Each season of the famous Drive to Survive series provides unseen footage of a particular campaign. For example, season 5 of Drive to Survive covered the 2022 season. Although the Netflix show attempts to cover as many pivotal moments from a particular season as possible, they too miss out on a few key incidents. Here is a look at five potential key events that the producers missed out on in season 5.
Sebastian Vettel
Although Sebastian Vettel was competing in his last F1 season in 2022, season 5 of Drive to Survive barely had any coverage on him. Most of the scenes involving the four-time champion that fans witnessed were shot by the F1 cameras during race weekends itself.
It was surprising to see that the Netflix producers did not care to provide any behind-the-scenes coverage about the four-time world champion. Even Daniel Ricciardo, who failed to receive a race seat for the 2023 season, received a sending-off in season 5 of Drive to Survive.
The entire grid went out for dinner to celebrate Vettel’s last race
(via landonorris/IG) pic.twitter.com/FIgoZZyTFZ
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) November 17, 2022
George Russell’s maiden win in Brazil
Another key event that Netflix did not properly cover in season 5 of Drive to Survive was George Russell’s maiden F1 victory at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix. That also happens to be the last race Mercedes won since they failed to secure a victory in the entirety of the 2023 season.
Since Russell’s win in 2022 was also the only race that Mercedes won that year, it seems strange that the Drive to Survive producers overlooked this moment. Another key reason why the 2022 Brazilian GP was important for Russell was that he managed to win a race that year ahead of his seven-time world champion teammate, Lewis Hamilton.
No behind-the-scenes footage of Max Verstappen vs Sergio Perez drama
Although tensions were high between the two Red Bull teammates in the 2022 season, Drive to Survive’s season 5 seemed to ignore that. Their rivalry reached a boiling point at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix when Max Verstappen decided to ignore team orders.
Red Bull had ordered the Dutchman to help Perez in the race since he had already sealed his second championship. However, Verstappen not only ignored the team’s orders but also gave a feisty message (as quoted by Sky Sports),
“I told you already last summer. You guys don’t ask that again to me, ok? Are we clear about that? I gave my reasons and I stand by it“.
As per Verstappen, he had already informed Red Bull about why he was not keen to help Perez seal P2 in the championship. Perez was unsurprisingly unhappy with Verstappen defying team orders and took to the radio and said, “It shows who he really is“. Although Netflix usually showcases such drama, they seemed to completely ignore what transpired between the two Red Bull teammates.
FIA’s new rule that bans making of political statements
The FIA had introduced a controversial rule at the end of the 2022 season, as per which drivers were banned from making political statements. Several drivers such as Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton openly slammed this rule change.
The new rule does not permit any driver to make a “political, religious, or personal” statement without prior approval. Since the new rule is so contentious, there was an expectation that Netflix’s Drive to Survive will delve further into the behind-the-scenes discussions. However, it seems that the production team turned a blind eye to this rule change.
Lando Norris and his girlfriend receiving death threats
Drive to Survive often attempts to cover the familial life of some of the biggest names in the sport. Since Lando Norris is one of the top drivers at McLaren, there was an expectation that the producers would have perhaps considered covering the time the Briton and his girlfriend, Luisinha Oliveira, received death threats.
Speaking of the same, Norris said in June 2022 that receiving death threats was nothing new for him. However, he did explain the impact the same had on his girlfriend at the time.
“The amount of hate pages on social media dedicated to Luisinha now is pretty horrific,” he explained. Since the topic of death threats is such a sensitive topic, the Netflix producers could have perhaps added this content and explained the cons of being a celebrity.
