Netflix made F1 popular in the USA

European Union + Britain 500 millions 10 GPs
USA 331 millions 3 GPs

In view of the size of their audience, the States could even have more than 3 GPs !

At the moment they have as many as the Middle East countries together.

 

NASCAR became seriously ill when they quit using actual production sheet metal.
NASCAR died with Dale.

What is currently running under the NASCAR moniker is not what the sport used to be.

 

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NASCAR is dying of uniformity.

 

Early Grand Prix and Garagista eras: Rich gentlemen racing, then Any bloke with a garage can build a car, buy an engine, and race F1
Bernie: F1 is for the Rolex crowd, we're not catering to the common man
Liberty Media: sell, sell, sell, advertise, advertise, advertise, make more money, cut costs,

OK, what's really interesting is that Bernie was smart enough to grab the TV rights and take control of F1, thereby making it more popular. Then Liberty Media (a MEDIA company of all things) plugs into more Internet/web/social-media/Netflix to accomplish the same thing and draw in more fans. It's all about the $$$$.

 

Lazy-boy chair’s couches plus the two year pandemic, just look at the uptick in the popularity of the casual viewing of
Bring A Trailer, All live media especially sports increased there numbers.

 

NASCAR really started to tank after they went woke. They have a “redneck” base of fans whom don’t take kindly to the propaganda. I think they also saw the sport suffer when the same drivers were winning week after week. I know it’s much more mixed up now, but with the whole Bubba Wallace crap, just turned a lot of people off of it. F1 did the same thing, playing into BLM and LGBTQ+^power, but most hardcore race fans just ignore that crap and care about the racing.

 

This is exactly right. Wish we could comment further, beyond simply being grateful that F1 has been at least smart enough to keep most of the politics confined to the pre-race and out of the actual race broadcast.

 

People will look at the cost of attending a race and nope out. Very shortly, they will tire of watching anesthetic racing and boring street tracks on their televisions and tune in to something else. It is a fad right now, but people will realize it is nothing more than a cure for insomnia and join the rest of us in saying, "********, these people have a boring product."

 

Being an American- And a lifelong F1 fan- I think the increase in popularity is great- and FWIW I attribute it to the following factors- But to Rob L's point some of this will wear off so for it to continue to be popular and grow Liberty Media will need to be strategic- John Malone is a pretty smart guy so I have faith

Some factors from my lens FWIW:

> D2S is obviously a factor- but not sustainable

> Having races in sexy locations that are destinations of international interest and awareness (Miami/Vegas) - as well as having and promoting diverse cultures is genius and will continue to broaden popularity. Austin Texas- while a cool little city- is not exactly well known amongst Americans who are/come from international backgrounds- and its not exactly sexy or exciting.

> The popularity of Indy Car helps F1- many people don't know the difference- I get asked all the time if I "went to the F1 race in St Petersburg" - All forms of road racing are gaining popularity in the US- Attendance and interest for IMSA/LeMans is up- Daytona 24 is a massive event- So is Sebring- people are getting tired of watching unattractive country boys who look and talk like their uncle who runs the local bait and tackle store drive around in circles in ugly cars- (WADR to NASCAR- it takes balls and talent to do 200mph on banking 2 inches from the other car(s))

> $$$ People in America for the most part and (staying away from P&R) not counting results of the past 16 months- are more affluent and attracted to nicer, sexier things- hence not being able to buy a normal Porsche- much less a Ferrari- for anything close to MSRP and having to order and wait- same with Rolexes- hardly any for sale new without having to wait- or buy pre-owned at a premium - so these same people like sports that reflect their affluence- Having Rolex everywhere for an F1 race and sponsors like Richard Mille, Ray Ban, Tag Heuer etc attract these people versus Bud Light and Subway.

So- As long as the demographic holds up and LM negotiates races in locations like Miami and Vegas versus Possum City Nebraska I think F1 in the US has a great future!!!

