Hamilton - F1 has cracked America

Hamilton in New York — Photo: © LAT Images

Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton - F1 has cracked America

The inaugural Miami Grand Prix will take place this weekend

Sam Hall

Wednesday 4 May 2022 05:00

Lewis Hamilton believes F1 has 'cracked America' ahead of the inaugural Miami Grand Prix.

F1 has long been trying to 'crack America' with the Miami International Autodrome the 11th venue visited by the sport in the United States.

But the sport's profile has risen rapidly in recent years, something that is in part thanks to the Netflix docu-drama Drive to Survive.

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Asked on Good Morning America if he believes F1 has finally 'cracked America', Hamilton answered: “I think so, yes.

"I’ve been coming out here for a long, long time but I never quite understood why people weren’t into Formula 1.

"Everyone knew NASCAR and, obviously, you’ve got such huge sporting fans out here but this Netflix show, particularly through the pandemic, has brought massive awareness to the sport and now it’s booming.”

Miami and Vegas "huge" for F1

Boosting Hamilton's claim that F1 has now arrived in the United States is the further addition of Las Vegas to the calendar from 2023.

"We obviously had the race in Austin, Texas, which has always been amazing," reflected Hamilton.

"The first race I had out here was Indianapolis in 2007 but now, with the Netflix series Drive to Survive growing, now we have two grands prix in The States and another in Vegas next year. It’s going to be huge.”

Asked to anticipate the feeling of this weekend's Miami race, Hamilton added: “It’s a bit nerve-racking because I think it’s going to be such a huge event for us."