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Walking into the Las Vegas Strip Circuit is designed to feel like Disneyland for Formula 1 fans.

It aims to be the greatest show on earth, and this includes tapping into fashion, music, films, and celebrities. Once the MCL60 hits the track, racing will take over, but the lead-up to this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix - arguably the most hotly anticipated grand prix ever - highlights how we are trying to engage with the Papaya Army’s other interests.

Netflix’s ‘Drive to Survive’ documentary and the influence of social media have given fans a much greater insight into who the drivers are behind the visor. Previously, it was rare to get a glimpse into a driver’s life away from the paddock, whereas now, you know what music they listen to, what their hobbies are and what style of clothes they wear. We want fans to feel like they are a part of our team, and we want you to feel like you know Lando and Oscar. The Papaya Army is a like-minded community with more in common than a love of motorsport alone.

Damon Briggs, Vice-President of International at the iconic sporting brand Mitchell & Ness, feels like fashion has been at the heart of this because it's an easily accessible way for fans to identify with their favourite teams and drivers.

“There’s been a boom, and this collision course is happening because it's more than just sport now, it’s like a melting pot,” says Damon, who has spent 18 years working with Mitchell & Ness. McLaren first teamed up with Mitchell & Ness ahead of the 2022 United States Grand Prix in Austin, and we’ve since launched three further capsule drops at the 2023 Miami Grand Prix, Monaco Grand Prix, and, most recently, the Las Vegas Grand Prix. 

“Drivers have an extraordinary skill, but they still live ordinary lives, and they love to wear certain things. The Mitchell & Ness varsity jacket, I’ve been told that Lando put it on and hasn’t taken it off, he loved it.”

Fans can buy and wear this same jacket, and for Damon, that’s what makes these collaborations special. “People identify with sports teams, and it’s about trying to bring this to life. Fashion is about telling stories and making a statement, and that’s why it is all colliding in F1,” he says.

“For us at Mitchell & Ness, it’s no longer about just putting a team’s logo on a product. There are so many different attributes that go into it than when I started here 18 years ago when it was just about putting the Oakland Raiders logo on the left chest of a grey short-sleeved T-Shirt, and you’re done.

“How does it feel? Who is our target demographic? How do we bring it to life on social media? What message are we trying to get across? It’s about the silhouette and the weight of the garment. Is it oversized? Is it tailored? It’s not just a T-Shirt anymore.”

Historically, it has felt like motorsport-obsessed celebrities have been Formula 1’s main link to other areas of popular culture. Races in Monaco, Great Britain and America have always attracted the world’s biggest names, from US presidents and British royalty to actors and sports stars. Even if you weren’t previously a fan of F1, you might have been interested in who is attending these events and then have grown to love the sport from there. This is nothing new, but it has increased in recent years.

“In Miami, you’ve had DJ Khaled, Vin Diesel, Shakira, Tom Cruise, people like that,” Damon says. “I am sitting here wanting to know who will be showing up in Vegas. I'm excited to see who all the A-listers will be.”

Equally, films have often tapped into the world of motorsport. Recent examples include ‘Rush’, a biopic about the rivalry between F1 drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda, and Netflix’s ‘Murder Mystery’, a film starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston, which features the Monaco Grand Prix. There’s also Brad Pitt’s hotly anticipated F1 blockbuster, Apex.

And nowadays, many races come complete with a nightly performance for attending fans from one of the world’s biggest music artists. Calvin Harris performed at the British Grand Prix, and the Foo Fighters will take to the stage in Abu Dhabi.

Vegas has taken this one step further with its star-studded opening ceremony, which included performances from the Cirque de Soleil, will.i.am, Swedish House Mafia, Journey, and the Blue Man Group, as well as a stunning LED light show. While, Grammy-nominated artist Metro Boomin will be joining us in the garage and performing live when we take over the Virgin Hotel Curio Collection by Hilton, as part of Jack Daniel’s ‘Make it Count’ campaign.

We also witnessed the inaugural “Netflix Cup” in Las Vegas, which brought together fans of ‘Drive to Survive’ with Netflix’s Golf docuseries ‘Full Swing’. The competition took place on Tuesday and paired Lando with Rickie Fowler in a nine-hole shootout at the Wynn Golf Cup. The pair faced up against Pierre Gasly and Collin Morikawa, Carlos Sainz and Justin Thomas, and Alex Albon and Max Homa.

