F1 and Elitism in America
20 drivers, 10 teams, 1 league.
Formula One, also known as F1, holds 23 races every year across the world for the 10 best teams competing for the fastest cars, driven by 20 of the best drivers. Founded in the ’50s, Formula One has evolved into a sport where strategy, technology, speed, and talent are required. This year, Formula One holds 22 races in 21 countries with different circuits. Despite calling itself an international sport, F1 has not been popular in the US, as US viewership is under one million viewers per year. While many may claim that F1 translated well into the US from Europe because of the two market’s common interest in racing cars, I claim that F1 has not been successful in the US because of the unpopular perception of elitism in F1, stemming from the importance of money and funding in the sport. Because of this, this shows that although the rate of globalization may be rising, as some values accepted in Europe is not accepted in America.
On the surface, it may seem like the sole reason for F1’s lack of popularity in America is the lack of American drivers and teams in F1, which means that Americans have trouble aligning themselves with this sport. In fact, the last time there was an American driver who raced a full season in F1 was in 2013 when Alexander Rossi raced with the Renault F1 team. When asked about why there is a lack of popularity of F1 in America, Rossi said, “Americans are very patriotic people, and it’s hard to get behind a German guy, a Spanish guy, a British or French guy, they want to cheer for an American, which was one of the really good things I had going for me. I did have a lot of support from the American side of things, because they did want American representation”(Watts). In other words, because Americans have a strong sense of patriotism, it is hard for Americans to enjoy the sport, as they have no sense of alignment with any of the drivers. Such a finding means that in order for F1 to be successful in America, there need to be American drivers in F1 so that Americans can root for that person.
Elitism sways Americans away from F1 because Americans are sick of elitists, in general, due to elitists taking advantage of the middle class. Historically speaking, American culture tends to reject elitism and support whatever pleases the “average Joe”, like populism. This is because elitists in America are seen as abusers of the common people and take advantage of hardworking citizens. The most recent example is the recent college admission scandal called Operation Varsity Blues where elitists tried to cheat their way into college through using money and elitist connections. According to Rahm Emanuel, who argues that elitists must be held against their abuses, he said that “But the outrage over the Varsity Blues investigation perfectly illustrates what may be the most important, least understood, and underappreciated political dynamic of our era: a full-on middle-class revolt against the elites and the privileges they hoard”(Emanuel). In this quote, Emanuel argues that in order for the middle class to not be taken advantage of, they must stand up to the elitists and “revolt” against them. Strong worded passages in this quote, like “revolt against the elite” resonates with a lot of Americans and their hate towards the elite, as they are tired of being used by the elite. This also applies to Americans’ mentality towards Formula One, as the sport is perceived as an elitist and “rich-person” sport. Because of this mentality, Formula One is not received well in America compared to the rest of the world. The rest of the world has already accepted elitism as a part of their system, but Americans strive for a more egalitarian society, which is the whole basis of which the country was founded on. This implies that globalization is not fully achieved as each country’s values and acceptance is still different.
The lack of American drivers in F1 stems from a deep problem, as elitism, money, and power in F1 play a huge role in driver selection. For example in 2020, Haas F1 team manager Gunther Steiner said “If somebody is good and has a financial backer, he’s got a better chance than somebody who is the same good and has no financial backer. I mean, why would you choose that one with no financial backing?” He later used this elitist way of thinking when choosing his drivers for the 2021 season, as he chose Nikita Mazepin, the son of billionaire oligarch Dmitry Mazepin, over a host of better drivers, including the extremely talented American Colton Herta. In fact, scenarios like this are very common in F1, as “pay to drive” drivers with extremely rich backers would make their way to the grid even though they may not be as talented as other drivers who were snubbed of this opportunity. When asked about why Americans are discouraged from racing in F1, former American F1 driver, Scott Speed, said “‘It is financially impossible for almost all kids growing up racing karts to move to Europe,’ says Speed. ‘Finding the funding to do it is almost impossible and without doing that, F1 may as well be happening on Mars…Not impossible, just extremely difficult.’”(Gulson). Because of the amount of money and commitment required, a lot of American drivers prefer to drive in other motorsport leagues like Indycar or NASCAR. Driver selection processes like this show how elitism has stained F1, as money and power can be more influential than raw talent and hard work.
