After a long summer of races across the world, Formula One has returned to the Americas for four grands prix.
Drivers arrived at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas to kick off Thursday’s media day for the United States Grand Prix and reflected on the growth of the sport in the U.S. during press conferences.
“I remember coming here in 2016 and not seeing the grandstand being full, seeing some holes at the hill in Turn 1,” Alpine driver Esteban Ocon said. “Now it’s very, very different. It’s insane the amount of support that we receive when we come to the states.”
Here on campus, students are looking forward to a few races in closer time zones. Jaques Barnett, a sophomore majoring in astronautical engineering, shared that he was first introduced to the sport through the Netflix show “Drive to Survive” but now works to keep up with the full race schedule.
“It makes it so much harder to want to get into Formula One when the race is at 4 or 5 a.m.,” he acknowledged.
Barnett thinks the move to expand in the American market makes sense.
“You’re opening up this sport, which already has so many followers to probably one of the biggest consumer culture countries in the world that’s the same size as an entire continent.”
He believes there is a market for the sport to continue to appeal to the original fan base while expanding to the U.S., and believes competitive, exciting circuits are the key to pleasing new and traditional fans alike.
“If they go for quality, then the purists will enjoy the race itself and the track, and then the newer people that they want to attract from the U.S. are going to show out and enjoy that race too.”
Barnett believes the U.S. “could do with more races on our side of the globe” so long as they bring good racing to the sport’s growing American fanbase.
Since the U.S. Grand Prix, all 10 teams have begun their trek down to Mexico City for the race USC senior Ana Regina Murguia described as “a big ol’ party.” She attended her first race there last year with her family, and said the event attracts a lot of Mexicans who want to support their homegrown driver, Sergio Perez, but may not be huge fans of the sport.
“Most people I know that go don’t watch F1 and don’t really know what’s going on, but they’re just there for the show,” Murguia said.
Murguia does see potential for the sport to gain popularity in places like the U.S. and Mexico.
“That culture of watching F1 has to be created in the country.”
Currently, she thinks other sports are doing a better job on that front, but admitted there is a “wave of popularity” as the sport blows up online.
She and her family were devastated when Perez crashed into turn one, putting him out of the race in the initial seconds of last year’s GP. She’s hoping the Red Bull driver can keep the car on track this year, but won’t be there to see the action in person.
The following week, F1 will return to the São Paulo Grand Prix in Brazil, a track where anything can happen. In 2022, Haas driver Kevin Magnussen captured the only pole position in his 180 race-long career. He couldn’t hold onto it however, and Mercedes driver George Russell secured his first win on race day.
The final stint of this American leg will bring the so-called traveling circus back to the sport’s newest race in fabulous Las Vegas after a two-week break.
This continental calendar gives American fans a month without the early race times typical of the rest of the season. The next month’s races in the Americas are sequential as a part of an effort to reduce carbon emissions. Victoria Lee — a junior studying philosophy, politics and economics — explained that F1 hasn’t always had environmental consciousness at its forefront.
“The relationship between F1 and the environment is a tricky one, but I definitely think those conversations are taking place,” Lee said.
As the sport balances racing innovation and sustainability, she believes young F1 fans are adding to those conversations.
“Our generation is just the most active, whether it’s politically, whether it’s environmentally, I think we’re very good at speaking up,” Lee said.
When the 2024 calendar was announced, Stefano Domenicali, president and CEO of Formula One, noted that the sport’s “journey to a more sustainable calendar will continue in the coming years as we further streamline operations as part of our Net Zero 2030 commitment.”
This climate conscious attitude hopes to reduce carbon emissions, but has upended the racing schedule to include three triple-headers this year, where races occur back-to-back in different cities and countries three weekends in a row, and three double-headers. Including the USGP, that’s drivers, cars, and staff traveling for six races in eight weeks to end the season, ranging from Texas, Brazil to Qatar.
Formula One’s globetrotting calendar may be modernizing with sustainability in mind, but while consecutive races in the America’s are exciting for these fans, they may not be so sustainable for the teams.