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New York Times
24-05-2025
- Automotive
- New York Times
Has Monaco Grand Prix lost its crown to Miami, Las Vegas for F1's elite spenders?
MONACO — There was a point not too long ago when the Monaco Grand Prix stood alone on the Formula One calendar, as the undisputed 'crown jewel' event. The street track had a pull for big spenders, celebrities and VIPs unlike any other round on the F1 calendar. If there was a place to be seen, it was Monaco. Advertisement Questions around the race's sporting spectacle — or lack thereof — have grown even louder in the era of F1's current wide, heavy cars. It prompted the FIA to introduce a new mandatory two-stop strategy rule for this year in the hope of spicing things up. Yet off the track, with partners and sponsors placing such an emphasis on the American races in Miami, Austin and Las Vegas, Monaco is no longer in the rarified air it once enjoyed. 'If you look at some of our sponsors who want to target America, or they have big business interest in America, they want to be attached to those American races,' Mark Morrell, the director of marketing at Haas F1 Team, told The Athletic. F1 has inextricably been connected to the business world through its 75-year history, being far more than a racing series and just what the fans see on the race track. Big brands not only want to be seen as part of such a glamorous, appealing sport, but teams also rely on sponsorship dollars to help them go racing. Haas used its first of three home races in the United States in Miami earlier this month to announce a new partnership with Infobip — a communications service used by companies such as Uber and Google. Haas also had sponsors who signed deals to cover the 2025 season late last year asking to bring forward the announcements to Austin and Las Vegas, in October and November, to capitalize on the American interest. Morrell said Haas has around half as many partner guests with the team in Monaco compared to Miami, and that the sheer busyness of an F1 race weekend had been 'shifting over the last couple of years towards Miami.' Although Silverstone and Monza stand as two major European races for sponsorship events and showcases, 'those U.S. races are the ones.' The off-track events scheduled for those in the paddock is typically full-on during the Miami and Las Vegas races, with sponsor activations and events, in part thanks to their settings in major cities with an array of hotel rooms, dinner locations and event spaces. In Monaco, a cramped location at the best of times and so F1 teams and sponsors are often reliant on the extra space offered on the super yachts moored in the harbor for extra hosting duties, and with Nice a 20-minute train ride away, it's not quite so straightforward. 'There's just more options available to sponsors when they look at the entire calendar now,' Morrell said. 'Whereas, Monaco in the past may have been the one iconic milestone event. They now see more opportunities where they can address their marketing budgets and activate.' Oliver Hughes, the chief marketing officer for Red Bull Racing, agreed that the Miami Grand Prix was 'really up there now as one of the pinnacles because the U.S. is booming,' noting the influx of American company CEOs at the event. More than half of Red Bull's F1 sponsorship portfolio is made up of American brands. For those considering their travel from the States, picking a race closer to home instead of crossing the Atlantic to Europe makes more logistical and financial sense. Advertisement Yet Hughes still feels that Monaco provides a 'huge draw' that was difficult to match given its location on the French Riviera. While Miami is a better race to speak to prospective partners and try to do new business, Monaco is more about impressing existing partners and their guests by making a lasting impression. 'What you'll find is if they go (to Monaco) in year one of a partnership, they'll definitely go in year two,' Hughes told The Athletic. 'It's a long way to go. But once they've been, they come back.' Hughes explained that Monaco was able to offer unique aspects that other races could not match, such as attending events on yachts, arriving at the track on a tender boat, or even enjoying hospitality on Red Bull's one-off floating energy station. Instead of taking up space in the cramped confines of the paddock next to the other eight teams, squeezing onto the harborside, the two Red Bull-owned teams have their normal hospitality unit placed on a barge that is moored in the harbor for the weekend. There are some extra additions, including a large patio area to host guests next to a vertically-suspended Red Bull F1 car, a prototype of the RB17 hypercar and even a swimming pool on the top floor. Hughes said it had become something of an 'accidental legacy' for Red Bull that the novelty of the floating energy station was so popular in the paddock, given it was done initially for logistical reasons. From 2026, temporary, uniform hospitality units that serve as a F1 team bases at the track will be used in the Monaco paddock — similar to how the paddock is arranged for events outside of Europe — instead of the motorhomes for other European races. But Red Bull still plans to bring its 'floaterhome,' given it does not rely on the paddock space. The Monaco paddock space will be even smaller in 2026 when Cadillac joins the grid as an 11th team. The novelty of Red Bull's floating hospitality meant rival teams' partners are also keen to sample its offering in Monaco, claimed Hughes. 