MIAMI – It could be a couple of years before Formula One racing takes over the streets of downtown Miami.
On Thursday night, Michael Hursey and other bystanders at Brickell City Center got a glimpse of an F1 car racing down the streets as part of a Red Bull promotional. Hursey, a photographer, shared the video with Local 10 News.
Earlier in May, Miami City commissioners allowed the city manager to start negotiating a 10-year deal with Formula One for the Miami Grand Prix. If all goes as planned, the annual event would begin in 2020 and go on until 2030.
"F1 is a worldwide sport with approximately 1.8 billion TV viewers annually," Miami Mayor Francis X. Suarez said during a commission meeting.
The possible 2.75-mile track would take the race around the AmericanAirlines Arena and across the Port Boulevard Bridge over Biscayne Bay.
The United States only has one F1 race in Austin, Texas. Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross envisions also having races in New York City and Los Angeles.
Supporters say the race will be an economic boom with some 200,000 descending to Miami for the race. But not everyone is excited, some local residents are worried about the noise that will come with the crowds. They will get a taste of it in October when F1 hosts a Miami Fan Festival.