Race promoter Bobby Epstein says ticket sales for this month’s US Formula 1 Grand Prix in Austin, Texas, have “soared” after Max Verstappen stopped winning. Verstappen started the season with a bang, winning four of the first five races and looked destined to win his fourth drivers’ title well before the end of the campaign.
The Dutchman, who won 19 of 22 races last year, is winless in his last eight races, but his closest challenger is McLaren’s Lando Norris, who is 52 points behind with six races remaining.
“With Max no longer winning and F1’s competition intensifying between October 18th and 20th, ticket sales really picked up, with the organizers calling it the “slowest year in four years since the pandemic.” However, he said that sales were on the rise.
This race will be the first since Red Bull dropped Daniel Ricciardo, who was a huge favorite among American spectators, last month and replaced him with Liam Lawson.
Epstein expected Ricardo to continue to participate in other roles. “People aren’t necessarily going to buy tickets to watch him race if he’s not in a competitive car, right?”
“But if you come, he’s part of the F1 community so he’ll be part of the F1 community in a pretty meaningful way. He’s really loved in Texas and here too. I think I like it.
“I hope he’s still here because there are a lot of people who would love to shake his hand, get an autograph, take a picture and see him around town. We’ll keep him busy.”
Epstein expected a crowd of 130,000 to 150,000 people to attend the Eminem concert scheduled to take place at the circuit after Saturday’s sprint. There was also a college football game scheduled between the Texas Longhorns and Georgia Bulldogs, which caused hotel prices to soar in the state capital. “It’s going to be a weekend unlike anything we’ve ever experienced in terms of overall excitement and things to do,” Epstein said.
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“The fact that we’re going to have a top-level college game on that Saturday, it’s going to be a great weekend.”
