“The Kardashians on Wheels”
Formula 1 is becoming a dirty documentary soap
September 22, 2023, 9:09 p.m
Formula 1 is a billion-dollar business. The show factor has increased with the new owners. Friction is fuel – to the point of misconduct. Recently, Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko caused a lot of excitement.
The show has to be right. In Japan, motorsport enthusiasts provide powerful folklore for Formula 1 with their imaginative clothing and hat creations. But the billion-dollar horsepower business with its expensive TV rights is also fueled by conflicts and strife. With a documentary series, Netflix delivers exaggeration in episodic bites. Sometimes even derailments are part of the soap opera. In a leading role: the Red Bull motorsport consultant.
At ServusTV, Helmut Marko looked back at Max Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez’s second place in Monza at the beginning of September. Actually a harmless project. “It was certainly one of his better weekends,” Marko praised him and continued: “And we know that, he has problems in qualifying, he has fluctuations in form, he is South American and his head is not as completely focused as it is, for example who was Max (Verstappen) or Sebastian (Vettel). But the races are mostly good.”
Accusations of racism against Marko
A lot of praise, a geographical dead end – and a statement that sounded at least racist to some listeners. Marko, 80 years old, Austrian, former Formula 1 driver, lawyer and talent promoter at Red Bull, immediately asked for forgiveness. Marko said on ServusTV that he wanted to make it clear that he was “firmly convinced” that “you cannot generalize people, regardless of their culture, nationality or ethnic origin.” “I wanted to underline that, although he drove a great race in Monza, “Checo’s” performance has been subject to major fluctuations this year. It was wrong to make a connection to his origins. I would like to apologize for that. “
Marko then received a written warning from the International Automobile Federation FIA. He was reminded of his responsibility as a public figure to abide by the FIA’s code of ethics, it said. Perez, from Guadalajara, Mexico, received a personal apology from Marko. “I know him and I know that he doesn’t mean it that way. That’s the most important thing for me,” said Verstappen’s teammate. Lewis Hamilton described Marko’s statement as a “completely unacceptable” comment. The Red Bull motorsport consultant’s words are “nothing to just apologize for and everything is fine. When leaders and people in his position make comments like that, it’s not good for our future.”
“He’s not fucking breaking down my door.”
There are gaffes and then there are harsh tones. Netflix, with its documentary series “Drive to Survive”, has stylized the insults of Mick Schumacher’s former Haas team boss Günther Steiner into a means of entertainment. Fans count how often the Italian says the swear word “fuck” in an episode, even if the Merano native makes it sound more like “fok”. “He doesn’t fok smash my door,” an angry Steiner shouted in front of the cameras towards his driver Kevin Magnussen after the Dane had done exactly that.
“A documentary series like ‘Drive to Survive’ has introduced Formula 1 to a whole new audience, a younger one and a very American one. At the end of the day, it’s a TV show. We’re a bit like the Kardashians on wheels now,” said Red- Bull team boss Christian Horner at the start of the season. Formula 1 as an offshoot of the reality TV show “Keeping up with the Kardashians”: US owner Liberty Media is likely to like this comparison, at least in terms of audience popularity.
The millisecond milieu of Formula 1 harbors the potential for controversy even without cross-reference to PR-addicted family clans. A smug remark from Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff recently about Verstappen’s successful streak irritated the Dutchman. “These numbers are for Wikipedia and nobody reads them anyway,” said Wolff after Verstappen’s tenth victory in Monza. The Red Bull dominator responded: “They had a pretty shitty race, so he was probably still angry about their performance.” In retrospect, Wolff didn’t think his statement was “the most intelligent” thing he could have said. It still supplied fuel for Formula 1.