While most people were watching Lewis Hamilton clinch his third Formula 1 world title on TV, the 2015 US Grand Prix proved to be a financial disaster for the organizer.
Circuit of the Americas chairman Bobby Epstein said that the torrential rain and electrical storms made it a tough weekend for everybody involved as fans couldn’t make it to their seats and cars had to practice in front of empty grandstands.
Epstein staid that it was a “financially devastating weekend for the company” and that they “lost millions on concessions” – that fans would have normally purchased if the weather was anything but abysmal.
“And we suffered from some fans having such a bad experience they won’t be back, though I hope we can change their mind,” added Epstein who also mentioned how the upcoming Mexico race hurt them thanks to its established and passionate local following.
While that doesn’t necessarily sound fair from a competitive perspective, we do feel for the COTA organizers and what they had to go through last weekend. Normally, the state of Texas doesn’t see a lot of bad weather on account of its humid subtropical climate, so hopefully they get to bounce back next year.
Though as fans, we shouldn’t necessarily complain about anything since that was some of the most exciting racing we’ve seen all year, with the championship coming down to the wire and Lewis walking away with the title pretty much unexpectedly.
As for the upcoming Mexican Grand Prix, it will take place on November 1st with second place in the drivers standings still up for grabs.
Story references: autoweek
PHOTO GALLERY