Cheers

 

I've followed F-1 my entire life. Been to all the F- 1 races in the USA except Dallas. The miss perception is that F- 1 was not popular in the USA ... it was, F-1 used to get over 100K people at Watkins Glen, Long Beach and Detroit. Only when it went to Phoenix did it really die off - mostly because the promoter was so raped by
Ecclestone they had no money to put back in the promotion of the race. Indy was ok, but just way too big .. with 200K people it still made it look empty. COTA is good, just the right size and turnout has been great. I think Miami was really so much better than I expected - I now wish i had gone. will it last? i dont know. But the falsehood is that F-1 was not popular - it was, it has been and will be. Now that Indy car has really lost the plot - cars are ugly, drivers are un known, F1 really can capitalize on it .....

 

First, not sure how you're getting away with an obvious political slant "Woke, BLM, LBGTQ+' etc. But other than the slights you are also factually wrong. NASCAR popularity by the numbers peaked in 2005. Long before the Q or + got added to LBGT, long before BLM was ever uttered as a popular phrase or movement, hell, over a decade before Stage racing which is roundly condemned by purists was added in 2017. And I don't know why being accepting of people is WOKE rather than common decency. But if that's the reality you feel you need to hold onto, go for it.

 

There is a positive difference in USA TV ratings as well as large crowds at COTA and Miami. I'm not sure how the USA races play in the rest of the world.

 

Basically the same off-the-wall conclusions that were being bandied about in these forums after the Colin Kapernick shenanigans. The fact is the NFL crowds (pre and post pandemic) are still strong and the NFL TV ratings are amongst the highest of any TV programs.

NASCAR currently sucks because of all the bad decisions they have made regarding the latest car formula and the absolutely STUPID race formats.

 

My uneducated on view on the rise of F1 and road racing in general in this country is as follows.

I think the relative increase in popularity of all forms of road racing vs circle track is linked to how media is consumed and the political background in 'road racing' formulae, as much as anything the racing is doing. For decades 'oval' racing was THE THING in the US, but it was made for in person and TV viewing, all the action was laid out right in front of your field of vision. For all but the most invested and knowledgeable, that was an easier sell to the general public. Road racing was often seen as boring as there was much less passing, and it was difficult to tell the story of the race. With advances in TV technology, screen in screen, graphical comparisons, real time gaps, better quality and instant in car etc. etc. This allows producers and announcers a way to tell the whole story of a race. There are always cat and mouse games being played through the field with people on different strategies etc. It's easier to show and tell those stories with modern technology that it was as recently as the 90's, let alone 80's.

On top of that, NASCAR went on a huge push for, if not global, at least National acceptance. Pushing the 'new' not necessarily 'Southern' drivers, with clean cut young gentlemen like Jeff Gordon from SoCal, people who were more acceptable for corporate marketing. At the same time as they were making their push, and getting the races on free to air TV for the whole country to see, F1 was pricing it out of the market, when I first emigrated from the UK to the US I couldn't even get a cable station with F1 on. Tony George was trying his absolute best to destroy open wheel racing in the US, you had the perfect scenario for NASCAR to come in a scoop up all those disenfranchised fans. On top of that the world economy helped pretty much tank IMSA, at the same time as Bernie and co were trying to destroy the old ultra successful Group C by forcing them to F1 engines and tearing up the rule book. Global sports car racing took a hit, which after the late (and for a time great) ALMS series and what was left of IMSA trying for the same market segment, and left turn right turn racing just couldn't stop shooting itself in the foot for a couple of decades. On top of that, F1 was late in adopting HD so as people were getting bigger and better TV's (Something I assume happened faster in this country than else where), so F1 looked like ****, even for those who could find it.

Move forward, F1 coverage is way better, although still too hard to get. The CHAMPCAR (ne-CART) / IRL war is over and they re-merge. IMSA and ALMS merge and you have two great series. Indy car and the new combined IMSA were both putting on outstanding racing, that no one is watching, as they'd all destroyed their base.

A decade of great Indy car racing, a few years of awesome IMSA racing, and the slow emergence of F1 (prior to DTS) and people are all taking notice again.

