‘The best racing movie of all time’: Drivers react to upcoming F1 film

On Thursday’s media day, Formula 1 drivers reacted to their thoughts on the upcoming movie – simply titled “F1” starring Brad Pitt, having enjoyed an early viewing the night before.

F1’s growing appeal to the masses is continuing in the form of the film, in which Brad Pitt plays fictional former F1 driver Sonny Hayes who comes out of retirement to mentor his younger team-mate, played by Damson Idris.

The film was made with on-track action taken from real Grands Prix over the course of the last two seasons, with much of the grid making appearances.

Lewis Hamilton additionally played an off-screen role in being of its producers, utilising his own experience to heighten the realism of the film.

On Wednesday, all of the drivers – bar Max Verstappen – took in a private screening, and spoke to media, including Motorsport Week, about what they thought of it.

Ocon: ‘The best racing movie of all-time’

“It was super immersive,” Esteban Ocon said. “The driving scenes were fantastic, and something we’ve never seen before. There were things that didn’t make too much sense for us as drivers being inside the paddock, but I really see where Lewis [Hamilton] has put his touch on it to try and make everything as realistic as possible.

“There were still some parts that needed to be a little bit more Hollywood, which is obviously open for all the public and needs to be catching the eye of everyone.

“For us, there are a few things that I would have liked to be more racing focused and maybe a bit less crashing… but I think overall it’s still by far the best racing movie of all time and it will have a mega success.”

Hulkenberg: ‘Brad Pitt is my role model now’

“It’s Hollywood, so you need to take a step back and see the broader picture,” said Sauber’s Nico Hülkenberg.

“It’s not about the fine details, but I think it’s still a new, fresh perspective. There were some good actors in there too. Brad Pitt is my role model now, my new aim is to [be an F1 driver at Pitt’s age – 61].”

Alonso: ‘It represents F1 well’

“I liked the movie. I think it represents Formula 1 quite well, which is never a guarantee in these kind of movies,” said Fernando Alonso.

“It is a good thing for our sport, because everyone will [want] to see a Formula 1 race – hopefully – after seeing the movie.

“It’s not a documentary, it’s still a movie, so there were a couple of [inaccuracies], but I would say that nearly all of the movie, in terms of track action, was very original and very representative, so that was a good thing.”

Bearman: ‘It was fantastic’

“I thought the movie was fantastic,” said Haas rookie Oliver Bearman. “It really depicts what we go through, [but] in a bit of a Hollywood way, as you would expect.

“It’s going to make people want to watch F1, which is really the goal of it. The onboard shots and the work that they did was actually quite incredible – it was impressive to see the technology that they can use.

“There were some funny parts, but it was meant to be like that. Of course, there are some things that aren’t fully accurate… like the standard movie scene where they’re going side by side in the straights and suddenly the other guy finds another gear. But that’s a typical movie thing, and I think it makes it super captivating for the audience.

“There’s a small minority of us that will maybe find that a bit untrue, but I think for the majority it’s going to be a fantastic movie.”

Lawson: ‘It captures the feeling of F1’

“I think it’s going to be huge when it comes out – it has the potential to be one of the biggest movies of the year,” opined Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson. “It captures the feeling of being in Formula 1, and that’s really, really cool.

“I wasn’t really racing when most of the filming was done, so I was surprised I even featured. I didn’t know what to expect.

“I can imagine somebody who’s watching F1 for the first time by watching that movie – they’re going to think it’s amazing. You can always poke holes, but it’s a movie at the end of the day, and I’m sure it’s the same if you’re watching Top Gun.

“I’m sure if you’re a fighter pilot and you’re watching a movie like that, you’re going to pick [apart] things in there that you might see differently.”

Leclerc: F1 movie ‘reaching people we wouldn’t have reached without it’

“We are looking at it as Formula 1 drivers and we always try and see all the small details that are not exactly [accurate], but it’s just very Hollywood-like and I think that’s really cool because it’s not for F1 drivers, it’s for a broader audience,” said Charles Leclerc.

“The [driving] scenes are incredible. I’m super impressed by how the camera was put onto the cars and the angles that we see from the cars driving. I know that Brad drove a little bit himself, which is very impressive and I’m sure he enjoyed it.

“It’s amazing for F1 because we are reaching people that we wouldn’t have reached without this movie.”

Alex Albon: Movie makers ‘did a good job’

“I think they’ve found a good balance,” said Alex Albon.

“It’s hard to not look at everything with a fine comb and just relax and watch it as a movie. I think for Hollywood, they did a good job.”

Bortoleto: New fans ‘can learn’ from film

“It’s going to be very good for those that still don’t know much about the sport,” said the Sauber driver.

“For us drivers, we live this every day, so we know every detail… but for those that don’t know so much about Formula 1, they can learn and they can get involved with us.”

Norris: It had ‘an inspirational story’

“I was brilliant in it and that was the main thing,” joked McLaren star Lando Norris. “It was a very good movie, a nice storyline – I don’t know how much I can and can’t say.

“It was a cool story, I think an inspirational story – it had a lot of different meanings behind it all. But a cool storyline and a lot of inspiration for young people coming into it.”

Gasly: Brad Pitt ‘makes us all look very good’ in F1 film

“It was really cool to be able to watch the movie for the first time,” said Alpine’s Pierre Gasly.

“It’s an amazing opportunity to dive into our world. It’s a Hollywood movie, and I’m a big fan of Brad Pitt, who makes us all look very good as a Formula 1 driver.

“Production also did a fantastic job – I hope that people from the outside are going to enjoy it.”

Hadjar: Film will ‘send F1 to new dimension’

“I think it was weird to watch a movie about Formula 1,” said French rookie Isack Hadjar.. “It was quite strange and I think it’s going to send the sport into another dimension again.

“I think it’s going to make the sport even bigger, which is nice. It’s hard to give feedback as drivers because we’re really critical, but if you’re a kid or someone who doesn’t know about the sport, I think it’s the best way to get started.”

READ MORE – Lewis Hamilton reveals more film projects in the pipeline after F1 movie debut