Sky Sports F1 Accused Of 'Demonizing' Max Verstappen And Sebastian Vettel

Saajan Jogia | Sep 11, 2024

May 4, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Red Bull pioneering engineer and Chief Technical officer Adrian Newey on the grid before the F1 Sprint Race at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images / John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Adrian Newey pointed out how Sky Sports F1 has been "demonizing" Formula 1 world champions Max Verstappen and Sebastian Vettel, highlighting a "nationalistic" approach to its coverage of the premier class of motorsport.

Newey revealed crucial details on the High Performance podcast that went live on the day of his Aston Martin signing, where it was announced that he would take on the role of managing technical partner and shareholder from March 2025. The 65-year-old spoke at length about his 18-year eventful tenure at Red Bull, where he served as the chief technical officer until May 2024.

Newey worked closely with two of Formula 1's most successful drivers, Verstappen and Vettel. This experience gave him valuable insight into their characters, leading him to call out Sky F1 for a negative portrayal of both drivers. Sky has held the rights to broadcast Formula 1 in Ireland and the UK since 2012, with a contract slated to expire in 2029. It also broadcasts Formula 1 in markets such as the USA. Newey said:

“I think from the outside I’m not sure people fully appreciate and understand Max, just like they didn’t with Sebastian.

“First of all, there’s this sort of demonisation both of them suffered at times, which I think is very unfair, and maybe that’s also a little bit of the British media, if I’m honest.

“Sky have a huge influence around the world, their viewing is truly international, but their coverage is quite nationalistic dare I say, and that can have an influence.

“It’s this thing that now with journalism typically, there is that trend to sort of either put people on a pedestal or knock them down.”

When the aero guru was asked what message he would like to send people who perceived Verstappen incorrectly, he said:

“I think that he’s very intelligent, and he’s got an incredible ability to… It almost feels as if he can drive the car automatic.

“He doesn’t, of course, but he can drive the car and has so much processing power left over that he can then think a lot about how he’s driving the car, how he’s looking after the tyres, what he might need to do on the settings, or if he doesn’t, if he’s not sure, ask GP [race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase] on the radio what he should be doing, but highlighting the problems. Reading the race. It still fascinates me.

“Fernando is another one that can do that, that seems to be able to read the race, but they haven’t got all the stuff in front of them. How do they do that? I don’t know.

“I mean, I know you can see also the diamond vision. And they do that. It’s amazing how the drivers can see the diamond vision. Look up and see.”