MIAMI – With Formula One drivers facing off at the Miami Grand Prix, the Florida Panthers making a surprising Stanley Cup play-off run and Miami Heat facing the New York Knicks in the National Basketball Association – there is no shortage of sporting buzz this week in South Florida.

But sports fans may have to look to the Panthers and Heat for some genuine excitement, warned Aston Martin’s two-time world champion Fernando Alonso, with the Miami GP shaping up as another Red Bull victory parade.

“Maybe not too many surprises,” he said on Thursday.

“If you have the fastest car, you can start a little bit behind and you are still maybe making some moves and overtakes.”

Once again in a league of their own, Red Bull have won every grand prix this season, with three of the four races one-two finishes.

Two-time world champion Max Verstappen (93) leads Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez (87) in the drivers’ standings and a resurgent Alonso is a distant third on 60 points.

The weather could shake up the deck, with scorching temperatures forecast for Saturday’s qualifying followed by rain on Sunday.

One advantage Alonso and teammate Lance Stroll might have up their sleeves is the management of tyre degradation, which the Aston Martins have mastered and may be a major factor in the weekend heat.

“That will be probably the strength of our car, so hopefully we can use it on Sunday if there are not many safety cars or no rain or something,” said Alonso.

“We could see some rain forecast for Sunday so things may change but to not see many overtakes is the nature of Formula One, so it should not be a surprise.”

There has been a surge in Formula One’s popularity in the United States, which for the first time will host three races this season in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas.

Some of that excitement can be traced to the hugely successful Netflix series Drive To Survive, which packaged the glitz and danger of the sport through spectacular crashes, compelling figures and storylines.

But Red Bull’s early-season dominance has removed some of the shine, particularly in the US, with critics labelling the first four races as “boring”.

“I’ll do my best to not make it boring but in the end it’s a sport,” said Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc. “It’s like in every sport, sometimes a team are just better than others.”

Mercedes’ seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton said he understands fans’ frustration over the lack of action but that it is not his job to convince them to watch.

“It’s not boring for me. I’m challenged every single day trying to get back to the front,” he said.

“All I can say is that we’re working as hard as we can to close it up.”

Hamilton’s teammate George Russell had a tongue-in-cheek solution – forget about Red Bull and just focus on the battle for third behind Verstappen and Perez.

“It’s obviously just a shame that there are two cars well out in front,” he said. “So forget about those two (Red Bulls) and just watch the race for P3. It may be a bit more exciting.” REUTERS