The start to every Formula 1 season is always highly anticipated but there’s another event that proceeds the start of the campaign that fans also get very excited about.
After pre-season testing concluded in Bahrain, the next event on the Formula 1 calendar was the release of the latest season of Drive to Survive.
The seventh season of DTS dropped the Friday before the Australian Grand Prix and detailed the 2024 season.
The 10 episodes of season seven of Drive to Survive chronicled Max Verstappen’s fourth consecutive championship victory, but also highlighted the progress that McLaren and Lando Norris made.
Norris was congratulated by Verstappen when he won his first Grand Prix in Miami although Drive to Survive didn’t make it look like the Dutchman was that happy for his rival.
The impact of the Netflix show on Formula 1’s popularity can’t be underestimated and has shared the sport with millions of new fans.
However, Norris was being interviewed by CNBC and spoke about the impact of the series on his life and F1 in general.
While the McLaren star was generally positive about the series, he admitted there’s one particular downside that he’s not a fan of.
Norris issued his verdict on Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari on the show and featured heavily as McLaren went on to win the constructors’ championship.
Unfortunately, he has an issue with how certain stories are sometimes framed to create maximum drama for the viewer while potentially bending the truth on occasion.
Lando Norris explains ‘the other’ side of featuring on Drive to Survive as a Formula 1 driver
Norris was asked about Drive to Survive and the impact it’s had on the sport and he said: “Netflix are very good at always hiding, and being in places, and sometimes you don’t realise until after.
“I think the whole part of Netflix has been great for everyone. I think it’s been great for the sport of Formula 1. It’s been great for the people watching, our fans, our spectators, to see more of us, to see more of like the athletes inside the team, [and] how it works.
“I think that now people see us more as people and our personalities and things. So, I think that’s been a good thing.
“The one thing, the other thing, the contrary side of it, is you have a lot of stuff said about you and things that are said that are not true, or they take out parts of your interviews, or one thing that you said and don’t include the whole picture of things.
READ MORE: McLaren mechanic says he won’t watch Drive to Survive again after what he saw in season seven
“So then people speculate and come up with stories and I’ve not always been the best.
“I can happily admit that I grew up on social media, so I’ve always been one to read my comments and read all these things, and at times, it affects me a lot, especially in my younger days.
“There’s definitely been lines crossed at times with people just coming up with such false statements that create a picture and a narrative of you and I think that’s the only thing I dislike at times.
“It can be quite a big brand or a company that come out with such a thing that is false and really leads the narrative about you.”
Lando Norris likely to feature heavily in next season of Drive to Survive
Planning will already be well underway for the next season of Drive to Survive and the sight of boom mics hanging above drivers heads was spotted during pre-season testing in Bahrain.
Drive to Survive have hinted at their plans for covering Hamilton’s move to Ferrari although the seven-time world champion has never featured too prominently in the show before.
As McLaren are the reigning constructors’ champions and Norris is one of the favourites to end Verstappen’s dominance over F1, he’s likely to be a key protagonist in Season 8 of the series.
READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration
The 25-year-old has a huge profile outside of Formula 1 with millions of followers on social media and the ability to sell out grandstands at Silverstone to just his fans.
However, he has a point when it comes to the way he and others are portrayed on the program.
For example, there’s no mention of George Russell being disqualified from the 2024 Belgian Grand Prix and fans would believe he won that race legitimately just from watching the third episode.
It’s scenarios like that which put drivers in awkward positions and can spark an online backlash that they don’t need.
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