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Moving from venue to venue at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival this past weekend was strictly by golf cart for Guenther Steiner.
That’s because if he walked, he would be mobbed by too many fans. Too many photos to pose for. Too many autographs to sign.
Five years ago, the Netflix behind-the-scenes series Drive to Survive started streaming and made him one of the biggest names in Formula One.
And he’s not even a driver.
“In the beginning, it felt very strange because I’m not used to this,” the former Team Haas Principal told 7.30.
“What happens is, people say ‘Hello’ to you and you think, do I know this person or not, you know? So, it’s very strange. And after a while, you get used to it.”
Steiner’s reign at the top of the Haas F1 Team ended this year. During his time as team principal, viewers watched as Haas struggled just to reach the middle of F1 standings.
They are yet to record a podium finish with any of their drivers but Steiner’s expletive-laden outbursts and calls to long-suffering team owner Gene Haas have won over many fans.
“I paid basically $600 bucks to see Guenther Steiner,” said John Stewien, one of the fans who bought VIP tickets to meet the Drive to Survive star.
The 50-year-old also brought a copy of Steiner’s book to be signed.
“Normally you just see the cars going past, it’s all flashy. But with Guenther, you get a real feeling for what it’s like behind the scenes.”
For most of the series, Steiner’s Haas team is stuck near the bottom of the standings.
And even though a cap was introduced on how much teams could spend in 2021, the big names such as Red Bull, Mercedes, and Ferrari still dominate the competition.
“I honestly thought this year we (would) have been closer, but the opposite happened,” Steiner said.
“You have got five teams … on the top and then five teams on the bottom. It’s almost like two championships.”
This weekend’s Australian Grand Prix is just the third race of the season. Red Bull and three-time defending champion Max Verstappen are already out in front after wins in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.
But Steiner believes they could be challenged later in the year.
“I think Ferrari this year, if they’ve had good progress in development … they could challenge Red Bull hopefully (in the) second half of the season.”
Steiner can now only watch from outside the racing paddock as F1 deals with a scandal engulfing the Red Bull team.
Team Principal Christian Horner was accused of sending inappropriate texts to a female team employee, before he was cleared by a lawyer hired by the team to investigate.
The scandal however will not go away and the woman who complained has now been suspended by the team.
Adding to the drama is the fact that Horner is married to Spice Girl Geri Halliwell.
“In the higher ranks of the company, there will be… some people rethinking what they want to do,” Steiner said.
“I hope that for the sake of Formula One … they put an end to it … and we move on.”
Steiner will be working in Melbourne this week as a television commentator. He won’t rule out a return to the paddock.
“I don’t know if I want to be back as a team principal,” he said.
However should he stumble upon another billionaire with dreams of F1 glory again, he says he would consider another run leading a team.
“Maybe setting up a new team, for the new era of Formula One … that could be an opportunity.”
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