The F1 75 launch event which was sanitated was saved by his host Edgy Jack Whitehall

February 19, 2025 | Sports, Movies, and TV

You can almost imagine the planning meeting at the Formula 1 headquarters ahead of the launch of the first season of Sport, which was held at the O2 Arena in London last night. What is the most interesting for demographics as widely as possible from new young fans? The smiling driver and the principal. â € œInspirational ‘brand videos of each team. And live music. Young people still like to take that, right?

Formula 1 used to have raw feel for that. What has made the race and great championship for the past 74 years not conspicuous on the graphics screen or feel like you are in terms of the first name with the drivers and that is how much motorsport from top to bottom feels like a big club from geeks fiddling with the design and settings , speculate about strategy, and enjoy the sensation of on-track action.

Since then – and especially since the acquisition of F1 Liberty Media in 2017 – that feeling has become more companies and … well, boring. Driving to survive Has changed the paddock into a reality show, and the driver has been increasingly censored to protect sponsors – see the new FIA prohibition about swearing.

In short, the old F1 is about spectacle and substance, but in an effort to capture a wider and younger audience, the balance has been pushed far more towards the first direction – even as far as producing artificial shows when the action on the path is not enough. If it’s not friendly, it comes out.

I was skeptical when the F1 75 was announced. Heading to the 75th season of Sport, a two-hour direct event will be held to reveal ten teams, not cars (not cars, Heart). It feels more dinner clothes and snapped Instagram than oil smoke and telemetry printing, and many old fans question what is the point.

The essence of that night is the same as the one you expect. Each team ‘s allocated timeslot was filled with some kinds of forced-inspirational videos, after which they new paint job was unveiled and the drivers and team principal would be wheeled to the front of the stage for another rendition of the same interview about how Glad they were there and how excited they were for the season new.

Among them, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali talked about how grateful he was to fans (regardless of his ignorance about their feedback about his efforts to dismantle what made this sport great) and we were treated to an eclectic collection of live music performances, which peaked in three members Your Mother’s Favorite Boy Band has made their biggest hit from 15 years ago.

It will all be very boring if not for one unexpected factor announced only a few days earlier: Gala was organized by comedian Jack Whitehall.

While Whitehall can be a little love/hate, he does a very good job to save some entertainment from F1 75. He opened the night with grilled meat from some of their drivers and bosses, and might give the night spotlight when he asked the famous famous oath Tutters Gordon Ramsay about the Oath Prohibition – Celebrity Chefs Receive cheers from the crowd because he said the driver must be free to say what they want, then get a discount His microphone when he dared to swear himself.

Another interesting main moment also comes from events outside F1 control -especially when fans mock the mention of the Sports Government Agency, FIA, because of his unpopular new decision. This triggered a smile that was no longer wrong from the presenter Laura Winter because he did it well to maintain the flow.

Does this spontaneity at a glance make F1 75 a useful effort? No – they are too small and rare. Will I try to get to the O2 arena if that happens again? No – now I know exactly how little I get with one of the nosebleed chairs £ 58. Should It happened again? Possibly not. This is probably best abandoned as one time to celebrate the 755th birthday of F1 -even though I wonder whether management will be able to withstand the temptation to run the event every year.

What I will say is that I enjoy F1 75 more than I THOUGHT I WOULD, AND THAT WAS LARGELY DUE TO IT BEING A LITTLE ROUST AROUND THE EDGES AT TIMES – Something that in charge is in charge of Driving out of the sports at all costs .