F1 Monza Show Sparks Fan Backlash Over Grid Gigs

On a weekend when Monza promised pure racing theatre, Formula 1 tried to add an extra act. Not everyone wanted it.

As the build-up to the Italian Grand Prix gathered pace, Sky Sports F1’s pre-race coverage abruptly stepped away from garages, strategy talk and grid tension. In its place: a full musical performance from Laura Pausini, beamed live from a stage by the track as part of F1’s returning “Grid Gigs” concept.

The Grammy-winning Italian star delivered a two-song set, backed by a live band, singing in Italian and Spanish. Fans in the grandstands lapped it up. Viewers at home had no choice but to watch along as Sky carried both songs in full before returning to its usual pre-race programming.

That decision lit up social media.

Some embraced the experiment. One fan urged F1 to make Grid Gigs “a permanent fixture”, calling Pausini’s performance “absolutely brilliant” and saying they “thoroughly enjoyed it”. Another, previously sceptical about the concept, admitted Pausini’s show “can persuade me”.

The mood was far from unanimous.

Plenty of viewers bristled at the interruption to the build-up. “If ‘Grid Gigs’ are going to be a thing in the future, I might have to rethink when I start watching this coverage,” wrote one fan, reflecting a growing irritation among traditionalists who tune in early for tyre talk, not a concert.

Others wondered why the broadcast cut so completely to the performance. “Was Sky F1 forced to show this?” one user asked. Another pushed the point further: “Have FOM forced Sky F1 to show this Grid Gigs thing, I wonder? I’m pretty sure they’ve never bothered with it in the past.”

The criticism didn’t stop at the scheduling. Some viewers were scathing about the content itself, branding the performance “embarrassing” and “drivel”. The pushback, though, met resistance from those who saw something different in the spectacle, describing Pausini’s set as “amazing” and “emotional”.

For Pausini, this was hardly unfamiliar territory. Earlier in the summer she had already performed in front of a global sporting audience at the World Cup final in New Jersey, sharing the stage with Robbie Williams and Nicole Scherzinger as they delivered their “FIFA Anthem”, Desire. F1, eager to broaden its showbiz appeal, clearly felt it had the right headliner for its biggest Grid Gigs yet.

This was no one-off experiment either. The Grid Gigs concept first appeared in Austin last year, when country singer Drake Milligan played before the United States Grand Prix. It resurfaced in Las Vegas with former One Direction star Louis Tomlinson, then again in Miami in May, where Colombian singer-songwriter Manuel Turizo took the microphone.

Monza’s Significance

Monza, though, carried extra weight. F1 billed this edition as its “biggest ever” Grid Gigs show, fronted by Pausini, the only Italian artist ever to win a Grammy. The official announcement flagged that the performance would be live-streamed across F1’s social media platforms. It did not, however, spell out that television rights holders like Sky would pause their race build-up to carry the concert in full.

That gap between expectation and reality is where the tension now sits. F1 wants to frame race day as a full-scale entertainment event, stretching from paddock to podium, with music stitched into the narrative. Many fans, especially the hardcore audience that never misses a formation lap, still want the hour before lights out to belong to engineers, strategists and drivers.

At Monza, the sport chose the show. The debate over whether it picked the right moment will rumble on long after the music has faded.