mobile app bar

“They destroyed me”: Red Bull engineer reveals why he hates Drive to Survive

Somin Bhattacharjee
Published

"They destroyed me": Red Bull engineer reveals why he hates Drive to Survive

Over the last few years, Drive to Survive has been one of the most important factors that have contributed to Formula 1’s growth and popularity. The show covers the lives of F1 stars on and off the track throughout the course of a season. DTS has definitely brought in plenty of new fans into the sport.

Even though the Netflix blockbuster has helped the sport grow, many don’t like it, including 2-time World Champion Max Verstappen. The Red Bull ace refused to be a part of the show in 2021 because he hated the unnecessary and fake drama added by Netflix.

However, other people don’t like the show for different reasons. This includes a former Red Bull engineer who goes by the name Brrrake on his social media handles. After leaving his job as a performance engineer at the Milton-Keynes-based outfit, Brrrake has become a full-time content creator.

He has his own Twitch and YouTube channel and is followed by a huge chunk of the F1 community. Brrrake is not a fan of the show because Netflix cut his scene out of an episode.

Also read: David Croft once referenced fan made video to appreciated Sebastian Vettel’s partnership with his race engineer

Brrrake told his entire family about being on Drive to Survive

In The Last Lap podcast, Brrrake revealed how Netflix crushed his excitement about being in an episode of Drive to Survive. The Brit saw the season 1 trailer and got excited when he heard his voice play. He was so excited that he told the hi family about him being on the show. However, they were disappointed when they all sat down to watch it because Netflix cut his part out.

Brrrake left F1 as a full-time performance engineer in 2017 but was at the 2018 Australian GP because his replacement was on paternity leave. As a result, he expected to see himself on TV because he was at Albert Park for the Australian GP, the race covered in the show’s first-ever episode.

“Drive to Survive uses B-roll and stuff from a lot of races,” he said. “So Melbourne 2018, my last full season was 2017. But I was at the 2018 Grand Prix filling in for my replacement. Who I think had his first kid born.”

“So I was at the race. I’m going back and watching Drive to Survive. I’m like, ‘Mom I’m going to be on TV again.’ And then there’s some shot of Hugh (his replacement) from Barcelona and I’m like ugh! They destroyed me.”

When is season 5 of DTS coming out?

Netflix’s blockbuster series DTS got renewed for both seasons 5 & 6 after the fourth season came out in 2022. Since then, fans have been eagerly waiting for its release, but they don’t have to wait much longer.

The fifth season of Drive to Survive comes out on the 24th of February. Fans will get behind-the-scenes access to how the teams adapted to major regulation changes last year in a season that wasn’t short of controversy.

Also read: F1 Concorde Agreement: What agreement teams are required to sign with F1?

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Somin Bhattacharjee

x-iconinstagram-iconlinkedin-icon

Formula 1 Editor Somin Bhattacharjee fell for the sport as well as Fernando Alonso on the same day — during the Spaniard’s thrilling victory at the German GP in 2010. Over the years, the passion magnified manyfold, and metamorphosed into a writing career in 2021. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. He has penned over 2,700 articles for TheSportsRush, presenting a diverse range — news reports, opinions, and exclusives. A true Tiffosi, Somin never gives up on a chance to defend the Ferrari boys as a fan. As a sports writer though, he remains objective to the core and relishes opportunities to follow and engage in dissecting the action during races. That’s where the real thrill lies for him. Beyond the racetrack, Somin plays different sports including soccer. He enjoys exploring other sporting events and proudly supports Spanish soccer club Real Madrid.

Share this article