Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner says just having an American in F1 is not enough to keep US interested in the sport

Mark Thompson/Getty Images Logan Sargeant will race in F1 next season for Williams, the first US driver since 2015. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner was asked about the impact of a US driver on the grid. He said the impact won’t be enough if he is not challenging for wins.

Next year, Formula One will have its first American driver in years, but according to one of the sport’s biggest names, the cultural impact in the United States might be less than many have predicted. Williams Racing recently announced that 21-year-old American Logan Sargeant would replace Nicholas Latifi in their lineup for the 2023 season. Sargeant will be the first American driver in F1 since current IndyCar driver Alexander Rossi started five races in 2015 and the first full-time US driver since Scott Speed, who raced for Toro Rosso in 2006 and 2007.

Before the Williams announcement, Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing’s team principal, was asked about the growth of the sport in the US while a guest on Bloomberg’s “Power Players. ” He spoke about the potential impact of an American driver with a set of criteria Sargeant will struggle to achieve. “I think it is a matter of keeping them engaged,” Horner said, referring to how to keep Americans interested beyond the popular Netflix series, “Drive to Survive.

” “I think we ultimately also need a home hero. We need an American driver that’s not just there for the sake of it, but that is there competing at the front for world championships and race victories. “Before Sargeant was promoted from F2, there was considerable debate over the importance of having an American driver for the US fans and whether a team might hire one just for the sake of having one.

 Logan Sargeant. Joe Portlock – Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty ImagesSargeant is a talented driver — he finished 4th in F2 this season and won two races — so he is not just in F1 for the sake of being an American in F1. However, he is not expected to be competing for championships and race wins anytime soon.

Instead, he will likely spend a lot of time at or near the back of the field for a Williams team that finished last in 2022.  According to Horner, one significant impact on the American sports fan is already happening: growing interest from US companies. “It’s incredible,” Horner said.

“We’ve got several US-based partners now. We’ve got a title partner in Oracle joining us this year. We have companies like AT&T.

We announced American entities, Exxon Mobil, for example. It’s great to see so many American companies coming and getting involved in the sport.  Max Verstappen.

ANP via Getty ImagesAnd it is not just Red Bull. There has been an influx of companies based in the US or with strong American ties working with other teams and F1 as a whole. One such example is F1’s new deal with Lenovo, the China-based technology company with a strong presence in the US.

In its first year as an F1 partner, Lenovo is already a title sponsor for two races, in addition to providing technology to F1. A large part of that newfound attraction is a growing perception, especially in the US, that F1 is the pinnacle of innovation. “What could be the more premium sport than Formula One to really align around the brand?” Gerald Youngblood, the chief marketing officer for Lenovo North America, recently told Insider.

“There are also very practical benefits in terms of aligning and visibility of our brand with other brands that share that drive for innovation and have an audience that can appreciate the story that Lenovo is telling. “That perception of F1 is not new to their hardcore fan but is in the corporate world. Five years ago, F1 had a single technology partner.

In addition to Lenovo, F1 now has partnered with several tech companies, including American-based businesses such as AWS and Zoom. You can see the entire Horner interview here: Read the original article on Insider.