What to watch during the F1 summer shutdown

Starved for motorsport content during F1’s summer shutdown? We have you covered

For Formula 1 fans, August is a trying month.

With the sport heading into its “summer shutdown,” a period on the calendar where absolutely no work takes place. This is actually written into the sport’s regulations, under Article 24 of FIA’s sporting regulations for F1: “All competitors must observe a shutdown period of fourteen (14) consecutive days during the months of July and/or August.”

This Article severely restricts what work can be done during this period. Factories are to be closed, and any activities related to car development and/or design are prohibited.

While this is great for the team members and their families, it makes for a tough time for the fans. But fear not, motorsport aficionados. We are here to help.

Here’s what you can watch to tide you over until F1 returns on the last weekend of August.

NASCAR

This has been a fascinating NASCAR season, perhaps highlighted by the Grand Park 220, the first NASCAR street race held on the streets of Chicago. Shane van Gisbergen, making his NASCAR debut, won that event.

During the weeks F1 is off, there are three races on the NASCAR schedule. First is the FireKeepers Casino 400, set for August 6 at Michigan International Speedway. You can watch this race on USA Network.

Next is the Verizon 200 at the Brickyard, on August 13 from Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s road course. That race will be broadcast on NBC.

Then another road course awaits, with the Go Bowling at The Glen set for August 20, from Watkins Glen International. You can catch this race on USA.

Finally, while F1 is back with the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday, August 27, one more NASCAR race will take place ahead of that Grand Prix. The Coke Zero Sugar 400, from historic Daytona International Speedway, is slated for Saturday, August 26. You can watch the Coke Zero Sugar 400 on NBC.

IndyCar

Fans of IndyCar like to describe it as F1, but with more overtaking. If you want to see what IndyCar is all about, you have two races to check out before the return of F1 at the end of August.

First is the Big Machine Music City Grand Prix, slated for Sunday, August 6. This race will take drivers through the streets of Nashville, on a circuit that passes by Nissan Stadium and into the heart of the city itself. It also crosses the Korean War Veterans Memorial Bridge, which spans the banks of the Cumberland River. According to the event’s webpage, that stretch makes it the “first motorsport course of its kind in the world to cross a major body of water.”

You can watch the Big Machine Music City GP on NBC.

Then there is the Gallagher Grand Prix, set for August 12. This is the second race held at Indianapolis this IndyCar season, and is a road course setup. The circuit uses both the infield of the famed speedway, as well as Turns 1 and 2 along the front straightaway. You can catch the Gallagher Grand Prix on USA.

Another reason to tune in if you are an F1 fan? How about two: Alex Palou and Colton Herta. Palou won the IndyCar Drivers’ championship back in 2021, and is currently atop the standings. As for Herta, he is currently sitting eighth in the standings.

Both drivers have been linked with a move to F1 in the past. Palou has been a reserve driver for McLaren, and Red Bull tried to get Herta into a seat at AlphaTauri last season for the 2023 campaign, but he did not have the required 40 Super License points, and FIA declined to issue a waiver.

The team forged ahead with Nyck de Vries, and we know how that ended.

However, both drivers are under the watchful eye of Michael Andretti, who is at the helm of the Andretti-Cadillac bid for entry on the F1 grid. Herta drivers for Andretti Autosport right now, and when the Andretti-Cadillac bid was announced to the media, including SB Nation, Andretti pointed to Herta as one of the drivers he would want.

Andretti reiterated that opinion recently in an interview with Speedweek, but added Palou to the mix. “I have not the slightest doubt that Alex or Colton are ready for Formula 1,” said Andretti. “They have high potential. I’d put both of them in a Formula 1 car in a heartbeat. I’m sure they can keep up. Lando [Norris] was once Colton’s team-mate and they were on the same level.”

So if you think about it, tuning in with F1 in mind is just a bit of scouting work.

World Rally Championships

Perhaps you want to try something really different? Well, there is a World Rally Championship event this weekend, the WRC Secto Automotive Rally Finland happening this weekend, from August 4 through August 7.

Set in Jyväskylä, drivers and teams will tackle quick gravel roads along with some tricky jumps, set amidst the forests and lakes of the region.

To watch the event you will need to stream it through either WRC+, or Red Bull TV.

Drive to Survive

For many new F1 fans, the Netflix docuseries Drive to Survive was their introduction to the sport, and its major players.

Whether you have seen the series or not, the August shutdown is a great time for a watch, or a rewatch.

If only for the opening sequence of the most recent season, which features Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner, and former Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto, winding through the Italian countryside in a tiny Fiat:

Classic television.

Keep up with all the silly season rumors

So if you truly are an F1 fan through-and-through, then none of the above might sound appealing.

Perhaps then keeping up with all the silly season rumors is more your speed. Well, we have you covered here.

Rewatch the first half of the season

I mean, it’s an option.

If you really want to go down this road, a subscription to F1TV might be a wise investment. F1TV may very well be the gold standard of sports streaming services, with a ton of programs, analysis, and in-race content. Driver cameras are available for all 20 drivers during each race, and given that you know how each grand prix turned out, you can still get a fascinating look from the cockpit of all 20 drivers.