As a kid, Mike Janik could be found spending his days crashing Hot Wheels cars together and playing racing games.
Now, two decades later, he’s “giddy” knowing he’s attending this weekend’s 2022 Formula One Canadian Grand Prix in Montreal — and can check watching “the pinnacle of motorsports” off his bucket list.
Growing up, Janik had always followed more of the rally scene. Until one day, he stumbled upon F1 highlights on YouTube and his interest went “from zero to 100.”
“I went from having no knowledge of it to … at the drop of a hat, at the snap of a finger, I tune in for every race weekend,” Janik said. “I don’t miss a beat.”
Since the Netflix series Drive to Survive — featuring behind-the-scenes footage of the usually secretive racing teams — debuted in 2019, the audience for F1 has skyrocketed. In May, the show was confirmed for fifth and sixth seasons. And Apple Studios confirmed it’s producing a racing film starring Brad Pitt co-produced by champion driver Lewis Hamilton.
But it’s more than other studios trying to cash in on the new audience for F1. Other sports, like the PGA Tour, want to see if they can too.
While F1 focuses on high-octane racing, the show…