'We are sneaking in our partners' CEOs left, right and centre on this platform,' he said. 'They'd rather be here than over there, sitting in the shade. They want to be in the sun by the pool. Obviously the other teams will probably tell you the complete opposite, that they're all in their place…' Advertisement Red Bull used the 2025 Monaco weekend to make another major partner announcement — extending and expanding its relationship with Visa, a title sponsor of the sister Racing Bulls team. This will be increased branding on the Red Bull Racing cars as a result. Visa's president first attended the 2024 Monaco race and was eager to return, even holding an event for other CEOs, including Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, on Thursday night in the principality. 'Visa have their biggest banking CEOs here this weekend,' Hughes said. 'So it's all timed in nicely.' Red Bull was not alone in using Monaco for major sponsor activations this year. Aston Martin used the track to give its new F1-inspired supercar, the Valhalla, its public debut. F1's official cruise partner, MSC, has moored the luxury Explora II cruise ship in the harbor, with VIP packages running into the tens of thousands of dollars. There's still a desire to impress and F1 and MSC also used the weekend to announce their partnership contract length has been extended. On Wednesday, McLaren and OKX, a cryptocurrency platform that is one of the team's major partners, held an event on the $50 million Coral Ocean yacht. They launched a new campaign including a tweaked F1 livery design that was revealed on a full-scale car — which had been lifted onto the yacht for the unveiling. Drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris were on hand to lift the covers off the car, while McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown commented it was probably the first unveiling he'd ever attended in his socks, shoes not being allowed on expensive yachts. 'Monaco is still the jewel in the crown of the European calendar,' Lou McEwan, McLaren's chief marketing officer, told The Athletic. 'If you look back through from a fan point of view, I think last year's race was still third in the most-watched race in the U.S. ever. We know it resonates with fans. 'We've got double the number of B2B (business-to-business) guests that we had last year as a team — doubled it — and of that, we've probably got more C-suite and CEOs than any other race in the calendar. So, it's a really big focus race for us as well.' Haider Rafique, the chief marketing officer at OKX, said the history and significance within F1 of Monaco made it the perfect place to launch the campaign, particularly with a livery alteration. 'If you're going to do something that's making a fashion statement, which this livery absolutely is, I think Monaco's a great place,' he said. 'People come in, fans come in, they want to dress up, they want to really enjoy the environment. It's the crown jewel of F1 in my view as a fan.' Advertisement Morrell agreed that despite the 'logistical headaches' that come with activations in Monaco, the race remained iconic within F1. 'It's still an invite you can probably never turn down,' he said. Hughes argued that Monaco's star had not diminished at all amid the presence of the new, American races, but instead had risen with F1's commercial tide. 'We've just got these new shiny toys like Vegas and Miami that are perfectly placed, and perfectly timed, to grab the attention of the new audience that has come into the sport,' he said. 'I think Monaco is still growing. There's just other shiny toys around it now.' As impressive as those 'shiny toys' may be for F1, the teams and their sponsors, Monaco still has an appeal those events cannot buy: its history, its prestige, and its location. 'You look at the backdrop of this race, for all the people that watch it on TV or on social media —it's just spectacular,' Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said on Friday. 'In terms of guest activation programs or sponsors coming, it's huge. And, especially for the European market, very important. 'Monaco needs Formula One, and Formula One needs Monaco.' Top photo: ANDREJ ISAKOVIC/AFP via Getty Images
CNA
23-05-2025
- Sport
- CNA
Bearman given 10-place Monaco grid penalty for red flag breach
MONACO :Haas Formula One rookie Oliver Bearman was handed a 10-place grid drop for ignoring red flags during Friday's Monaco Grand prix practice. The Briton also collected two penalty points on his licence for the breach. Stewards found that the 20-year-old overtook Williams' Carlos Sainz after the session was stopped and red flag warnings issued. "It is clear from the video footage that there was a light panel directly in front of the driver which showed the red flag; and the dashboard also indicated the red flag well before the overtake took place," they said. "The driver claimed that he saw the red flags but decided not to slow down abruptly because he felt that slowing down abruptly would have been more dangerous and that what he did was a safer way of handling the situation." The stewards disagreed with Bearman's stance and said drivers could not know, on a tight and narrrow track like Monaco, what might be ahead.
