Formula 1 has announced a weekend attendance of 303,000 at the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix. It coincides with the Hungaroring extending its contract to remain on the F1 calendar until at least 2032.
Images: © F1 Destinations
With 303,000 fans passing through the circuit gates over the weekend, the Hungarian Grand Prix becomes the fifth Formula 1 event of the 2023 season to have a weekend attendance of over 300,000.
The attendance figure for this year’s Hungarian Grand Prix, which has been on the Formula 1 calendar since 1986, is up on the 2022 figure by 13,000. 290,000 fans attended over the 2022 Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, a figure which was up by 60,000 on the 2019 event – the last race held at the track before the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, the Hungarian Grand Prix was the 11th best-attended race weekend of the season.
Last weekend’s British Grand Prix remains the best-attended of the year. 480,000 fans attended over the four day weekend, making it one of the best-attended F1 races in history. Other races which have had attendances bigger than the Hungarian Grand Prix so far this year are the Australian Grand Prix (444,631), the Canadian Grand Prix (345,000) and the Austrian Grand Prix (304,000).
Attendance figures at the Hungarian Grand Prix have grown year-on-year since 2016, with the exception of the coronavirus-affected races in 2020 and 2021. Showing the growth of the event, the weekend attendance figure at the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix was 169,000. The 2023 figure is up on that by 134,000.
A record-breaking 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix
The 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix weekend saw Lewis Hamilton claim his first pole in almost two years. Taking a ninth pole at the Hungaroring, Hamilton became the first driver in Formula 1 history to secure nine pole positions at a single circuit.
In the race, Red Bull secured a 12th consecutive victory, breaking McLaren’s 35-year-old record for most successive wins in Formula 1. Max Verstappen, who won from second on the grid, became only the fifth driver to take seven consecutive Grand Prix victories.
Hungarian Grand Prix contract extended to 2032
There was good news for fans of the Hungaroring over the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix weekend, with Formula 1 confirming the signing of a new contract with the Hungaroring circuit. The new deal extends the Hungarian Grand Prix’s contract by a further five years, through to 2032. By 2032, the Hungarian Grand Prix will have appeared on the Formula 1 calendar for 47 consecutive seasons, having not missed a year since its first appearance in 1986.
The deal marks the Hungaroring’s third contract extension in the last seven years. A long-term deal was signed in 2016 to keep the Hungarian Grand Prix on the schedule until 2026, before the contract was extended by one year in June 2020 due to the 2020 race taking place behind closed doors.
Under the latest deal, the Hungaroring will undergo “significant development”, which will see the building of a new pit complex plus a revamp of the main grandstand and other spectator zones. Zsolt Gyulay, CEO and President of the Hungaroring, says that the work will be completed by 2026, the year which will mark the track’s 40th anniversary on the F1 calendar.
Speaking about the new contract, Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said that the sport wants all circuits to follow in the Hungaroring’s footsteps and take steps in improving their events for spectators:
“It is great news to announce the extension of the Hungarian Grand Prix for an additional five years as we return for another action-packed weekend at the Hungaroring. It is a very special circuit next to the incredible city of Budapest and one all of the drivers and our fans look forward to on the calendar. To see the commitment from the promoter in Hungary to develop the facilities and further enhance the experience for fans is another important step and something we want to see all our events doing in order to continue to improve and make our races even better.”
Hopefully the Hungaroring can make major improvements to the local infrastructure because it took the first coach out of the coach park over an hour to exit the coach park itself.
Also its very hilly and absolutely not suitable for anyone with accessibility issues, or slightly hard of walking uphill..
Very crowded but a good venue
The only bad thing is the taxi chaos
If you don’t many to be stuck in the taxi line for 5-6 hr you have to leave before the race is over.
They have to do something about this.
I have been at the Hungarian GP for 20years and the taxi thing is getting worse every year
Apart from that i love the track and a specially the city of Budapest
I truly hope that the transport infrastructure will be improved with this new deal.
We attended the 2023 Hungarian Grand Prix and tried to wait as long as possible and wait out the crowds… but were kicked out by staff after 70 minutes.
The queue for the shuttle busses was all the way from Gate 3, round to the final corner. Probably at least 1KM long. I dread to think how long people queued. We ended up walking to the station.
Hungaroring need to meet with Silverstone to understand the value behind allowing people to stay at the circuit until 9PM.