Formula One returned to the United States for the Miami Grand Prix this weekend, but the drivers aren’t the only ones making news.
Dozens of iguanas have been spotted plopping onto the race track. Blame Miami International Autodrome owner Stephen Ross’s penchant for horticulture. (Ross also owns the Miami Dolphins.)
“The owner, Mr. Ross, loves greenery and loves his landscaping,” project manager Sam Worthy explained to Motorsport.com before the track opened last year. “The stadium itself makes a very concentrated effort to have as much greenery as possible, especially old growth trees.”
Those trees add to track ambience, but they also attract iguanas. The reptiles are known for hiding in the Autodrome’s concrete walls — and for falling out of trees when temperature drops below a certain threshold.
“We certainly don’t want a giant iguana falling on one of the F1 drivers, because that would be a problem,” Worthy said Thursday with a laugh. “We have procedures in place to have the marshals come around and poke into the openings [of the concrete barrier walls] to ensure none are hiding in there or up in the trees. It’s a pretty unique thing to have to deal with.”
The Miami venue isn’t the only F1 track plagued by animal invasions.
Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is infamous for its groundhog population, and last weekend’s race in Azerbaijan saw Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc narrowly missing a stray cat.
