As F1 battles for America's attention, how healthy is the sport?
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Good morning! May the Fourth be with you today.
Formula 1 was in a different place when the Miami Grand Prix debuted in 2022. The sport was coming off one of its greatest championship chases ever, the barnburner between Lewis Hamilton and the victorious Max Verstappen at the end of 2021. TV ratings had popped the previous season and were still on the way up. The inaugural Miami race was a showpiece event for F1, attracting bunches of American celebrities. (Remember Martin Brundle, Sky Sports' 'grid walk' man, getting snubbed by Venus and Serena Williams and then mistaking Paolo Banchero for Patrick Mahomes? What a blending of sports cultures that afternoon was.)
Today is the race's fourth running. The past few years, F1's business in America has gone from booming to … maybe we'd call it plateauing, but with reasons for hope. Consider:
F1's challenges are not just domestic. The FIA, which oversees the actual racing, is in the throes of what one recently resigned executive called a 'governance crisis.' F1 is also in a uniquely vulnerable, complicated position as it relates to American tariffs.
The on-track action this year has been interesting, though. While F1 has its share of dud races and had a big one in Japan a month ago, the championship race so far is a compelling duel between McLaren teammates Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Verstappen's Red Bull, the dominant constructor of the past three seasons, is struggling to find an adequate No. 2 driver and position Verstappen for wins. The legendary Hamilton is floundering at Ferrari.
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That's all a mixed bag. So, how is F1 really doing? I asked Luke Smith, The Athletic's senior writer covering Formula 1 and contributor to the free Prime Tire newsletter: If F1's momentum in late 2021 was a 10 out of 10, what is it now?
💬 8. In the years following the iconic 2021 race, Verstappen's domination led to an underwhelming on-track product, but we're back at a point where F1 seems super competitive. Right now, McLaren is the quickest team, yet it faces regular pressure from Red Bull, Ferrari and even Mercedes. It's impossible to say right now which driver is going to win the world championship. Off track, the TV numbers in the United States, while modest compared to other sports, have been up through the early part of the season. The sport is attracting more sponsors than ever, which means teams are earning more money than ever. The 'dropped' marks right now largely surround the future. It's not clear how good the competitive product will be next season, and the FIA has been turbulent. But with good racing, good financials and a young, fan-friendly grid, F1 remains in good health in 2025.
Vroom vroom.
Rantanen crushes Denver's dreams
Denver was well on its way to a picture-perfect day. The Nuggets had just demolished the Clippers in Game 7, and the Avalanche held a 2-0 lead over the Stars in the third period. Enter: Mikko Rantanen.
Rantanen, who spent 10 seasons in Denver, cut the lead in half with 12 minutes to play in regulation. Six minutes later, he had done it again. Wyatt Johnston slotted one home from the doorstep moments later to give Dallas its first lead. A Stars avalanche.
The clincher? An empty-net score for – you guessed it – Rantanen. Three goals and an assist for Rantanen in the third period alone. You couldn't write a more poetic script. The Stars advance to face the winner of tonight's Blues vs. Jets Game 7. More on that later.
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Sovereignty wins the Derby
Sovereignty used a late surge to pull ahead of the favorite Journalism and win the 151st Kentucky Derby on a muddy track last night. Yes, that's Sovereignty over Journalism. Sometimes sports are just one giant metaphor. In his return to the Derby after a three-year suspension, Bob Baffert saw his horse take an early lead before fading all the way to 15th.
Not quite the photo finish we saw a year ago.
More news:
📺 NHL: Blues at Jets, Game 7
7 p.m. ET on TBS
The pressure is on everyone here, but man oh man is it on Winnipeg and, in particular, Connor Hellebuyck. The Presidents' Trophy winners have their best shot ever to win the Stanley Cup, largely thanks to Hellebuyck, the best goalie in the world. But there's no way around it: The American backstop has been awful in this series and looked lost in a 5-2 loss in Game 6. Buckle up.
📺 NBA: Warriors at Rockets, Game 7
8:30 p.m. ET on TNT
The Warriors have let a 3-1 series lead slip away and now face a decisive game on the road. Fred VanVleet is turning in such a professional seriesfor Houston, and Golden State might not have an answer for Alperen Şengün inside. High, high drama here. Whoever wins ought to be exhausted by the time they face the Timberwolves.
Get tickets to games like these here.
The secret to keeping elite athletes on their game and us regular humans productive? Deep breathing. (Read this and others below free.)
Sapiens appropriately melted a lot of brains. I was late on Homo Deusbut it does a good bit of that too. Still timely! — Chris Sprow
If you're ever in New Orleans, go to Hungry Eyes. I ate there this week and will be dreaming of the meal for weeks to come. — Chris Branch
Four lessons on leadership from Gregg Popovich. Some gems in there from one of the greatest coaches of all-time.
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Visit Manhattan in late April or early May. Central Park is in bloom and the city feels reborn in the sunshine. By far the best time to be in the city. — Jacob Robinson
Flying through airports that are not undergoing runway construction and dealing with a shortage of air traffic controllers. — Alex Kirshner
Finding the perfect recipe to use up ingredients you already have on hand. (It was this one, but with sweet potato, for me.) — Torrey Hart
Lamine Yamal. Cooper Flagg. A cricket player who made his professional debut at age 12. A look at 10 teens who are taking over the world of sport.
Found a band this week called Vantana Row, who did a full one-day tour in the Bay Area recently, playing mini-shows out of their van. Here's a low-fi clip of them covering the Friends theme song. Their latest album 'TXTS ULTIMATE' is brilliant. Unpleasant, sure — but also creative, vulnerable and genuinely emotional (things that punk tends to lack, imo).
And yeah, I said punk. Maybe it's something else. Don't know, don't care. If they would hate being featured here (I think they would) it's punk to me. — Levi Weaver
Most-clicked in the newsletter yesterday: Our newser on the complainant's first testimony in the Hockey Canada trial.
Most-read on the website yesterday: Derby results. Neigh, bro. 🐴
Ticketing links in this article are provided by partners of The Athletic. Restrictions may apply. The Athletic maintains full editorial independence. Partners have no control over or input into the reporting or editing process and do not review stories before publication.
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