Few current or former Formula 1 team bosses could command the kind of public interest that enables Guenther Steiner to visit 37 UK venues in less than three months as part of the latest leg of his national tour later this year.
Netflix’s Drive To Survive has made Steiner an unlikely household name and interest in what Steiner has to say remains high even though it's been over a year since he was replaced in the Haas team principal hot seat by his former deputy Ayao Komatsu.
The Race was part of select media to hear from Steiner, in his capacity as an ambassador for the Miami Grand Prix, early last week.
Here were some of the highlights from an ever-candid Steiner…
Cadillac's F1 entry
When at Haas, Steiner, like the majority of the team principals at the existing teams, was previously opposed to an 11th team joining.
Their opposition was that this 11th team - at that time Andretti, now the Cadillac squad that's finally had its entry approved - wouldn't add enough value to the championship to justify splitting the prize money between more outfits.
"I don't know all of the details, how they got in there because I was always of the opinion there's a cake and we need to divide it by 10. If an 11th comes in to eat the cake all the slices get smaller if the cake doesn't get bigger," Steiner explained.
"If the cake gets bigger...and that was always the aim of Formula One Management, to make sure the existing teams do not have negative [repercussions].
"I don't have access to that information anymore, what Cadillac is bringing to the party. Something has changed because it's become a Cadillac entry [previously Andretti] and normally a big manufacturer brings more to the sport than a private team.
"I think they understood that and now they make the cake bigger, so slices are the same even if there's 11 slices now.
"If the 10 teams, which are there a long time, get respected and have the same as what they had before, then why not?"
Does Cadillac need a US driver?
Steiner stands by Haas's original policy of experienced drivers over rookies for a new team - it's what motivated him to sign Romain Grosjean, Kevin Magnussen (twice) and Nico Hulkenberg, while experimenting with Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin didn't really work out.
And how about Cadillac having an American driver like Colton Herta?
"It was never a thing [for us] because at the time there were not many around who would have a superlicence," Steiner said when asked by The Race if Haas ever came close to running an American driver.
"Pairing a young team with a rookie driver who isn't used to racing in Formula 1, it can't be good for either of the two.
"If the driver doesn't succeed you kill his career. If the driver gets upset with the team it's not good for the team.
"There was never an [American] driver [option] there because when we got in, there was not a lot of interest in Formula 1 in the States.
"There is now a few out there. But if it's not successful for an American driver to drive in F1, there's no big positives for it. We had Logan Sargeant in Formula 1 - not many people knew he was American, especially not in America."
Has Haas lost its American team USP?
It's fair to wonder if Cadillac coming into F1 will mean Haas loses its somewhat unique selling point of being 'F1's only American team', even if it's now based primarily across Europe with a Dallara-Ferrari-Toyota link-up supporting its Kannapolis headquarters in America.
But Steiner believes the impact of nationality only goes so far in F1.
"With Haas it didn't really…American or not...make any difference because it's such a global sport," Steiner said. "The only team you identify with a country is Ferrari with Italy.
"I looked at that and said, 'Why is this not working?'
"If you look at it, Red Bull is a team based in England running with an Austrian licence so it's an Austrian team - but nobody really knows that and I don't think anybody cares.
"Mercedes is a German team but are they seen as German? Maybe not because it's such a global sport and sponsors don’t jump on a team because of the nationality they are.
"Red Bull, a team based in the UK, Austrian licence, has a big American sponsor in Oracle.
"Sponsors don't actually care. They are about themselves and bringing the message to the world, what they want to portray."
F1's booing problem?
F1's season launch event at the O2 arena sparked a debate around the booing of key figures including Red Bull's Max Verstappen and Christian Horner.
The FIA said it would investigate the matter - while neither Verstappen nor Horner had much interest in discussing it during F1 testing.
Steiner simply sees it as part of the pantomime of F1 rather than a pressing issue for the championship to solve.
