F1 Latin America in 2026: three drivers on the grid, Mexico’s Sergio Pérez with Cadillac, Argentina’s Franco Colapinto with Alpine and Brazil’s Gabriel Bortoleto with Audi. The region has won 13 drivers’ world titles (5 with Fangio, 8 with Brazilians Fittipaldi, Piquet and Senna), the Mexico City Grand Prix topped 400,000 spectators for the third year in a row and, according to Nielsen, Hispanic fans reward brands that sponsor the sport they follow with loyalty and recommendations.

Updated in October 2026.

Between 24 and 26 October 2025 more than 400,000 people (401,326, according to GP Destinations) filled the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez for the Mexico City Grand Prix. It is the clearest picture of what Latin passion for F1 means: F1 does not have to win that market from scratch, because it already has a historical base, three drivers on the grid and an audience that buys.

Latin Americans in Formula 1: the short answer

• Three drivers on the grid in 2026: Sergio Pérez (Mexico, Cadillac), Franco Colapinto (Argentina, Alpine) and Gabriel Bortoleto (Brazil, Audi).
• 13 drivers’ world titles from the region: 5 by Fangio (Argentina) and 8 by Fittipaldi, Piquet and Senna (Brazil).
• 401,326 spectators at the 2025 Mexico City Grand Prix; the race is on the calendar until at least 2028.
• In 2026 Apple TV broadcasts every Grand Prix in the United States with English and Spanish commentary.

The history: from Fangio to Senna

F1 does not start from zero in Latin America. Juan Manuel Fangio, from Argentina, won five world titles (1951, 1954, 1955, 1956 and 1957). Brazil has won eight with three drivers: Emerson Fittipaldi (1972 and 1974), Nelson Piquet (1981, 1983 and 1987) and Ayrton Senna (1988, 1990 and 1991). In all, that is 13 drivers’ titles from the region.

Senna died on 1 May 1994 at Imola, during the San Marino Grand Prix, while leading the race; in 2000 he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame. Mexico has its own history too: the Mexico City circuit is named after the brothers Ricardo and Pedro Rodríguez, two Mexican drivers who died at the wheel in 1962 and 1971.

The three Latin American drivers of 2026

Sergio Pérez, Mexico (Cadillac)

Born on 26 January 1990, he has won six Grands Prix: Sakhir 2020, Azerbaijan 2021, Monaco 2022, Singapore 2022, Saudi Arabia 2023 and Azerbaijan 2023. He raced for Red Bull from 2021 to 2024; after a winless 2024 season the contract was ended by mutual agreement, he did not race in 2025, and in 2026 he drives for Cadillac, a team in its debut season, on a contract until at least the end of 2027.

Franco Colapinto, Argentina (Alpine)

Born in Pilar, in the province of Buenos Aires, on 27 May 2003, he made his F1 debut with Williams at the 2024 Italian Grand Prix, the first Argentine in F1 since Gastón Mazzacane in 2001. His first points came in Azerbaijan in 2024: no Argentine had scored since Carlos Reutemann in 1982. He has raced for Alpine since the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix of 4 May 2025 and in 2026 is confirmed alongside Pierre Gasly.

Gabriel Bortoleto, Brazil (Audi)

Born on 14 October 2004, he won the Formula 2 championship in 2024 with Invicta Racing, the seventh driver in history to take the GP2 or F2 title as a rookie. He made his F1 debut with Sauber at the 2025 Australian Grand Prix and his first points, in Austria, made him the first Brazilian to score in F1 since 2017. In 2026 he drives for Audi, the team that grew out of Sauber.

The fans: what the numbers say

According to Nielsen Sports, F1’s fanbase reached 826.5 million in 2024 (+12%), with 52 million fans in the United States (+10.5%) and growth of 25.5% in Argentina (data released on 20 March 2025).

The most concrete signal remains the circuit: the Mexico City Grand Prix drew 404,958 spectators in 2024 and 401,326 in 2025, the third year in a row above 400,000, and it has a contract with F1 until at least 2028. In the United States, also according to Nielsen, among those who had watched Drive to Survive before the 2022 season the share of Hispanics was 23%, against 12% of those who followed F1 without the docuseries.

How F1 speaks to Latino fans in 2026

From 2026 Apple TV is F1’s exclusive broadcaster in the United States, with a five-year deal announced on 17 October 2025 that takes the place of ESPN. Every Grand Prix has commentary in English and Spanish and, thanks to the collaboration with TelevisaUnivision announced on 6 March 2026, one race also airs on Univision, with pre- and post-race programmes in Spanish and highlights on Univision and TUDN. Televisa is already F1’s official broadcaster in Mexico.

What it means for sponsors

According to Nielsen’s “Fanáticos” report (10 September 2024), Hispanic sports fans are 39% more likely to recommend a company that sponsors the sport they follow, 37% more likely to feel loyal to the brand and 32% more likely to consider it for the first time. These are figures about sport in general, not F1, but they describe the audience F1 is chasing.

A driver opens a market: our analysis of Kimi Antonelli and Italian brand sponsorships shows it. With three Latin American drivers on the grid, a Grand Prix of 400,000 spectators and a Spanish-language broadcast in the United States, brands that want to talk to the fanáticos now have more points of entry. To understand what it costs to enter there is the guide on the cost of a Formula 1 sponsorship, while the starting point remains the page on Formula 1 sponsorship.

F1 is building its Latin base with drivers, circuits and Spanish-language broadcasts. The part not yet written is the brands: who will already be on track when the region’s next driver arrives.

Image: Sergio Pérez, Red Bull Racing, Wastrick, Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International licence.

Sources: Wikipedia, Sergio Pérez; Wikipedia, Franco Colapinto; Wikipedia, Gabriel Bortoleto; Wikipedia, Formula One World Drivers’ Champions; Wikipedia, Ayrton Senna; Wikipedia, Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez; SportsPro, Nielsen Sports data on F1 fans in 2024; GP Destinations, 2025 Mexico City Grand Prix attendance; F1technical, Mexico stays on the calendar until 2028; Nielsen, Drive to Survive and the Hispanic audience (2022); Nielsen, “Fanáticos”: sport and the Hispanic audience (2024); Formula1.com, Apple and F1 in the United States (5 March 2026); Driven, Apple and F1 rights in the United States; Señal News, TelevisaUnivision and Apple (6 March 2026).