Formula 1 is revving up for the inaugural race of the 2024 season. And, while the season has yet to officially start, the drama is already ramping up. There have been driver lineup switches, most notably Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton making the jump to Ferrari for 2025, after what will be an 11-year tenure on the team.
Last season, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen ran away with the Constructors’ and Drivers’ championships, with Red Bull winning by a massive margin of 451 points and Verstappen winning by a margin of 290 points. It’s safe to assume that Red Bull will be eyeing a return to the top of the podium this season.
Fans of the sport will be watching out for something called the “Bahrain Curse,” simply the idea that whichever team wins the first race of the season will be destined to come in second place in the Constructors’ championship. (Granted, Red Bull proved this wrong in 2023.) After teams debuted their cars on track for the first time last weekend, this weekend’s race will be the first true test of each team’s 2024 model.
The Bahrain Grand Prix follows the traditional race weekend format, with three practice sessions across Thursday and Friday, a Friday qualifier and Saturday race. It’s important to note that both the Bahrain Grand Prix and the Saudi Arabia Grand Prix will take place on Saturday, not the usual Sunday, in deference to the holy month of Ramadan.
The main race, which takes place on Saturday, March 2 at 9:55 a.m ET (6:55 a.m PT) will be held at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir. The race will air on ESPN.
The entire race weekend, including practice sessions and qualifying, will be shown in the US on ESPN’s family of TV and streaming networks. Those looking to follow all of it will need access to the ABC and ESPN news channels on cable or live TV streaming services, or the ESPN Plus streaming service. We’ve broken down everything you need to know to stream today’s race, and all the other F1 races this season.
In a shock move, long-time Mercedes driver and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton will make the switch to Ferrari in 2025. Consequently, 2024 will be the last season fans will see Hamilton and Mercedes team up.
When, where and what time are the races?
Races are held on Sunday and are usually spaced two weeks apart. Here’s the entire schedule.
F1 2024 schedule
| Date | Race | Time |
|---|---|---|
| March 2 | Bahrain GP | 10 a.m. ET |
| March 9 | Saudi Arabian GP | 12 p.m. ET |
| March 24 | Austrailian GP | 12 a.m. ET |
| April 7 | Japanese GP | 1 a.m. ET |
| April 21 | Chinese GP | 3 a.m. ET |
| May 5 | Miami GP | 4 p.m. ET |
| May 19 | Romagna GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| May 26 | Monaco GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| June 9 | Canadian GP | 2 p.m. ET |
| June 23 | Spanish GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| June 30 | Austrian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| July 7 | British GP | 10 a.m. ET |
| July 21 | Hungarian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| July 28 | Belgian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Aug. 25 | Dutch GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Sept. 1 | Italian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Sept. 15 | Azerbaijan GP | 7 a.m. ET |
| Sept. 22 | Singapore GP | 8 a.m. ET |
| Oct. 20 | United States GP | 3 p.m. ET |
| Oct. 27 | Mexican GP | 4 p.m. ET |
| Nov. 3 | Brazilian GP | 12 p.m. ET |
| Nov. 24 | Las Vegas GP | 1 a.m. ET |
| Dec. 1 | Qatar GP | 12 p.m. ET |
| Dec. 8 | Abu Dhabi GP | 8 a.m. ET |
Best option for streaming in the US
Whether or not you have cable, ESPN’s stand-alone streaming service is great for casual fans of Formula 1 and is a must-have accessory for fanatics. It costs $11 a month (or $110 a year) and currently, ESPN has a deal with F1 to show 18 out of 23 Grands Prix this year. The catch is that ESPN Plus doesn’t always air the free practice or qualifying sessions, but it tends to air Sprint races and the Sprint Shootout.
If you’re an F1 fan who’s also looking to get your Disney fix, the Disney trio bundle (Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN Plus) might end up being an even better buy. It’s great for fans who love catching the parts of the race weekend that typically air on EPSN2 or ESPNews, and who need the latest Marvel movies or Star Wars shows.
