Jannik Sinner and Formula 1 recently announced a collaboration to promote the motorsport. The Italian, now officially labelled a ‘Friend of F1′, revealed his love for the sport and was excited about the partnership. Italy is arguably the global hub of automobiles, making this collaboration perhaps the most ideal at the moment.
Italy has a storied history in F1, with Ferrari being the most successful team. To further increase their mass appeal, they have now onboarded Sinner to engage fans and promote the brand. The World No.4 was recently voted as the Fans’ Favorite singles player for 2023, making him the perfect choice. As a Friend of F1, he will attend certain Grand Prix races to promote Formula 1 and increase the sport’s following.
Speaking after the association became official, Sinner expressed his passion for F1 and his eagerness to join hands with the company. He said he was honoured to become a Friend of F1 and hoped he could show tennis fans what motorsport has to offer.
“Being Italian, F1 is in my blood, so I couldn’t be more excited to be working with not only the best brand in motorsports but the best sports platform in the world. I am honored to be given this opportunity and truly thrilled to be a Friend of F1. I want to help showcase the amazing things that [the] sport of racing has to offer and Formula 1 are the perfect partner to do so.”
The Davis Cup champion called this collaboration ‘unique’ and said tennis and F1 are quite similar.
“This relationship is something totally different and unique, we’re both in such competitive environments and I think there’s a lot of synergies between the two, which this partnership will showcase.”
Apart from Ferrari, teams like Alpha Tauri, Alfa Romeo, and Maserati have represented Italy in Formula 1 over the years. Hence, it is no surprise that Sinner is an ardent F1 given his country’s rich heritage in the sport.
Jannik Sinner believes tennis and F1 are similar
As Tennis and Formula 1 both continue to attract more viewers from younger generations, Sinner’s endorsement will draw more tennis fans to the motorsport. He talked about his love for racing and drew parallels between that and his trade. He said both tennis and motorsports are about the small margins and details.
“Putting it simply, I love cars, motorsport, and the thrill of racing and competing. One of the main reasons why I love F1, whether that’s watching, karting with my friends, or racing in a simulator, is because I feel there’s a lot of synergies between tennis and racing. I feel that in both sports it’s all about the 1% and it’s the small details that make a huge difference.”
The Italian talked about how constructors and drivers work hard only for races to come down to milliseconds. He admired how race drivers perform under intense pressure so frequently.
“I find it so interesting how teams can improve the car, and how the drivers maximise their performance and their skill set to beat their rival by milliseconds. It’s fascinating how they compete and perform under the most extreme pressure at the highest level week in and week out.”
Roping in the 2023 Fans’ Favorite Player would surely prove to be a masterstroke from Formula 1. The CEO and President of F1 also expressed his happiness with the partnership, saying it will pull in new viewers.
