The single Friday session is lengthened by half an hour due to the five week break and technical changes, the rest of the sprint weekend schedule remains unchanged, the race is on May 3.
Formula 1 will return to action next weekend from May 1 to 3 with the Miami Grand Prix, and teams will have more time than usual to prepare their cars, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) announced this Thursday that the first free practice session (FP1) will be extended to 90 minutes, half an hour more than originally stipulated.
The decision was confirmed through an official statement: "This measure has been taken in recognition of the break since the last Grand Prix, the recent regulatory and technical adjustments announced, and the fact that the Miami GP operates under the sprint format, which reduces the available practice time during the weekend," the governing body explained.
FP1 will take place on Friday, May 1 from 12:00 to 13:30 local time, as a result, all other track sessions scheduled before this practice will be brought forward by 30 minutes, the rest of the schedule remains unchanged from what was originally planned.
On Friday afternoon, at 16:30 local time, sprint qualifying will take place. On Saturday, action will start early: at 12:00 the second sprint race of the season will be held, later, at 16:00, traditional qualifying will take place to define the Grand Prix starting grid. Finally, on Sunday, May 3 at 16:00, the lights will go out for the fourth round of the championship.
The extension of FP1 seeks to compensate for the lack of running for teams during the extended April break, the cancellations of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix due to the conflict in the Middle East left a five week gap in the calendar, time that teams used to work on their car development and to adapt to the regulatory changes announced by the FIA.
The sprint format, which reduces the weekend to a single free practice session, added an additional layer of complexity, with the extension to 90 minutes, drivers and engineers will have more time to test setups, adjust car balance and familiarize themselves with the technical modifications that will come into force from this race.
Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) arrives in Miami as the drivers' championship leader, while his team leads the constructors' table, the event at the Hard Rock Stadium promises to be a turning point in the season, and the 90 minutes of FP1 will be key for teams to fine tune their strategies for the rest of the weekend.