McLaren were a dream for the Drive to Survive producers at times during the 2024 F1 season. There wasn’t necessarily conflict at Woking, but there was controversy.
First and foremost, there was the developing rivalry with Red Bull. Rather than Lando Norris and Max Verstappen, it was Zak Brown and Christian Horner who were at odds most often.
Norris and Verstappen only came to blows on track once during the season – at the end of the Austrian Grand Prix. The McLaren driver was left with race-ending damage while the Red Bull superstar dropped from the lead to fifth due to his puncture.
In Mexico, Verstappen picked up two 10-second penalties for, in the eyes of the stewards, running Norris off the road twice in the space of one lap. The Englishman called his title rival ‘dangerous’ over the radio.
Internally, McLaren managed to control the tension as Oscar Piastri made a second-year leap and started challenging his teammate. Some felt the team maintained parity for too long, though, rather than prioritising Norris’ pursuit of Verstappen.
Both of these narratives feature in the latest Drive to Survive season, which released on Friday. In one particularly memorable clip, Horner says Verstappen would never have obeyed team orders in the same way Norris did at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Oscar Piastri mechanic unhappy with ‘joke’ Drive to Survive
Writing on his X account, McLaren mechanic Barry Childs said he tried to watch Drive to Survive on his flight to Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix. But it’s ‘the last time’ he’ll tune in.
He wanted to give the show another chance, having last watched it when it debuted in 2019. It’s unclear what exactly he took issue with this time, but he called it a ‘joke’.
Childs is a mechanic on Piastri’s side of the garage. He celebrated the team’s first constructors’ title since 1998 at the end of last year.
“Watched one episode of DTS on the flight from Sydney to Melbourne,” he wrote. “First time [I’ve watched it] since season 1 and the last time. What a joke.”
Drive to Survive shows Oscar Piastri admitting inappropriate move to McLaren
Netflix’s documentary has been an enormous success, which is why it’s already run for seven seasons. Drive to Survive crews were present at F1 testing last month too, which suggests the show has been renewed.
The show has powered a surge in the sport’s popularity, which is lucrative for the teams. That’s partly why so many have been willing to grant behind-the-scenes access.
But opinions remain split. Max Verstappen ‘hates’ Drive to Survive interviews and has previously boycotted the series over what he views as dishonest editing.
S7 appears to show Piastri regretting his aggressive overtake on Norris at the Italian Grand Prix, which opened the door for eventual race-winner Charles Leclerc to take second place. It’s an eye-opening admission if the context is correct, but an F1 fan can never entirely trust what they see on Netflix.
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