Miami go-kart chicane not suited for F1 cars

The Miami International Autodrome, a temporary facility looping around the Miami Dolphins’ Hard Rock Stadium, featured a varied mix of medium to high speed corners, a long straight and a very tight section underneath a turnpike.

The 5.41km layout did not produce a great show, which is partly attributed to the surface’s lack of grip off the racing line. Nevertheless, it generally drew modest praise from the drivers, who just singled out the bumpy Turn 14-15 chicane as area for improvement.

Ahead of the race the Sector 2 combination was called a Mickey Mouse or Formula E chicane, and afterwards race winner Verstappen hoped it would be addressed for next year’s event, saying he almost knocked himself out in practice by bouncing over the high kerbs.

“I think track-wise, we can improve a few areas,” Red Bull driver Verstappen said. “The 14-15 chicane is a bit of a tricky combination. I think if I would have been in a go-kart, it would be a nice chicane to take, but not in an F1 car like we have at the moment.

“I remember in the four laps I did on Friday, I almost knocked myself out because I hit the first kerb and your head just bounced from left to right at least five, six times, but really bad.

“If you just take it a tiny bit too much, just because it’s so long, so wide, so stiff and super heavy that little kerb what it is, it’s just not made for it to be honest.

“So, maybe we have to change the kerb layout already, that it’s a bit more of a progressive ramp and it looks a bit nicer to go over. Maybe that helps already. But yeah, it’s so slow and I think our cars look way better if it’s a bit more of a flowing combination.”

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who finished third in Sunday’s race, felt that riding the chicane’s kerbs right required a bit of luck.

Due to the limited available run-off at the following corner, the Spaniard agreed that a slow chicane was required at that part of the…