Post-F1 Paths - The boss

12/13/17 • 4 min

Hello and welcome to episode four of Post-F1 Paths, the latest mini series from Sidepodcast that investigates what options are available to F1 drivers once they have decided to step out of the car. So far we’ve covered a few options for those wanting a clean break from F1 but now it’s time to go back to the paddock with a new challenge – being the boss.

We haven’t seen it so much recently, but one of the options awaiting a driver when they decide it’s time to hang up those racing gloves is to become the boss. A wealth of experience of driving, managing race weekends, understanding what it takes to win and living the crazy jet set lifestyle that comes with Formula One is a good grounding for taking over a team. Or is it?

There are plenty of examples of drivers making the step up to team owner, F1 history is littered with them. Some, such as John Surtees, opt to own the team and continue to drive at the same time, which must make post-race debriefing sessions odd – the boss telling himself off. Others, such as Alain Prost, wait until after they’ve retired to grab the reigns.

Prost bought the ex-Ligier team in 1997 and remodelled it as Prost Grand Prix. They had a handful of podiums in the early days but things went downhill after that and the team went bankrupt in 2002. Super Aguri was a team managed by Aguri Suzuki, and they become quite famous for being a backmarker squad, eventually running out of money part way through a season.

It’s not always bad news though. Jack Brabham had considerable success with his Brabham outfit, they scored both constructor and driver titles before the team was eventually sold to Bernie Ecclestone, you might have heard of him. And the most famous and long-lasting of all, of course, is the team founded by one Bruce McLaren. Still running to this day with lots of great results behind them, a huge heritage and plenty of respect throughout the paddock – even if the current McLaren era isn’t exactly going to plan.

As I mentioned at the start, the driver-turned-owner dynamic isn’t something we’ve seen more recently, perhaps because the costs of getting into F1 and the barriers to entry are so high. What we do see more of these days is the driver turned ambassador – someone willing to associate their name with a brand, lend their expertise to a team that needs it, basically give them some gravitas in the paddock.

The most obvious example of this at the moment is Niki Lauda, who has become a stalwart of the Mercedes garages, stalking through the paddock ready to give his opinion at the mere hint of a microphone. There’s a vast amount of talent and experience within that team already, but having someone with Lauda’s CV on board should be a help when things get tricky.

One of the things I assumed having an F1 driver as part of the executive team would help with would be driver management. Someone like Niki Lauda knows what it is to disagree with your teammate, to be caught up in the heat of the battle, to want to win at all costs, regardless of what it does to relationships... and yet still have to make those relationships work. That’s why the fight between Mercedes drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg was even more fascinating over the past few seasons – they must have had plenty of advice from all angles to help them through but still the atmosphere just got worse and worse.

It can’t be easy being on the sidelines once an F1 star has decided to give up the day job, and I imagine you have to have a certain attitude to be able to watch the action in the garages or from the pit wall without wanting to elbow people out the way and jump in the car yourself. But for those that can make it work, it must also be a very rewarding experience – using everything you’ve learned in your driving career to turn around and make a new set of drivers, and perhaps even your own team, ultimately have their own success.

That’s all for this episode of Post-F1 Paths, thank you for joining me along our path this series. I’d love to hear what you think about the success or failure of drivers that have turned team boss, manager or ambassador – is it a good idea or are they better suited behind the helmet? Let me know sidepodcast.com/contact. I will be back tomorrow with another episode, please join me then.

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Previous Episode

Post-F1 Paths - The cross-discipline

Hello there, welcome to Post-F1 Paths from Sidepodcast, a mini series of seven short shows looking at what options are available to drivers who hang up their F1 helmets and look for a career outside of the paddock. This is the third episode and today we’re talking about drivers who still need that thrill of the race, and so look to other motorsport series’.

Formula One is considered the pinnacle of motorsport, just about, and particularly in recent years, drivers have to be at the peak of physical fitness to get the best out of the car. They restrict their diets, they train every day, they do everything they can to control their bodies so as to save time on track. It’s no surprise that a driver retiring from F1 may still decide they want to race, but just look for the thrill in a series where they can relax, just a little. Maybe have a cake, on occasion, you know?

The two other series with the highest profile that attract drivers are the IndyCar series and the World Endurance championship. As we’ve seen with Fernando Alonso in 2017, the dream of completing the Monaco Grand Prix, Indy 500 and 24 Hours of Le Mans hat trick continues to live large in driver’s minds, and so those two series must seem very attractive for a recently retired F1 star.

IndyCar has similarities to F1, the cars look somewhat familiar and the road courses have right and left turns just as all F1 circuits do. The ovals are something different though, top speeds are higher, cornering speeds are crazy, and it all seems somewhat terrifying to me but to a driver no doubt looks an incredible challenge. Juan Pablo Montoya and Takuma Sato are recent IndyCar converts with vastly different degrees of success. Indy 500 winners include Jacques Villeneuve, Emerson Fittipaldi and Graham Hill.

Over in the endurance series, recent converts include Mark Webber and Anthony Davidson, who adjusted to life in the closed cockpits very well. Whilst the cars are very different in the WEC, I imagine it’s the format of the races that is more of an adjustment for fresh F1 faces. Far longer races than the two hour limit of a grand prix, and sharing the car with other drivers – jumping in and out midrace, perhaps even catnapping to reserve energy for that final dash to the end. It’s a different discipline and one that takes some getting used to, unless you’re Nico Hülkenberg, of course. The current Renault driver took time out of his F1 season last year (not missing any races, though) to take part in and WIN the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with Porsche.

