The Miami F1 Start / Finish grandstand, also known as the Main grandstand, sits along the front straight and provides the closest views possible of the start and finish of the Miami Grand Prix.
The grandstand spans almost the entire length of the front straight. Your view of the action changes significantly depending on where in the stand you sit, so this article provides a guide to seat selection with example views, a seating chart and tips on the best places to sit in the start / finish grandstand at Miami.
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Miami F1 start / finish grandstand
The start / finish grandstand is a single grandstand which runs along the side of the main straight. It’s partially covered with reserved seating where individual seat tickets have to be purchased in advance.
Buying a Miami F1 start / finish grandstand ticket will get you access to all three days of the Miami Grand Prix weekend. You’ll be able to explore the whole campus and come back to a reserved seat in the main grandstand.
The start / finish grandstand can bee seen in the flyover video below at 0:10.
where is the start / finish grandstand at the Miami F1?
The main grandstand at the Miami F1 runs along the left hand side of the start / finish straight, between Turn 19 and Turn 1. Being on the left hand side of the track means the grandstand is actually on the inside of the circuit, so to access it you’ll need to cross over the track.
There’s a number of spectator bridges over the circuit that give you access to the infield. The best one to use will probably depend which gate you enter the circuit by. The official Miami F1 campus map shows the location of all the bridges to help you plan your route.
The main grandstand is directly adjacent to both the start and finish lines (they’re in different places for the F1). It’s also directly opposite the pit lane, pit buildings and behind those the Hard Rock Stadium. If you’re interested in seeing the action during the pitstops then this grandstand is perfectly located, but you still need to be sat in the right spot. See the sections below for more details.
Miami F1 start / finish grandstand seating chart
Below is a seating chart for the start / finish grandstand at the Miami F1. The chart shows that the stand is split in to different sections, numbered A1 to A17.
In the 2022 race the finish line was directly in front of section A1 and the start line directly in front of section A12.
Section A1 is the closest to the final corner on the track, Turn 19, and section A17 is closest to the first corner.
Every section within the grandstand has 30 rows of seats where row 1 is the lowest down and nearest to the track and row 30 is the highest up at the back.
Section A1 is 8 seats wide, sections A2 to A16 are 24 seats wide and section A17 is 12 seats wide. The seat numbers get higher the further to the left of the stand you sit (as you look at the circuit). The seat numbers also start from zero in each section.
grandstand details
The start / finish grandstand at the Miami GP is partially covered. There is a roof that extends from the back of the stand and directly covers the top 12 rows, so row 18 and upwards.
The main grandstand is South-West facing, so it’s likely the sun will be in front of you from late morning onwards. Later in the day as the sun gets a little lower it’s likely the first few rows under the canopy (18 to 20ish) are likely to still be in some sun. Only those further back are going to be fully shaded for the whole day.
If you sit in anything lower than row 18 you should expect to be in the sun all day, and prepare for the Miami heat accordingly!
There are no side covers on the grandstand, so if you’re sat in the extreme end seats of either section A1 or A17 then you are also likely to be exposed to the elements, whichever row you’re in. The one benefit is that you get a great view out of the side of the stands.
The seats in the start / finish grandstand are individual chair swith folding seat bases and fixed back rests. They don’t have armrests or cupholders.
Miami F1 start / finish grandstand views
Wherever you’re sat in the start / finish grandstand at the Miami F1, your view is purely of the main straight directly in front of the stand. You can’t see across to any other parts of the circuit as the buildings surrounding the circuit block your view.
However, which part of the stand you sit in does determine whether you’re view is purely limited to the straight or whether you can catch a glimpse of the first or last corner as well.
If you sit in the one of the left hand sections such A14, A15, A16 or A17, not only do you get a close-up view of the start line but you can also look to your left for a view of the run in to Turn 1.
The video below filmed from section A16 row 10 shows this vantage point at 0:53.
Whereas if you sit at the other end of the stand, sections A1 to A4, you can get a view of the cars coming around the flat-out final corner of Turn 19.
This video was filmed from section A3, around row 16. At 0:12 you can see the vantage point of the cars coming around the final corner.
If you sit on the extreme right hand side in section A1 then you’d have an even better view of Turn 19 and maybe even catch a bit of Turn 18. There’s not normally a lot of overtaking action that happens at these two corners but it is a chance to see the cars accelerating at full tilt on to the straight.
Sitting in higher rows pretty much has no downsides, whichever section you’re in. Being high gives you a better vantage point of not just the track but the pit lane as well, and you need to be high enough to see over the pit wall and catch the pit stop action.
The video below was filmed from section A13, row 23. The high vantage point means you can easily see over the pit wall to the pit boxes and garages.
Whereas a lower vantage point, like in the video below filmed from row 4, makes it much harder to see. It also means your views to either side are restricted.
giant TVs
There are 4 giant TVs visible from the start / finish grandstand. These are all on the side of the pit lane buildings opposite the stand, spread out along its length. The diagram below shows these.
You can also see the jumbotrons in the videos above. They weren’t huge in 2022, but just big enough to be seen as they’re pretty close to the stand.
In 2022 the roofs over some of the grandstands came down slightly too low at the front and restricted the TV view from the top few rows of seats. Usually it was only the back 4 or 5 rows that were affected, but in some cases the back row had no visibility of the jumbotrons at all.
Hopefully they’ll have fixed it for this year’s race, but bear that in mind when choosing your seats.
is the start / finish grandstand a good place to sit?
The start / finish grandstand is undoubtedly the best place to sit at the Miami F1 if you want to be as close to the start and finish of the race as possible.
Whilst both start and finish lines are directly in front of the grandstand, most of the action at the start of the race is actually going to happen at Turn 1 which is off to the left of the main grandstand. If you wanted a better view of any potential clashes that occur there then sit in one of the Miami Turn 1 grandstands instead. However, from the left hand section of the start / finish grandstand you can still the see braking area and entry for Turn 1, just not as clearly.
Sights from the Start/Finish Grandstand 🤩 #MiamiGP pic.twitter.com/MK2cbQRhNa
— F1 Miami Grand Prix (@f1miami) May 5, 2022
The start / finish straight is also one of the Miami GP DRS Zones, so it’s likely you’ll see some cars go side-by-side here as they open their rear wings and get a straight line speed advantage.
If I was sitting in this grandstand I would try and get a seat as far to the left as possible in section A17, to get maximum visibility of Turn 1. I’d go for a row in the shade, but avoid the top few rows in case the view of the giant TVs is blocked. So ideally rows 20 to 25.
The seats get more expensive the higher you sit. Back row seats are almost $2000 each!
Both grandstands are right in amongst the North and East campus areas on the circuit infield. Both areas have lots of food and drinks vendors, sponsor activations and entertainment options so you’re never far from some off-track action as well. Plus the Beach area isn’t a long walk away.
nearest entrance and parking
The nearest spectator entrance gate to the start / finish grandstand is gate 8 to the North West corner of the venueThere’s more information on the entry gate locations in our guide to the Miami F1 campus pass.
See our article on Miami F1 parking for more info on the nearest parking lots to this entrance gate.
other Miami F1 grandstands
Click the links below to read our viewing and seat guides for all of the other grandstands at the Miami GP:
be careful when booking your seats
When you book your grandstand seats through the official Miami GP website you’ll be redirected to the Ticketmaster virtual seat viewer which should give you a representative view of your selected seat. But it’s not always that accurate.
As an example I’ve selected this seat in the back row, row 30, of section A9.
When it then puts me in the virtual view of the seat, we can see I’m actually in row 24, not row 30. Just bear this in mind when booking your seats.
