Top 10 F1 Figures to Follow on Twitter
Formula One's awkward attitude toward social media has been one of the main talking points of the 2014 season, with the sport showing few signs of embracing new media despite its declining popularity.
Bernie Ecclestone, F1's ringmaster, recently admitted that he saw little value in social networking websites such as Twitter, telling Atifa Silk of CampaignAsia.com that he is "not a great supporter of social media."
Despite the reluctance of F1 itself to take advantage of Twitter, those within and connected to F1 have utilised the tool, ensuring that the sport remains very much in the public's consciousness even when races are few and far between.
Several figures—from teams, team bosses, former and existing drivers, to media types and journalists—have found success on Twitter.
And here are the top 10 F1-related people to follow in the 140-character universe.
Honourable Mentions
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For the sake of variety, we have included as few current drivers and teams as possible here although they are likely to be your first destinations of any following spree.
All but three of the 23 drivers to participate in a race this season are present on Twitter, with Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Raikkonen and Adrian Sutil the only ones without an account.
Among those who are on Twitter, Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, the champions of the 2008 and 2009 seasons respectively, each have around two million followers, while the recently retired Mark Webber is another driver to have passed the one million-mark.
Nico Rosberg, the 2014 title protagonist, takes an alternative approach to Twitter, uploading post-race video blogs to his profile, while new world champions Mercedes are surely worth a follow, too.
10. Eric Boullier
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With the exception of sporadic tweeter Paddy Lowe, Mercedes' technical executive director, Eric Boullier is the most recognisable team member to have a personal Twitter account.
After transforming the fortunes of Lotus (formerly known as Renault) between 2010 and 2013, the Frenchman is now attempting to repeat the trick at sleeping giants McLaren, where he holds the position of racing director.
9. F1 Broadcasting
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Formula One fans can be a touchy bunch.
While other sports have hundreds of matches broadcast every year, F1 has only ever staged a maximum of 20 races per season and, as an unwritten rule, they are expected to be presented to us in the best possible fashion.
This has led to one fan devoting a Twitter profile to how F1 is transmitted into our homes which, admittedly, sounds a bit naff but actually works a treat.
The account isn't just confined to F1, either, with GP2 and Formula E also getting plenty of attention, while fascinating graphics produced by the user highlight how the sport, its participants and its broadcasters can improve in the social media arena.
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8. Martin Brundle
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Since bringing his grand prix career of 158 starts to a close at the end of 1996, Martin Brundle has gone on to set the benchmark in terms of punditry and co-commentary on Formula One.
Despite his many hours of service over the years to the coverage of ITV, the BBC and Sky Sports, there is never enough of Brundle to go around.
He might not be the most frequent tweeter, but Brundle's opinions are worth digesting whatever the medium.
7. Pablo Elizalde
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A member of the Autosport team, Pablo Elizalde is—as his Twitter bio points out—"fluent in sarcasm."
That's essentially what you get from his account: hard news stories and plenty of witty comments to go with them.
6. Taki Inoue
6 of 11Arguably the worst grand prix driver in history, Taki Inoue tweets exactly how he drove—but his madness has seen him become something of a cult hero on Twitter.
The Japanese, who was famously run over by the medical car in 1995, put his name forward for a 2015 Ferrari seat after Sebastian Vettel's exit from Red Bull became public knowledge, with the 51-year-old recently most recently sizing up a drive with Caterham, the cash-strapped backmarkers.
Inoue, despite having no leg to stand on, often pokes fun at the current drivers, too, mocking the trials, tribulations and off-track excursions of Pastor Maldonado frequently.
5. Craig Scarborough
7 of 11If you've followed Formula One in 2014, the chances are that you've been forced into broadening your technical knowledge to gain at least a basic understanding of the complex new power units.
Craig Scarborough is the most accomplished, visible technical expert on Twitter and the go-to guy for those who can't tell the difference between their MGU-H's and their MGU-K's.
4. Dickie Stanford
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Dickie Stanford is a Williams stalwart, having first joined the Grove-based team in 1985 as a mechanic on Nigel Mansell's car.
He rose through the ranks and became a senior member of the team, holding the role of race and test team manager from 2010, when he returned to Williams after a five-year break.
His Twitter timeline in that period read like a picture book of how a team operates over a race weekend, with Stanford uploading images to provide an insight into what goes on behind the scenes.
Stanford, having retired from his role with the race team, now acts as the general manager of Williams Heritage, with his Twitter activities focused on allowing his followers to get up close and personal with the iconic Williams cars of yesteryear as they participate in demonstration runs.
3. Fernando Alonso
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Fernando Alonso produced perhaps the finest moment in Formula One's Twitter history at last year's Italian Grand Prix, posing for a seflie from the Monza podium against a background made up of a few thousand Ferrari fanatics.
The Spaniard's surge in popularity in recent years is, of course, down to his outstanding, consistent showings on track but also due to his antics in cyberspace.
While, prior to his arrival on Twitter, he may have been regarded by some as a guarded, sometimes petulant brat, the two-time world champion's profile has proven that he has a wicked sense of humour, as well as an unhealthy obsession with samurais.
And what's more? Alonso is, for now at least, the most successful driver on the 2014 grid to have a Twitter account, with four-time title winner Sebastian Vettel yet to arrive on the scene.
2. Daniel Ricciardo
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The most popular figures on Twitter are those whose tweets you can hear—not just read—such is the strength of their personalities.
And Daniel Ricciardo, the star of the 2014 season for many, certainly falls into that category, whether he's simply "swiggin'" some podium champagne, describing his and Fernando Alonso's facial hair as "rad" or referring to the challenges of Eau Rouge in 2014-spec machinery as "a bit more how you going."
No matter what the Red Bull driver posts, his tweets are just so Daniel Ricciardo.
The Australian is as smooth in cyberspace as he has been on the track this year.
1. Lotus
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Lotus may have slipped from race-winning contention in 2014, but they remain the ones to beat as far as F1's presence on Twitter is concerned.
They are by far the most active and creative of the sport's teams in the 140-character arena, producing charming and sometimes self-deprecating tweets, as well as placing a strong emphasis upon fan interaction.
Their cheekiness may have frequently landed the team in hot water—a farewell tweet to former driver Kimi Raikkonen is just one of a number of tweets that didn't go down well—but the knowledge that all could go wrong is part of Lotus' appeal, right?
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