The FIA has issued a statement confirming it is "closely monitoring" the weather situation at the Miami Grand Prix, where severe thunderstorms could force a rescheduling of the event. While conditions are expected to remain dry for much of the weekend, forecasts for Sunday indicate heavy thunderstorms sweeping through the race area.
The Grand Prix is scheduled to start at 4pm local time (9pm BST), but this could be brought forward due to the risk of lightning. An FIA spokesperson said: "We are closely monitoring the weather forecast for this weekend. Having faced a similar situation last year in Miami with threats of thunderstorms, we have a contingency plan in place and will activate it if needed to minimise disruption to the on-track programme."
The Miami GP marks the first race back on the Formula 1 calendar following a five-week break, which resulted from the cancellation of races in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain amid ongoing regional conflicts.
Despite mounting concerns over the race being rescheduled or cancelled entirely, Express F1 reporter Daniel Moxon suggests the FIA is not as troubled as some headlines imply. He said: "The FIA isn't as worried about the threat of thunderstorms tomorrow as some headlines have made out. There's been some talk online that Sunday's race might get cancelled because of the chunk of angry tropical weather heading towards Florida. In reality, there are already contingency plans in place depending on what the forecast looks like on Sunday morning."
"That includes potentially bringing the start time forward, like they did at the 2024 Brazil race. And if lightning does strike during the Grand Prix, bosses are confident that they can pause the race with a red flag rather than abandon it altogether."
"As for now, it's bright, sunny and hot in Miami currently with shelter from the sun more on people's minds than anything else."
According to the latest reports, the Grand Prix is still on track to take place at the Miami International Autodrome this weekend.
