Early season F1 viewing audiences MASSIVELY down. The growth of interest in Formula One since Liberty Media acquired the commercial rights from 2017 onwards has been undeniable. The sport had always fawned over the prospects of “cracking America” and now has three US based rounds on the calendar plus Montreal and Mexico rounding out the North American season.

Yet when we consider the middle east now has four F1 events in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Abu Dhabi, the number of Grand Prix held in a region does not necessarily indicate local popularity of Formula One.

 

 

 

NASCAR rules TV ratings

While it is true most Americans now know what Formula One is thanks to Netflix docuseries ‘Drive to Survive’ it is certainly not their motorsport of choice when all is said and done. NASCAR still holds that crown, particularly in the Southern States of the USA.

NASCAR’s schedule makes Formula One look like a seasonal affair. With 36 races held over a ten month spell, the visibility of the USA’s favourite motorsports competition is never far from the viewer’s gaze. 

At the season opener in Daytona this year, 5.96 million US citizens tuned in for what proved to be a rip roaring affair. A huge multi car pile up occurred with just nine laps remaining which caused a red flag delay of around 15 minutes. Most of the field was taken out in the incident which saw the race resume with four laps to go.

The white flag signifying the start of the last lap proved to be vital in deciding the winner. A fifth and final wreck occurred just after the white flag was flown and so NASCAR adjudicated the race was won by Williams Byron who was just in front as he and Bowman crossed the line.

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F1 audience 24% down year on year

The TV viewing numbers for the Daytona 500 were up six percent year on year and last weekend’s Nascar race at the Circuit of The Americas (COTA) posted an average viewership of 3.31 million. This is the fifth-straight Nascar race to record a year-over-year (YoY) percentage increase.

Meanwhile in Formula One land the story is not so good. Over there first three rounds of the 2024 season, viewing numbers have collapsed by 24% year on year, according to blackbookmotorsport.com. The most recent being the Australian Grand Prix reached an average viewership of 541,000 on ESPN-2, a three per cent decrease compared to last year.

Clearly the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia Grand Prix held little attraction for even the most hardy of US F1 fans and add into the mix the time difference to watch the event in Melbourne is far more palatable in whichever time zone it is watched in the US.

F1 viewership in US has been in decline since its all time high in 2022. Last year the F1 championship season shown on the major sports broadcasters was the second most viewed season of all time in the US. Broadcasts reached an average of 1.11 million viewers across the season on ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC, which was second only to 2022’s record-setting average of 1.21 million.

Ferrari boss slams F1 journalists

 

 

 

F1 highpoint after Hamilton/Verstappen battle

The reason Formula One was so hot two years ago in the States was following the last lap, last race decider in the Abu Dhabi showdown. Yet the climb in audience numbers unfortunately coincided with a massive car design rule change from the FIA which has seen Red Bull conquer all before it.

Drive to Survive now having aired its sixth season is not the unique docuseries it once was and with star of the show Guenther Steiner sacked during the winter by Haas F1, the coming F1 season’s offering will probably dip even further in terms of viewship.

Meanwhile NASCAR has its own rendering of the fly on the wall motorsports driver series, Full Speed. This debuted in February this year and covered the final round of the 2023 series and the ‘play off’ rounds as well.

Whilst Formula One and Indycar draw similar numbers in the US with an average of around 1 million viewers, this dwarfed by the success of NASCAR although since Daytona each race has recorded ever smaller number of viewers.

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F1 the true global motorsport

As the series moves from the mainstream sports channels for seven out of the next ten races, this decline will continue.

Globally Formula One however towers ahead of what was once called US stock car racing. With around 70 million worldwide viewers tuning in for each F1 weekend, Formula One is truly the only global motorsport in town. 

With the middle of the night/early morning times of the early season fly away race schedule, European F1 viewers are yet to get into full swing of the season which continues next time out in Japan and then on to China. Only when F1 makes its first visit to North America at the Miami Grand Prix will live viewing audiences in Europe once again pick up.

With Ferrari winning last time out with Carlos Sainz, maybe there is the first chink appearing in the Red Bull armour that has for two years been impervious to all attacks. Liberty Media will be hoping the resurgent Scuderia can continue the job next time out in Japan, because only a competitive season bring the fans back to the numbers seen after the titanic Verstappen/Hamilton battles in 2021.

Mercedes F1 finally identify car setup pattern

 

 

 

The one driver Verstappen does NOT want as a team mate

The topsy turvy world of Formula One is set for another season of significant change. With thirteen drivers out of contract this year and a gaggle of young guns ready for their chance in the sport, the grid for 2025 should look significantly different from how it does right now.

Red Bull advisor Dr. Helmut Marko has already said that Liam Lawson will have a drive for 2025, ‘if not before’ he then teased given Red Bull’s predisposition to ditch drivers mid-season…. READ MORE