F1 refutes data from report claiming Max Verstappen's dominance led to significant drop in social media numbers

F1 has denied the claims that their popularity is going downhill, as mentioned in a report. Though the sport has seen massive growth in the past few years, there have been several complaints from fans about Max Verstappen and Red Bull's dominance killing the sport.

Recently, a report from Buzz Radar claimed that the sport's popularity is in fact going downhill when it comes to social media interactions and traffic.

The study mentions that from January to May 2022, F1 reached 61.72 billion people, gained 911,150 followers, and received 6.14 million mentions on various social media platforms. Whereas from January to May 2023, they only reached 22.16 billion, gained 489,370 followers, and received 1.83 million mentions.

In response to this, F1 themselves provided RacingNews365 with data that clearly counters the figures claimed by Buzz Radar. According to their official data, the growth in FOM channels in 2023 is nearly eight times greater than what Buzz Radar is claiming.

The official report also claims that in the second quarter, from April to June, channels owned and managed by the sport were second in the global standings of follower growth rate across various top sports. Total active engagements, counted as likes, comments, and shares, have also gone 4% up from 2022, with 1.5 billion engagements expected for three consecutive seasons.

There is no doubt that many fans have been complaining about Max Verstappen's dominance. However, the official numbers provided by the sport's analysts themselves are still on the upward trajectory.

---

Former F1 CEO on the current state of the sport

Former F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone recently spoke about how the environment around races and the overall feel of the sport have changed. While speaking to The Daily Mail, he mentioned races in America and how crazy they are.

He gave an example of the Miami GP and stated how the showrunners added a bit too much of an American touch to it. He said:

“I think you can see with the races in America that they are doing — which I think is completely mad. The one in Miami — the way they ran that was mad, trying to be American rather than the way I did it, which was trying to be pure Formula 1 as it was, rather than as it could be."

While Ecclestone admits that his way of running the sport could have been wrong and that this was the right way to do it, he was still baffled by going to some practice sessions and races. He concluded:

“Maybe they are completely right; maybe I was wrong trying to keep it more F1. I watch every practice session and every race and I look and I think, ‘My God are we trying to show Formula One or are we trying to show other things?’”

Especially after the 2021 F1 season and Netflix's Drive to Survive, there has been a massive popularity boom in the US. To capitalize on it, the sport has gradually moved towards the west, blending in and bringing in even more fans.