F1: The Brad Pitt movie races to the finish without a key element of the sport

F1 is a film that brings the world of Formula One racing onto the big screen. The sports drama film was released by Warner Bros. Pictures on June 27, 2025. Also known as F1, the movie, here is its official synopsis as per letterboxd:

Racing legend Sonny Hayes is coaxed out of retirement to lead a struggling Formula 1 team—and mentor a young hotshot driver—while chasing one more chance at glory.

The film met with mostly positive critical response and strong box office results. But despite the success, there is one key element of the sport that this Joseph Kosinski-directed film overlooks. Let's find out.

F1 overlooks one key element of the sport

Fans of Formula One might have noticed one thing missing from Brad Pitt's F1. In the real world, it takes a while before a racer qualifies for the final race. Before any tournament, practice runs take place for all team members. After that, a qualifying round is held, and eventually the final race. All three phases determine who will advance to the final phase of the race. This process is rigorous and difficult to crack.

However, in the film, Sonny Hayes (Brad Pitt) races at Silverstone, marking his entry into the sport. There is no mention of him going through the previous two phases to qualify. There is only a brief nod to the process of qualification nearing the end of the movie in a bid to spin a clever twist. A few of the elements depicted would be rendered ineffective if proper rounds of qualification are taken into account.

The screenplay of F1 is by Ehren Kruger, while the story is by Kruger and Joseph Kosinski. Its producers include Joseph Kosinski, Brad Pitt, Lewis Hamilton, Chad Oman, Dede Gardner, and Jerry Bruckheimer. The cast members of the film consist of:

Brad Pitt as Sonny Hayes
Joseph Balderrama as Rico Fazio
Damson Idris as Joshua Pearce
Sarah Niles as Bernadette Pearce
Abdul Salis as Dodge Dowda
Kerry Condon as Kate McKenna
Javier Bardem as Ruben Cervantes
Tobias Menzies as Peter Banning
Luciano Bacheta as Luca Cortez
Kim Bodnia as Kaspar Smolinski
Will Merrick as Hugh Nickleby
Callie Cooke as Jodie
Samson Kayo as Cashman
Shea Whigham as Chip Hart
Layne Harper as Press

In an interview with The Playlist, Kosinski spoke about delving into the Formula One sport in the film. He said:

“Formula is an incredibly unique sport in that your teammate is also your, in many ways, your greatest competition. And for me, that makes for a great drama. I also loved how the show’s first season focused on the last-place teams, the underdogs, rather than teams at the front of the pack. And I thought that there was an interesting story to be told about an underdog team—not really trying to win the championship, per se, but just trying to win one race against these titans of the sport.”

F1 is currently playing in theatres.