The past 72 hours have been big enough for F1 in terms of on-track drivers’ championship contention, but from an off-track perspective, it’s been a seismic one for the American sport.
Max Verstappen’s significant progress in closing the gap on his McLaren drivers has raised the alluring prospect of a three-way title fight over the final five races of the season, but long-term maneuvering has been in place regarding the future of American F1.
The first of these was announced on Friday and revolves around broadcast coverage in the United States. Apple becomes exclusive broadcast partner of ESPN. The move was divisive among fans, with those using the F1 TV premium service believing they would save money on Apple TV due to its lower monthly fee, but F1 TV Pro subscribers would have to pay more, and that’s before factoring in the more than 1 million people who watch each race via ESPN itself.
Not having a choice was one of the criticisms leveled at F1 for moving everything to a streaming service, and one that seemed likely to lead to a drop in overall viewership next year, even if many fans were able to get better deals as a result of this move.
To confirm the latter, Circuit of the Americas contract extension means F1 will remain in Austin until at least the end of 2034.
Watkins Glen currently holds the record for hosting the most USGPs with 20, but after this weekend’s big event, the 13th edition, COTA will likely surpass that record by the end of the next contract.
And it was a deal that seemed to have universal approval.
Fans not attending the race appreciate the track layout and the exciting racing it can provide, even if this year’s Grand Prix doesn’t have the drama of Sunday’s previous one (although the sprint 24 hours earlier provided plenty of drama leading up to Turn 1). It’s also one of the sport’s biggest events of the year, both in terms of audience size and interest, and the huge number of sponsor activities and celebrity appearances demonstrate just how much F1 is truly loved in America.
That wasn’t necessarily the case when COTA took the risk of giving the sport a permanent home stateside.
“We’ve always known that the people of Austin are a very welcoming, fun and hospitable town, and it was just a matter of getting the people of Austin to see this city,” COTA Chairman Bobby Epstein told RACER. “It feels good to kind of validate our idea of, ‘Let’s build. People will come, and then they’ll see that we’re doing well here and they’ll want to come back.'”
“That’s what happened, and then it just built up and snowballed. When we brought Taylor Swift on board in 2016, a lot of people criticized us and said we focused too much away from the car, but I… I don’t think we took anything away from racing. We still have a great track and we didn’t do anything to compromise it, but we just tried to give people more entertainment and we grew from there.”
Epstein’s attendance at this year’s event has not yet been confirmed, but Epstein admitted he hasn’t done so since Friday afternoon, “when I felt overwhelmed, I said I still had time.”
Drivers have good things to say about the COTA circuit, and fans continue to vote with their feet and wallets. Rudy Kaleseborg/Getty Images
Traffic coming in and out of the track suggests there will be big crowds once again, but with interest in F1 in America showing no signs of abating, perhaps indicating one area where the region will need to continue investing during the contract period.
“It was a great weekend and I’m excited,” Epstein said. “There was no question that we both wanted to get the deal done, so it was just a matter of sitting down and working through everything and finding a way to make it even better than it is now.”
“That’s what we always try to do, and going forward, this year’s crowds were great and next year’s crowds could be even better. With the new roads, maybe we can grow a little bit. I think it’s the biggest single-weekend sporting event in the world at the moment, so we’ve got to keep building on that.”
When asked if reaching 500,000 fans is possible next year, Epstein replied, “We have to create a new path.”
But there will be a lot more this track takes care of itself next year as it continues to ride the wave of popularity that mixes widespread interest in F1 with a particular passion for the USGP.
There has been continued investment in Austin over the years, and the new contract provides stability for the track and racing to continue to improve.
“For F1, there is also a desire to expand the paddock club,” he said. “I think there will be another team or two on the grid, so we need to build more garages and make improvements like that.
“Fun Zones – We’re expanding some of our fan areas, improving them and putting in an amusement park that we’re planning to open next year to give people more to do. This year you can enjoy 36 hours of programming with your ticket. And we want to make sure everyone feels like they’re getting more value for their dollar.”
“We’re going to put a new clubhouse at the top of Turn 1 and, with a bit of ingenuity, connect it to the main paddock building with an aerial gondola. Drivers will be able to join the club and when they’re ready to get in their car and take a spin, they’ll get on the tram. It’s a 3 minute 20 second ride and friends and family hanging out at the clubhouse will have a great view. You’ll probably see over 10 turns from that location. It should be a fun place.”
It’s a far cry from the somewhat isolated racetracks that were trying to reverse the negative momentum the sport suffered in America since 2012 and the disastrous loss at Indianapolis in 2005.
While the Apple TV deal may come with some uncertainty about what fans will get, it all but guarantees that COTA will host a major festival of world-class testing for drivers for at least another eight years.
