TV News: This weekend’s USGP airs on ABC against NASCAR and the NFL

As one of its most competitive seasons in years nears its exciting conclusion, the Formula 1 World Championship returns to America this weekend for the Pirelli USGP. The second of three F1 events in the U.S. this year, the race will be live on ABC and ESPN+ on Sunday, Oct. 20, from Circuit of the Americas (COTA) in Austin, Texas.

Sunday’s coverage begins at 1:30 p.m. ET with Grand Prix Sunday and the race will start at 3 p.m. In addition to the main telecast, ESPN+ and ESPN3 will stream a Spanish language feed of the race. The race telecast will be presented commercial-free by Mercedes-Benz.

ESPN will surround the race telecast with programming and content across platforms, including the on-site presence of SportsCenter for three live shows and reports in other editions. ABC’s Good Morning America will have content from Austin and two editions of ESPN’s video podcast The Elle Duncan Show will originate from the event. Digital content will include full coverage on ESPN.com/F1, exclusive live preview and post-race shows on race day and multiple podcasts.

In addition to the race, ESPN platforms will have live coverage of Sprint qualifying and the practice session on Friday, Oct. 18, and the Sprint and qualifying on Saturday, Oct. 19. The Saturday events will stream on ESPN+ in addition to airing on television.

F1 fans will have two alternate telecasts on ESPN+ for supplemental viewing during the race – the Driver Tracker Channel and the Onboard Cameras Channel. Both begin streaming at 2:55 p.m.

The race is part of the “ESPN Texas Takeover” for the big weekend of sports in Austin, an initiative that also includes Saturday’s college football matchup between No. 1 Texas and No. 5 Georgia, ESPN’s College GameDay Built by The Home Depot airing from the University of Texas on Saturday morning and numerous fan-friendly opportunities tying the two events together.

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

• SportsCenter –- Three live editions of SportsCenter will originate from Circuit of the Americas during race weekend, all from an ESPN set located outside of “Big Red,” the circuit’s first turn. Fans will be able to watch the shows from adjacent to the set. On Friday, anchors Nicole Briscoe and Randy Scott will host the 2 p.m. ET edition from the set, while they also will host the 7 a.m. editions on Saturday and Sunday mornings. In addition, Briscoe, also the host of ESPN’s F1 encore telecasts, will report for other editions of SportsCenter with interviews and other content.

• The Elle Duncan Show – Two episodes of ESPN’s video podcast The Elle Duncan Show will originate from the ESPN set outside of “Big Red,” the first turn at Circuit of the Americas, and fans will have the opportunity to watch production of both. Host Elle Duncan will be joined by guest co-hosts Dalen Cuff (first show) and Christine Williamson (second show) to talk about and around sports – including the drama, gossip, and stories that happen adjacent to the on-field action. The two episodes from Austin will include guests from the world of F1 as well as celebrities on-site at the event. One episode will record Thursday afternoon and will be available Friday morning on YouTube and podcast platforms. A second episode will record on Sunday after the race and will be available on YouTube and podcast platforms Monday morning.

• Good Morning America – ABC’s Good Morning America will cover the U.S. Grand Prix with content over several days. Subject to breaking news, reporter Ashan Singh will be at the racetrack for Friday morning’s show while the weekend editions also will tentatively include interviews from Austin on Saturday and Sunday. The Emmy-winning morning news program airs 7-9 a.m. ET on weekdays, with GMA Weekend airing Saturday and Sunday mornings (check local listings).

• Countdown to Austin — ESPN will produce an exclusive preview show that will stream live on the ESPN App and ESPN social media and digital channels from 2-3 p.m. ET on race day. Countdown to Austin will be hosted by Katie George with analysts Spencer Hall and Dalen Cuff. Originating from Circuit of the Americas, the show will stream to ESPN’s YouTube Facebook accounts, as well as the ESPN App and ESPN3. In addition to driver interviews and special guests, the crew will break down all the latest F1 news heading into the race as well as previewing the race and making their predictions. They will be joined by ESPN.com/F1’s Laurence Edmondson and Nate Saunders and ESPN SportsCenter anchor Nicole Briscoe.

• 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. The video podcast Unlapped with Edmondson, Saunders and Katie George appears on the ESPN YouTube channel and on Spotify and Apple Music. Two editions of Unlapped will be produced surrounding the USGP – one for before the race weekend and one post-race.

• Coverage in Spanish
  • The ESPN Deportes program Ahora o Nunca which airs from 5-7 p.m. ET, will have content from Austin on Friday, Oct. 18. ESPN Deportes reporter Katia Castorena will be on location at COTA for the program. Since its launch in 2018, Ahora o Nuncahosted by Mauricio Pedroza has delivered a unique take on sports, blending sports commentary with pop culture, movies music, and viewer participation elements on ESPN Deportes.
  • ESPN will provide Spanish-language coverage of the U.S. Grand Prix 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 along with ESPN+.
  • Commentary teams on-site in Austin:
    • ESPN D​eportes  –Jose Antonio Cortez and Katia Castorena.
    • ESPN Latin America— Fernando Gustavo Tornello, Luis Manuel Lopez and Juan Fossaroli.

• ESPN Social Media Platforms — The ESPN Social Media team will be on-site in Austin and provide fans with exclusive content with teams and drivers and behind-the-scenes moments, along with coverage of celebrity appearances around the event. The team will collaborate on-site with ESPN personalities and with ESPN Marketing’s activations throughout race week.

In addition to Sunday’s live race telecast, F1 fans in New York City and Boston will have unique opportunities to watch the action. For the first time, the race telecast will air on the iconic ABC SuperSign in Times Square in New York City, and F1 Arcade Boston is hosting a race watch party. ESPN will have a fan cam on location in Boston and the crowd will be included within the digital pre-show coverage from Austin. An ESPN host will also be on-site at F1 Arcade.

F1 will return to America next month for the Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix Nov. 21-24.

Formula 1 Pirelli United States Grand Prix on ESPN Platforms

All programs also will stream on the ESPN App.