Drive to Survive renewed for 2026 F1 season
NXTbets Pro | Published On: August 25, 2026
Drive to Survive renewal
Netflix has renewed Formula 1: Drive to Survive for Season 9, keeping one of the company’s most visible sports series in place for another run inside Formula 1. The new season will cover the 2026 Formula 1 campaign and continue the show’s behind-the-scenes look at the championship. Netflix has not announced a release date for Season 9. The renewal also leaves the series at 78 episodes across eight seasons, a count that reflects how long the project has stayed on the calendar since its debut in 2019. Drive to Survive has built its reputation on access to drivers, teams and paddock life, and Netflix is keeping that model intact for another season. The series has become a regular entry point for fans who want more than race results. It shows the pressure, the preparation and the politics that shape a Formula 1 season from the inside. Season 9 now gives the show another year to follow those moving parts as the sport heads into a new campaign.
Season 9 production
Box to Box Films will again produce the series, and filming for the new season will continue through the 2026 Formula 1 campaign. That setup keeps the show tied closely to events as they unfold, with the production team following the sport across the season rather than building the story after the fact. Executive producers James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin said the new season will go “deeper than ever before” into the sport’s hidden spaces, which points to the same access-driven approach that has defined the series from the start. The show has always leaned on garages, strategy meetings and paddock conversations to build its episodes, and that structure remains the core of the project. Box to Box’s return gives Netflix continuity behind the camera, too. The company has produced the series across its run, and its continued role keeps the tone and format consistent as the story moves into Season 9. The decision to keep filming through the campaign also leaves room for the season to capture changes as they happen, which has been central to the show’s appeal. Drive to Survive works because it stays close to the teams and the people inside them. Netflix is keeping that formula in place.
Formula 1 impact
Drive to Survive has helped bring millions of viewers to Formula 1 by showing drivers, teams and paddock life in a way that reaches beyond the usual race audience. That reach has become part of the series’ identity, and Netflix says the latest season drew millions of viewing hours globally. The show has stayed relevant because it turns the sport into a year-round narrative, not just a weekend result. Season 9 is expected to keep that pace with storylines that include Kimi Antonelli becoming the youngest championship leader in Formula 1 history and a development battle among Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren. The second half of the 2026 championship is also expected to bring more Formula 1 action, giving the series a strong stretch of on-track material to track alongside the off-track tension. Since debuting in 2019, the show has built a large audience by pairing access with clean storytelling. It has stayed focused on the people inside the paddock and the stakes around them. Netflix’s renewal shows that approach still has value, and it gives the series another season to explain how Formula 1 works from the inside out.
