Netflix Confirms Formula 1: Drive to Survive Season 9 for 2026 Championship
Netflix has officially announced that its hit behind-the-scenes docuseries Formula 1: Drive to Survive will return for a ninth season, documenting the ongoing 2026 Formula 1 World Championship. Since its debut on the streaming platform in 2019, the series has provided viewers with unprecedented paddock access and a window into the drivers’ lives away from the circuit.
Producers Promise Deeper Access in New Season
Box to Box Films, the production company behind the show, expressed enthusiasm about the upcoming installment. Executive producers James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin said in a joint statement: “We’re so excited to be making Season 9 of this iconic show,” James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin, executive producers at Box to Box, which produces the show, said. “This year we’re going to go deeper than ever before into the hidden spaces of this fantastic sport.”
Series Credited with Transforming F1’s Global Audience
While the docuseries has faced criticism for its creative editing—often compared to reality television dramatics—its impact on the sport’s popularity is undeniable. Drive to Survive has been instrumental in expanding Formula 1’s fanbase in the United States and attracting a younger, more gender-diverse audience.
Reflecting on that impact during a 2023 interview with F1.com, Gay-Rees said: “Genuinely, we are enormously proud to be a part of it. There’s also a lot of satisfaction at being first with these things, and I think that it kind of does feel like the first main access show – certainly out of the UK anyway – that has had this profound effect.
He continued: “We’ve all had the statistics about the changing, younger demographic, and it’s tough out there for anybody, for any big organisation, to hold its ground given the amount of choices that are out there for the consumer. Bringing such a big new audience to a sport – which obviously was deserved, it just needed somebody to open it up – is massively satisfying.
Gay-Rees added: “The fact that it wasn’t a fluke, the fact that it’s grown [with every season]… It’s a real honour and we love it. It’s a very difficult show to make, but we love the process, we love the world. Long may it continue!”
Season 9 to Focus on 2026 Regulation Era
The ninth season will centre on the 2026 F1 season, which introduces sweeping new technical regulations including revised power-unit rules and active aerodynamics. The new campaign is expected to premiere on Netflix in 2027.
Fan Reaction Builds Anticipation
Following the announcement on the official Netflix UK Instagram account, fans shared their excitement. One commenter wrote: “The Aston Martin episode will be Absolute Television,”
while another posted: “Looking forward to the DTS marathon,”
and a third added: “OK I can’t wait for DTS. I actually like it.”
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