The Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix has appointed Richard Cregan as its chief executive as it prepares to stage its first race next year.
Cregan has worked in motorsport for 45 years and previously anchored grands prix in Abu Dhabi and Sochi. He also held managerial roles with Toyota Motorsport in Germany when the team achieved seven World Rally Championship titles.
Cregan became chief executive of Abu Dhabi Motorsport Management in 2008 and was tasked with creating the Yas Marina Circuit and the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. He was appointed to create and deliver the Russian Grand Prix at the Sochi Autodrom in 2013.
Cregan joins the Miami Grand Prix team after F1 recently reached a 10-year agreement to stage a race in the Florida city from 2022. The racetrack will incorporate Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins NFL American football team.
It will mark the first time since 1959 that Florida will form part of the F1 calendar. The exact date of the inaugural Miami Grand Prix has yet to be confirmed but F1 president Stefano Domenicali expects the race to be held in the second quarter of 2022.
The 64,000-seat Hard Rock Stadium will sit at the heart of the 5.41km circuit, which will feature 19 corners, three straights and potential for three DRS zones, with an estimated top speed of 320km/h. Miami will become the second US city on the F1 calendar, alongside Austin.
Cregan will be joined on the Miami Grand Prix team by Mark Boyd, who joins as vice-president of operations after previously working at Abu Dhabi Motorsport Management and most recently at the Vietnam Grand Prix.
The team also includes Ashley Davies as vice-president of strategy, Andy Beaven as sporting director, Dorie Grogan as vice-president of fan experience, Josh Young as vice-president of ticket sales, Lauren Kelly as director of marketing, Katie Foreman as director of partnerships, Jeremy Walls as chief revenue officer and Jason Jenkins as senior vice-president of communications and community.
Cregan said: “Miami has been a dream destination for Formula 1 over many years and it is a privilege to accept the role of CEO. Working within the world’s most vibrant market for sports, the USA, and joining a team anchored by the world-class talent at the Miami Dolphins, means that I am understandably thrilled by the potential of what we can achieve together when we welcome F1 to Florida in 2022.”
Tom Garfinkel, managing partner of the Miami Grand Prix, added: “We have high standards on what we expect to deliver in Miami for F1 teams, drivers, sponsors, and fans. The first goal is to have great racing and we believe we are building a circuit that will deliver just that. We are fortunate to be able to bring in someone with Richard’s experience to lead a hand-picked team with proven results creating best-in-class racing circuits and fan experiences.”
As well as serving as the home of the Dolphins, Hard Rock Stadium has hosted the Miami Open tennis event since 2019. Hard Rock Stadium hosted the NFL’s Super Bowl in 2020.
Image: A.J. Lipp/CC BY-SA 4.0/Edited for size
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