Nothing is official yet, but with NASCAR viewership on TV falling and Formula One surging in the US, the two could swap positions. That would make F1 the most watched race series in America, something that just a few years ago felt impossible.

Maybe the problem with NASCAR is the gender gap?

Not everyone agrees this will happen, but the gap between the two is narrowing big time. It could be a season or two before that changes and F1 is the top dog in the US, leaving NASCAR wondering what happened and how to reverse course.

As pointed out by the US Sun, the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, which was last weekend, pulled in 1.1 million viewers in this country. Meanwhile, as motorsports journalist Adam Stern points out, last weekend’s NASCAR Cup Series race pulled in 1.29 million viewers.

.@USANetwork got a 0.70 rating and 1.29 million viewers for Sunday’s NASCAR Cup Series race @NHMS, down from a 1.0 rating and 1.88 million viewers for last year’s race at the same track and from a 0.96 rating and 1.79 million for last year’s fourth playoff race at Kansas. pic.twitter.com/amruIzIg0Z

— Adam Stern (@A_S12) September 24, 2025

On average, NASCAR viewership this season is trending under 200,000 additional American viewers versus F1.

NASCAR fans seem to be in one of two camps on this issue: those who deny reality and say F1 really isn’t all that popular in the US and those who argue with everyone else about what’s causing this downturn.

We already highlighted how the great Richard Petty, the King of NASCAR, says today’s drivers are soft, can’t really drive, and whine a lot. He’s not wrong and that turn of events has alienated a lot of the motorsport’s fanbase, including those of the younger ranks who would’ve liked the rough and tumble days of NASCAR in the past.

Others have pointed to the cars as not being thrilling enough. There’s been a concerted effort to pressure NASCAR into bumping the horsepower to 800-plus. But that seems to be fizzling out as costs and other concerns dominate the conversation.

Some blame the fall in interest to NASCAR’s current restrictions. There are those who say NASCAR has gone woke and alienated fans. Of course, the accusations it’s become too corporate and sterile are prevalent.

We could go on, but the fact of the mater is NASCAR isn’t headed in the right direction. Soon, if something doesn’t change, F1 will dominate it right here in America, especially with Cadillac entering the paddock for the 2026 season.

Image via NASCAR/Facebook

Continue Reading