The Miami Grand Prix is more than just a Formula One race — it's a spectacle
The Miami Grand Prix is a Formula One race — but that’s selling it short.
It’s a destination for the rich and famous. It’s a music festival. It’s a foodie’s paradise. And it’s a weekend of world-class racing, too.
Distinctions like those are typically reserved for the truly historic races on the Formula One calendar — most notably, the Monaco Grand Prix. That race was first held in 1929, building a legendary course on the Monte Carlo streets with stars in the paddock and yachts in the harbor of the Mediterranean Sea.
Miami didn’t have an F1 race until 2022. It’s track, dubbed the Miami International Autodrome, runs through parking lots and private roads around Hard Rock Stadium and doesn’t use any public streets. It’s “marina,” if you can call it that, includes fake water painted on the ground with boats stationed on top.
Despite all that, the Miami Grand Prix has established itself as one of the sport’s can’t-miss spectacles.
So, what makes Miami so special? For starters, the star power is unmatched by any other F1 event. Tom Brady, Bad Bunny, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Shakira, David Beckham, Timothée Chalamet, Kendall Jenner, Gordon Ramsay, Ed Sheeran and Travis Kelce are just a few of the celebrities who have attended.
“A little piece of Miami’s always been about the glitz and the glamour, right? So, we actually work together with the F1 industry and the teams that are going to be partnering with these celebrities and bringing them in,” said Katharina Nowak, Miami Grand Prix and South Florida Motorsports president, in an interview with NBC.
Nowak, who became the youngest president of an F1 race when she took over last September at 28 years old, believes that the on-track action is what gets the stars to the venue. Of course, it doesn’t hurt being in sunny South Florida in May while surrounded by palm trees and other celebrities.
“It’s a little bit of a joint collaboration from everyone that’s hosting the celebrities,” Nowak said. “Ultimately, I think what drives them here is the Formula One event and the way that we put on events for that level of clientele. Generally, it’s the Miami Grand Prix that’s attracting them and then we work together with each of the stakeholders that are that are hosting them to make sure that ultimately we deliver a good experience for them.”
This weekend is expected to be another massive spectacle, with some added features for fans attending.
The campus across Hard Rock Stadium and the track will be filled with neighborhood-inspired sections to give attendees a feel for Miami. Each section, including Little Havana, Miami Beach, Miami Gardens and more, will have food, drinks, art and entertainment associated with that neighborhood.
“The vision of this from the beginning was that we create a campus where fans can go all around and see every part,” Nowak said. “It’s not very common at F1 races, you’re usually zoned into a certain location and not able to really move around the track. So, that was something from the get-go that was really important from us for us. It’s really an attempt to bring that Disney-like experience to fans from around the world.”
Additionally, there’ll be a handful of star musical acts to give off a festival feel — almost comparable to a smaller version of Coachella or Stagecoach. Marshmello, Nelly and Kane Brown are among the stars who will perform for fans.
All of that is part of the Miami GP’s mission to set itself apart from other F1 events. While races like Monaco might have more history and races like the British Grand Prix might have more traditional fans, Miami is aiming to grow by making itself unique.
“The city of Miami and infusing the Miami culture and into everything that we do (is important to the event),” Nowak explained. “That’s why we create something like what we have at the Hard Rock Beach Club (section). We have a big stage and entertainment for those fans. And then, we go over to the other side of our campus and we’ve got our marina, where we have now a massive MSC Yacht Club cruise ship as a temporary hospitality structure.
“Every part of how we bring the hospitality and guest and fan experience to life and infuse Miami into everything that we’re doing, that’s really one of the key differentiators (from other F1 races). Delivering Miami authentically in a way that’s very luxury and very Miami in its own way. And then of course, obviously delivering a world-class racing event is probably the key pillar.”
Clearly, the strategy has been working. The Miami GP won the 2025 Promoter of the Year award at the Autosport Awards in January, beating out three other F1 events. One year earlier, F1 named South Florida Motorsports as its Promoter of the Year for 2024.
The event’s goals have remained constant since its inception in 2022, Nowak said. And that consistency was recognized not just with the awards, but also with a 10-year contract extension from F1. That deal, announced last May, will keep the race going through at least 2041.
“Our goals and vision has remained the same in the sense that we’re looking to build a world-class motorsports event,” Nowak said. “I think we’ve been able to achieve that for fans around the world that come to the Miami Grand Prix and experience everything that we have to offer. We really find a way to bring Miami into everything that we’re doing. Every year we look to continue to expand on how we infuse the Miami culture into the overall fan experience.”
Even with all that recognition, Nowak says their aspirations are only getting bigger.
“As we continue to grow, our contract with F1 just recently got extended, our vision has continued to expand as well in terms of how and where we want to take this event. So, we’ve got big plans on the horizon to continue to grow this into a even bigger global event around the world and continue to bring Miami into the forefront of everything that we’re doing.”
Logistically, just putting the event together can be a daunting challenge. While the Miami GP hasn’t had any trouble attracting stars and putting on a good show, building the track and coordinating with Hard Rock Stadium’s other events can feel like a puzzle.
The campus has already held the college football national championship game, a Formula E race, Jazz in the Gardens music festival and the Miami Open tennis tournament this year. Next up is the Miami GP from May 1-3, then there’s seven FIFA World Cup matches in June and July, concerts all summer, University of Miami and Miami Dolphins football starting in the fall and then the Orange Bowl in January.
“Our venue, Hard Rock Stadium, that’s really always our biggest challenge is ‘How do we build during all the other events that are happening around the year?’ And then taking it down so that we can be ready for whatever comes right after us,” Nowak said.
“In this particular year, this is the 40th anniversary of Hard Rock Stadium and it’s gonna be the busiest it’s ever been. … It’s really just the challenges and the obstacles that we have, really comes from how do we build and take this event down in the matter of days that we have available to us given all the other events that Hard Rock Stadium is hosting throughout the year.”
The 2026 Miami GP is expected to be the biggest yet, with more on-track action than ever before. There will be a sprint race on Saturday before the grand prix on Sunday, along with several other racing series to give fans a full weekend of action.
“It’s always been a priority for us since the very beginning to make sure that our days are filled with track activities so that fans really get a taste of racing when they’re here on site with us.”
The action gets underway Friday with F1 cars on track. But remember, you never know who you might see before, during or after the Miami GP — and that’s just how they like it.
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