The boss of the Circuit of Americas has claimed that ticket sales for the United States Grand Prix have surged - thanks to Max Verstappen no longer winning races.
In 2023, Verstappen won 19 of 22 races and started this season by claiming seven of the first 10. His most recent victory, however, was the Spanish Grand Prix on June 23, a run of eight without taking the chequered flag.
It is Verstappen's worst winless run since 2020 when he went 11 races without victory. The slump in performance from Red Bull and its RB20 has allowed Lando Norris to sneak into championship contention.
With six rounds remaining, including three sprints, there is a maximum of 180 points up for grabs, with Norris 52 behind and needing to take, on average, 8.7 points out of Verstappen at each event.
Last season, some 420,000 fans visited Austin as it held a sprint race for the first time. It remains to be seen if it will match that number again this year but Verstappen's performance slump has proven a tonic.
"I think we're in good shape coming up to this grand prix, although the route to get here was a little bit different this year from a fan standpoint," Epstein said, as quoted by ESPN.
"Our ticket sales really took off when Max stopped winning, and it got more competitive.
"I give a lot of credit to our fan base and the audience, and that they really are tuned in.
"They are educated and they're paying attention. It is exciting to see the season shape up the way it is."
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The grand prix weekend is not the only major event in Austin over the October 18-20 weekend, with 15-time Grammy award-winner Eminem set to perform, along with the eagerly anticipated Texas-Georgia college football taking place on Saturday.
Epstein believes the entire weekend package makes for "the biggest weekend ever for sports entertainment".
He added: "We're expecting another big crowd, probably it's somewhere in [the region of] where it's been the last couple years [with 420,000 fans across the 2023 GP weekend].
"I would think whatever the record is for a Saturday sprint race, we should shatter that because Eminem has outsold Taylor Swift, and we've increased the size of the infield lawn to get to near 100,000 for the concert.
"I think whatever amount people they've had on sprint races before, 130,000 to 150,000 people will be there for this year's Saturday sprint race, and it's going to be an incredible Saturday.
"We think it is the biggest weekend ever for sports entertainment, and we're billing it as such.
"If you like racing and football and music and a good time, Austin is going to be an unbelievable place to be.
"I think we'll have a weekend like we've never had before, in terms of overall excitement and things to do."
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