F1’s Miami Grand Prix Sees Ratings Slide, Yet Remains a Top U.S. Draw

Despite ABC seeing a major dip in TV ratings for Sunday’s Miami Grand Prix, the race still drew one of the largest U.S. audiences for Formula One. 

An average of 2.1 million viewers watched McLaren’s 1–2 finish, according to Nielsen ratings, as Oscar Piastri took the checkered flag, followed by teammate Lando Norris. That’s down 32% from last year’s Miami GP audience of 3.1 million, the most-watched F1 race on U.S. airwaves.

Sunday’s race is up 7% from the 2023 Miami GP, and it marks the third-largest live F1 race audience on U.S. TV. The debut event in 2022 is the second-most-watched all-time, with 2.6 million viewers.

Last year’s record rating came in part due to the Miami GP airing on ABC directly after Game 7 of the Magic-Cavaliers first-round NBA playoff series, which drew 4.3 million viewers. This year, there were no live sports on ABC leading directly into the F1 race.

This is the first F1 race of the season that had a smaller audience on ESPN platforms than last year’s comparable broadcast. 

ESPN’s media-rights deal with F1 is expiring at the end of this season. Initially, it appeared ESPN would not renew its contract, due to a difference of opinion regarding how much the sport’s rights are worth. ESPN is paying F1 up to $90 million annually under the current deal. However, F1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali said in February that talks were still happening with ESPN.

F1 will return to the U.S. for two more races this season in Austin and Las Vegas.