Liberty Media admits F1 viewership growth facing a ‘challenge’ from Max Verstappen’s ‘record-setting’ dominance

Maffei praised Verstappen says he is taking right lines to prove himself as the quickest driver.

Liberty Media admits F1 viewership growth facing a ‘challenge’ from Max Verstappen’s ‘record-setting’ dominance

Max Verstappen raising his ten figures after winning his tenth consecutive race in F1 (image via IMAGO)

Formula 1 has grown in popularity in recent years. The sport has earned millions of new viewers globally including a massive rise in the United States. The incredible 2021 title showdown between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen was pivotal in this growth. However, F1’s commercial rights owner Liberty Media is wary of Verstappen’s dominance affecting this rise.

Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei pointed out that the F1 midfield had grown closer this year, providing more action to fans. However, Maffei admitted that Verstappen’s incredible 2023 season is a challenge in attracting new viewers to the sport. The Red Bull driver has won 12 of the 14 races so far. He told Autosport, “The challenge obviously is Max Verstappen is having an unbelievable year or a record-setting year.”

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The Liberty Media boss mentioned the new strategy deployed by F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali. Maffei revealed that Domenicali was trying to portray Max Verstappen’s dominance as a historic spectacle. As such, Greg Maffei was looking forward to how this pans out for the sport. The 63-year-old explained, “Stefano Domenicali is rightly trying to pivot and say, ‘Come watch this historic event, you’ve never seen success like this, you don’t want to miss it.’ We’ll see if that works.”

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Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei on Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen
Max Verstappen (NLD, Oracle Red Bull Racing)

Despite the potential difficulties in gaining viewership because of Max Verstappen, Maffei praised the two-time world champion. The 63-year-old mentioned that even if Verstappen is the fastest car, the 25-year-old is taking the right lines and proving himself as the quickest driver on the grid. The reigning world champion now has the record for the longest winning streak in F1 history.

The Red Bull driver leads the championship by a gap of 145 points to teammate Sergio Perez. The paddock and the fans are convinced that Max Verstappen will clinch his third consecutive world title in the next couple of rounds of the season. Although, the 25-year-old will need to continue his streak of perfect weekends to accomplish this feat.

Thus, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei has admitted that Max Verstappen’s dominant run in 2023 could prove a barrier to a viewership increase in 2023. The Dutch driver is performing at an incredible level this season with rivals proving to be no match to the two-time champion. Although, it remains to be seen if Verstappen’s stellar year affects F1’s viewership levels.

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