Hopes for a first Formula 1 Grand Prix in Miami next year have been put on hold until 2020 amid “complicated negotiations”, Liberty Media confirmed on Monday.
Plans for a second race in America have been high on the new owners’ agenda since taking over from Bernie Ecclestone at the beginning of last year, with the Floridian city giving the green light for talks to take place back in May.
However, in the face of opposition from residents, a final meeting this week has been postponed to agree to a race contract and now commercial director Sean Bratches admits time has run out to organise a race for the proposed October 2019 date.
“In the last few months we have worked diligently alongside our promoter Stephen Ross of RSE Ventures, the City of Miami and Miami Dade County, to realise our ambition to bring a Formula 1 Grand Prix to Miami,” the Liberty chief said in a statement.
“We have made significant progress. However, these are complicated negotiations.
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“There was always a point by which delivering the best possible wheel-to-wheel racing experience for our fans, drivers and teams wouldn’t be possible in the time available. We have now reached that point as far as racing in Miami in 2019 is concerned,” Bratches added.
“However, we are taking a long-term view and as a result, we have decided, in consultation with the Miami authorities, to postpone sign-off until later in the summer, with the aim of running the first Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix in the 2020 season.”
A street event ahead of the US Grand Prix in Austin will still go ahead but, for many, this will bring back memories of the proposed race in New Jersey on the streets of Port Imperial which was set for 2011 before later collapsing.
With this past weekend’s race in Germany also set to remain a biannual event at Hockenheim, the absence of Miami means the calendar could well return back to 20 events next year.
