Relevant links for this episode:

• Source article on the Vaucher Analytics website
• F1 Global Fan Survey 2025
• Sign up for the Return On Racing newsletter

Among established F1 fans, a common "hot take" is that F1 (the film) is inaccurate and therefore not worth anyone's time.

This is a lazy opinion that risks keeping new fans away from F1, so for anyone truly interested seeing the sport grow, it's alarming such an ice cold take has gotten so much traction.

 In this episode, I break down why the film isn’t about getting every technical detail right; it’s about creating hype, drawing in new fans, and fueling F1's growth engine. 

I cover:

• Why nitpicking the details misses the point
• How the film taps into the same growth playbook as Drive to Survive
• What the 2025 Global Fan Survey tells us about new fans, women, and Gen Z audiences
• The sponsorship goldmine behind the movie
• Where the movie stumbles on safety and representation, and why that matters for F1’s future
• The other real “inaccuracy” worth noting (that has nothing to do with engineering...)

Contact the show: [email protected]

Brought to you by the Motorsports Sponsorship Accelerator, the most cutting-edge resource to help you learn how to develop meaningful sponsorship relationships.

To contact Return On Racing, please send an email to [email protected]