Reuters
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Reuters
Bearman given 10-place Monaco grid penalty for red flag breach
MONACO, May 23 (Reuters) - Haas Formula One rookie Oliver Bearman was handed a 10-place grid drop for ignoring red flags during Friday's Monaco Grand prix practice. The Briton also collected two penalty points on his licence for the breach. Stewards found that the 20-year-old overtook Williams' Carlos Sainz after the session was stopped and red flag warnings issued. "It is clear from the video footage that there was a light panel directly in front of the driver which showed the red flag; and the dashboard also indicated the red flag well before the overtake took place," they said. "The driver claimed that he saw the red flags but decided not to slow down abruptly because he felt that slowing down abruptly would have been more dangerous and that what he did was a safer way of handling the situation." The stewards disagreed with Bearman's stance and said drivers could not know, on a tight and narrrow track like Monaco, what might be ahead.
Scotsman
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- Scotsman
Drive to Survive star Guenther Steiner on F1 fame and going 'Unfiltered' ahead of Scottish tour dates
Fasten your seatbelts for a thrilling 2025 as former Haas F1 team principal and Netflix Drive to Survive star Guenther Steiner embarks on a brand-new tour, which includes a date at Glasgow Pavilion on Monday May 19 and Edinburgh's Usher Hall on Tuesday May 20. Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Unfiltered Live will immerse fans deeper than ever into the world of Formula 1, featuring exclusive, access-all-areas insights as Guenther shares the twists and turns of his incredible career, bringing fans into the heart of the pit lanes, circuits and characters. Following the success of his sold-out 2024 tour and the release of his latest Sunday Times bestseller, Unfiltered, Guenther will visit 42 venues across the UK, Ireland and the Isle of Man. Tickets are on sale HEREor direct from venues. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Guenther Steiner: Unfiltered LIVE Guenther Steiner is one of Formula 1's most captivating figures, known for his bold leadership, no-holds-barred honesty, and quick wit. As the former team principal of Haas F1, he gained worldwide recognition as a breakout star on the hit Netflix series Drive to Survive. With more than a decade of experience, Steiner has been at the heart of some of the sport's most dramatic moments. His fearless approach to racing, combined with his candid storytelling, has made him a fan favourite and a key figure in motorsport. Find out more about Guenther's rise through the ranks, what it's like being the breakout star of Drive To Survive, his thoughts on the future of F1 and what fans can expect from his new tour Unfiltered Live. HOW DID YOU COME TO WORK IN F1? GUENTHER STEINER I grew up in Merano, in the north of Italy, in the mountains – and there was no motorsport there. But despite that, I always loved racing cars, they were my passion as a kid. Every year, I always asked my father, to go to the one race in the region, which was about 40k from home and we went. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad After I had completed National Service, and was studying engineering, I saw a job in a racing magazine advertising for a Belgian rally team – I got that job, moved to Belgium and it all went from there. I was in rallying for about 15 years – quite a long time, when one day, I got a call from Niki Lauda, who was my childhood hero. His office called me and asked me to speak to him, and he offered me a job with Jaguar. I didn't have plans to move to F1, but how do you say no! After about 18 months, I went to DTM Racing – a German racing series, then came back to Jaguar for another 18 months when Red Bull bought them, then went to the States working on Red Bull's Nascar. I loved life in the States and came up with the idea to find an investor for an F1 team and started my own team with Haas. That project started in about 2010, but then didn't come to being until 2014/15. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad WHAT WAS IT LIKE BEING SUCH A KEY CHARACTER IN DRIVE TO SURVIVE – AND WHAT'S BEEN THE IMPACT OF THE SHOW? Drive To Survive has been amazing for F1! The growth of F1 that we've seen in recent years wouldn't have been possible without the show. It was well timed with Covid-19 too. F1 was the first sport that went back live and Drive To Survive was huge when people were watching anything and everything they could on TV because there was nothing else to do – so it became a massive hit. It's brought a huge new audience to the sport – in particular young people, which is what every sport is aiming for, and female interest has increased too. F1 was very much a middle-aged white man's place for viewers. The show has opened the sport to a lot more people and now everyone is watching – there's no single demographic dominating. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad For me though… I don't like to watch myself or hear myself, I never have. It's cringe! When the show first came out, there were people talking about my role in it. I know how I am, but I didn't expect they would show me how I am… I thought they would take out the bad pieces. So, to avoid any debate of whether I'm good or bad, or what the perception is of me, I avoid watching it. I guess it's avoidance of criticism, but I just don't want to get into the debate of how I am. And if I don't like what I see, it's not like I can do anything about it or do better. I'm not an actor, so don't need to see how I come across on cameras to learn to improve. And I don't want to be conscious of the cameras. Cameras have always been around with F1, but they are just doing a different job now – so why change how you react to them? Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad HOW DID YOU MAKE THE MOVE FROM F1 TO TOURING – AND WHAT CAN PEOPLE EXPECT FROM UNFILTERED LIVE? I did a couple of small events in Australia, which went really well and it went from there to become a tour, which was An Evening With…, and we did 25 shows across the UK in autumn 2024, which were almost all sold out venues. My career goes back nearly 40 years, so there are a lot of stories to share about how I got to where I am – how I got into motorsport, setting up Haas F1 and what I am looking forward to now and in the future. I hope the show gives people a different perspective of how the world of motorsport and F1 works – and that it's an interesting evening learning about the sport and about me. But it's not a data presentation, and is really fun! Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad And the last 15 minutes will be a question and answer session again. I really enjoyed that last time! Even after many years of interviews and being asked questions, people still come up with new angles I've not heard or surprising questions… And I don't always have the answers, but those are the best questions in my opinion. YOU SAY YOU'RE NOT AN ACTOR – SO HOW DOES IT FEEL STEPPING OUT ON STAGE ON TOUR? I have no issue stepping out on stage actually. It's cool – I'm not nervous at all. I just go out thinking I want to do a good job. As long as I do my bit, no one can say I didn't try. I hate the waiting around in between though. Once I'm there, and ready, I want to just get on with it. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad The biggest thing has been adapting to the hours of touring life – working during the evenings and into the night, which I am not used to, and I naturally get up in the day light. But when you see people enjoying the show that makes it worthwhile, and I think I've done something pretty cool in giving people a fun, entertaining evening out. WHAT'S IT LIKE WORKING IN F1? WE HAVE AN IMAGE OF TRAVEL, GLAMOUR, MONEY… It's funny, because when you are in the bubble of F1, you don't realise what it is – because it is your reality, it's just your day by day. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad At the end of the day, it's just a job albeit one with high stakes. The highs are high, the lows are low. It's actually a lot more volatile than even football, and there are fewer people involved at the highest level. Yes, there is glamour, investments and all that stuff, but it's easy to get it wrong in that environment. And you have to remember that it is a privilege to work in the industry. Nobody deserves anything in F1. Everyone has to earn their existence. You have to be good, it's a hard world to survive in. WHERE DO YOU SEE THE FUTURE OF F1? We have seen such a huge growth of F1 in recent years, and a lot of that is thanks to Drive To Survive, but there is always room for more growth – although maybe not at the rate we've seen these last five years. It needs to stabilise first and then continue with a slower rate of growth. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad F1 is an incredible space for technological developments – it will aways be at the forefront of technology with bright minds combining with money. Everyone wants to win and compete, and that's a great environment for technological innovation and advancement, and with a race every second week, it has to push hard. And while technology is important, behind every technological advance there are humans. Everything is human in F1: Humans push the technology. Humans find the money to push the technology. The drivers are humans. There has been talk about AI and how that will impact F1. But even with the advances in AI, it's always about humans. It always comes back to that. AI cannot take away the human element, and I don't think we should be afraid of AI. It can make jobs easier and allow humans to focus elsewhere. It has a place, but it won't take over – you still need the human mind and human actions. A good driver with a bad car cannot beat a bad driver with a good car. It's probably 80% car, 20% driver. If you have best car and best driver, the come together as they want to be the best together.
Glasgow Times
10-05-2025
- Automotive
- Glasgow Times
Netflix's Drive to Survive star bringing tour to Glasgow
Following the success of his sold-out 2024 tour and the release of his latest Sunday Times bestseller Unfiltered, Guenther Steiner will visit 42 venues across the UK. The former Haas F1 team principal will perform Unfiltered Live to the Glasgow Pavilion on Monday, May 19. Read more: Martin Lewis issues urgent scam warning after This Morning viewer loses £140,000 The show will offer fans a chance to dive into the world of Formula 1 with Guenther discussing the twists and turns of his career. Guenther said: "I've had a blast sharing my stories and hearing from the people who've supported me through the ups and downs so I can't wait to be back for an even bigger tour next year. "This show is more than just a behind-the-scenes glimpse of Formula 1. "It's a rollercoaster ride through the realities of racing, the laughs, the losses and everything in between." Read more: Pop group announce new dates for cancelled Glasgow gig As the former team principal of Haas F1, Guenther gained global recognition as a breakout star on the hit Netflix series Drive to Survive. He has become well known for his bold leadership, honesty, and quick wit. With more than a decade of experience, Guenther has been at the heart of some of F1s most dramatic moments. More information about the upcoming event can be found on the Fane website.
