The 2021 Formula 1 season continues and this weekend teams and drivers will be in Northamptonshire, England for the British Grand Prix and we have all the details on how you can watch the race on TV or online.
The British Grand Prix will be held at Silverstone Circuit which held its first Grand Prix all the way back in 1950. Before becoming a racetrack though, the circuit was originally a perimeter road that led to the RAF Silverstone airfield. The track itself has a total of 18 turns, a circuit length of 3.66 miles (5.8km) and drivers will complete 52 laps before finishing the 190 mile (306km) race. Red Bull's Max Verstappen holds the current lap record of one minute and twenty seven seconds which he set at last year's British Grand Prix though he came in second while Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton took first place.
Speaking of Verstappen, he's currently in the lead in Formula 1's 2021 standings with 182 points, 5 wins and 8 podiums with Hamilton right behind him in second place and Red Bull's Sergio Pérez in third place. While Hamilton started out the season strong with wins in Bahrain, Portugal and Spain, Verstappen has won his last three races in a row. Will Hamilton be able to take back the lead or is this Verstappen's time to shine?
In addition to the regular race at this weekend's British Grand Prix, Formula 1 will also be trialing a new race format called F1 Sprint. Unlike the normal races that take place at a Grand Prix weekend, F1 Sprint is a race that is run over 100km (17 laps at Silverston) and lasts around 25-30 minutes to provide a short and fast-paced racing spectacle where drivers race from start to finish without the need to pit. Points are awarded to the top three drivers and there won't be a podium. However, the finishing order for the F1 Sprint on Saturday will define the grid for British Grand Prix. It's also worth noting that in order to accommodate F1 Sprint, drivers will only have a chance to get in two practice sessions before Sunday's big race.
Whether you're a die-hard fan rooting for Hamilton or Verstappen or just want to see what Formula 1's new race format is all about, we'll show you how to watch the British Grand Prix from anywhere in the world.
British Grand Prix - When and where?
The 2021 British Grand Prix will be held at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England from July 16-18. One practice session will be held on Friday and another practice session along with the qualifying session will be held on Saturday. The British Grand Prix will take place on Sunday, July 18 and the race will begin at 10am ET / 7am PT / 3pm BST.
How to watch the British Grand Prix for free
Racing fans in Austria will be able to watch the entire F1 season for free this year as the Red Bull-owned free-to-air station ServusTV has split the broadcast rights with ORF. This means that if you live in Austria, you'll be able to watch the British Grand Prix for free on either ServusTV or ORF beginning at 4pm CEST on Sunday.
How to watch the British Grand Prix in the U.S.
If you live in the U.S. and have a cable subscription, you'll be able to watch the British Grand Prix on ESPN with coverage of the race beginning at 8:30am ET / 5:30am PT on Sunday. If you plan on sleeping in, don't worry as you can always watch the race after it's finished on the ESPN app though you will need to sign in with the credentials from your cable provider to do so. ESPN will also show a replay of the race on TV on ESPNews at 7pm ET / 4pm PT on Sunday evening.
Sling TV
With a Sling subscription, you'll gain access to over 30 live TV channels of news, sports, and more. Sling Orange features ESPN with access to the British Grand Prix. Right now you can even score your first month of service for as low as $10 for a limited time.
Not interested in signing up for cable just to watch the British Grand Prix on ESPN. Don't worry as there are now a number of streaming services, all at different price points, which will give you access to the network so you watch the race online. We've listed a few of our favorites below to make things easier for you.
- Hulu with Live TV - $64.99 per month - As well as giving you access to ESPN, the service also includes its own Hulu Originals and supports a wide variety of streaming devices.
- Sling TV - $35 per month - In order to get access to ESPN, you'll have to sign up for Sling TV's Sling Orange package. The service also lets you watch on three screens simultaneously and record 50 hours of live TV with its Cloud DVR.
- YouTube TV - $65 per month - YouTube TV gives you access to ESPN as well as over 70 other TV channels and a free 14-day trial available.
- AT&T TV Now - $55 per month - AT&T TV Now's plus plan gives you access to ESPN as well as over 45 other live TV channels and you can also record up to 20 hours of content using its cloud DVR.
How to watch the British Grand Prix in Canada
Formula 1 fans in Canada will be able to watch the British Grand Prix on TSN and the network's coverage of the race will begin at 9:55am ET / 6:55am PT on both TSN 3 and TSN 5. You can also stream the entire race online via the TSN app on your mobile devices.
If you've already cut the cord though, you can get access to TSN's content for as little as $4.99 for a TSN Direct Day Pass or $19.99 for a monthly streaming subscription.
How to watch the British Grand Prix in the UK for free
Although Sky's dedicated Sky Sports F1 channel is the official home for F1 racing coverage in the UK, this weekend's British Grand Prix will also be available to watch for free on Channel 4 beginning at 1:30pm BST on Sunday. In order to watch the British Grand Prix on Channel 4 though, you will need to sign up for a free account first but you won't have to pay anything to watch the race.
Don't want to sign up for a lengthy Sky Sports contract just to watch the rest of this year's Formula 1 season, don't worry as you can watch all of the remaining races live on NOW TV with a Sky Sports Day Pass for £9.98 or a Sky Sports Two Month Pass for £25.99. NOW TV will also let you stream the race on your computer, smartphone, smart TV or other streaming devices.
NOW Sports Membership
Watch Sky Sports' coverage of the British Grand Prix online with a NOW Sports Membership. Watch today's coverage for £10 or snag a monthly pass for £34.
How to watch the British Grand Prix in Australia
If you live in Australia and have a cable package with Foxtel, you'll be able to watch the British Grand Prix on Fox Sports beginning at 11:55pm AEST / 9:55 AWST on Sunday. However, if you happen to miss the race, the network will show a replay of the British Grand Prix at both 6am AEST / 4am AWST and 9am AEST / 7am AWST on Monday.
Not interested in signing up for cable to watch the British Grand Prix? Don't worry as you can watch the entire race online on Kayo Sports. The service costs between $25 and $35 per month depending on the package you choose but new customers can take advantage of Kayo Sports' 14-day free trial to watch the 2021 British Grand Prix.
Kayo Sports
Kayo Sports should be your go-to for the British Grand Prix if you're in Australia. You can even make the most of a free trial if you've never signed up before.
How to watch the British Grand Prix from anywhere
We have all the details on how you can watch the British Grand Prix in the U.S., Canada, the UK and Australia further up in this guide. However, if you want to watch this year's race when you're away from home, then you'll run into problems as your domestic coverage online from abroad will likely be geo-blocked.
That's where a VPN (Virtual Private Network) can really come in handy. They allow you to virtually change the IP address of your laptop, tablet or mobile to one that's back in your home country which will let you watch as if you were back there.
VPNs are incredibly easy to use and have the added benefit of providing you with an additional layer of security when surfing the web. There are also a lot of options but we recommend ExpressVPN as our top pick due to its speed, security and ease of use. The service can even be used on a wide array of operating systems and devices (e.g. iOS, Android, Smart TVs, Fire TV Stick, Roku, game consoles, etc). Sign up for ExpressVPN now and enjoy a 49% discount and 3 months FREE with an annual subscription. You can even test it out for yourself thanks to the service's 30-day money back guarantee. Looking for more options?
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Source: androidcentral