How has Drive to Survive helped F1?

Drive to Survive has helped F1 achieve something that it hadn’t been able to do for the best part of the last decade – attract newer, and most importantly, younger audiences, and retain them.

Over the last few decades, F1’s viewership figures were on the decline, while the sport’s bosses struggled to attract newer audiences. The sport has long tried to tap into the lucrative North American market, especially in the US, with little success.

The unexpected success of Netflix’s Drive to Survive, however, changed all that. Within just a year of its airing, the sport’s viewership skyrocketed, with the docu-drama series managing to bring in fresher and younger audiences, in a way that F1 had never been able to do.

Initially expected to be a minor addition alongside F1’s social media push, the series outgrew any previous expectations. While Netflix doesn’t publish its viewership figures, external aggregators have revealed that the first season of Drive to Survive was one of the most popular shows on the streaming platform across the entire world.

It managed to create drama and help viewers connect with drivers more intimately in ways they previously could never have, helping build long-lasting affiliations and fandoms.

The impact of its popularity on F1, in general, can be measured simply by fan attendance at the United States Grand Prix over the years. In 2018, an estimated 185,000 people attended the race over three days. In 2021, the attendance was over 400,000 unique visitors.

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Daniel Ricciardo played a key role in Drive to Survive’s success

Daniel Ricciardo is one of the most popular F1 drivers in the United States. He manages to pull in an astounding crowd of admirers when the sport visits the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas, for the United States Grand Prix. One of the biggest reasons for the Australian’s rise to popularity was his starring role in the first season of Netflix’s Drive to Survive.

Speaking with the NYT during an interview after the show’s runaway success, Ricciardo observed:

“For so long, it’s [F1] been a very private sport. To let a few more people in, and to show them how awesome the sport is, I think is where the show has really done well for us.”

He further went on to add, saying:

“Everyone sees on Sunday, we’ve got a helmet on, we race and that’s that. But it shows the ins and outs of the sport, what we get up to on weekends off. Diving into more of our everyday life, everyone can relate to that.”

The docudrama series, which initially aired in 2019, intimately documented Ricciardo’s inner struggles at Red Bull the previous season and his subsequent and difficult decision to leave for Renault. While the series also incorporated other drivers, it primarily focussed on the Australian and offered fans fresh insight into the world of F1.

Ricciardo’s jovial personality, combined with slick production values, meant that the show was a phenomenal success. It went on to outperform the expectations of F1 bosses, who were initially hesitant to produce it.

After Drive to Survive's unexpected success, the series was expanded for the following season to include all ten teams on the grid. Regardless, Ricciardo remained a key figure in the subsequent series.