Red Bull worry over F1 'smiling assassin' as Ferrari felt 'they went too far'

02 November 2023 , 09:00

1054     0

Ross Brawn's eponymous F1 team is the subject of a new Disney+ docuseries (Image: Disney+)

Red Bull boss Christian Horner and former Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone are among the sport's famous faces who star in the trailer for the new Disney+ docuseries Brawn: The Impossible Formula 1 Story.

The four-episode series documents the rise of Brawn GP ahead of and during its one-off F1 season, in which it won the title. British racer Jenson Button became world champion for the first and only time in his career as part of the team's fairytale campaign.

And that was after Ross Brawn had bought the team from Honda for just £1 in 2008 as the Japanese carmaker pulled out of F1. Against far better-funded rivals in the 2009 championship, the team stormed into a commanding lead as Button won six of the first seven races.

But, as alluded to by the trailer for the new show, not everything was rosy. Many of their rivals were convinced that the rear diffusers on the team's cars were illegal and several of them even took the case to court.

Former Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo, who appears in the series, hints at those suspicions in the trailer. "They went too far," he says, adding: "There was something against the rules."

Sebastian Vettel warns of looming F1 ban and is "very worried about the future"

But the FIA eventually upheld the stewards' initial ruling that the diffusers were legal. Regardless, many of Brawn's rivals remained upset about the outcome and, naturally, did not like the fact they were being beaten by an unexpected rival.

"The knives were out and they were after us," says Brawn in the trailer. And Red Bull team principal Horner observes: "The best way to become unpopular very quickly is to start winning... behind the scenes [Brawn was] a smiling assassin."

Brawn's early-season dominance suggested that the title was going to be a walk in the park, but other teams soon began to catch up and the outcome of the championship was much closer than it seemed likely to be. Horner's Red Bull team were their main rivals as Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber ended the season strongly.

The series is presented by actor Keanu Reeves, best known for his Hollywood roles in movie franchises such as The Matrix and John Wick. At first it feels like an odd choice, but the 59-year-old explains why he signed up to be the man to tell this story.

"For as long as I can remember, I've had a fascination with racing," he says. "I'm going to share a story that barely seems believable... this is the story of Brawn GP."

Brawn GP: The Impossible Formula 1 Story streams on Disney+ in the UK from November 15.

Daniel Moxon