F1: Sunday’s United States Grand Prix Airing Live on ABC

After racing around the world in a season that began in March, Formula 1 is in the United States this weekend for the second and final time this year. ABC will have a live telecast of the Formula 1 Aramco United States Grand Prix on Sunday, Oct. 23, with coverage from Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET. The race starts at 3 p.m.

ESPN will surround the race telecast with programming and content across platforms including the on-site presence of SportsCenter along with social media and digital content that will include a live preview show on race day and a golf ball driving contest between F1 drivers and players from the PGA TOUR and LPGA.

Every grandstand, very large grandstands, were packed to the rafters

In addition to the race, qualifying and all three practice sessions will air on ESPN networks on Friday and Saturday with streaming of all sessions and the race on the ESPN App. The race and qualifying telecasts will air commercial-free with sponsorship from Mothers Polish.

With the race being in her home country, former IndyCar and NASCAR star Danica Patrick will once again be joining the award-winning Sky Sports F1 commentary team as an analyst. ESPN and F1 have been bringing Sky’s coverage to American viewers since F1 returned to ESPN networks in 2018.

ESPN’s multiplatform coverage of the U.S. Grand Prix will include:

  • SportsCenter –- Anchor Nicole Briscoe, also the host of ESPN’s F1 encore telecasts, will report from Austin on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for SportsCenter, with interviews and other content appearing in various editions of ESPN’s signature news and information program throughout the day.

  • ESPN.com/F1
    — ESPN’s Laurence Edmondson and Nate Saunders are providing complete coverage of every F1 race across all global digital platforms, including exclusive interviews with drivers and team principals, as well as breaking news and in-depth analysis. ESPN’s coverage of F1 includes a dedicated site that reports on the championship year-round. In addition to ESPN’s F1 coverage across all major social platforms, for the first time this year, ESPN’s popular Pick’Em format includes an F1 game, offering users the chance to make their predictions across the grid for each race. The video podcast program Unlapped appears on the ESPN YouTube channel.
  • Countdown to Austin — ESPN will produce a preview show that will air live on ESPN social media and digital channels from 2:30-3 p.m. ET on race day. Countdown to Austin will be hosted by SportsCenter anchor Gary Striewski, with analyst Spencer Hall. Also joining the show will be ESPN.com/F1 reporters Laurence Edmondson and Nate Saunders. Originating from the ESPN set at the race circuit, the show will stream to ESPN’s YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook accounts, as well as the ESPN App.
  • ESPN Drivers’ Challenge – In a unique sports crossover, F1 drivers will be paired up with Texas-based professional golfers from the PGA TOUR and LPGA in a golf simulator located in the paddock at Circuit of the Americas. Highlights from the “ESPN’s Drivers’ Challenge” will appear across ESPN social channels as well as on golf and racing social channels. PGA TOUR players Will Zalatoris and Dylan Frittelli will participate as will the LPGA’s Lily Muni He. F1 drivers scheduled to compete against each other and golf pros are Max Verstappen, Carlos Sainz, Sergio Perez, Lando Norris, Danny Ricciardo, Valteri Bottas, Guanyu Zhou, Esteban Ocon, Fernando Alonso, Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda. Michael Collins, senior golf analyst for ESPN and host of the ESPN+ program America’s Caddie, will host the challenge. Special guests will include Shaquille O’Neal.
  • ESPN Deportes and ESPN Latin America — ESPN will provide Spanish-language coverage on news platforms in the U.S. and Latin America. The race, practice sessions and qualifying will air in Spanish in the U.S. on ESPN Deportes or ESPN3. Commentary teams on-site in Austin:
    • ESPN D​eportes  – Jose Antonio Cortez, Pilar Perez and Adal Franco.
    • ESPN Latin America — Fernando Gustavo Tornello, Luis Manuel Lopez, Juan Fossaroli and Diego Mejía.

  • Marty & McGee
    – The SEC Network program Marty & McGee (9-10 a.m.) will have reports from the U.S. Grand Prix on Saturday, Oct. 22. Marty Smith and Ryan McGee will speak with guests from their set in Baton Rouge, La.

Race day coverage will begin at 1:30 p.m. with the Grand Prix Sunday pre-race show, with the race start at 3 p.m. The race also will air in Spanish on ESPN Deportes with coverage beginning at 2 p.m.

F1 races this season are averaging 1.2 million viewers across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2, on pace to break the U.S. season viewership average record of 949,000 that was set last year. Last year’s the race telecast of the U.S. Grand Prix on ABC attracted an average audience of 1.4 million viewers.

Formula 1 Aramco United States Grand Prix Television Schedule

(all times Eastern)

Date Event Time (ET) Network
 Fri., Oct. 21 The F1 Show 2:00 p.m. ESPN3
  Practice 1 2:55 p.m. ESPN2
  Practice 2 5:55 p.m. ESPNEWS/ESPN3
Sat., Oct. 22 Practice 3 2:55 p.m. ESPNEWS/ESPN3
  Qualifying 5:55 p.m. ESPNEWS/ESPN3
  Ted’s Qualifying Notebook 7:45 p.m. ESPN3
Sun., Oct. 23 Grand Prix Sunday (pre-race) 1:30 p.m. ABC
  Countdown to Austin 2:30 p.m. ESPN YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and ESPN App
  Race 3:00 p.m. ABC
  Checkered Flag (post-race) 5:00 p.m. ESPN3
  Ted’s Race Notebook 6:00 p.m. ESPN3
  Race (encore) 6:30 p.m. ESPNEWS

 

ESPN Deportes Schedule (in Spanish)

Fri., Oct. 21 Practice 1 2:55 p.m. ESPN Deportes
  Practice 2 5:50 p.m. ESPN Deportes
Sat., Oct. 22 Practice 3 2:55 p.m. ESPN3
  Qualifying 5:55 p.m. ESPN Deportes
Sun., Oct. 23 Pre-Race and Race 2:00 p.m. ESPN Deportes

 

All programs also will stream on the ESPN App.