F1 stronger and more sustainable but let others write my legacy - Chase Carey

Formula 1

F1 stronger and more sustainable but let others write my legacy - Carey

Carey steps aside from his role as F1 CEO and Chairman in January

Ian Parkes & Ewan Gale

Sunday 3 January 2021 12:30

Departing Formula 1 CEO Chase Carey believes the sport is in a stronger place now than when he succeeded Bernie Ecclestone in 2017 but says it is for others to define his legacy.

Carey stepped aside from his role as F1 CEO and chairman on January 1 and was replaced by former Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali, ending a four year period in post.

During his reign, Carey has overseen the signing of a new Concorde Agreement and has driven an increase in digital activity, including a Netflix documentary series and further engagement on social channels.

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Asked what he thought his legacy would be, Carey said: "I think it is always for others to assess and write legacies.

"But I think collectively we have built a sport that is stronger, have a more sustainable business model for us and the teams and more focussed on our fans than ever in its history.

"We have said before when we took over Formula 1 in 2017 we inherited a skeletal organization that lacked structure and vision. It had no social media, marketing activity, brand building operation and it rarely engaged with the fans.

"Since 2017 we have enacted a plan to grow this incredible global sport in the way it deserved.

"That plan was built on improving the competition and action on the track, upgrading events to true spectacles, aggressively developing digital media capabilities while upgrading our traditional broadcast for fans, exploiting growth opportunities both geographically and expanding our brand, and improving the business model for Formula 1 and its teams to strengthen existing partners and attract the right new partners."

As the world reacted to the Covid-19 pandemic in the first quarter of the financial year, the stock price of Formula 1 plummeted.

But in successfully completing a 17-race calendar during the most testing of situations, Carey steered the sport in a direction that meant it was able to weather the storm.

"We entered 2020 with a budget reflecting continued growth in revenue and profits," he explained.

"We felt equally positive about our ability to keep this growth going into 2021 and 2022. 2020 was a unique year but it has interrupted not altered our growth curve for the future and going into next year we think the sport has a strong platform to continue to grow.

"We have made strides forward since week took over in 2017 but our most exciting growth is ahead of us and I think Stefano will do a fantastic job and take the business forward from the strong foundations we have put in place."