Netflix's Drive to Survive has been skyrocketing F1's popularity in America. The show features behind-the-scenes footage of the F1 season, offers viewers an unseen angle to races, and provides interviews with team principles, commentators, drivers, advisors, and even car designers. The show has attracted a significant number of new, predominantly American viewers to the sport itself. Last year, F1's US broadcaster ESPN revealed that the sport's viewing figures jumped from 547,000 (2017) to 934,000 (2021) per race.
Except for the famously anti-PR Kimi Räikkönen, every driver has been giving interviews to Netflix since the earliest days of the show. This is why the announcement of newly-crowned champion Max Verstappen came as a shocking surprise to the streamer, to Liberty Media, and to Drive to Survive fans. Season 4 premieres today, so why is Verstappen not taking part in it? Is there any hope for his return? Where do people in the world of F1 and old-school sports enthusiasts stand on the series?
Verstappen Brands Drive to Survive as 'Fake'
Max Verstappen, the reigning world champion, says the way in which the show portrays drivers, their off-track relationships, and on-track battles is why he will not participate in the series. He feels Netflix producers manufacture drama and create a distraction from the sport itself, and thinks there are many other documentaries out there paying an accurate homage to high stakes racing. The Red Bull star boycotts the new season and apparently, has no intentions to make a return in the future.
Verstappen opened up about his surprising decision in an interview with Associated Press, saying, "I understand that it needs to be done to boost the popularity in America." Verstappen went on to say, "But from my side as a driver, I don't like being part of it. They faked a few rivalries which don't really exist, so I decided to not be a part of it and did not give any more interviews after that because then there is nothing you can show."
"I am not really a dramatic show kind of person, I just want facts and real things to happen," he added. 'The problem is they will always position you in a way they want, so whatever you say, they will try to make you look reckless or trying to make you… whatever fits the story of the series. So I never really liked that. I prefer to just have a one-on-one interview with the person who would like to know me. I'm just a normal guy and I grew up in a small town. All these things, the drama, it's just not for me. It's not my world."
Season 4 will revolve around the neck-to-neck title race between the Dutchman and seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton, so you will definitely see much of Verstappen's on-track action. The final race of 2021, the much anticipated and tight race of Abu Dhabi, became marked by a greatly controversial and much-debated decision. On the very last lap, after a safety car period, former race director Michael Masi, allowed cars to unlap themselves. This resulted in Verstappen, who happened to be on fresher tires, overtaking Hamilton. The seven-time world champion had given a confident performance and led the race by far but due to the last-minute overtake, 24-year-old Verstappen became the crowned king of the grid.
Criticism of Drive to Survive
The series, despite its popularity, has always received much backlash, especially in Europe. Many diehard sports fans support Verstappen's decision and feel the show overdramatizes moments of tension between drivers and turns the sport into a soap opera.
@TilkeTracks, a massive F1 fan, referred to a previous series that highlighted tension between the driver and then teammate Daniel Ricciardo by tweeting:
Former F1 driver John Watson thinks Drive to Survive played an enormous role in the dramatic end of the 2021 season. He said, "…there are channels for challenges. But not as a part of what I feel has become the consequence of the access given to Netflix and Drive to Survive, wherein we've now got this type of 'Support Act' to the stars. These people, i.e. the FIA and their officers, some of them have become a part of this 'show'. They're not there to be that – they're there to adjudicate. They're not there to be known or shown or whatever."
In previous seasons, Netflix took artistic liberties and on a number of occasions staged and pre-rehearsed interviews, distorted facts, copy-pasted old radio recordings over collisions, and even distorted relationships within teams. The show's played-up controversy irritated some, especially the way it portrayed a non-existent, hostile rivalry between Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris as well as Sainz and Daniel Ricciardo in its second season.
"I mean the second season, there were some episodes or parts where I feel they forced it a little bit", Riccardo told Square Mile. "They tried to create a bit of a rivalry between me and Sainz, and it wasn't really there. Like, he's no more a rival than anyone else. There wasn't any personal grudge with him, but I think Netflix wanted something. Maybe no one noticed, but for me, I was like, he's fine. I've probably got other guys that I dislike, you know, as opposed to Carlos… I mean, he dresses like a 60-year-old, but otherwise he's alright."
Meanwhile, McLaren CEO Zak Brown sees Drive to Survive differently, and has said, "I think Netflix has been great for F1," said Brown "It's been trending number one. I think it was number one in 25 countries. So I think the primary goal of Netflix is to entertain and bring new viewers to F1. And I think it's accomplished that tenfold, which is great."
Consequences of the Verstappen Boycott
One thing is for sure, Verstappen's absence is a major dig at the show's producers, a blow to the series itself, and a clear message to the F1 leadership that tend to trade some inaccuracies for on-screen emotional fireworks. The question is how well the insane championship ride of 2021 could be portrayed without Verstappen giving his own insight. Will it come close to the depth it could have with both Hamilton and Verstappen taking part?
For long-serving fans and racetrack attendees the show might equal a painful visit to the dentist but for those new to the sport or looking for some juicy drama on Netflix it definitely is a chill, popcorn-devouring experience.
The Formula 1: Drive to Survive season 4 hit Netflix on Friday, March 11, 2022. This means the new season launched one week prior to the start of the 2022 season opener in Bahrain.