Key posts
Lights out, and they’re racing at Miami
By Hannah Kennelly
They’re away in mixed conditions at Miami!
Red Bull champion Max Verstappen leads into the first corner, but Lando Norris isn’t flinching. Norris goes off the track and loses three places. Kimi Antonelli and Piastri follow quickly behind.
Meanwhile, fellow Aussie Jack Doohan suffers a puncture on the first lap.
How fast does an F1 LEGO car go?
By Hannah Kennelly
F1 drivers are used to speeds over 300km/h, but they had to settle for something a little slower during the drivers’ parade.
All 20 F1 drivers had the chance to get behind the wheel of fully drivable LEGO big build cars ahead of the race.
F1 LEGO cars in action. Credit: Getty Images for LEGO Group
Miami Grand Prix extended to 2041
By Hannah Kennelly
A few days ago, Formula 1 announced the Miami Grand Prix will remain on the calendar through 2041, following a 10-year extension to its existing agreement with the promoter South Florida Motorsports.
This new deal that will make Miami the longest contracted event on the F1 calendar. The race has become a must-do event for influencers and high-profile celebrities in Florida.
The all-important weather forecast
By Hannah Kennelly
Miami is always sunny right? (Cue nervous laughter).
It’s been raining non-stop in Miami today, the F1 Academy race was red flagged and could not continue.
Sky Sports broadcast mentions there might be a lightning warning. If so, the grandstands will be evacuated and there will be a red flag. However, it looks like the gloomy skies are slowly clearing.
Fingers crossed the sun comes out soon.
F1 race and the Met Gala: Inside Lewis Hamilton’s whirlwind 24 hours
By Hannah Kennelly
Imagine reaching unfathomable speeds while racing in an F1 grand prix and then co-chairing fashion’s biggest night.
Lewis Hamilton at the 2024 Met Gala.Credit: Alamy
That’s the reality for Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton who will race in today’s Miami Grand Prix then hop on a jet and fly to New York for the 2025 Met Gala held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Tuesday AEST.
Hamilton is co-chairing the event alongside rapper A$AP Rocky (aka Mr Rihanna), music producer turned Louis Vuitton menswear designer Pharrell Williams and Euphoria actor Colman Domingo.
The gala will precede the Met Costume Institute’s exhibition, Superfine: Tailoring Black Style and marks Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour’s 30th anniversary as event chair.
In an Instagram post last year, Hamilton said he was deeply honoured to be one of the co-chairs.
“This theme speaks to me deeply,” he wrote. “When I started my career I never imagined what I might be capable of beyond my sport. The pressure to conform holds so many people back. Growing up as the only Black kid on the track, so often that pressure got to me. Expressing myself creatively was and still is my freedom from that conformity.”
Driver standings
By Hannah Kennelly
What happened in qualifying?
By Hannah Kennelly
McLaren’s pace has been the talk of the season so far but during qualifying Red Bull champion Max Verstappen proved it’s still anyone’s game.
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.Credit: Getty Images
The Dutchman – who recently welcomed his first child with partner Kelly Piquet – went fastest with a 26.204s lap, six six-hundredths clear of Norris who took too much kerb during his lap and had to settle for second.
Meanwhile, Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli sits in third, an impressive feat following his pole position success in Friday’s sprint race qualifying session. Australian Oscar Piastri will start in fourth with George Russell in fifth.
It’s been a mixed weekend for Piastri who finished second during the sprint race after a late safety car propelled Norris to victory. Piastri still leads the championship, however there are only nine points between the two McLaren teammates.
“I feel like I did everything right so a bit disappointed to come in second,” Piastri said after the sprint.
“But that’s that’s how it goes sometimes. Unfortunately, racing’s a pretty cruel business so, hopefully, that means I get the luck for this afternoon and tomorrow. But another great start and I’m happy with what I did.”
Welcome
G’day early birds and thanks for joining us this morning.
I’m Hannah and I’ll be steering today’s coverage of the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix in sunny Florida.
Can Aussie Oscar Piastri further his championship lead and convert his fourth position in qualifying into another grand prix victory? Or will his teammate Lando Norris or pole-sitter Max Verstappen take the crown?
It’ll be lights out for the race start at 6am AEST. Enjoy!
