It has to be pretty disappointing for an F1 driver when he has to bow out of a race. All that preparation vanishing into thin air in a split second. But it’s not just hard on the driver or his team. It can be pretty disappointing to his fans as well… his littlest fans, especially.
Just look at this kid at the Spanish Grand Prix this past weekend. He caught the cameras’ attention when he broke down into tears after his hero Kimi Raikkonen had to retire from the race due to suspension failure. This after the former world champion had qualified fourth for the race.
That clearly upset the littlest of the tifosi, who was decked out in Scuderia gear and had probably been up since early that morning in anticipation of the race. But instead of leaving the kid to dry his own tears, the team and the series organizers sprung into action and turned a bad day into the best.
Not only did they invite the kid and his parents behind the scenes, but had the Ice Man himself stop by to meet the kid, take a few pictures, autograph his hat, and altogether cheer him up.
It’s a memory he won’t likely ever forget, and a sign of just how different Formula One is under Liberty Media‘s care than it was under that curmudgeonly old investor’s management.