In recent years, it has increasingly felt like fashion has been playing a defining role in F1’s popularity. On Thursday, when the drivers walk into the circuit, all eyes will be on Lando and what he’s wearing, and it won’t take long for this to trend on social media, with fans discussing his look or trying to recreate it. 

“I compare it all to the NBA,” Damon continues. “When they are walking into the arena, it’s now a fashion runway, but they never used to even show that footage. It is now the same with F1 on Thursdays. When Lando and Oscar are not wearing racing gear, what are they wearing? Where are they shopping? We know that Lando is a big Culture Kings guy, he’s got that urban gear on, and people identify with that. It isn’t like this in all sports. The NBA are very good at it, and F1 is now too.”

That’s not to say that drivers from the past weren’t interested in fashion. Ayrton Senna is one of the most dedicated, laser-focused drivers to have ever raced in F1, and yet, if you search on Google Chrome for “Ayrton Senna fashion”, you’ll find articles from GQ and The Gentleman’s Journal that dive into his impeccable style, one even highlights a video of Senna driving an NSX-R at Suzuka while wearing loafers and white socks. Likewise, James Hunt’s fame extended beyond Formula 1: he would famously turn up to formal occasions barefoot in a T-Shirt and jeans, refusing to wear a suit.

But fashion is now taking more of a front seat in F1’s fandom. Well-dressed drivers are nothing new, but it’s now working both ways: celebrities and influencers are wearing F1 merch. Racing jackets are back in mainstream fashion, and racing-themed clothes have been seen on fashion runaways over the past two decades.

That’s been helped by brands such as Castore, New Era, and Mitchell & Ness, and our limited-edition merchandise drops, such as the Las Vegas range.

“We want our products to be more lifestyle-related, we want to be disruptive. We came in and said, ‘Let’s do a McLaren football jersey and a basketball jersey, and let’s have shorts with bold, bright colours on them’. The silhouettes are way different, which is a testament to who we are as a brand. We're not afraid to take risks. McLaren took that ride with us, and it has been really cool.

“There is now a fashion component to it. It doesn’t look like a race product, it is a fashion-focused product, and that’s what is cool about it. These styles are cool, and the colours are cool.”

The impact of fashion can be seen everywhere you look, from our merchandise ranges to our activations. We’ve taken over Culture Kings’ flagship store in Vegas, and on Tuesday, Lando made an appearance to meet fans. We’ve also kitted out the store with a McLaren Formula 1 car, a selection of items from our illustrious past, customisable jackets, and live entertainment.

“We’ve done some exclusive products with Culture Kings,” says Damon. “They have this 25,000-square-foot store in Caesars Palace, which happens to be in the track zone. We looked at this and said, let’s do a [McLaren] exclusive. Lando’s already rocking some of their stuff, he’s been filmed in it and put it on IG [Instagram], which helps even more.”

The type of F1 fan has never been so diverse, with a new audience being initially drawn in by Lando and Oscar’s personalities off the track, and subsequently falling in love with their racing on it. ‘Drive to Survive’ has been crucial to this change by combining these two elements.

The series' second season was released during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and this increased its reach even further, whilst teams and drivers were doing more on social media during this period to combat the lack of racing. And so, by the time the F1 season finally began, you had a new audience who had become obsessed with the off-track element, desperate to watch their first live races.

“It’s like a crash course in music, fashion and culture,” Damon says of 'Drive to Survive'. “It shows that these are just normal, ordinary guys, and yet, there’s still a mystique about them. You get sucked in. You see the everyday lives of these drivers, and it gives a better appreciation that it's not just racing. It’s athletes, fashion, culture, and social media.

“I would like Vegas to be a launchpad because I think you’ll gain fans in Vegas.” The evidence backs this up so far: the last time F1 held a grand prix in Vegas in 1982, the race attracted crowds of around 20,000 to 25,000. This year’s expected daily attendance is up to 100,000.

“It's then where you're going to take those fans.” It’s about taking them on a journey, and popular culture can continue to play a key part in that.