Sainz noticed instant impact of F1 Netflix series

Carlos Sainz Jr. says he has already noticed an instant positive impact from the “great response” towards Formula 1’s new Netflix series.

Netflix’s 10-part ‘fly on the wall’ ‘Drive to Survive’ documentary series was launched earlier this month, offering a unique look and insight into the world of F1 for both fans and newcomers alike.

It received an overwhelmingly positive response, with McLaren driver Sainz - who featured heavily alongside fellow countryman Fernando Alonso in the second episode called ‘The King of Spain’ - revealing he had gained a sudden swell of new social media followers as a direct result.

“I think it has had a great response,” Sainz said when speaking to the media ahead of this weekend’s Australian Grand Prix.

“Going into the paddock today a lot of aficionados were cheering and telling me how good the Netflix episode was.

“I’ve gone up in social media followers [by] 15,000 in the last week, much more per week and per day than normal.

“It shows there’s a lot of people in the US and globally getting an interest in the athletes and the drivers and it’s getting a great response. It has been a great thing.

“Obviously when we started doing it we didn’t know how much repercussion would have. It was a lot of time spent with the cameras and microphones in ourselves but it looks like it’s starting to pay off.”

Part of the drive behind the Netflix series was to show a previously unseen side to F1, capturing the human stories behind the sport, with drivers allowing cameras into their homes to follow their lives outside of the paddock as well as in it.

“I think the main thing is what I was trying to transmit is we are guys who are used to winning, in the midfield, we have been used to winning our whole lives,” Sainz added.

“And then you arrive to Formula 1 and you stop fighting for wins. And you are stuck in the midfield and you are not really able to fight for more than a seventh or an eighth place.

“But the passion that gets into that is as much as a win as you are extracting the most from yourself, the team and 400-500 people.

“Hopefully that improves in Formula 1 and we can have a better show but I think it got a very good feeling by the fans on the midfield battle.”