Formula 1 returns from its enforced five-week break with Round 4 of the 2026 season, the Miami Grand Prix at the Miami International Autodrome, from 1–3 May. The race in Florida also doubles as the second sprint event of the now 22-race calendar, following the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian rounds earlier in the season.
Championship leader Kimi Antonelli arrives in Miami as the youngest driver in Formula 1 history to lead the standings, nine points clear of Mercedes team-mate George Russell after back-to-back victories in China and Japan. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, who won last year’s Miami Grand Prix, and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc round out the top four in the title race, with both teams eager to close the gap to Mercedes after the break. Notably, first practice this weekend will be extended to 90 minutes, giving teams additional track time to adjust to new rule changes being introduced from this round.
Race and Session Times (BST)
Miami’s sprint weekend means competitive action across all three days, with an extended first practice session on Friday before sprint qualifying, and the 19-lap sprint race on Saturday ahead of the main grand prix on Sunday evening.
Friday, 1 May:
First Practice: 17:30–19:00
Sprint Qualifying: 21:30–22:14
Saturday, 2 May:
Sprint: 17:00–18:00
Qualifying: 21:00–22:00
Sunday, 3 May:
Race: 21:00
Weather Forecast
Miami is set to deliver typically warm conditions across the weekend, with temperatures between 31°C and 32°C throughout. Friday’s extended practice and sprint qualifying, along with Saturday’s sprint race and main qualifying session, are all forecast to be sunny. Sunday’s grand prix — which gets underway at 16:00 local time — could be a different story, however, with the early forecast suggesting a chance of light showers and a gentle breeze at lights out. After a dry run in Japan, tyre strategy could be turned on its head if the rain arrives in Florida.
How the Sprint Weekend Works
Miami hosts the second of six sprint events on the 2026 calendar. The sprint qualifying format is split into three knockout sessions — SQ1, SQ2 and SQ3 — lasting 12, 10 and eight minutes respectively. With Cadillac now on the grid as the 11th team, six cars are eliminated in each of the first two sessions rather than five. The sprint race itself covers 100km over 19 laps, with points awarded to the top eight finishers on a scale from eight down to one. George Russell won the opening sprint of the season in China, getting the better of the two Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. The remaining sprint events after Miami take place at:
Montreal (22-24 May): Montreal F1 tickets
Silverstone (3-5 July): Silverstone F1 tickets
Zandvoort (21-23 August): Zandvoort F1 tickets
Singapore (9-11 October): Singapore F1 tickets
What to Expect
The Miami International Autodrome winds its way around the Hard Rock Stadium complex in a layout that blends long straights with tight technical sections, making tyre management and energy deployment key factors across a race distance of 57 laps. Oscar Piastri won here twelve months ago and McLaren will be desperate to deliver a strong result on a track that has historically suited their car. The five-week break gives every team a chance to regroup and introduce upgrades — meaning the pecking order that has so firmly placed Mercedes at the front could look very different by the time the chequered flag falls on Sunday night. With new rule tweaks also coming into effect this weekend, Miami promises to be one of the most unpredictable rounds of the season so far.
