\u201cYes, it\u2019s becoming a bit of a trend,\u201d Sainz told Spanish radio station El Partidazo de COPE. \u201cIt must be that it worked for them in an era where it was interesting for people to see our girlfriends, famous people on TV, their reactions. I understand that if there\u2019s an overtake, a very tense moment in the race, showing a shot of their reaction could be understandable if the directors see that that worked in the past, so they do it. But that\u2019s while the competition is being respected and you keep showing the important moments in the race.\u201d<\/p>\n
Then he got more specific: \u201cLast weekend, they didn\u2019t show any of the four or five overtakes I made at the end, they didn\u2019t show Fernando (Alonso)\u2019s pursuit of Lewis (Hamilton). They missed lots of things. So the other stuff is fine, but as long as you don\u2019t miss what\u2019s essential. For me, they even exaggerate a bit showing famous people and girlfriends.\u201d<\/p>\n
He has a point. Sort of. These cutaways have become part of the furniture of watching an F1 weekend, although more commonly during practices than grands prix. In re-watching the Singapore GP, I counted a handful of brief cutaways to partners and family over 62 laps. A vast majority of the cutaways were to team members on pit walls or garages, and even those were for seconds at a time. Hardly an epidemic.<\/p>\n
So, before we declare this the death of serious motorsport broadcasting and proof that \u201cDrive to Survive\u201d has rotted F1\u2019s soul, let\u2019s take a breath.<\/p>\n
First, let\u2019s acknowledge what actually happened. I reviewed ESPN and F1 TV footage from the final 10 laps, as Sainz began his charge to 10th. Sainz is right that the broadcast didn\u2019t show his overtakes. Here\u2019s what they showed instead: the championship battle between Max Verstappen and Lando Norris for second place, with Oscar Piastri lurking in third. Exactly what matters with seven races left in the season. They also covered Lewis Hamilton\u2019s brake failure and battles with Charles Leclerc for positions five and six.<\/p>\n
Could the broadcast have taken a minute out of those 10 laps to show Sainz pulling that off? Sure. But it literally happened over 10 laps: Sainz was P12 by Lap 53, P11 by Lap 57 and took P10 by Lap 59. By the time Sainz was closing on Isack Hadjar for P10, Norris was within DRS range of Verstappen for P2.<\/p>\n
Of course, this is where split-screen comes into play. F1 uses it regularly for pit stops and to show multiple battles simultaneously. They utilized it during those last 10 laps to show Hamilton, so why not deploy that tool for Sainz as well? The decision to feature only Verstappen and Norris suggests that the broadcast didn\u2019t think Sainz\u2019s drive warranted even secondary screen real estate. And, fair \u2014 Sainz was outside the top 10. Hamilton wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
Sainz is right that the broadcast missed Alonso \u201cpursuing\u201d Hamilton, but Alonso was 45 seconds back when Hamilton\u2019s brakes failed. If the cameras had focused on that non-battle and missed a mistake that potentially cost Norris second place to Piastri, we\u2019d all be much more furious at that.<\/p>\n
But Sainz\u2019s complaint touched on something tangible: drivers want their work to be recognized, and fans want to watch them work their magic. It is a difficult task that F1\u2019s broadcast team faces: following 20 drivers while satisfying millions of fans with different priorities and the sport\u2019s own identity as both a serious competition and a global spectacle.<\/p>\n
F1\u2019s response to The Athletic on Wednesday, when asked about Sainz\u2019s comments,\u00a0was predictably corporate: \u201cWe always focus on giving our fans the best possible footage of the race and never compromise the key focus \u2014 the racing on track.\u201d<\/p>\n
But F1 has sometimes sacrificed racing action for atmosphere and celebrity shots. It\u2019s been happening for years, predating Netflix\u2019s \u201cDrive to Survive.\u201d Sainz himself acknowledged the balance at play: celebrity shots can work, they\u2019re part of the fabric of the modern F1 broadcast.<\/p>\n
His concern is when they replace \u201cwhat\u2019s essential.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2223167614-scaled.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
\n Cutaways to celebrities, including to actors Anya Taylor-Joy and Rebecca Ferguson at the British Grand Prix in July, often last no more than a few seconds (Andrej Isakovic \/ AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
What\u2019s changed is both audience volume and its sensitivity to it. F1\u2019s viewership has surged since the launch of \u201cDrive to Survive\u201d in 2018, particularly in the United States. The sport has leaned into personality-driven content because it works. But this growth has fed a perception that F1 is prioritizing spectacle over sport, trading racing purity for reality TV drama.<\/p>\n
This criticism assumes sports should be delivered in a vacuum: pure competition, nothing else. That\u2019s not how sports actually work.<\/p>\n