AT THE first episode of Drive to Survive’s third season, there’s a scene where drivers are making light of initial reports about a strange, new virus.
And then, of course, this virus would ultimately end up putting F1 on hold, before the sport finally roared back into action.
Drive to Survive S3 takes us, once again, inside the paddocks of the biggest F1 teams, but this time, under the shadow of an uncertain year. From a maiden win in Monza to the breaking of F1 race records, it was a roller-coaster of events all throughout the season ⏤ and Netflix’s cameras were there to capture key moments.
This season delivers more action and more drama as we look back on F1’s strangest season yet. Once again, we get up close and personal with the team principals (arguably the real stars of the show) and the drivers. Thankfully, there’s more exposure for the majority of the grid.
If you’re wondering what this ten-episode season has for you, here are some key moments to watch out for. Spoilers ahead.
Reminiscing the pre-COVID paddock life
It feels strange now to watch crowds of people gathered and engaged in physical contact without any face masks on.
However, amid the growing threat of COVID-19 (a McLaren team member even ended up testing positive), the season-opening race was postponed before the lights went out at Albert Park. Succeeding races soon got delayed (with some being ultimately canceled), and fans did not see any on-track action until July.
The “Pink Mercedes” debacle
All eyes were on Racing Point as the team unveiled a fast 2020 challenger in the form of the RP20. The catch? It was strikingly similar to the 2019 championship-winning car of the Mercedes, the W10.
We see the other teams looking very unhappy about this, and the saga continues until the 5th episode where it is revealed that Racing Point was fined by the FIA for that exact reason. As Racing Point took the spotlight, its owner, Lawrence Stroll, became more visible in this season as he publicly lamented the protests lodged against them.
Driver market drama
As early as May, the driver market was already going crazy with Scuderia Ferrari publicly announcing that it would not renew the contract of 4-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel.
This was soon followed by the announcement that Carlos Sainz Jr. would be replacing him in the Italian team, and his place in McLaren being filled by Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo.
What a shocking week that was for the sport, and Netflix made sure to get every bit of the drama that went behind it. You’ll see the reactions of the different team bosses, most notably Cyril Abiteboul who did not shy away from expressing his dismay over Daniel’s decision. We also hear the reasoning that each driver had for their respective decisions and the teams part amicably by the end of the season.
Woes of the Prancing Horse
It’s no secret that Ferrari had a dismal 2020 campaign. From their surprise decision to drop Seb, to the Scuderia’s controversial settlement with the FIA over their 2019 engine, things seemed to have gone downhill for the legendary team.
Speculation arose on Seb’s future in the sport, and it wasn’t until September that he announced his move to Aston Martin ⏤ an announcement that caused a stir as he did it ahead of Ferrari’s 1000th GP in Mugello.
The Ferrari-centric 4th episode shows how the atmosphere at the Maranello-based team became so low that Vettel was told not to make jokes. While there were barely any memorable and redeeming moments for Ferrari throughout the year, it was interesting to see the trainwreck unfold.
Red Bull’s driver saga
It seems as though the tables turned for two Red Bull-backed drivers whose storylines now parallel each other after just one season. This led to the question of whether or not Red Bull made the right call in 2019 with their chosen replacement for Pierre.
In case you forgot, Pierre Gasly was famously demoted back to Red Bull’s sister team, Toro Rosso (now known as AlphaTauri), and this was one of the main highlights for the second season of the series. We saw the rise of Alex Albon, and how he was able to adjust well to the RB15 and the management of Christian Horner.
However, that would not be the case for this new season as the Thai driver struggled heavily and was demoted to a reserve driver role for 2021 in favor of Sergio Perez. On the other hand, Gasly exhibited great performances and was able to bag an emotional win in Monza ⏤ which, by the way, was documented fantastically and was one of our favorite parts of the season.
Fierce teammate battles
Formula 1 is a highly competitive sport where the most important battles are as likely to happen inside the paddock as they are on the grid.
Mercedes may have been dominant all throughout the year, but that does not excuse them from in-team drama. We’ve all seen the flak that Valtteri Bottas has drawn just for being teammates with 7-time champion Lewis Hamilton. The Finnish driver may be one of the more private drivers on the grid, but this season shows us a different and more competitive side to him.
We get an insight into some of the strategies that he’s done to outsmart Lewis and his storyline would just make you want to root for him even more in the coming year.
The fight for third in the Constructors’ standings
McLaren was one of the teams with a great run in 2020. The Woking-based team rose through the midfield, before getting locked into a fierce, down-to-the-wire battle for third against Renault and Racing Point.
After a lack of appearances in the previous seasons, fans would be happy to know that McLaren’s Lando Norris now has some well-deserved screen time, thanks to his maiden podium in Austria, as well as an episode that highlighted his relationship with Ferrari-bound teammate, Carlos Sainz Jr. Tension brewed within the team, but we also saw how the management of Zak Brown has turned it into a healthy competition that led to the team’s success.
Ultimately, they achieved their goal of finishing 3rd in the constructors’ standings and are looking forward to 2021.
Grosjean’s crash and the struggles at Haas
The season’s penultimate episode came with a strong reminder of how dangerous it is to be a Formula 1 driver.
Romain Grosjean’s crash in Bahrain formed the center of this ep, the horrific moment given even more drama by the docu editors. It briefly showed us the reactions of the teams and how none of them could believe Romain’s miraculous escape from the inferno. We also see the severe damage that the car endured, and this episode has for sure ended any debate over the introduction of the halo (which may have ended up saving Grosjean’s life).
Unfortunately, this would be the last season where we see Romain and his teammate Kevin Magnussen, as they were dropped by Haas before the year ended. The episode goes in-depth on the immense financial woes that led to the decision and the signing of their new rookie line-up.
What else to expect
Aside from these key moments, the season also featured the incredible charge of Sergio Perez from last to first in Sakhir, some glimpses on the improvements within Alfa Romeo, and the importance of Lewis Hamilton’s advocacy and his fight against racial inequality.
Of course, how can we forget his iconic 92nd victory in the Portuguese Grand Prix that surpassed Michael Schumacher’s all-time F1 win record?
What Netflix missed
However, there was a key moment that was missing from the season, and that was George Russell swooping in to replace Lewis as he tested positive for coronavirus.
We all know how heartbreaking that race ended for the young Brit, but it was a testament to his strong driving ability and a defining moment for his career. Netflix could have given us George’s insights on that and the botched pitstop that cost him his maiden win.
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