Surviving to Drive

A Year Inside Formula 1

By: Guenther Steiner

Narrated by: Guenther Steiner

Length: 7 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

Brought to you by Penguin.

'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...'

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.

In Surviving to Drive, the Haas team principal takes readers inside his Formula 1 team for the entirety of the 2022 season, giving an unobstructed view of what really takes place behind the scenes. Through this unique lens, Guenther takes us on the thrilling rollercoaster of life at the heart of high stakes motor racing.

Packed full of twists and turns, from hiring and firing drivers, balancing books, pre-season preparations, the design, launch and testing of a car - and of course, the race calendar itself - this is the first time that an F1 team has allowed an acting team principal to tell the full story of a whole season.

Uncompromising and searingly honest, told in Steiner's inimitable style, this is a fascinating and hugely entertaining account of the realities of running a Formula 1 team.

©2023 Guenther Steiner (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

Fearless and candid, Surviving to Drive reads like the night-time confessions of a football manager who is fighting to stay in the Premier League. A gleeful guide to a bonkers sport from a loveable rogue insider. (Melanie Reid)

It's gripping to read. It's funny, it's real, it's exciting. It's a brilliant book. (Chris Evans)

Very colourful. Like having a conversation with Steiner. (Radio 4, Today)

Gunther delivered a great performance

The audiobook wouldn’t have hit the same unless Gunther did it himself, but he did it and he nailed it. The story was fresh, he shared some small tidbits we couldn’t hear anywhere else, and it was fun. Thanks Gunther.

Absolute banger of an audiobook A+

This audiobook gave a great rundown of the ups and downs of the HAAS team through a fairly big transition period in the sport. I will admit if it wasn't voiced by Guenther himself it probably wouldn't have had the same impact. Sometimes you need to throw in a good 'foksmash', and it honestly wouldn't be the same without Guenther's voice.

Guenther is the Real Deal!

Really enjoyed the journal from 2022. The behind the scenes information on Haas F1 was fascinating.

Good Fun

Really enjoyed this, have been a fan of Haas F1 for a while and Guenther bought the 2022 season back to life with his unique style. After a few chapters I got used to his enthusiastic efforts as an audio book narrator .

Very gunther style!

Love the stories from Gunther with himself narrating all of them! Was a very pleasant/fun listen.

Perfect.

Perfect listening for a fan of Gunther and the sport. I think this type of insight into a team and F1 in general is amazing.

I’m a bigger Guenther fan than ever now

I was a Guenther fan before, but after getting to know him more through this book I’m a huge fan.
On top of being great at what he does and hilarious, he is a really good human.
I enjoyed this book from start to finish and was sad to see it end. Delivered as you would expect from Guenther.

Interesting and insightful....and entertaining!!

it's exactly what you'd expect but it's also a bit more insightful into what's going on in his head and the challenges he deals with. I would love if he did another one for this year.

Not for the faint of wankers

Exactly what you’d expect from a true legend. I wouldn’t change a single word in this book. If one of these came out every year, I’d listen to them all.

Great listen highly recommend

What a fun and interesting book for a F1 fan. I listened straight through on a long drive today and hope Guenther is in process of writing a sequel for this season.