Organizers of the United States Grand Prix at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) have admitted that ticket sales for the race, scheduled for the 21st of October, have boomed after Red Bull‘s Max Verstappen stopped winning races mid-season.
Verstappen dominated the 2023 Formula 1 season with 19 victories out of 22 races, while Red Bull secured 21 overall wins, including two from Sergio Perez in Saudi Arabia and Azerbaijan.
While Red Bull’s dominance in Formula 1’s current ground effect era was much celebrated by the team, fans hoped for closer racing and more track action at the front of the grid.
The popularity of the sport and Formula 1’s social media engagement took a major hit, as fans were tired of witnessing Verstappen win races. However, the 2024 season draws an entirely different picture, with the Dutchman having won only 7 Grands Prix out of the 18 thus far. His last win of the season was eight races ago in June in the Spanish Grand Prix.
SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE – SEPTEMBER 22: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing arrives at the track during the F1 Grand Prix of Singapore at Marina Bay Street Circuit on September 22, 2024 in Singapore, Singapore. Tickets sales at COTA for the United Stated Grand Prix have increased after Max Verstappen stopped winning races.
Qian Jun/MB Media/Getty Images
Thanks to teams like Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren for closing the technical gap with Red Bull, they’ve delivered an exciting fight over the past few months. Of these, McLaren has proven to be the most consistent contender, surpassing Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship during the race in Baku.
In the Drivers’ Standings, McLaren’s Lando Norris trails leading driver Verstappen by just 52 points, and with 6 more rounds to go, he remains within mathematical reach of winning the championship. While this was possible after Red Bull encountered balance problems on its RB20 F1 car, McLaren’s mid-season upgrades on its MCL38 also seemed to have paved the way to its success.
The result of an intense 2024 Formula 1 season is anticipated to have boosted viewership and social media engagement. Promoter of the United States GP, Bobby Epstein, revealed that ticket sales have seen a positive trend after Verstappen stopped winning races after June, ending Red Bull’s domination of the ground effect era. COTA is anticipating a record-breaking turnout this year, with the combination of hosting a sprint race and an Eminem concert expected to draw an unprecedented crowd on Saturday. Epstein said in a statement:
“I think it would have been our weakest year in four, since the pandemic.
“Our ticket sales really took off when Max stopped winning and it got more competitive. So, I give a lot of credit to our fan base and the audience, they’re paying attention and I think it’s exciting to see the season shape up the way it is.
“We’re expecting another big crowd, probably somewhere around where it’s been the last couple years. I would think whatever the record is for a Saturday sprint race, we should shatter that record, because Eminem has outsold Taylor Swift [who performed at the 2016 edition], and we’ve increased the size of the infield lawn to get to near 100,000 for the concert. So, I think 130,000 to 150,000 people will be there for the Saturday sprint race.”
