For two straight years, Formula 1 fans could pretty much expect a Max Verstappen domination when they tuned into a Grand Prix — and understandably, viewers started to lose interest. In 2024, though, things have changed.

That’s good news for the United States Grand Prix; race promoter and Circuit of The Americas chairman Bobby Epstein says that the unpredictability has resulted in a surge of ticket sales. As it turns out, fans are more interested when the racing gets dicey.

Bobby Epstein: US Grand Prix ticket sales “took off when Max [Verstappen] stopped winning”

In an interview with Motorsport.com, USGP race promoter Bobby Epstein acknowledged that ticket sales have been inversely tied to dominance, and that fans just aren’t keen on spending money to watch the same driver take over the field.

“I think it would have been our weakest year in four, since the pandemic,” Epstein told Motorsport.com, regarding the 13th running of COTA’s USGP.

“Our ticket sales really took off when Max stopped winning and it got more competitive. So, I give a lot of credit to our fan base and the audience, they’re paying attention and I think it’s exciting to see the season shape up the way it is.”

During the COVID-19 pandemic, audiences around the world tuned into Netflix’s F1 docuseries Drive to Survive as a way to pass the time while quarantined in their homes, giving rise to a new slate of American fans keen on motorsport.

When the USGP returned in 2021, it brought with it larger crowds, which has encouraged COTA to continue expanding its offerings by organizing impressive musical acts, new grandstands, and plenty of other at-track entertainment — including a tattoo studio, armadillo racing, and so much more.

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But even impressive investment can’t counteract the tedium that comes from one driver being seemingly assured of the race win thanks to the combination of driver and car performance. Now that there’s more unpredictability, Epstein says fans seem more inclined to purchase tickets and organize travel.

“We’re expecting another big crowd, probably somewhere around where it’s been the last couple years,” Epstein told Motorsport.com.

“I would think whatever the record is for a Saturday sprint race, we should shatter that record, because Eminem has outsold Taylor Swift [who performed at the 2016 edition], and we’ve increased the size of the infield lawn to get to near 100,000 for the concert. So, I think 130,000 to 150,000 people will be there for the Saturday sprint race.”

That’s an impressive number considering the fact that there’s a Saturday night football game between the Texas Longhorns and the Georgia Bulldogs taking place at the DKR Texas Memorial Stadium. But Eminem is expected to be draw an impressive crowd.

Knowing that roughly 100,000 spectators are expected to head to the football match, COTA also opted to sell Friday/Sunday ticket packages that are designed to appeal to a new kind of sports fan.

We won’t know exact attendance numbers until the race weekend itself — but at the moment, it sounds like COTA personnel are confident the weekend will be a smash.

Read next: Key track change coming at COTA in time for F1’s return to Austin