Will Buxton was part of F1’s media before Netflix came along, giving him the surprising chance to become one of Drive to Survive‘s (DTS) main guests. It was a huge boost to his popularity, and while he has also become a meme for some of his comments on the show, Buxton has been an integral part of it. Looking back on this journey, Buxton revealed that being on DTS was a “complete accident”.
Speaking on the Road to Success podcast, Buxton recalled how he got the chance to feature in the Netflix docu-series in the first place. It was F1’s commercial head Sean Bratches, who asked Buxton to do some interviews for the Netflix show in 2018. Buxton thought it would be the other way around.
“Drive to Survive came about as a complete accident because I didn’t know I was going to be interviewed. I thought I was going to be the interviewer.”
It’s DTS day!!! Streaming exclusively on @netflix right now, catch season 3 of Drive to Survive. @BoxToBoxFilms has done a phenomenal job of capturing and telling the story of a unique year. Proud to have played a small part. Go and binge the whole thing now!! pic.twitter.com/aYHuGfMNyX
— Will Buxton (@wbuxtonofficial) March 19, 2021
When he showed up to do those interviews for DTS, it was a completely different setup. In what was a very rare occasion, Buxton was in the hot seat of the interviewee and had to answer questions about F1 per Netflix’s script.
Amid this, Buxton explained how he was quite slow to process this shift of roles and being in front of the camera. That is why, in the earlier seasons, he took long pauses in between several lines. He stated, “I was sort of taking my time because the cogs [in my brain] were kinda turning.”
This also explains why in the earlier seasons of DTS, Buxton had made some seemingly obvious comments that might have been self-explanatory for well-versed fans of the sport.
Why Buxton became a meme in Drive to Survive
In several episodes of Drive to Survive, Will Buxton made comments like, “If a driver gets pole, he starts ahead of the other 19 drivers.” Fans on social media have often mocked the F1 presenter for dramatizing such quotes in the Netflix show, pointing out that they don’t add any real insights about the sport.
However, of late, Buxton’s insights have become smarter and more hilarious. For instance, in season six, he addressed Haas’ 2023 struggles by a superb sarcastic analogy that ‘for a swordfight, Haas are bringing a spoon!’
This only underscores Buxton’s F1 experience and depth of understanding, as not everyone can deliver such quick-witted analogies to explain a driver’s or team’s situation. However, audiences tend to focus on the overly obvious comments and judge Buxton based on those, often overlooking the insights behind them.
Nevertheless, Buxton has reached a level in F1 where he is a highly respected presenter and also published two books on the sport. His journey from being a reporter-writer to leading F1TV’s broadcast is quite inspirational for many aspirants who want to work in motorsport.
