Miami F1 race clears next hurdle, but hit by lawsuit

The planned Miami Grand Prix has passed another hurdle before the Miami-Dade County Commission, but now faces a lawsuit from the race’s main opponent.

Commissioner Barbara Jordan’s attempted to push through anti-F1 legislation that would have required Miami Gardens’ approval in order to host the race, targeting Hard Rock Stadium zoning rules that already allow for such an event. When that legislation failed in front of the County Commission, Jordan issued a lawsuit against the Miami Dolphins and Formula 1.

“This fight is not over,” Jordan was quoted as saying by the Miami Herald following the decision. “Formula 1, I don’t think they want this kind of publicity. But they better get ready.”

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The lawsuit claims the race will violate county and city noise ordinances, while the Dolphins insist that F1 will be quieter than aspects of the recent Super Bowl held at Hard Rock Stadium.

“We filed a lawsuit on behalf of Betty Ferguson, 12 other Miami Gardens residents and the three homeowner’s associations,” attorney Sam Dubbin said.

While the County Commission did not pass Jordan’s legislation, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez was ready to veto it, as he had already done with another resolution late last year.

“This was just a rejection of some new measures that would make it more difficult for Formula 1 to actually come to Miami-Dade County,” Gimenez said. “I welcome the lawsuit, frankly, so that all of the relevant facts, the true facts of what’s going to happen there, will come to light.”

As it stands, F1 is due to host its first Miami Grand Prix in 2021, and in response to residents’ concerns has already made changes to the track to make sure it is exclusively on stadium land, as well as promising Friday’s practice sessions will not take place until after the end of school hours at 3pm local time.