An extravagant start to the season, but F1's 75th anniversary celebrations have been muted since
Getty Images via F1
Formula 1 turned 75 this year, a big milestone for the championship that hosted its first race on May 13, 1950. In that time, motor sport has witnessed dramatic technical changes, celebrated true heroes behind the wheel and created memories that will last lifetimes. But I can’t help but feel that not enough has been done to commemorate the milestone as we pass the half way point of the season.
It looked like we could be in for something special when F1 75 Live was announced ahead of the season. The show, hosted at the O2 Arena in London, was a chance for teams to show off new liveries and get fans closer to the action and their favourite drivers. Hosted by comedian Jack Whitehall, the event was generally considered a success, delivering plenty of entertaining moments, despite colour schemes that looked almost identical to last season’s.
However, it felt like something was missing. There were videos that highlighted champions of the past, both drivers and teams, but for a show that played into Formula 1’s 75th anniversary, it fell a little flat in terms of referencing the archive of races that got us to that point.
McLaren got the brief, displaying its 2025 challenger ahead of four special machines from its past including the MP4/13 from 1998, which won the team’s last constructors’ title until 2024. McLaren has also done a great job this year in hosting events for fans that showcase its journey to this point including London Live in Trafalgar Square ahead of the British Grand Prix.
But aside from F1 75 Live, there’s not really been much this season that has celebrated this impressive milestone, especially compared to other racing categories.
F1 has posted highlights of the first-ever world championship race, the 1950 British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which had been colourised to mark the occasion. Shared 75 years to the day — 13 May — it must have been a huge task for whoever was involved but unfortunately appears to have been a one-off. Viewers asked for more in the comments, and the video currently has 230,000 views on F1’s YouTube channel alone, but perhaps lack of footage or licensing arrangements prevented such a series from continuing.
I am always happy to watch races from the past and learn more – which is why Motor Sport‘s Archive is such a crucial part of my education – so I wish the championship was able to use a blend of current and recognisable drivers, alongside stars from the past, to tell us their special stories in a documentary-style series for YouTube and beyond.
F1 attempted one of its most ambitious projects yet with a spectacular 75th anniversary season launch event – James Elson was in the throng, trying to keep up with the action
That way we would link in known personalities, such as Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton or Lando Norris, and get them to tell us about their favourite champions growing up, most-loved races, or discuss big stories from the sport. Make use of that giant archive of history F1 has: tell fans why they should care, excite them or let them reminisce. There is also the chance to hear from older figures too, from Jackie Stewart to Keke Rosberg and Mika Häkkinen, as well as the creative minds that have shaped our sport: the possibilities are endless!
Perhaps some of this disappointment also stemmed from watching MotoGP deliver a brilliant 75th anniversary event at Silverstone last year. The weekend was made into a retro throwback, both in the paddock and also on track with all 11 teams running a vintage livery across the weekend. Much like the F1 75 show, each team revealed their unique look through a global live stream and even the opening titles were given a nostalgic makeover.
Jackie Stewart and Max Verstappen: two world champions seven decades apart
Getty Images via Red Bull
Of course, demanding a mandatory change of liveries presents itself with a big challenge, with potential push back from sponsors and teams as well as the chance of confusion from casual viewers, but what a fun opportunity to pay homage to the championship’s history.
We’ve explored this idea at Motor Sport before, picking our favourite options for each team, but it feels unlikely to happen now as we approach the second half of the season, which has only Monza left as an original location on the inaugural 1950 calendar.
MotoGP celebrated 75 years of the motorcycle world championship last year at Silverstone with each of its 12 teams racing in classic liveries, inspired by memorable years or title-winning figures…
Five years ago F1 marked 70 years of racing during a season heavily impacted by the Covid pandemic. As a result of needing to condense the calendar and race behind closed doors, Silverstone hosted two events on consecutive weekends. As there couldn’t be two British Grands Prix, one of the events was known as the 70th Anniversary Grand Prix and allowed F1 to give a nod to its history.
During 2020, there was also a significant push from the F1 content team on its heritage, including placing older graphics over modern races, looking back at laps of Monaco over the years as it remained relatively unchanged, and getting the then-current grid to watch back old highlights and give commentary.
F1 also ran a special opening sequence for its 1000th race at the 2019 Chinese Grand Prix, but all we’ve had this season was Hans Zimmer’s score from the F1 movie instead of the usual Brian Tyler theme ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix.
Maybe I am making mountains out of molehills here, but I am just disappointed that more hasn’t been done to celebrate the championship’s past at a time when interest in Formula 1 has never been higher.
You’ve got a wave of new fans in their millions, largely thanks to Netflix’s Drive to Survive and the F1 movie released this summer, and three-quarters of a century worth of action and adventure: do something with it.
