F1's never been bigger...but the sport has lost its soul

brad pitt, f1, movie, las vegas, apx gp — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 Opinion

F1's never been bigger...but the sport has lost its soul

Insight into the pros and cons of F1's recent growth

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Sunday 22 June 2025 15:58

F1’s growth since 2018 has simultaneously saved the sport and deprived it of its soul.

The new viewers who have arrived via Drive to Survive have completely transformed F1 and definitely for the better, particularly as it has invited more women into the sport than ever before.

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In 2022, Forbes reported that nearly 40% of all fans were women, an 8% rise from 2017, and this section of the fanbase have gone on to influence the sport we see today.

Race tracks feel like more comfortable places, the sport uniting women and young girls and creating life-long friendships bound by a common interest. Not to mention the F1 Academy inspiring the next generation of female racers.

F1 have also managed to achieve record-breaking attendance at race weekends, whilst tempting new nations such as Thailand for the F1 calendar. Liberty Media and Formula One Management must be congratulated for this.

However, in a bid to sustain this popularity, F1 is at risk of overselling itself. The F1 movie. A new official sponsor every week. Influencers in the F1 paddock dominating social media feeds.

Fans are drowning in soulless F1 content, and the sport risks alienating fans both old and new alike.

F1 needs to get its soul back

The F1 Movie

Let's start with the F1 movie. Have I seen it? No. Do I want to see it? Also, no.

It's understandable that the movie isn’t for diehard fans, that - like Drive to Survive - it is about getting new fans onboard. However, from the trailer alone the film is definitely not the way to attract a new audience.

The F1 movie should make the sport seem exciting, but instead acts as Brad Pitt propaganda whilst letting down their only female characters.

Kate McKenna cannot just be a technical director but also has to be Pitt's love interest. These tropes make the film seem outdated even before it has been released, irrelevant to a modern female audience.

The recent movie and its incessant marketing has become irritating rather than enticing, when instead it should have been the perfect opportunity to captivate fans by nurturing the soul of F1 rather than ignoring it completely.

F1’s toxic fanbase

The FIA and F1's presenters have been increasingly vocal about online abuse from fans, and whilst this is a wider problem within society, it is still harming the sport.

When you have a product like F1, the persona and image of its drivers, presenters and team bosses also become part of that product, and for some fans they forget that behind their keyboard insults they are hurting a real person.

F1 presenters Lee McKenzie and Rachel Brookes have been open about the vile abuse they have received, and it is tough to witness the fanbase descend into such cruelty.

The sport should be a safe space for everyone to enjoy both online and in real life, and whilst this abuse certainly isn’t F1’s fault, its popularity has naturally made its stars more of a target online.

F1’s new deals

From sponsors to new tracks, the deals that F1 announce fail to engage ordinary fans. A new pasta sponsor? An official chocolate! Who cares?

Elsewhere, the Las Vegas Grand Prix was supposed to be the crowning achievement of F1’s recent success, but the sport have instead created an event with style over substance.

Las Vegas feels like it was designed for the perfect influencer Instagram carousel, rather than embodying the passion and heart of F1 that we see in Monza, Silverstone and Spa.

Liberty Media have captured their new audience and had the chance to continue to transform the sport, but instead it feels like F1 is moving further away from the version of itself fans fell in love with.

The drivers feel distant, colder, pre-programmed to respond in a media friendly manner. Which is why George Russell and Max Verstappen’s rivalry has caught so much attention! It reminds fans of the real, messy, imperfect personalities underneath those helmets. Crucially, these human qualities reconnect us to F1, to its soul.

It's up to F1 to re-capture that soul in its marketing. Sometimes less is more, and rather than creating endless noise, F1 should focus on fine-tuning its best product. The sport itself.

Written by

Sheona Mountford - F1 Journalist

Sheona Mountford is a motorsport journalist specialising in F1. As a writer and contributor, she covers a wide range of motorsport series from F1 to F1 Academy, responsible for breaking news, live race coverage and in depth analysis of the sport and the culture around it.

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