F1 will surpass NASCAR as the biggest sport in the US, predicts Williams' Logan Sargeant

Logan Sargeant believes that he couldn't have entered F1 at a better time as F1 will soon surpass NASCAR as the biggest sport in the United States of America. The 22-year-old became the first American driver in the sport, almost eight years after Scott Speed.

Sargeant was speaking at Williams' 2023 car launch along with his teammate Alex Albon. Stating that he is very excited to make his debut with Williams, he believes that his appearance will make the sport's viewership surpass that of NASCAR in the US.

Sargeant said:

“I think for coming into the sport straight into a year where there are three US grands prix is a special opportunity and a privilege at the same time.”

F1 has rapidly become popular in the US over the last couple of years, partly due to the Netflix docudrama Drive to Survive. Last season, a record-breaking 1.2 million fans tuned in for each Grand Prix in the US. With the Las Vegas round joining Miami and Texas on the 2023 calendar, the viewing figures will rapidly increase.

NASCAR, however, is still America's favorite motorsport. The stock car series continues to attract three million viewers per race. In 2022, IndyCar outperformed Formula 1, with 1.3 million viewers tuning in for the single-seater series.

Sargeant, however, is hopeful that these figures will be exceeded once F1 takes hold on the North American mainland. He said:

“I think F1 in America is clearly at its peak and it is still on the way up, which is a massive positive. You can see how many questions [there are] from friends and family and how curious people are about the sport, it does show how much it is growing in America.”

The Florida-born added:

“I want to say it seems almost as big as NASCAR and IndyCar, if not bigger, but it’s hard to say without seeing the numbers. But it seems like it’s pretty popular, and that’s a positive. Obviously, there’s a lot of diehard NASCAR and IndyCar fans who don’t always like it, but I think the way the sport’s going in America, if it’s not already, I think it will be the biggest shortly.”

Meanwhile, NASCAR has been struggling with waning interests. However, last year was its best since 2018, experiencing a 2% TV bump, after losing fans through the latter 2010s.

In contrast, Formula 1 is flourishing. The thrilling 2021 season-finale between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen saw a significant increase of 54% in TV viewers over the previous year. A subsequent increase of 29% occurred in 2022.

The rookie from Florida won't have the luxury of an easy F1 transition period. The emergence of Sargeant at the echelon of motorsports corresponds with a boom in the Netflix industry at home, and F1's new American fans will be keen to support their first Championship representation since 2015. Being the only American on the grid along with a well-experienced teammate like Alex Albon means all eyes will be set on Sargeant this season.

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F1 Twitter had a hilarious reaction to the Williams Car launch

Williams revealed their new 2023 car livery alongside their driver lineup, Alex Albon and rookie Logan Sargeant, on Monday, February 6th, 2023. Fans, however, expressed mixed reactions to the same, with some taking to Twitter to share their hilarious reactions.

"Still a sick design tho"

A few fans also praised the placement of sponsor Duracell on the livery:

"I LOVE THIS PART THAT LOOKS LIKE A BATTERY BC OF THE SPONSOR"

"For real, this bit is genius"

Regardless of reactions to the livery, all that matters is Williams' performance on the track once pre-season testing starts in Bahrain.