Formula 1 finally returns after a long absence with the Miami Grand Prix this weekend.
But the return to the track was pretty dire.
Weather was a major theme during Thursday’s media day session, as current forecasts predict thunderstorms and heavy rain during Sunday’s main event. The prediction has all riders talking about what they might encounter and even has the sport considering changes to the weekend’s schedule.
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“It’s going to be interesting. I don’t think a lot of us have driven these cars in the rain before, maybe only a few of us have done a test run in Barcelona,” Oscar Piastri told an FIA press conference on Thursday. “But I think they’re going to challenge the cars to drive in the rain, just because they have some quirks. Obviously the weather, usually if it rains in Miami, it does pretty well, so we’ll see. But regardless, it’s going to be fun.”
“As I understand it, there will be a meeting with the FIA ​​later to double-check the situation on Sunday because obviously the situation looks very bad. So we will see if there are any changes to the schedule for the weekend,” Cadillac’s Sergio Perez added.
The sport’s governing body, the FIA, issued a statement on Thursday.
“We are closely monitoring the weather forecast for this weekend,” an FIA spokesman said. “Having experienced similar thunderstorm threat conditions in Miami last year, we have a contingency plan in place and will activate it if required to minimize disruption to the circuit. [program]”.
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Last year, wet weather forced the cancellation of the second F1 Academy race at the Miami Grand Prix on Saturday, with the F1 sprint race starting in difficult conditions. Charles Leclerc crashed in this situation before the F1 sprint race and failed to start.
As of Friday morning, showers are expected in the morning, followed by severe thunderstorms Sunday afternoon, with an 85% chance of rain, with up to half an inch of precipitation in the afternoon:
Complicating matters further, as Piastri pointed out, few drivers are operating this year’s machines in wet conditions. Drivers are still grappling with the impact of new rules, which have been adjusted during the extended break.
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Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli, the current championship leader, is one of the few drivers to experience the new car in wet conditions. On Thursday, he described the experience as “tricky.”
“Yes, when we were testing at Silverstone I drove the car in slippery conditions, which was definitely very tricky,” Antonelli said.
“There’s a change now though, they’ve cut the wet power down to 250 kilowatts, no boost, so that’s a step forward in that regard. And I think it’s definitely going to be tricky because there’s going to be a lot of unknowns and obviously, if we get wet weather, we’re going to be racing as well. But I think the other big topic is we need to increase tire coverage. [temperatures] For wet conditions, because I think as it stands, they might be a little too low for the current conditions.
“So, yeah, it’s going to be interesting, it’s going to be tricky, but let’s see. If it’s a thunderstorm like they say it is, we probably won’t get it started for quite some time. So, let’s see how that goes,” Antonelli added. “But it’s going to be really interesting for sure because there’s a lot of unknowns in the wet at the moment, especially no one is really running the intermediate tyre, so we don’t know how it’s going to feel, how much grip it’s going to have, especially with the new regulations. I think one thing with the car this year as well, it’s a little bit harder to build temperature with the tires, so in the wet they might be tricky, that’s why we might need to add tire blankets [temps] To make this better and easier. But yeah, let’s see what happens. “
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As Antonelli pointed out, ahead of the Miami Grand Prix, the FIA ​​announced that drivers would not be able to use the new boost mode in wet conditions, like we might see on Sunday.
As for F1’s impact on the schedule, the 2024 Sao Paulo Grand Prix may be a reference. Prior to that race, qualifying for the Grand Prix was postponed from Saturday to Sunday morning due to bad weather, and the start of Sunday’s Grand Prix was delayed by 90 minutes.
Based on these predictions, we may see something similar in Miami this weekend.
