Brad Pitt revealed that the plot of F1: The Movie took inspiration from some infamous moments in the championship’s history – notably the 2008 ‘Crashgate’ scandal that rocked the Singapore Grand Prix and resulted in bans from Formula 1 for several members of the Renault team.
At the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix, Renault driver Nelson Piquet Jr. deliberately crashed in order to give an advantage to his team-mate, Fernando Alonso. Team boss Flavio Briatore received a lifetime ban from F1, which has since been overturned, and technical director Pat Symonds was hit with a five-year ban.
