MoneyGram boss says no peak in sight for F1's US growth

LONDON : Formula One's surging popularity in the United States, turbocharged by hit Netflix docu-series 'Drive to Survive', has plenty of fuel left in the tank according to MoneyGram chief executive Alex Holmes.

The Dallas-based money transfer and payments company will start the 2023 season, which has three grands prix in the United States including a new night race on the Las Vegas Strip, as title sponsor of the U.S.-owned Haas team.

Season five of 'Drive to Survive' is due for release on Feb. 24, the week before the start lights go out at Bahrain's Sakhir circuit, with the behind-the-scenes cameras set to film again this year.

"It (the sponsorship) is just huge for us in terms of people beginning to associate the MoneyGram brand in a very different way," Holmes told Reuters ahead of an online reveal of the car's new livery on Tuesday.

"It seems like the excitement in the U.S., particularly with Vegas coming, is just going to grow.

"Personally I see the next several years as continued expansion".

The three U.S. races are well-spaced, with Miami first up in May, then Austin in October and Las Vegas as the penultimate round in November.

According to broadcaster ESPN, the 2022 season was the most-viewed ever on U.S. television with an average 1.21 million viewers per race across ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC, an increase of 28 per cent on 2021.

The number of female viewers was up 34 per cent and averaged 28 per cent of the audience, while significantly younger fans were also watching.

"I have kids of college age and they have friends and those friends have watch parties on Sunday mornings. It’s not what I was doing in college, it really wasn’t there," MoneyGram's marketing head Greg Hall told Reuters.

"A lot if it is being led by that 18-25