But if you’re not interested in taking that triple crown of motorsport, there are plenty of other options out there for you. Kimi Räikkönen took an F1 sabbatical that saw him turn his hand to rallying – another discipline that shares few similarities with Formula One. Closed cockpits, rally cars, a passenger, single time trials rather than wheel to wheel combat, it’s definitely something different. Kimi seemed to enjoy it at first, but soon came back to F1. Robert Kubica also participated in rallying alongside his F1 career before the accident that postponed his open wheel ambitions.

We’ve mentioned Montoya already in regards to IndyCar but the Colombian racer also had a respectable career in NASCAR: winning races, securing pole positions and generally making a good showing of things. And Paul di Resta came from the German racing series DTM before he joined F1. Many wondered whether he could make the adjustment, as it’s a different path to the sport than the normal karting to feeder series to F1 paddock journey. He adapted well, if not spectacularly, but I don’t think it was a surprise to anyone when he returned to the DTM series, combining it with simulator duties for the Mercedes squad.

As is often said, you can’t teach someone how to be fast, there’s a talent that has to be there to be successful. But if the evidence we’ve looked at shows us anything, it’s that you can learn how to adapt your skills to different environments, with varying degrees of success. Just because a driver’s career in F1 may have come to an end, it doesn’t mean they have to hang up their helmet for good.

That’s all for this episode of Post-F1 Paths, thank you for listening. Do let me know what you think about drivers participating in other racing disciplines, just head to sidepodcast.com/contact to share your thoughts. And do join me again tomorrow when we’ll look at something else a driver can do outside of the car.

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Next Episode

Post-F1 Paths - The athlete

Hello one and all, welcome to Post-F1 Paths, a mini series brought to you by Sidepodcast. This is the fifth episode of seven short shows in which we are travelling through the opportunities available to drivers once they have decided to give up Formula One in favour of something else. We’ve covered a handful of sporting achievements that drivers can aim for after F1, but this time we’re talking about using their fitness for other athletic purposes.

Drivers opting to try their hand at athletics after a successful career in Formula One has never been more relevant than it is this year, with Jenson Button’s triathlete endeavours. The F1 champion was clearly ready for a break from the grind of travelling the world and racing fast cars, so for the 2017 season (barring a one-off Monaco return) he retired from the sport. Instead, Button has been focusing on becoming a triathlete champion.

Now, the athletic competition of running, cycling and swimming isn’t new to Button. He’s participated in many events over the past few years and even holds his own annual charity event open to any and all who want to participate. He’s gradually improved his own skills, and with the added high standards of fitness required to be an F1 driver these days, has never been in a better position to do well in his new career.

Unfortunately, Button was disqualified from his World Ironman efforts despite finishing third in his age category. The impressive performance was diminished when it emerged he had been speeding through a slow zone during the bike phase – something that was a gleeful moment for headline writers, but must have been a disappointment for Button. Still, with reserve driver duties out the way, he can get back to the running, swimming and biking that is now inspiring him.

And if inspiration is what you’re after, then we must look no further than Alex Zanardi. The Italian driver was more well known for his CART efforts in the US, but also participated in over 40 F1 races. A terrible crash saw Zanardi lose both his legs but the accident barely slowed him down. Zanardi was soon behind the wheel again in modified racing cars, but he also took up handcycling.

He started participating, and winning, handcycling marathons. He won a gold medal in the 2012 Paralympics, and followed it up in 2016 with two golds and one silver. He also completed the Ironman World Championship, coming 19th in his age group. Absolutely incredible.

Competing in the Olympics isn’t a new thing for racing drivers, either. One of Formula One’s very few female drivers started out as an Olympian. Divina Galica, who started three F1 races in the 1970s, came fresh from a stint as captain of the British Women’s Olympic Ski Team securing some solid finishes in both the winter Olympics and world championship events. After the Formula One career didn’t work out, Galica returned to the ice and snow, participating in the 1972 Winter Olympics as well.

The challenge of representing your country and competing for a tangible and well-recognised gold medal is understandably appealing to drivers but it’s not all about the Olympics. Other sports are just as fascinating but also come with health warnings. We all remember Mark Webber’s unfortunate cycling accident – sustained whilst participating in an off-season bike race for his foundation in Tasmania – that left him with a broken leg. The one thing that came out of this was a greater insight into the training and rehabilitation that drivers can undergo, as Webber was very open about his progress in healing the leg and training as best as possible to be ready for the upcoming 2009 F1 season.

Webber also, quite notably, cracked his shoulder in a second cycling accident that forced him to drive the final four races of the 2010 season in some discomfort. We know that Webber has bad luck, but it’s also more and more obvious why drivers should perhaps wait until after they’ve finished their racing career before they go all out on another athletic sport.

That’s all for this episode of Post-F1 Paths, thank you, as always, for listening. Do you know of any other drivers who have taken up another sport after their career, or do you think any more of the current batch might try? Let me know at sidepodcast.com/contact, and please do join me again tomorrow for the penultimate episode of Post-F1 Paths.

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