Elitism in F1 does not only influence driver selection but is extremely prevalent when it comes to cars and teams. Because every team on the grid design and produce their own cars, the cost of running an F1 team is extremely expensive. Typically speaking, richer teams that are backed by successful companies, like Ferrari, Mercedes, and Red Bull, are more likely to win because they have more money to pay more engineers to design a faster car. This leads to an uneven playing field where the rich teams dominate the grid, leaving no chance for smaller teams to have a chance to win races. According to Susie Wolff, the owner of Venturi Formula E, “F1 is most definitely not a level playing field but, most importantly, nor does it want to be. The myth and magic of F1 is its unapologetic elitism: it is the pinnacle of motorsport and teams have to be world-class to be part of it”(Wolff). In other words, because F1 is the world stage for only the best teams and drivers, it knowingly promotes elitism by creating a cutthroat environment influenced by power and money in order to weed out the weaker teams. Because of F1’s push to create this unequal playing field through promoting elitism, it is not only harder for underdogs to win races and championships, but also harder for fans to understand the whole aspect of the sport as it also includes technology which the money pays for.
Many people may say that Formula One has translated well in the US because it appeals to Americans who like motorsports and exciting races at a fast pace. However, although this may be true, this would only be a small percentage of American motorsport fans who follow F1, as NASCAR appeals to the majority of American motorsport fans. NASCAR has risen in popularity over the years, as it appealed more to middle-class Americans and made a name for itself as a family sport. In other words, NASCAR appeals more to the “average Joe” whereas F1 only appeals to the rich and the elite. NASCAR has been able to do this through a variety of factors, including the usage of stock cars that are identical to the cars that can be bought by anybody at a dealership. Although this may seem like a very small point to glance over, this actually connects NASCAR to the people because the same cars that are driven by regular people are also raced by professional drivers on a national stage. This contrasts with F1’s cars since F1 cars are built from scratch by every team for millions of dollars and are not possible for people to buy a similar model of it. Because of this, NASCAR’s ability to relate closer to the average American through this connection. In addition, NASCAR connects to the average American through other means, including promoting an equal playing field for the teams and allowing a rougher and rugged driving style. These both are extremely different from F1, as F1’s reliance on money does not promote an equal playing field. These restrictions in F1 make NASCAR more popular in America, rather than F1 because NASCAR has successfully appealed more to the American public.
Because of elitism that has deeply seeped into the roots of F1, Formula One’s success in America has been extremely lacking. However, ever since 2015 when Liberty Media bought Formula One, they have started initiatives to increase success in America. For example, they have introduced budget caps for teams, in order to level the playing field. Also, they started a collaboration with Netflix to create an F1 driving series, which so far has been successful in America. In the coming years, if this trend continues, F1 will increase in popularity in America. Although F1 is only motorsport, its difference in popularity in American and Europe shows how both societies have their own values, which goes to show how globalization is not fully reached.
Works Cited
Clash, Jim. “How Does F1 Make Its Sport More Popular in America?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 24 Feb. 2020, https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimclash/2020/02/24/how-does-f-1-make-its-sport-more-popular-in-america/?sh=1f8544f04e5f.
Emanuel, Rahm. “It’s Time to Hold American Elites Accountable for Their Abuses.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 21 May 2019, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/05/middle-class-americans-are-sick-elite-privilege/589849/.
F1 Chronicle. “What’s the Difference between Formula One and NASCAR?l.” F1 Chronicle, 13 June 2021, https://f1chronicle.com/difference-between-formula-one-and-nascar/.
Golson, Jordan. “Why Don’t Any Americans Race in Formula One?” Wired, Conde Nast, 31 Oct. 2014, https://www.wired.com/2014/10/austin-americans-f1/.
McLachlan, Alex. “Hamilton Criticises F1’s Elitism.” FormulaNerds.com, 21 May 2021, https://www.formulanerds.com/news/hamilton-criticises-f1s-elitism/.
Watts, Rob. “Why Are There No American Drivers in F1?” Formula 1 Official Ticket & Travel Packages, 11 May 2021, https://f1experiences.com/blog/why-are-there-no-american-drivers-in-f1.
Wolff, Susie. “Formula E Will Not Overtake Formula One — and nor Should It.” Financial Times, Financial Times, 10 Apr. 2019, https://www.ft.com/content/ef66ceea-5073-11e9-9c76-bf4a0ce37d49.
