"Why is it not kickstarting a bit over here?" - Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton were concerned of F1's slow growth in the US

Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton admitted they were baffled by the slow growth of Formula 1 in the United States of America in the past. However, both believe the sport has grown immensely in popularity and markets.

Speaking at a press conference after the USGP in Austin along with Lewis Hamilton, the reigning champion said:

“I mean, I guess everyone wondered a bit like, why is it not kickstarting a bit over here? But I think the last few years also, together with Netflix, people had a bit more insight. Because I think, up until a few years ago, the sport was very closed. You couldn't really get close to the teams. I think everything is opening up a little bit more. And then because of Netflix giving a bit more insight, you start to understand a little bit more of what's going on. And you don't just see the cars driving around. I think that's why people are a lot more excited about Formula 1 now. You can clearly see… it's all over the world but especially in the US, the popularity is growing a lot. So I enjoy coming to the US and also, of course, we're going to have three Grands Prix but the three races are completely different, in completely different locations. So, I think that's also really important. And yeah, I'm just looking forward to the coming years to see what's next. And yeah, what's going to happen in the coming years.”

Max Verstappen believes that Formula 1 has taken its time to crack the US market, and Netflix has boosted the sport's popularity. The Dutchman is looking forward to three races in the country next season, with its newest addition featuring the Las Vegas night race.

Lewis Hamilton, on the other hand, who has raced for ten years at the Austin circuit, feels the sport has grown gradually and was impressed with the massive turnout in the fan zone over the years.

Having claimed five victories at the Austin circuit in the past, the Mercedes driver has always enjoyed the track, making it one of the favorites on the calendar. Similar to his Dutch rival, Lewis Hamilton too was baffled by the low audience of the sport in the past in America.

Praising the event and the crowds, Lewis Hamilton praised the growth of F1 in America, saying:

“Yeah, record crowd here. And we have two Grands Prix here in the States. We have three next year. It's growing here. And it's amazing to… you know, I've been racing here 15 years and I always wondered why it wasn't… people hadn't quite caught on. In terms of… because it's such a great sport, this. There's so much… it's so complex and so exciting. So, it's nice to finally see that we've finally got that reach, we finally tapped into the country and people here in the US are such huge sporting fans, and they bring in such great energy.

Lewis Hamilton continued:

The show is fantastic. And you know, just going on the drivers’ parade, you can see the crowd and the energy from them, super excited. When we did the Fan Zone is the biggest crowd we've ever had. So big, big Thank You to everyone that took the time to come here this weekend. And, for COTA, for putting on such an amazing, amazing event. I can't wait to come back. This is one of my favourite races. I won here in 2012, the first race. So close again, to have that potentially today. But I look forward to coming back next year.”

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Lewis Hamilton believes Netflix boosted F1's growth in America

Unsure about the reasons behind the growth of F1 in America, Lewis Hamilton felt Netflix could be one of the reasons for the growth in the audience. Citing the famous TV show Drive to Survive being the reason for the sport's popularity in the American market, the Briton feels the niche nature of the sport has also been the reason for its growth amongst American audiences.

Trying to understand the reasons behind the growth of F1 in America, Lewis Hamilton said:

“I don't really know, apart from the Netflix show, which really gave people a much more in depth insight because if you switch on the TV and just start following, it's very, very hard to understand what is going on. If you turn up for the first time, it's hard if you don't know the details of what's happening within the teams. And within a few shows, obviously, it really highlight open doors and then I think once people have seen that, then they've just gone down a real wormhole of learning more about the technology, that there's a lot of mathematics in the background, there's a huge amount of data, it's the highest technology that's around, that would help develop… that crosses over into road cars.

Lewis Hamilton continued:

And then at the end of the day, there's 20 drivers that are athletes, that are putting their life on the line, weekend in, weekend out. And unlike the other sports which are also exciting there's a lot of players… in terms of athletes, there's only 20 of us so it's a very, very small group of us that get to drive these rockets basically around so we're as close to NASA I guess, as we can be.”

The 2023 season of the F1 calendar features three races on American shores, starting with the Miami GP, followed by the USGP in Austin, and the Las Vegas GP towards the end of the calendar. With a growing audience every year, the American market will have three different offerings in three different regions of the country for F1 fans.

Lewis Hamilton has also been a fan favorite in the US with his connections to Hollywood, sports, and the world of fashion. The seven-time world champion recently became part owner of the football team Denver Broncos.