The Miami Gardens City Council last night passed a resolution to sign a memorandum of understanding with F1 and Hard Rock Stadium, a major boost to the effort that raises the prospect of a race as soon as '22. F1 and Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross have been working on bringing a race to South Florida for years but the effort has encountered significant local opposition and went dormant last year during the pandemic. However, the sides have continued working behind the scenes to win local support and got a significant boost when Miami Gardens Mayor Rodney Harris sponsored a bill to be voted on last night that addressed some of the resident issues. During the meeting, several residents spoke at length, including several that were against the effort, but the city council members still ultimately passed the resolution.
INSIDE THE DETAILS: The bill includes a $5M grant over the next 10 years for the city from the race promoters, as well as offering paid internships to local residents. Other measures of the resolution include not racing before 2:30pm ET on school days or after sunset, as well as making the promoters put up noise-mitigation barriers around the course. A source familiar with F1’s thinking this morning told SBJ that, barring any other new hurdles, it is likely that the global racing series adds Miami to the schedule next year. F1 and the Dolphins have yet to comment on last night’s big win for their efforts. F1 currently races once annually in the U.S., at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, but it wants to add a second race in the country as it looks to grow its fanbase here.
