The Miami F1 Turn 1 North and East grandstands are on the inside of the first corner on the Miami Grand Prix track. Both give you a great view of the Turn 1 action, but sit in the right spot and you can see Turns 2 and 3 as well.
This article is a guide to sitting in either of the two grandstands on the first corner of the Miami GP circuit. It has examples of the view, a seating chart and some tips on the best seats to choose.
Contents
Miami F1 Turn 1 grandstands
There are two grandstands at Turn 1 on the Miami Grand Prix circuit. These are the North and East stands, and each offer partially covered reserved seating at an additional cost over the normal Miami campus pass general admission tickets.
Both Turn 1 grandstands can be seen in the video below at 0:28.
where are the Turn 1 grandstands at the Miami F1?
Both Turn 1 North and East grandstands are on the inside of the circuit surrounding the first corner. The inside of the circuit is actually the outside of the corner as the track’s anti-clockwise and Turn 1 is a right hander.
The North grandstand is the larger of the two stands and positioned parallel with the start / finish straight. The East grandstand is smaller and is more in line with the track after the apex of Turn 1, as it runs towards Turn 2.
To get to either of the Turn 1 grandstands you need to cross the circuit to get to the infield. There are a number of bridges around the track to do this, and the one you use will probably depend on which entrance gate you arrive through.
The Miami F1 campus map here shows the location of all spectator bridges and entrance gates around the Grand Prix circuit.
Miami F1 Turn 1 grandstand seating chart
Below is a seating chart for both North and East Turn 1 grandstands at the Miami Grand Prix.
The chart shows that the North grandstand is split in to nine sections, B1 to B9, and the smaller East grandstand is split in to six sections, C1 to C6.
The North grandstand has 33 rows of seats, with row 1 being lowest down at the front and row 33 being highest up at the back. Section B1 is 8 seats wide, B2 to B7 are 24 seats wide and section B8 is 12 seats wide.
The East grandstand also has 33 rows of seats. Sections C1 and C6 are 12 seats wide and all of the other sections between them are 24 seats wide.
For both of the Turn 1 grandstands the seat numbers increase the further to the left you sit (as you look at the circuit). The seat numbers start from zero in each section.
grandstand details
Both Turn 1 grandstands at the Miami Grand Prix are partially covered. There is a roof that extends from the back of each stand directly over the last 12 rows, so row 21 and up is under the canopy.
The North grandstand is South-West facing, so from midday onwards it’s likely to be looking in to the sun. If you’re in the few furthest forward rows beneath the canopy (around 21 to 25) you’re still likely to get some sun on you. Only those further under the roof will be completely shaded all day.
The East grandstand is almost directly North facing, so the sun will be behind it most of the day. All the rows under the canopy should be shaded and the few forwards of those (around 15-21) might also catch some shade as the sun moves around behind the stand.
There are no coverings on the side of either grandstand, so if you’re in the extreme end seats on either stand you’re likely to be exposed to the elements.
The seats in both Miami F1 Turn 1 grandstands are individual chairs with folding seat bases and fixed back rests, but no armrests or cupholders.
Miami F1 Turn 1 grandstand views
Turn 1 North grandstand
The North grandstand at Turn 1 runs parallel to the end of the start / finish straight, and actually extends past the track as it turns right in to Turn 1 and goes in to the run off area.
Your view from Turn 1 North changes a lot depending on which section you sit in. If you sit in the higher sections B7, B8 and B9 for example you’ll have the run off area directly in front of you and will have to look slightly to the right to see the cars come in to and through Turn 1.
The image below from the @f1miami Twitter page was taken from section B8 row 15 of the North grandstand, well in to the run off area.
Just a friendly reminder it’s race week … then OUR race week in Miami‼️😮
— F1 Miami Grand Prix (@f1miami) April 24, 2023
🔜 @cryptocom | @HardRockStadium https://t.co/MM5NSz5RUZ
Sitting in the higher numbered sections also means that you’ll lose the cars out of sight earlier just as they are about to enter Turn 2. The Turn 1 East grandstand and the giant TV next to it actually block your view of them at that point.
