Surviving to Drive: The No. 1 Sunday Times Bestseller

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Steiner intersperses some of the more humdrum days at grands prix with tales from his rallying years—his experience of a Dakar Rally disaster is extraordinary—his bafflement at the fame that his Haas role and DTS popularity has brought, as well as how he balances family life with 10 months of the year on the road. Steiner could probably write another book alone with just stories from his disastrous time at Jaguar alongside the late Niki Lauda, who emerges as one of Steiner’s biggest inspirations. Written like a dairy, Haas F1 Team’s principal Guenther Steiner takes us on a trip through the 2022 Formula 1 season. I am not a biography type of guy, but being a Formula 1 fan since young age this was a must read for me. The dairy style writing makes it so that it doesn’t feel like a biography but rather feels like an inside view of a team principals mind. Look I am not the biggest fan of Guenther Steiner but I tried to go into this book as objective as possible. Gernerally I love the idea of how the book is build and generally the idea itself. I would LOVE to read this sort of book of any other TP just to compare how different they work. People talk about football managers being under pressure. Trust me, that’s nothing. Pressure is watching one of your drivers hit a barrier at 190mph and exploding before your eyes…”

Have the German media forgiven him for casting Schumacher aside – especially as he is the son of a legendary world champion? “I don’t need to be forgiven. I don’t feel guilty. I gave somebody a good chance so why should I feel I did wrong?” We have a bigger sponsor with Moneygram and we have got out of a tough place [after Covid] in 2020 pretty good. But, for sure, the drivers are part of it.” The book promises to be “uncompromising and searingly honest, told in Steiner’s inimitable style” and give fans a look at the inner-workings of an F1 team from the view of a team principal.

If you’re reading this, you’ve probably watched Drive to Survive on Netflix and found Günther Steiner somewhat amusing. Surviving to drive is geschreven als een soort dagboek, waarbij de berichten voornamelijk zijn geschreven op de dagen waarop vrije trainingen, kwalificaties en races plaatsvinden. Door deze opzet, de dagboekvorm, wordt er rechtstreeks tegen de lezer gepraat. Hierdoor voel je je heel erg betrokken: je leeft mee en hangt aan de lippen van Steiner. Surviving to drive biedt een kijkje in de keuken van hoe je als teambaas moet opereren. Heel interessant voor alle F1 fans, ook als je nog niet zo fan bent van Haas. Steiner is een sympathieke kerel en ik moest regelmatig lachen om zijn ongefilterde blik op zaken. Is he tired of the attention because, in some quarters of F1 fandom, Steiner stands alongside Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton as one of the most recognised faces of the sport? “Yeah, a little bit because I’m not doing it for the attention. The attention came with [Netflix] and changing my attitude would be wrong. I think Formula One without the fans is nothing. A lot of people in F1 think we race for ourselves. No, we race for the fans because otherwise we are not racing. So if the fans like it and if they want a picture, why would I say no? But it takes time out of my day and I’m running a team and I cannot just run around taking pictures. My boss would not be happy with that one.”

In his book Steiner suggests: “The two things I am good at, other than talking bullshit all the time, are delivering bad news and persuading people to say yes. That’s my entire skillset.” So which of these three attributes has he had to call on most this year, with Haas having scored eight points and lying eighth out of 10 teams in the championship? “Actually, I didn’t have to use a lot this season. It’s going pretty steady. Fingers crossed because it could all change. But it’s one of the calmest years up to now.” Penned by Guenther Steiner, it charts the 2022 season of the Haas Formula 1 Team of which Steiner sits at the helm.

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Steiner insists that he has still watched “nothing” of Drive to Survive. “I will not watch any of it until I retire.” Than of course Mazepin and Uralkali had to go with the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Steiner shrugs. “I try not to look at them because I don’t think I’m particularly good-looking. I wouldn’t say my face is beautiful.”

Voordat Steiner teambaas van Haas werd, werkte hij al jaren in de autosport. Hij werkte eerder bij o.a. Red Bull, en werkte met Niki Lauda samen bij Jaguar. De focus van Surviving to drive ligt echt op het afgelopen F1 seizoen bij Haas, en ondanks dat er wat persoonlijke notities voorbij komen, gaat het boek écht over F1. Soms – in wat mindere mate – vertelt Steiner ook over andere autoraces waarbij hij betrokken was. Guenther Steiner (right) with counterparts Toto Wolff of Mercedes and Red Bull’s Christian Horner. Photograph: Mark Thompson/Getty Images It’s the hard work of everyone on our team that has returned us to the fight in Formula 1 and I can’t thank everyone who’s a part of Haas F1 Team enough for their efforts and dedication. As fun as I see it is to make a inside DTS joke But honestly after the 5000 fok it just got annoying. Gernerally the "fun guentherism" words just got on my nerve.Fearless and candid... A gleeful guide to a bonkers sport from a loveable rogue insider.' - The Times But Steiner was on the right side of history and clearly grasped the issues surrounding his Russian driver Nikita Mazepin and his team’s title sponsor Uralkali immediately after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Describing the decision to drop the main sponsor he says: “There was no debate. It had to happen for the good of Haas and the good of the sport.” Later he adds wryly: “Only Haas could have a Russian driver and a Russian sponsor at the start of a Russian war.” We look like a bunch of legends‘! Günther Steiner, teambaas van het Haas F1 team, staat na de Netflix-serie Drive to Survive bekend om zijn oneliners. Maar in zijn boek Surviving to drive biedt hij een inkijkje in het 2022 seizoen, en zijn visie op de races.

As a positiv I really enjoyed the "side/ stories from the past". They gave an interesting insight into how you become an TP and how to work your way up the motorsport ladder. It is clear throughout that every thought and decision for Steiner is about what is best for Haas and its workforce. At last weekend’s Canadian Grand Prix Hülkenberg qualified on the front row of the grid alongside Verstappen. It was a significant breakthrough and Haas’s best-ever qualification, but Steiner’s elation turned to disappointment when Hülkenberg was then hit with a three-place grid penalty. Steiner's no-nonsense approach, distinctive demeanor, and penchant for a profanity have earned him a legion of fans.Hülkenberg replaced Schumacher but the older German driver, who is now 35, has had a fractious relationship with Magnusson. Does Steiner enjoy seeing some needle between his drivers? “At the moment they get on pretty good but I always say teammates shouldn’t be friends because then the competition is going away. They need to compete to get the best out of the car for the team. Guenther Steiner is one of motor racing's biggest and most celebrated characters, known to millions for his show-stealing appearances on Netflix's hugely popular fly on the wall series, Drive to Survive. I love how he wrote this book as diary entries and it felt like he was speaking to you. It was very authentic and it was just a great read. Steiner chortles as he imagines himself as that donkey and he insists that stepping away from Formula One is not currently on his agenda. “The donkey will know when that time has come,” he says before becoming more serious about the pressure he faces. “Yeah, you feel the weight of it but I still enjoy it. You have to take the stress if you want to do this job. And I’m going to do it as long as I want.”