Credits: IMAGO / Buzzi and IMAGO / HochZwei |
L: Jannik Sinner R: Carlos Sainz

Having won the Australian Open as well as titles in Rotterdam and Miami, Jannik Sinner would not want to miss a single tournament this year, given the kind of winning streak he is currently on. However, Sinner is also having a new role as a “Friend of F1”, and will be promoting the sport to a wider group of young fans. His interaction with Carlos Sainz at the ATP Monte Carlos Masters 1000 may have indirectly reminded him of the same as the Ferrari driver asked Sinner whether he would be attending a Grand Prix in 2024. To this, Sinner reasoned that his clay season commitments may not allow him to attend a race so soon.

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According to The Tennis Letter on Twitter (now X), Sinner said, “We’re trying. There’s Roland Garros now”. To this, Sainz asked him to come for just one Sunday. The Italian jokingly replied, “If it [Roland Garros] goes badly, I’ll come”. On hearing the same, Sainz wished then that Sinner wouldn’t come, hoping he would carry on his winning run.

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The 22-year-old tennis sensation is currently playing the clay court tournaments of the ATP Tour, which often starts with the Monte Carlo Masters at the borders of Monaco and France. After this tournament, there will be Masters 1000 tournaments in Madrid and Rome before the big headline clay-court Grand Slam – the French Open towards the end of May.

So, Sinner has a packed schedule for the next two months, which is what he told Sainz as the reason for not being able to attend a race yet. Just like F1 drivers, tennis players also have a grueling season to play, with several Masters tournaments and four Grand Slams. Naturally, they can choose not to play in certain tournaments but also risk losing ATP ranking points.

Why has F1 got Jannik Sinner to promote their sport?

F1 stakeholders, including Liberty Media, have been actively pushing to expand the sport’s audiences to newer territories and demographics. Onboarding Jannik Sinner is also a part of the same strategy. The way Sinner and his peers like Carlos Alcaraz have made a significant impact on young sporting fans so early in their careers is quite noteworthy.

The new-age sporting fans are interested in feel-good stories of young prodigies doing well in any sport. So, be it F1 or tennis, athletes like Sinner, Alcaraz, Lando Norris, and Charles Leclerc will always command a great fan following.

And when these prodigies win big tournaments or championships, their fan following and reputation rise exponentially. Sinner has experienced that with his Australian Open win and Alcaraz with his Wimbledon win in 2023.

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Thus, Liberty Media wants to capitalize on this increased fandom for the Italian sensation. Besides, Sinner hailing from Italy obviously draws a strong connection with the roots of F1.

When one puts Sinner beside Ferrari drivers like Sainz or Leclerc, it certainly becomes a big deal. With the Italian heritage tying them together, the fan sentiment and media attention would be quite high.

So, how successful can this collaboration between Sinner and F1 be? Only time will tell. But one thing is sure, whenever the 22-year-old attends a Grand Prix weekend, tennis and F1 fans will go bonkers and the viewership of Formula One is likely to rise.