If you sit in the lower section numbers such as B1, B2 and B3, you get a much better view of the cars coming directly past you as they brake for Turn 1 and hit the apex. Plus, you have a clear line of sight the whole way through Turn 2 and up to the entrance of Turn 3. The East grandstand doesn’t block your view from these sections.
The image below was taken from section B2 of the official MiamiF1 virtual seat viewer, and shows that you can see all the way through turns 2 and 3.
Being further to the right also means it’s slightly easier to see back down the start / finish straight, some of the pitlane, towards the start line and the exit of the final corner. Sitting higher up helps this too, as would trying to get seats on the extreme right hand side of section B1; the benefit of having no covers on the side of the stand is that you can look through them.
The video below was filmed from section B5 row 16.
And this video was shot further to the left but higher up, section B7 row 22, which is just about in the shade.
Turn 1 East grandstand
The Miami F1 Turn 1 East grandstand has an entirely different view. Being positioned next to Turn 2, the stand is angled so you’re looking back towards Turn 1.
The hospitality buildings on the inside of the pitlane block any decent views from the East stand of the main straight. Sitting in the sections to the right hand side of the East stand (lower section numbers) does mean that you’re slightly further from the track, but also gives you a little more visibility back down the main straight past the pitlane buildings.
In the higher section numbers your view is pretty much limited just to the entry, apex and exit of Turn 1 and the pit lane exit. This does often see some good overtaking action, being at the end of one of the Miami GP DRS zones.
There are two other ways to see some extra views from the Turn 1 East grandstand. One is to sit in the back row where you can swivel around to watch the cars enter Turn 3 once they’ve disappeared out of the view in front of you. The other it to sit in the extreme left-hand seats in section C6, where again you can turn round in your seat and follow the cars as they go round 2 and 3.
The video below filmed from the far left hand seats, row 7 section C6, shows exactly this at 11:55.
Whereas this video from section C3 row 6 is further to the right and has a better view of the main straight leading in to Turn 1.
giant TVs
There are two giant TVs around Turn 1 at the Miami GP, one visible from each of the two grandstands.
One is next to the East grandstand that is visible by people sat in the North, and the other is next to the North grandstand visible by the East.
Something to bear in mind is that at the 2022 Miami Grand Prix most of the grandstands had pretty low canopies. This meant those sat in the highest few rows couldn’t always see the jumbotron without the roof cutting some of it off from their view. Avoid the top 4 or 5 rows to make sure this doesn’t happen, but hopefully they’ve sorted that out for the next race.
are the Turn 1 grandstands a good place to sit?
If I had a choice between either of these two grandstands I would definitely try and get seats in Turn 1 North, specifically in sections B1 to B4 and somewhere around row 25. This section would give a good view of the main straight and vision of Turns 2 and 3. Plus sitting in a higher row means you stand a chance of seeing some pitlane action and you’re out of the sun.
There’s nothing you can see from the East grandstand that you can’t from the North. With the extra parts of Turns 2, 3 and the main straight that you can see from the North, the East grandstand isn’t that appealing. If you do go for it, a seat on the extreme left hand side would be a massive bonus so you could turn around and follow the cars through turns 2 and 3.
Turn 1 often sees a lot of action. In the 2022 race we saw a number of big overtakes here; Max passing Charles, Perez failing to pass Sainz and Schumacher slamming in to Vettel. So it’s a great place to sit to see some actual racing happen, unlike the Miami F1 Family grandstand.
Mick and Seb tangle at Turn 1 😖
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 9, 2022
Watch all the key action from our first race in Miami 👀#MiamiGP #F1
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 Turn 1 grandstands is gate 3 if you’re coming from the south and gate 8 if you’re coming from the North or West.
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 booking your seats through the official Miami GP ticketing system you’ll be directed to the virtual seat viewer. And it turns out it doesn’t always give you a very accurate representation of your chosen seats.
As an example, let’s pick seats 3 and 4 in row 33, the back row, of section C3 of the Turn 1 East grandstand.
When we’re then shown the virtual view it puts us in seat 11 row 24, nowhere near where I wanted to be. Just bear this in mind when choosing your seats.
Many thanks!! I got tickets for T1 North Grandstand and this was exactly the info I was looking for!!