more difficult than the first year to achieve the same success.

Las Vegas Grand Prix chief commercial officer Emily Prazer explained her theory about how difficult the second year’s event was and how misleading the data could be.

“If you do the research, the second-year events are always harder than the first-year events. And they’ve improved their abilities significantly (here), too,” she told Autosport.

“So if you look at the attendance data for the game, whether it’s sold or not, you will find that there are more people than last year, probably because more general admission tickets were released.”

For a race like the Miami Grand Prix, the key thing to keep in mind is that you really have to experience it to understand the hype.

The track at Miami International Speedway still gets mixed reviews, but there’s excitement in the paddock and fan area — which is where race directors are most concerned.

Additional reporting by Jonathan Noble and Charles Bradley