In its first two years the Miami Grand Prix has established a distinct identity combining luxury hospitality, world-class racing, and a fan-friendly party vibe mirroring that of nearby South Beach. As the audience in the United States continues to grow and other venues consider pitching to join the calendar, this event’s stakeholders are determined to make every year bigger and better…
Tyler Epp President, Miami Grand Prix
GP Racing: On the shelf of your office in Miami are five Formula 1 drivers’ helmets including those of Nigel Mansell, Kimi Räikkönen and James Hunt. Were you always a fan of racing growing up?
Tyler Epp: I remember listening to the Indy 500 on the radio as a kid, but it wasn’t until I went to college in North Carolina that a friend persuaded me to go to a NASCAR race. I had an amazing experience and fell in love with motorsport. After my first year at law school, they were preparing to open the speedway in Kansas City and I was fortunate to land an internship with them, learning the business of racing.
GPR: How did you go from Kansas Speedway to working for one of the teams?
TE: The NFL quarterback Joe Montana was grand marshal for the second NASCAR race we held and it was my responsibility to look after him. He wanted to find team owner Chip Ganassi and, as he was talking to him, a guy walked up to me and we started chatting. Turns out it was Tom Garfinkel, who at the time was overseeing business operations for Chip Ganassi Racing. A week later he called me up and offered me a job even though I had another semester left at law school.
GPR: Garfinkel is now president of the Dolphins and the visionary behind the Miami GP. In your role as a promoter, how do you compete against the 23 other races in F1?
TE: It doesn’t feel like we’re competing as we all have different markets. We have the opportunity to represent Miami and we’re not expected to conform to a certain set of parameters. We can express ourselves differently and that’s what Tom and [Miami Dolphins owner] Stephen Ross built from the very beginning.
With regards to other races, barely a week goes by when I don’t have communication with another promoter around the world. That said, every grand prix is different. There is always something we can learn, but we’ve tried to build something different and unique. We’re working to appeal to the American F1 fan – the new one that is falling in love with the sport and the competition and storylines. And we want
