I don’t watch sports. I rarely go to sporting events. I’ve never understood sitting in a stadium for three hours watching something I could see better on a screen.
But F1 is different. F1 might be the best networking event in the world for founders and investors.
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It’s Not About the Racing
Formula 1 races draw a very specific crowd. Not just sports fans. Founders, operators, investors, creators, technologists, builders. People who think at a certain speed and want to be around others who do the same.
At a single race weekend, you can meet someone from Dubai, Singapore, London, São Paulo, and Austin in the same 10-minute span. That kind of density doesn’t happen at conferences. It barely happens in major cities.
For me, F1 isn’t about the cars. It’s about the collisions of ideas that happen off the track.
Why the Environment Works
Most networking events are awkward by design. You’re in a room, you have a badge, everyone knows they’re there to meet people, and somehow that awareness makes genuine connection harder.
F1 strips that away. You’re not there to network. You’re there to watch a race. The conversation starts naturally because you’re both watching the same thing. The shared experience creates immediate common ground.
There’s also something about the pace of F1 that attracts a certain type of person. The sport is about speed, precision, and decision-making under pressure. The people it draws tend to think the same way.
I’ve had more meaningful conversations at F1 weekends than at most formal business events I’ve attended. Not because I was working harder at it. Because the environment made it easy.
What I’ve Learned From Showing Up
A few things I’ve noticed from attending multiple race weekends:
The paddock access matters less than people think. Some of the best conversations happen in the general areas, at bars near the circuit, or at the dinners and events that happen around the race. You don’t need a VIP badge to meet interesting people. You just need to show up and be genuinely curious.
Regulars recognize each other. F1 has a circuit of cities: Miami, Monaco, Austin, Las Vegas, Singapore, Abu Dhabi. If you go to a few of these, you start seeing the same faces. That repetition is how relationships actually form. One conversation rarely changes anything. The fifth conversation with the same person starts to matter.
It’s a great equalizer. At F1, a founder with a $2M company might be standing next to a partner at a $5B fund. The shared context makes the conversation easier. Nobody’s leading with their credentials. They’re talking about the race.
Why I Keep Going Back
I go to F1 for the same reason I build communities. Because the best things in business, in life, and in work happen when interesting people are in the same physical space with a reason to talk to each other.
F1 provides that reason. The racing is the excuse. The people are the point.
The bottom line? If you’re a founder or investor looking for a high-signal networking environment that doesn’t feel like networking, try an F1 race weekend. Go with an open schedule, stay for the full weekend, and talk to everyone you meet.
You’ll be surprised what happens off the track.