Last weekend’s record-setting attendance at the U.S. F1 Grand Prix could accelerate the series’ pursuit of adding a second or third race in the market, industry insider Zak Brown said. “Organizers put on a great event last weekend,” Brown told SBD Global. “The numbers show that there is a growing interest in Formula 1 in the U.S., and Liberty Media [F1’s new owners] have been open about their intentions of expanding in North America.” This year’s event at the Circuit of the Americas drew a three-day attendance of 269,889, beating the previous high of 265,499, which was set at the inaugural U.S. Grand Prix in ’12. Setting a new attendance record in year five of an annual racing event is highly unusual, Brown said, as attendance figures typically level out after an initial high in year one. The outgoing Group CEO of CSM Sport & Entertainment attributes this year’s record-setting numbers to several factors, including the debut of the American Haas F1 team on home soil. In addition, this year’s event was not affected by bad weather; the title fight between Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg is more exciting; and Taylor Swift’s performance following Saturday’s qualifying session certainly did not hurt either, Brown said. Swift’s concert alone is said to have brought 83,000 to the race venue. Despite the large attendance figure, F1 has still a tremendous growth potential in the U.S., Brown said. It is understood that capitalizing on this largely untapped market of potential F1 fans is one of the key elements in Liberty Media’s plan for the series’ future development.
