F1’s US Grand Prix averages 1.2m viewers on ESPN

Marks the US sports media giant’s biggest audience since reacquiring broadcast rights.

  • Posted: November 10 2021
  • By: Georgina Yeomans
F1’s US Grand Prix averages 1.2m viewers on ESPN

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  • Audiences peaked at 1.6m
  • Viewership averaging 947k across 2021 season
  • Mexican GP attracted peak of 1.2m

Formula One's US Grand Prix reached an average audience of 1.2 million viewers on US sports pay-TV network ESPN.

That figure is the largest audience on ESPN since the broadcaster reacquired the rights to the series ahead of the 2018 season. The average race audience was up by 42 per cent compared to 2019, when the last edition of the US Grand Prix was run.

Viewership peaked at 1.6 million as fans watched Max Verstappen snatch victory from Lewis Hamilton in the midst of their championship battle.

The following race in Mexico City attracted an average audience of 968,000 viewers on ESPN, peaking at 1.2 million. This made it the most watched edition of the race in the US since it was re-added to Formula One's calendar in 2015.

These viewership gains mean that the 2021 Formula One season is averaging 947,000 viewers on ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, an increase of 56 per cent compared to 2020, which reached an average of 608,000.

Additionally, audiences are up by 41 per cent compared to 2019, which reached an average of 672,000 viewers.

Only four races remain in the 2021 Formula One season, with the next set to take place in Brazil on 14th November.