What is the relationship between Formula 1 and sustainable fuels?

Enlarge / As well as getting faster over the years, the cars of F1 have also become much more efficient. And this will only increase in the years to come. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

When Formula 1 cars hit the track for the first time in 2026, they will do so on carbon-neutral synthetic fuels, as part of the sport's 'net zero by 2030' plan. This is a laudable goal, but, I admit, that I have sometimes questioned. After all, most of the carbon emitted during an F1 weekend comes from the same sources as any other popular sport: the teams and fans traveling to and from the event. But after speaking with Pat Symonds, Technical Director of Formula 1, I may have missed the forest for the trees.

“In essence, yes, you are absolutely right. the cars on the track are 0.7% of that," Symonds told me. "So yeah, your premise is true. But we're trying to take a much bigger picture. And what I think we've got by developing sustainable fuel and putting it in our race cars is a huge multiplier effect. 2 billion vehicles coming out he could use that fuel, and then the 400,000 people going [to the United States Grand Prix] is not a problem,” he said.

Formula 1 has changed a lot in the years since Liberty Media bought it in late 2016 with bigger ideas than just sucking up revenue. Instead of pretending the internet never existed, you can now watch the races via F1's own streaming service, a service that has improved markedly over the past couple of years. In the United States, a move to ESPN saw the sport become commercial-free during actual races. And, of course, there's the whole Drive to Survive phenomenon, which has energized audiences around the world, but particularly in North America, which will host grand prix events in Austin next year. , in Texas ; Miami; and Las Vegas.

Enlarge / Pat Symonds (right) had a long career in Formula 1 as an engineer and aerodynamicist. In the late 1990s he was the race engineer (middle) for Michael Schumacher, under the technical direction of Ross Brawn (left), who is now F1's managing director of motorsport. Pascal Rondeau/Getty Images

The changes have not only affected the sport's popularity and reach. Racing has improved thanks to a new generation of cars (and a lot of time EC2) that generate their aerodynamic grip via gro...