Have you ever wanted a bird’s eye view of a Formula 1 driver working their way around the track?
Now thanks to Red Bull and Dutch Drone Gods, your wishes have come true.
Red Bull unveiled the RB20 recently, their challenger for the 2024 F1 season, and brought the car to Silverstone for a shakedown session with both Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez. Along for the ride was drone pilot Ralph Hogenbirk (also known as Shaggy FPV), who tried to track Verstappen and the RB20 as they wound their way through the historic racing circuit.
The result? Not just the fastest first-person-view (FPV) drone single shot ever, but some stunning visuals of an F1 car — and the three-time Drivers’ Champion — in action:
“I never thought I’d see a drone going that quick just for camera footage,” said Verstappen following the session. “I didn’t know it was following me whilst driving in the wet, and it was very close to me in some places. I was really surprised at how quickly it could keep up, and also how close it could get in the corners. It gives a bit of a different perspective to watching Formula One.”
The footage was also the result of months of preparation, as the Dutch Drone Gods trialed the idea at numerous F1 tracks with drivers Liam Lawson and David Coulthard.
Coulthard, a former F1 driver and current analyst, anticipates that footage like this could be coming soon to the broadcasts on F1TV.
“When you see the big, wide, shots you lose perspective on the speed of the car. There are so many applications to really give the fans the feeling of what it’s like to be in one of these race cars. When you have the drone up close like that then you’re immersed in the whole experience. I’m sure in the not-too-distant future, we’re going to see this as part of our broadcast,” said Coulthard.
As part of the process a custom drone needed to be built, one capable of keeping up with an F1 car. Hogenbirk called it the “craziest” shoot he has ever done.
“This is a special drone because this is the only one with a fitted camera and goes this fast. It’s fully custom-built, it’s one-of-a-kind that we have developed. It is a very challenging project to create a drone that’s fast enough to keep up and keep the car in full frame, whilst capturing the shot in an interesting way,” commented Shaggy FPV. “This was definitely the craziest shoot I’ve done so far.”
Verstappen praised the drone pilot after seeing the footage.
“For the pilot there are a lot of things that you need to take into account, for example avoiding bridges and to anticipate our braking points, as we have a brake pedal but in the air it works differently. So, it’s very stressful I think to be that focused,” said the three-time champion.
This incredible footage certainly illustrates the power and speed of an F1 car, and as Coulthard outlined, do not be surprised if this footage comes to a race in the near future.
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