NASCAR on the other hand worked it's hand to the best of it's ability and it went on a viewer, sponsor, media, tear for a decade to become the power house it is (was). But, there comes a point where any expansion naturally comes to an end, then it regresses a certain amount. The problem for NASCAR though, is their roll back from their peak coincided with a dramatic shift in the culture of this country. Up until probably a decade ago, a drivers license and a car were still the main goal of teens as a measure of independence. Suddenly the rise of social media, and the internet as a whole became the new outlet for teenage angst and independence. Cars were suddenly being portrayed as being to root of social problems rather than the solution to them. And it too went into decline.

I don't think any one series will ever regain the popularity that NASCAR had at it's peak. But with the advent of DTS, amazing racing in Indycar and IMSA, plus the added benefit of rule alignment between IMSA and WEC allowing more manufactures here in the top class, I think we've got a rising tide floats all boats situation. And now all domestic series, including Indycar, IMSA, and NASCAR are starting to work to aid each others success, rather than set out to depose each other.

Add the slow but sure increase in popularity, due to a great product, and F1/DTS had a perfect market waiting. Add in two years of a pandemic with people having more time to binge watch TV, and motorsport being among the first live action sport (heck anything) that started back up during COVID, and motorsports have been an overall beneficiary of the pandemic.

Or at least that's how my brain observes and interprets the situation.

 

Couldn't agree more. I find myself feeling estranged from this consumer-focused (vs racing-focused) version of formula 1. Even with the Scuderia firmly in the mix this year, this doesn't feel like the F1 I've followed all of these years. Certainly not the spirit of the 'return to Camelot' years with Schumacher.

It's just...different. Built to prioritize different fans than us long-time ones.

 

It's always going to be different decade to decade. Things change, things evolve.

 

As it should. I think the question will be: in our modern world, designed to eliminate the ownership of PV's, what will that mean for F1? The "old guard" are not the priority...does Liberty feel that making F1 into a sports/drama medium gives it legs in a new world where cars will be depicted as a wedge issue? Can they play in both sides of that conversation successfully? Or will fence-sitting cause it create formulae that are a departure from the spirit of formula 1/motor racing (kind of like it is now) and lean more towards simply entertainment?

It's a tricky proposition, imo...

 

After 6 decades of following F1, I feel the same. It's all becoming too much really.

I am glad I don't have to attend GPs anymore, and I am quite satisfied to watch them on the box !

 

I agree with you that Tony George did more to destroy open-wheel racing in the USA than anyone else. However, CHAMP car team owners became as greedy as F1 just not as united. that is where Ecclestone and Bill France were alike - they ruled the sport - and it paid off.

My fear with Liberty is keeping it alive - that will be hard, and cost more. The Glamor of F-1 if it ever had it was about the intangible European royalty, some celebs, but all the beautiful people in beautiful places... today the Paddock is like TMZ or entertainment tonight... its a bit overhyped... how long can you keep that up?

Drive to survive has done the sport a lot of good - but also trivialized the racing and cars... it's too much on personalities. they need to come back a bit and make it more real, & I suspect the designers and mechanics can be another area of exploitation. Cash is king - an TV generates a lot of it. Still - there are now more people wanting to get into the Paddock than ever ... that cant be bad for the sport.

 

the CFO of our company is a Brit ( Welsh ) and his brothers came over for the weekend to see the race... so it is in demand. I think from talking with him they love it.

 

Fully agreed.

And on the last point, the faked rivalry really works against F1's favour, IMO. F1 has enough drama as it is, and it's not even the point of the sport. It's a shame Netflix seeks to not only exploit it, but fake it as well.

 

I'd like to think that DTS just exposed F1 RACING to more people in the US, and that NONE of the celebrity crap on the grid has anything to do with any increase in attendance or TV views. If F1 is more of a British sport, then it just amazes me to look at BBC.com and see how little F1 there is, vs almost nothing but football, rugby, and cricket.
As a kid, I thought F1 was cool because of the racing, it being Euro-centric, and to an American kid in small town USA, Monaco and European drivers was about the most exotic thing in the world.