The Austin event is one of the six events that were chosen to run the sprint format in 2023 – which features qualifying on Friday, a standalone sprint day on Saturday and then the main grand prix on Saturday.
The sprint format is intended to help bring more excitement to the overall event, with action taking place on all three days – which in theory should bring more weekend fans.
But Circuit of the Americas chairman Epstein has revealed that having a sprint race has not been the success in driving a bigger audience for Saturday.
“It didn't help,” he told selected media including Autosport. “It's a surprise.
“You have to decide at what point are people coming for the event, which I think our fans are coming for the event, as much as they are for the sport. So, I think it still remains to be seen whether the sprint race is something the fans are embracing, or it's more controversial.
“You’ve got people that are proponents of it and advocates, and you have others that say I like it the way it was. It's still an experiment at this point.”
Source: Autosport