How glitzy car launches can help sustain the F1 boom

It was only a handful of years ago that showy Formula 1 car launches appeared to be a dying art. Unveils had become little more than afterthoughts. Never mind appearances by the Spice Girls and Jamiroquai; forget demonstration runs in major cities; there wasn’t even a split livery as a talking point. No, official reveals were largely reduced to whipping off a dust cover on the first day of pre-season testing while a press release was sent out but lost almost immediately amid the on-track running.

But, as another small indicator of F1’s current popularity boom, there’s been something of a recent return to form. In these times of ‘more is more’, there’s an appetite for any kind of spectacle. Car launches provide another source.

Understandably, the pandemic forced virtual presentations and there’s still something of a hangover. Many make do with digital car renders and an edited video for the sake of time, cost and resource. Others opt for the staged and awkward pseudo-press conference style that seems to be invariably held in a cold and echoey room. But it’s still an improvement from the half-baked pitlane presentations.

AlphaTauri has massively upped its game and is set for quite the change of tack. For 2022 - arguably the greatest rule change in grand prix history when radically different-looking machinery was anticipated - the AT03 was revealed to the world in a sub-three-minute CGI curio that swiftly turned into a fashion show for the clothing brand.

Sure, the graphics team had a field day to create this virtual introduction. However, it was bizarre and devoid of information. No one spoke, there were no fans or media involved. Someone had simply hit the ‘upload’ button on YouTube. That said, scrolling through the comments 12 months on, the audience certainly welcomed the lack of flimflam and the absence of a rehearsed Q&A with Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda.

For the AT04, however, AlphaTauri has pushed the boat out. It’s docking in New York City. While an official announcement has billed the 11 February event as more of a livery launch and details thereafter are sparse (although the accompanying picture was of a covered-up car on the Brooklyn Bridge), the location alone is worthy of note.

Forget AlphaTauri taking the easy option and launching their challenger on their Faenza doorstep. This time, the team is heading to a country that F1 had failed to properly crack until five years ago. When it gets there, Franz Tost and company are heading to the most recognisable city in the world.

AlphaTauri will takes its 2023 launch to New York

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

It's probably too much to expect Tsunoda and his new team-mate Nyck de Vries to shut down Times Square for a few donuts. But the very essence of rocking up in NYC - or any new, landmark location to drum up interest - is still proof of F1 and its teams’ bolder approach to marketing.

That begs of the question of what the perfect F1 launch might be - particularly for the commercial department and social media staffers who measure success via engagement. Journalists might desire less pomp and more time to interview the drivers and designers. Many would perhaps discard the importance of brand identity and recognition and instead mandate a radically different livery each year. But, if those are unlikely, what should an objectively decent blueprint for an F1 car launch look like?

Lighting up the tyres on a famous boulevard isn’t a bad starting point. Teams should identify untapped destination cities around the world to take F1 to the casual masses. Viewing figures from each territory already offer a steer on where the appetite for F1 lies. A blend of capitals that can’t get enough of F1 and taking the launches to those with a more muted interest to test the water would work well enough.

Yes, adding more flights to the schedule only exacerbates the expense and complaints about F1's current travel plans. But place ‘car launch costs’ outside of the remit of the cost cap and limit it to the teams who can comfortably afford to stray over the limit if required

With some savvy advertising at surrounding bus and train stations, there’s no reason not to expect a couple of thousand people to line the temporary barriers in a scaled down version of F1 Live, as held in London in 2017.

While it’s frustrating that so many teams still rely on the simpler-to-run, shrill V8s that are obsolete now by nearly a decade, it would be no bad thing to leave newly converted fans going home with their ears still ringing. For this, see the reaction to the Red Bull runs in Las Vegas at the end of last year. Firing up an F1 car in an unnatural habitat piques the interest. Car launches could offer as many as 10 of these opportunities a year.

If launching in less accessible cities means the traditional media is somewhat reluctant to attend the presentation given the travel (satisfy them with an online call), hand out invites to local titles and fill the seats in the auditorium with fans, even if some of the talk from team bosses will be a touch sterile for a general audience.

Show runs, even in old cars, are still a way of captivating fans

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

There is precedent for this. In the pre-weekend press conferences for rounds held during the pandemic, drivers were asked questions by children from the country that F1 was visiting. Do the same for the car launches. It’s light-hearted but wholesome. While, in the first instance, only a smattering more people are engaging with F1, the resulting positive public image would only be a good thing as the topflight is made to look more accessible.

Yes, adding more flights to the schedule only exacerbates the expense and complaints about F1's current travel plans. But place ‘car launch costs’ outside of the remit of the cost cap and limit it to Ferrari, Mercedes, Red Bull, Alpine, Aston Martin and McLaren - the teams who can comfortably afford to stray over the limit if required. Add a couple of merchandise stalls, ban any team from building up the hype during a 20-minute presentation to only cop out and reveal a painted F1 show car, and then your launch season is well on the way.

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Photo by: Steven Tee / Motorsport Images