(Motorsport-Total.com) – The virtual Grand Prix series of Formula 1 polarizes. Some fans like the move of the premier class during the Corona compulsory break, others have little to do with the topic. Nigel Geach, an expert in the field of marketing in motorsport with several decades of professional experience, explains why the virtual races are still a success.
© F1 (YouTube)
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The Saudi Aramco logos have been specially integrated into the game zoom
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“They are really helpful, because it keeps Formula 1 – sport and people – in everyone’s mind,” he told Express Sport. “Hats off to Liberty Media and Formula 1, because they quickly created something out of necessity,” recalls Geach, for whom the races are a “great success” – for various reasons.
Because Formula 1 is not just a topic of conversation, the events also “reach a new, younger audience”, says Geach. He recalls: “It was always Formula One’s concern.” Even before the corona crisis, Liberty Media experimented with various measures to reach younger viewers. These include, for example, the Netflix deal or the live broadcast of a race on Twitch.
In addition, it was an opportunity for the participating pilots to sharpen their profile. “While we always talked about Max Verstappens, Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettels, now are the youngsters like Leclerc and Lando [Norris] brought to the fore. This is refreshing, creates a new dynamic and brings opportunities, “explains Geach.
While the top drivers Hamilton, Vettel and Verstappen do not take part in the virtual Grand Prix series, the other drivers sometimes use their own streams to promote the races and thus themselves. Mika Häkkinen also believes that the virtual races are an opportunity for the drivers. “You can always learn something,” recalls the Finn in the podcast Inside Formula 1 from ‘Unibet’.
Even if the official Formula 1 races do not necessarily convince with realism, there are also other Sim Racing series that are much closer to reality. According to Häkkinen, this could also be helpful for the pilots. “You have to prepare in the same way [wie auf ein echtes Rennen]. If you want, you can even put on your jumpsuit, “he grins.
Another important point from a commercial point of view: With the virtual races, Formula 1 can offer its partners and sponsors something during the corona crisis. The China Grand Prix on Sunday was broadcast, for example, by RTL as a live stream and by Sky on TV. In addition, the logos of the new Formula 1 sponsor Saudi Aramco were big in the game.
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