Inside the F1 driver's bubble: the race engineer

Modern Formula 1 teams are huge companies, employing hundreds of staff all working relentlessly in the pursuit of being the best in the sport. But within these vast organisations exists a team within a team — a small cadre of people centred around helping each driver extract maximum performance.

The bubble around the stars

Formula 1.com is delving into those bubbles to gain a greater understanding of the lives of those who work closest to the stars of F1. The series shines a light on the small groups of specialists who surround each driver, and the unique dynamics that allow them to perform at the highest level.

Ben Michell on the driver-engineer relationship

In this opening piece, Aston Martin Head of Performance Optimisation Ben Michell explains how the key relationship between driver and race engineer works. As the sport's technical and operational complexity has grown, the bond between a driver and the engineer who guides them through a session, a qualifying hour and a race has become one of the most important partnerships inside any grand prix team.

Michell's insights offer a window into how the small team around each driver functions, and why that relationship is so central to success on track.