The proceedings swerved a bit from the usual festive narrative at the start of the Formula 1 US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas. In the pre-race show, the F1TV presenters went about their jobs wearing black armbands. They were worn as a tribute to Pete Samara, whose sudden demise sent the whole F1 bandwagon into mourning. Samara, who worked as the Director of Innovation and Digital Technology at Formula 1, was 52.
Samara was the behind-the-scenes person running the broadcast and directing the live action for the screens. He worked in this position for seven years and four months, as per his LinkedIn profile.
Before this role, he worked as the R&D Group Manager. Samara’s journey with the pinnacle of motorsport lasted 14 years and 10 months in total.
Right. It is because of the passing of Pete Samara, F1 Director of Innovation. #F1TV #F1TVPro #F1Live #USGP #AustinGP #F1 https://t.co/Q4yiCniBH0 pic.twitter.com/5A6CRYv23P
— Reinder Juta (@iuptr) October 20, 2024
The cause of his death has not been announced till the time of publishing of the article. As per Formule1 Magazine’s Andre Venema, Samara died ‘unexpectedly’. The lack of information or clarity has understandably left the F1 fraternity puzzled.
“FOM staff wear black armbands in Austin. Formula 1’s Director of Innovation & Digital Technology Pete Samara has died unexpectedly at the age of 52.”
RIP Pete. Hope @COTA does you proud today. #F1 #USGP https://t.co/ax7fO3WLto
— FormulaNerds (@Formula_Nerds) October 20, 2024
The distress among his colleagues, who went about their work running the US Grand Prix in his absence, was palpable. The show did go on and the kudos to that should go to Samara who has clearly helped build a tight professional set-up.
Past incidents of use of black armbands in F1
Black armbands are a common sight in sports to honor someone who has passed away. It has also been employed to express solidarity for a cause. The practice can be traced back to 1614, when it was possibly recorded for the first time. A portrait of the Queen of Bohemia from the year depicts her sporting an armband to mourn her deceased brother.
While it is not known when the practice came into prevalence in F1, other sports such as soccer and cricket have practiced it for decades. One of the first instances of it in F1 was in 2015 when the drivers wore a black armband at the Brazilian GP to express their solidarity with the victims of the Paris terror attacks, which claimed 129 lives.
More recent examples include some British and non-British drivers sporting black armbands to commemorate the passing of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022. The most recently reported incident before Samara’s death is in 2024.
That was when Renault’s engine staff staged a peaceful protest during the race weekend at Monza. They were protesting against the team’s decision to end their engine manufacturing program.
