It’s all very well to talk about how it would be great to have a woman driver, a woman with sponsors and marketing, that’s all great but to get into that drive you have to perform. That’s what I realized early on when I got into Formula One.
When I was a kid, we all knew who Niki Lauda was. He was a hero, a living legend in Germany. Everybody knows him. And he’s still very present on TV because he’s commenting for Formula One.
They say Formula One is a market which it can’t be, obviously. Our market is independent, it’s a sport.
For Infiniti, the global coverage that Formula One provides is second only to the Olympics.
Even though people involved in racing think that it has a big sporting stage, it is a minority sport compared to some of the other high-profile events: football, Formula One or golf.
I’d like to thank the management at Force India for giving me the chance to return to Formula One as a team driver.
The top golfers in the world are like Formula One cars when it comes to their swings.
I think there’s a lot of deep-rooted history in England with racing. Lots of Formula One teams are based there. Formula One is obviously a huge sport over in England and Europe.
Formula One applies stresses to the mind and body that are very extreme.
Continuity in Formula One can never be underestimated.
I think the F2 tyres are probably one of the hardest things to adapt to, harder than the Formula One Pirellis were to get used to.
Nobody in Formula One has won so many titles, so many races as I did. So Ferrari for me is crucial; it is more than important.
Those who have come into Formula One without experiencing cars devoid of electronic aids will find it tough. To control 800 horse power relying just on arm muscles and foot sensitivity can turn out to be a dangerous exercise.
I’m not desperate to stay in Formula One. It needs to be sensible and it needs to be the right deal.
I’m a sport fan. So, I have always watched everything, and I used to watch racing. Formula One was always on. The genius about it is that it’s on at lunchtime on a Sunday.
I don’t think I ever thought of growing up to be anything other than a musician. There really wasn’t a plan B. Well, a kind of a distant plan B was to be a Formula One driver, but there really wasn’t an entry point.
Every day you are in the media for good or for bad and sometimes this is not helping the driver or the team to control the driver in the best way as well. But Ferrari is Ferrari and the biggest, most famous team in Formula One, so you have a lot more pressure there than at another team.
Nobody wants to lose Ferrari. And I don’t think Ferrari can afford to lose Formula One.
Formula One cars are very difficult to drive, and we need all of our skills.
First time I looked at a Formula One car in person, I just stared at the cockpit, figuring I’d never get in there. The drivers wear the whole car like a tight-fitting suit.
After 10 weeks away from Formula One, when they started the engine here at Valencia and everything was vibrating, I found myself sitting in the RB7 and smiling.
I have been in Formula One for 12 years, and out of that I had one year with the perfect car.
I’ve driven a Formula One car, flown a helicopter, flown with the Red Arrows, met kings and queens, been to the White House.
I’m sure everyone has a cool story behind how they got into Formula One, but, for me, Perth, you know, not only in Australia is it detached, but it’s detached from the whole world.
In Colombia maybe 95% of the population follow Formula One. It’s crazy.
Sometimes in Formula One the fans are too far away from what is going on the track.
Millions around the world see Formula One as the pinnacle of motorsport, and I firmly believe that we should do whatever it takes to keep this accolade. Traction control, automatic gear changes, and launch control isn’t my definition of the ‘pinnacle of motorsport.’
I’m a car fanatic and each morning I wake up with a smile on my face, whether I’m commentating on the Formula One or at Silver Hatch racetrack in Roary the Racing Car.
When I joined Formula One, I knew that what I found is that the cars are so much faster, and it took me a little while to understand where to always put the car.
I have a long-term contract with the team and have said many times that there is only one Bernie Ecclestone. What he has done for Formula One is incredible and in my opinion he is irreplaceable.
There is so much more demand for Formula One than it can supply. You have governments investing in circuits all over the world, and the private sector sometimes has a tough time competing with that.
American people are very patriotic, but there is no driver to get behind and support. I don’t see why Formula One cannot be something America is a part of. I wouldn’t say it’s too European at all.
And that just shows you how important the car is in Formula One Racing.
Staging Formula One is incredibly expensive.
I still wanted to race in Formula One, for a correct team, a nice team, one that is professional, where you would feel important. But there was no position for me to carry on, so I felt if that opportunity wasn’t there, then it would be better for me to stop, and start thinking about doing different things.
But, being away from Formula One for a whole year, I think it’s not easy to come back into Formula One because people forget very quickly about you – it was really hard to go back.
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