I honestly didn’t see it coming. A random decision to watch the Netflix reality show Drive to Survive during Covid lockdown quickly became an obsession with a sport that had never featured on my radar. Soon, all the inside stories concerning the rivalries on and off the track, the politics behind the scenes, designer fashion, and extreme egos had become far more compelling than anything Hollywood and its red carpets had to offer. It was a matter of time before I found myself discussing everything from Lando Norris’ Richard Mille watch to Red Bull tyre strategies with my girlfriends. And I know I’m not the only one…
It’s 05h30 on a Sunday morning and I’m on the velvet couch in my pajamas, watching the countdown to the start of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne at 06h00. If you had told me five years ago that setting my alarm to catch the start of the 2025 F1 season would be my Sunday morning routine, I would have said you were out of your mind.
But four world championships later, I am well and truly hooked on this high octane, ultra-glamorous sport where the 20 anointed kings of speed are dicing with death one day and sunning themselves on private yachts in Monaco the next. Formula 1 – and all the hype that surrounds it – has become the new Hollywood, and the story of how millions of women became F1 fans is a masterclass in marketing strategy.
Of course, it all started with that Netflix reality show that created the dramatic narrative, making a previously inaccessible sport available to us all. Drive to Survive wasn’t any old reality show – it brought us the real-life stories of the 20 drivers and their teams, and what it took to become the fastest men alive. And because these elite sportsmen are among the highest-paid athletes in the world, their super-luxe lifestyles became utterly fascinating too.
Leader of the pack is obviously Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton who, at 40-million Instagram followers, is one of the most influential sportsmen on the planet. I’m still not sure if Lewis chose to turn his paddock arrival into a fashion happening because of social media interest, or if social media inspired him to start dressing for the occasion. Either way, with Lewis’ infinite levels of cool, the seven-time F1 world champion is now also one of the most influential fashion icons of our time. From sneakers to sunnies, the minute Lewis wears something, it sells out. Talk is that when he bows out of F1, he’s headed to the world of fashion.
Fashion loves F1, and especially the fact that so many women are now falling for the sport. With an events calendar that reads a little like the annual Fashion Week roll out, there are 24 opportunities in the year for the world’s most beautiful brands to showcase their latest looks at the celebrity pit-walk, on gorgeous media commentators like South African-raised Naomi Schiff, and on the drivers and their partners.
The watch world is also on it. Every driver now takes time to strap on his designer watch before giving an interview – Max in TAG Heuer; George and Toto in IWC; Lewis previously IWC, and now in Richard Mille since his move to Ferrari. And as if to seal the deal, 2025 saw the announcement that the world’s most powerful luxury brand, LVMH, was coming on board as lead sponsor of F1 for the next 10 years. Fellow LVMH house brand TAG Heuer took over as official timekeeper and bubbly Moët & Chandon is doing the honours on the podium.
The association runs even deeper. At Max Verstappen’s partner, Kelly Piquet’s, baby shower on a yacht in the Monaco harbour (of course), she was dripping in sparkly treasures from Tiffany and Co – another of the LVMH brands.
Which brings me to the crazy part: Just how much we know about these athletes, from their performance around the track, to the ridiculous details about their personal lives. I know Max set the world record for the fastest lap ever at Suzuka last week (1m 26.983s), but I also know his girlfriend had a pastel rainbow cake at her baby shower on the day of the race, that Ferrari driver Charles le Clerc has a dachshund named Leo (who has his own Instagram page), and that Lewis Hamilton’s bulldog Roscoe is fully vegan – just like his owner.
Naturally, the off-track soap opera is not always pretty. The 2024 season kicked off with a sexual harassment scandal at Red Bull that threatened to derail the whole team, with suggestions that Max might even leave because of it. And so, whether the Netflix cameras are rolling or not, the F1 reality show continues to grow in popularity, particularly amongst female viewers like me.
There has been a positive spinoff to all the female attention, with the owners of F1 launching a feeder racing series called F1 Academy for female racing drivers. Headed up by former racing driver Susie Woolf, the dream is that one day we’ll see a female driver joining the ranks of Lewis et al.
Susie says that the female market accounts for 40 percent of the F1 fanbase, a figure that no doubt has helped to attract the attention of the fashion and luxury brands. Charlotte Tilbury makeup has become a major sponsor of the F1 Academy, and their presence is also felt on the track side of F1 where driver girlfriends are also being sponsored.
So, as I text my friends from the couch about Max’s winning lap and Geri Halliwell’s beautiful coat (the ex-Spice Girl is married to Red Bull’s Christian Horner, and has a wardrobe that dreams are made of!), I realise I’m part of a movement that has changed the face of F1 forever. Whether those 20 drivers like it or not, it’s no longer just about winning – it’s about winning in style.
COMING SOON: F1 THE MOVIE
Just when we thought F1 couldn’t get more Hollywood, along comes F1 the movie, starring Brad Pitt and co-produced by Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton.
The movie is directed by Top Gun: Maverick director Joseph Kosinski, who was granted unprecedented access to various F1 Grand Prix to enable the team to capture authentic race footage. Look out for some of your favourite F1 stars and media personalities who helped bring the production to life.
The storyline is about an ageing racing driver (played by Brad Pitt) returning to the track and coming up against his ambitious, rookie team-mate (played by Damson Idris). It’s sure to be super-fun and fast-paced with lots of eye candy in race suits.
The worldwide release by Apple Original Films is on 25 June 2025.
