A former Formula 1 star has been left fuming at the way his beloved sport has changed since his racing days – with the glitz and glam of being seen and snapped in the paddock now seemingly more important than the racing on the track.
Christian Danner raced in F1 for four years between 1985 and 1989 alongside the likes of Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Niki Lauda and Nigel Mansell. Recognised by some as the greatest era of racing with its fierce and charismatic rivalries, F1 is certainly a different world today.
The rise of social media has brought another element to F1 events in the modern era, and especially since the Drive to Survive boom, the sport has firmly transcended beyond the walls of the track.
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Speaking exclusively to the Daily Star Sport, via Lottoland Live Casino, Danner explained how F1 has evolved to become the juggernaut it is today, not just for the nerds. The 68-year-old German said: “It is clearly different to when I started racing in Formula One. Don’t forget, that was back in 1985. I did my first race at Brands Hatch. And it was a different world then compared to now.
“However, all the way through the years, and I followed Formula One extremely closely because I actually attended every race for the past 28 years. I was at the spot at every race.
“So the takeover by Liberty has created a move in a direction where you can’t afford to have racing nerds only watching the race. You needed more people. And the fact that they did it really well, you can see that every weekend. They actually improved the platform called Formula One dramatically.
“This leads, of course, to a very different kind of Formula One world. Of course, the Middle East is something that is self-explanatory. You don’t have to really explain that.
“I’ll give you an example. In my days, when something important happened, there were a few papers or maybe agencies, and they talked about it. But they did talk about it. It kind of appeared in the paper three days later or a week later.
“And it depended very much on the person who was there and actually saw, say, Stefan Johansson had a new girlfriend or Senna was having a discussion or something. Nowadays, it’s all in real time and the variety of things that matter are not racing only.
Danner went on to point to Gabriel Bortoleto’s girlfriend Isabella Bernardini arriving at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix wearing a dress that had been custom-made from an Audi F1 team t-shirt, which got plenty of attention in the paddock, no more so than from the struggling Audi team.
“Audi, bloody Audi, they have technical problems and engine failure and hydraulics and whatever else. Every time my good friend Allan McNish mentions something officially, it’s a technical issue,” Danner fumed.
“Next time I see him, I’ll rub it up his a***, I tell you, because they have a huge programme about the fact that Gabriel Bortoleto’s girlfriend is wearing a designer outfit, kind of put together by a British designer, and she’s going to enter the paddock at 9:15.
“And the next news was, ‘No, no, they’re early. They’re coming at 9:05. Just be aware of this beautiful lady and Gabriel Bortoleto entering the pit lane, and she is wearing a kind of made-up thing from a merchandising dress.
“So all you could see was a beautiful young girl with nice boots or whatever it takes. And that was Formula One. It was impossible in my days.
“We talked about racing, we talked about Piquet telling bad stories about Mansell. We talked about Senna having his fights with Jean-Marie Balestre and with the FIA. We talked about racing issues.
“Now the racing issues, Audi, coming back to McNish and his technical issue, it’s not so important. Social media has totally, totally changed Formula One. And you can actually absorb it a lot easier and enjoy it a lot easier.
“If you and I talk about a problem with a bloody electric engine and a deployment strategy, forget it. Forget it. Nobody, no normal person wants to listen to it.
“A few racing nerds, I have endless discussions about these things. And I’m one of the very, very few old drivers who is on top of the situation because it’s interesting. I love it. It’s a part of motor racing.
“Do I like it? No. I don’t like the engine regulations. They are crap. However, how to cope with it is very interesting. And that’s something that matters for the drivers.
“But it’s much easier to have a look at Gabriel Bortoleto’s girlfriend and be a part of Formula One. And all of those influencers.
“Everybody’s an influencer. And everybody says, (mimicking selfie) ‘Oh, here’s me, here’s me.’ That’s the modern world. And I don’t blame Formula One for having gone with them because it’s just modern times.
“I mean, Kim Kardashian is the same. And when bloody Elle Macpherson was dating Senna. When she turned up, yes, the world was excited because Elle Macpherson was a woman that the world knew, but it wasn’t the main issue.
“I mean, all the other drivers, we were very jealous. ‘Senna bloody ended up with that girl.’ But at the end of the day, it was a side thing. It wasn’t really important. It was more important who won the race.”
Danner continued to compare the way that Kim K has been focused on since appearing in the paddock with Hamilton, and praised the way that the former FIA president Max Mosley separated the commercial and sporting side of the sport.
The German also complimented the committed work of current boss Mohammed Ben Sulayem as the threat of the sport selling out to influencers mounts.
He continued: “I think there is some danger. However, I’m very optimistic because we do have an FIA president who is very, very much a motor racing lover. And he might come over sometimes a bit harsh, but he is a seriously good man for our sport.
“Thank Max Mosley, we have the two issues, the Formula One management, which is the commercial side of it, and the sporting side of it, which is the FIA, completely separated.
“Max did all that. It was Max’s idea. It was Max’s, basically, lifetime achievement, was exactly that. And because of that, we do have a chance that the racing spirit remains. If it was only FOM, we’d be gone.
“But it’s a very healthy mix and they get on with each other, and it takes strong characters to actually survive in that environment. I think we’re safe, we’re safe.”