Overtaking is what most fans come to see, yet at many circuits the passes happen at just one or two corners. Sit in the wrong grandstand and you will watch cars stream past in formation; sit in the right one and you will see late lunges, lock-ups and side-by-side battles all afternoon. This guide runs through the best F1 grandstands for overtaking, circuit by circuit, and how to spot a good one wherever you are heading.
What makes a great overtaking grandstand?
Overtaking in modern Formula 1 follows a simple recipe: a long straight, usually a DRS zone, leading into a heavy braking zone for a slow corner. The straight lets the chasing driver slipstream and open their rear wing to cut drag and close up; the pass itself is then completed under braking into the corner that follows. DRS is only available when a car is within one second of the one ahead at a detection point, and the zones are deliberately placed on straights before tight corners.
So the best overtaking grandstands sit at the end of a long straight or DRS zone, looking across the braking area and the entry to the following corner. Elevated, tiered stands that let you follow the cars all the way down the straight and into the corner give you the complete move, not just the moment of the pass.
The best overtaking grandstands, circuit by circuit
Bahrain: Turn 1 Grandstand
Turn 1 at the Bahrain International Circuit is the calendar's classic opening-corner passing spot. Cars brake hard at the end of the main straight and DRS zone, and the pit exit feeds cars back out right in the middle of the braking zone, adding to the chaos. The Turn 1 Grandstand looks straight down onto it, giving you some of the best overtaking on the track plus the drama of the pit exit. The University Grandstands just after Turns 1 and 2 are a good alternative, catching the start-line scramble and the run to Turn 4.
Monza: the first chicane
Monza's Variante del Rettifilo, the first chicane, is where the Italian Grand Prix is won and lost. Cars arrive off the main straight at around 350 km/h and haul down to roughly 70 km/h for the tight left-right, making it the most likely overtaking point on the lap and a magnet for first-lap drama. Grandstands on the outside of the chicane look across the braking zone as cars approach at full speed, while inside stands put you close to the apex, the lock-ups and the occasional excursion across the kerbs.
Circuit of the Americas: Turn 12
At the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Turn 12 is the prime overtaking corner: a tight left-hander at the end of the long back straight where DRS passes are common and drivers often scrap on into the following corners. The Turn 12 bleachers put you right on top of it. If you would rather see first-lap chaos, the Turn 1 grandstand at the top of the steep uphill run from the start gives the best view of the opening-lap melee.
Silverstone: Vale and Luffield
At the British Grand Prix, the Luffield and Woodcote complex is widely rated the best place to watch overtaking, with passes and re-passes as cars funnel through the slow corners onto the pit straight. The Vale grandstand is another strong pick, overlooking a broad stretch of track with two potential passing corners in view. Stowe, off the Hangar Straight, is spectacular for high speed, but genuine overtakes there are rarer, so treat it as a spectacle stand rather than a passing one.
Red Bull Ring: Turn 3
Austria's Red Bull Ring packs its overtaking into a short lap. Turn 3, a tight right-hander at the top of a steep climb with straights before and after, is the biggest passing point on the circuit; the T3 grandstand sits head-on to it. The stands and grassy general-admission banks around Turns 3 and 4 form a natural amphitheatre over the heavy braking zones, with big Alpine views thrown in.
Baku: the Absheron Grandstand at Turn 1
Baku's long run to Turn 1 makes the first corner the main event: cars brake from around 350 km/h into a tight 90-degree left, frequently two or three abreast. The main Absheron Grandstand at the end of the start-finish straight overlooks the start line and the Turn 1 braking zone, with the sections closest to the corner giving the best view of the lunges.
Abu Dhabi: the West Grandstand
At the season-closing Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the long straight into the Turn 6 to 8 area is a DRS zone and one of the circuit's most reliable overtaking spots. The West Grandstand there tends to see more passing than any other stand at Yas Marina. The North Grandstand around the hairpin is another option, sitting just before one of the longest straights on the calendar and the first DRS zone.
Interlagos: Grandstand M at the Senna S
Brazil's Interlagos rewards brave braking at the downhill Senna S, the first corner off the main straight, where late dives regularly stick. Grandstand M on the outside of Turn 1 gives you the main straight, the start-finish line and those Senna S battles. A second DRS zone runs after the esses towards the Descida do Lago, so the action keeps coming as cars fan out down the hill.
How to choose your overtaking seat
Wherever you are heading, the same rules apply. Look for a grandstand at the end of a long straight or DRS zone, overlooking the braking area and the entry to a slow corner. Favour elevated, tiered stands so you can follow the whole move rather than a single point, and check that a big screen is in view so you can keep track of the battles happening elsewhere on the lap.
If you can, sit on the outside of the corner for the wide-angle view of cars diving down the inside, and pick a stand with a general-admission bank nearby if you like the option of roaming on practice day. Book early: the best overtaking stands at popular races are the first to sell out.
Browse F1 grandstands circuit by circuit to compare views, prices and availability, and choose a seat that puts you right where the overtaking happens.
