F1’s Ethics Problem
F1 has always been about making money, but the ethical boundaries are getting harder to ignore. New races appear in countries with the cash but not the cleanest reputations, and F1’s rationale is always the same—it grows the sport. What that unchecked growth really does, though, is make silence into a business strategy.
You see it in driver development as well. Talent counts for a lot, but so does access. If you and your family can afford to spend millions on karting, junior series, and private coaching, then you get to play the game. If you’re can’t, then you’re out of luck before you begin. We all love an underdog story, but they just don’t come along that often in F1 because the cost of entry is prohibitive. And that goes for the people behind the scenes, too. It’s a sport full of unpaid internships and underpaid professionals working 100 hours a week for the privilege of being there. But love for F1 doesn’t pay the rent. As top teams reap sponsorships and prize money, the midfield and backmarkers are still trying to figure out how to stay alive. Also, the same few teams win over and over again, in part because they’ve constructed systems to maintain their place on top—legacy infrastructures, deeper talent pipelines, and brand leverage that turns every win into greater investment. The money is always the winner. F1 loves to speak about equity, innovation, and excellence, and in some ways, they live up to that. There are rules, but also loopholes that let the money win. The cars will always be fast, but the morals? Sometimes they are left behind.
