F1 Sets New Viewership Record for Miami Grand Prix
The Miami Grand Prix, held this past weekend, broke records for Formula One viewership in the United States. According to ESPN, the race drew an average of 3.1 million viewers on ABC, with a peak of 3.6 million. This surpasses the previous record average of 2.6 million viewers set during the inaugural Miami GP in 2022. In comparison, last year’s race had 1.96 million viewers, indicating a significant increase of 48 percent from 2023 to this year and a nearly 20 percent jump from 2022.
What makes this achievement even more remarkable is that Formula One outperformed NASCAR in ratings for the first time, despite facing competition from the Cup Series race at Kansas Speedway. The NASCAR race, which was scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET, experienced a rain delay of three hours. Ultimately, 2.296 million people watched the NASCAR race on FS1, down two percent from the previous year.
The surge in F1 viewership can likely be attributed to Lando Norris’ impressive win over Max Verstappen, marking his first Formula One victory ever. Norris started the race in sixth place but maintained confidence in his team’s pace and strategy. He said, “I knew we had good pace, and I knew I was in it for the long game.” Norris remained focused and kept Verstappen within sight throughout the race, capitalizing on opportunities as they arose.
One crucial moment came during a safety car period that allowed Norris to pit and gain fresher tires. As the laps dwindled, the gap between Norris and Verstappen grew larger, and the British driver continued to push. Norris explained, “I wanted to go for the fastest lap on the last lap. But I imagined Andrea (Stella, McLaren’s team principal) on the pit wall, like, ‘No, Lando, please.’ So, yeah, he was talking to me, but I just thought then just to take it home and take it easy. But until then, you know, I wanted to pull away, and I didn’t want Max in the picture when I was over the line, and I don’t think he was. So that was job done.”
Norris’ victory comes at a critical moment for Formula One, as TV viewership declined by 9.1 percent last year compared to 2022. This drop can be attributed to the dominance of Max Verstappen, who won 23 out of the last 27 races, with Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz and Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez each winning two races. It was expected that Verstappen would secure another win in Miami. However, Norris’s victory brings a refreshing change to the sport and is celebrated by drivers like George Russell, who said, “He’s deserving of a race victory probably many, many years ago. And I think for all the drivers in Formula One in this era of dominance from one team and one driver, it’s always great to see somebody get that chance to score a victory.”
The increased viewership for the Miami Grand Prix demonstrates the growing popularity of Formula One in the United States. While TV viewership has nearly doubled since 2018, it experienced a decline last year due to predictable and one-sided racing. Norris’s win injects excitement and unpredictability back into the sport, attracting fans and keeping them engaged.