F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix averages over 1M viewers despite late night start
The Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix averaged more than 1 million viewers on ESPN despite starting at midnight or later in two of the four time zones in the United States.
The inaugural race averaged 1.3 million viewers, good enough to be the third-largest cable and sixth largest overall telecast on ESPN’s platforms for the 2023 F1 season, the network announced Tuesday. That is with the race running between 10 p.m. and 12:05 a.m. PT, or between 1 a.m. -3:05 a.m. ET.
The 18-to-49-year-old demographic accounted for 668,000 of the average viewership who tuned in to see Max Verstappen win yet another F1 race.
The race held on a 3.8-mile street circuit that included a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard was the most-viewed F1 race since June’s Canadian Grand Prix, which aired on ABC.
The ESPN broadcast was the most-watched telecast on cable after 8 p.m. PST Saturday and in the overnight hours. Viewership for the Las Vegas Grand Prix peaked at 1.5 million between 10:15 p.m and 10:30 p.m. Saturday.
ESPN+, the network’s streaming app, also aired the race, which was the second most-viewed F1 race on the platform, behind this year’s Miami Grand Prix.
The Las Vegas Valley had the strongest local market rating, with 7.4 percent of televisions in Southern Nevada tuned into the race. Los Angeles (1.5), Tulsa, Oklahoma (1.3), Seattle (1.2) and Phoenix (1.1) rounded out the top five local markets.
The qualifying round for the race, which aired from 12:54 a.m. to 1:09 a.m. Saturday, averaged 626,000 viewers on ESPN.
Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.