"The booing wasn't [as] bad as it was reported. I call it the English fun, it's humorous to boo Christian and Max, it has become quite…everybody is laughing about it. The people booing aren't upset or anything," Steiner said when asked about the booing by The Race.
"I don't know the exact word for it but the fans, they do this when they see Christian. I've got the same effect when I do the book tour in the UK, when Christian is mentioned, they all boo. But it's not angry or anything, if it was angry I would be worried.
"But I don't think it's anger towards Christian or Max. It's a little bit like, you need the good guy and bad guy, and at the moment they play the bad guy.
"I don’t think it's a problem for the sport."
The 2025 vs 2026 balance
Every F1 team is facing the difficult development decision of where to put their resources across both the ongoing 2025 development and 2026 work that's been under way since the restrictions lifted in January.
"I actually spoke with some people which are doing this in F1 at the moment because I think everybody will shift to the '26 car in May because that's the future," Steiner said.
"If you develop the 2025 car until May you still bring parts until the middle of the year - because you have to develop then make the parts, which takes time.
"I do not think there will be a lot of development going into 2025 after May, early June. Except somebody maybe fighting for the world championship. If the battle is close, you might decide to go a bit longer to win this championship.
"Everybody's making their plan in the moment, I would say 95% or 97% of development on the 2026 car by June."
The FIA's swearing clampdown
Steiner's swearing was a trademark of his Drive To Survive appearances, so it's perhaps little surprise to hear he sides with the drivers in believing the FIA's swearing clampdown has so far been something of an overreaction.
"Is swearing good? No. Is it as bad as it's made out to be? No. In my opinion it could have been dealt with at a much lower level, not making it such a big issue about it and also about the [fine] money," Steiner said.
"It's a big penalty money-wise and it can go into sporting [penalties] as well. Sit down with the drivers, they're all grown-ups, and ask them, 'Guys tone, it down in the press conference, do not do it - or in a live interview'.
"Put yourself in a race car: you're going 300km/h and someone cuts you off on a corner or something, what are you going to say? When you're full of adrenaline.
"You're coming up with some words which are not complimentary, you're not going to say, 'Hey, could you not do this next time?'
"You say something, it's part of emotions and sport is about emotions, it's not an AI or robots driving these cars, it's human beings and they've got emotions and something to say.
"They [FIA] have made too big a thing about it, in my opinion."
Miami's place on the calendar
This year's Miami Grand Prix will take place without the sole American driver from 2023-24 Sargeant as well as Sergio Perez, who was an even bigger draw.
Will that impact the race's popularity?
"The fans are coming to see Formula 1 and it's not so much the nationality. Obviously every country if they have a good driver they cheer for them. Look what happens in Holland with the orange army [for Verstappen], it's like a festival for them," Steiner said.
"But I think F1 is big enough that if someone goes away they're replaced by someone else. If [Franco] Colapinto would be driving, it would pick up.
"And we've got all the Brazilians coming for [Gabriel] Bortoleto in the Sauber, so I think we make it up. You can't always keep the status quo, some leave and new ones come."
Steiner was speaking following the launch of the 2025 Miami Grand Prix ‘Campus Pass’, which you can find more information about here.
An F1 return?
It's been over a year since Steiner left the F1 paddock - only returning since for media duties or to catch up with old friends - but would he return if there was the right offer?
"Not right now, I would say," Steiner said.
"I'm pretty happy where I am, just to go into a job to be back in there...I don't want to do it. If there's a project or a mission to do, even if I'm getting older [Steiner turns 60 in April], I’m still young enough to do it.
"I'm enjoying what I'm doing and I'm going to some of the races, about half last year and I think it will be the same this year.
"I'm around with people, I worked a long time, I've got relationships and that's the important thing for me. It was in my life, I spent a lot of time with these people then you go away from something like this - it's not the job you're doing, it's about the people.
"It's all about the people and the relationships you have in life that make you happy."