If you’re a diehard fan of motorsports and Formula series racing, ESPN Plus might not be for you, given that it rarely covers F2, F3 or Porsche Supercar racing. That’s why ESPN Plus is ideal for casual fans who enjoy catching a race every once in a while, or super fans who don’t want or need all of the extra bells and whistles of F1 TV, but want to beef up their coverage options.
Read our full review of ESPN Plus.
How to watch F1 online from anywhere using a VPN
If you find yourself unable to view the race locally, you may need a different way to watch — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on race day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.
With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.
Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.
Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.
ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. It’s normally $13 a month, and you can sign up for ExpressVPN and save 35% — the equivalent of $8.32 a month — if you get an annual subscription.
Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Livestream F1 racing in the UK
F1 in the UK is shown on Sky Sports and Channel 4 — Sky Sports airs the races, practice rounds and qualifying, while free-to-air Channel 4 offers highlights broadcast after the day’s action takes place. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the race via its app, but cord-cutters can watch Sky TV with unlimited Sky Sports on a Now TV membership.
Those in the UK will need Sky Sports to watch F1 racing in 2024. If you subscribe to Sky, you can get the £22 Complete Sports package in order to get the races.
Cord-cutters can also opt for the £35-a-month package on Now TV and get unlimited Sky Sports.
Other options for streaming in the US without cable
Beyond ESPN Plus, numerous live TV streaming services carry channels with F1. Race weekends normally start on Friday with multiple practice runs and continue on Saturday with qualifying. The races themselves take place Sunday. ESPN typically airs practices and qualifying on a mix of ESPN 2 and ESPNews, while the races tend to air on ESPN. F1 events in North America often land on ABC.
Here are some of the best ways to catch the entire race weekend without cable.
You can catch the entire race weekend with a subscription to YouTube TV, which costs $73 per month. ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPNews are all included in the package, which means you’ll have all the channels you need in order to watch every second of the action.
Hulu Plus Live TV costs more than YouTube TV at $77 per month, and offers all the channels you need to watch every second of race weekend. As an added bonus, Hulu Plus Live TV comes with the rest of the Disney Bundle, which includes a Hulu on-demand content, along with subscriptions to Disney Plus and ESPN Plus.
Read our Hulu Plus Live TV review.
Sling TV’s $40 Orange plan (currently on sale for $20) might be a good choice for F1 fans who are primarily looking to just watch the races on Sundays. This plan is one of the cheapest ways to get access to ESPN and ESPN 2. Those looking for ESPNews will have to opt for the $11 Sports Extra add-on. Sling TV offers ABC as well but only in select cities.
Fubo costs $80 per month and includes ABC, ESPN and ESPN 2. The base package lacks ESPNews, but you can add it for an extra $8 a month with the Fubo Extra package, or pay for the $90-a-month Elite streaming tier that includes Fubo Extra. Check out which local networks Fubo offers here.
DirecTV Stream is one of the most expensive live TV streaming services. Its cheapest, $80-a-month Plus package includes ESPN, ESPN 2 and ABC, but you’ll need to move up to the $109-a-month Choice plan to get ESPNews. You can use its channel lookup tool to see which local channels are available in your area.
Read our DirecTV Stream review.
For gearheads looking to get every angle on the action, F1 offers its own streaming service. F1 TV Pro costs $85 per season, or $11 per month, and gives fans access to all races from F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. You’ll be able to livestream every track session from all F1 Grands Prix and have access to all driver onboard cameras and team radios. You’ll also be able to watch full on-demand races, replays and highlights, along with F1’s historic race archive.
F1 also offers a TV Access Plan for $30 per year, or $3.50 per month, which only gives you on-demand access to races once they have been completed. You will still be able to view all F1 onboard cameras, along with full replays of F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. It also includes the historic race archive.
