Although the weather for Sunday's Formula One (F1) SAP
U.S. Grand Prix was "lousy" and "some vendors ran out of
food, coffee and hot chocolate," Indianapolis Motor Speedway
officials "were content" yesterday with the event, according
to Stephen Beaven of the INDIANAPOLIS STAR. The overnight
Nielsen ratings for the event "were low, especially compared
to" the Brickyard 400 and Indy 500 this summer. The live
prerace show and the race itself on FSN Midwest drew a 3.4
rating, while the delayed broadcast on WXIN-Fox produced a
4.7 rating, or about 43,000 people. WXIN General Sales
Manager Jerry Harbin, on the rating: "We would have liked it
to be higher." Beaven adds that the race drew a 1.0 in
Houston, a 0.4 in Phoenix and a 0.7 in Dallas (INDIANAPOLIS
STAR, 9/26). In Toronto, Gerald Donaldson calls the race "a
great success," but says F1 needs to be marketed better in
the U.S. Donaldson: "F1 is by far the richest sport in the
world and if it starts billing itself that way in the United
States, it will get even richer" (TORONTO STAR, 9/26). USA
TODAY's Chris Jenkins cites F1 President Bernie Ecclestone
as saying that the "first thing the series needs is more" TV
exposure in the U.S. Jenkins: "Most agree having an
American driver in the series would help tremendously, but
that is unlikely to happen anytime soon" (USA TODAY, 9/26).
