My Other Life in Formula 1
Most people at FChain know me as a Regional Manager. But for the past ten years, there has been another part of my life that looks very different from meetings, financial reports and business trips.
I am also a Formula 1 marshal.
My journey in Formula 1 started in 2016, with the arrival of Formula 1 in Azerbaijan. A year later, in 2017, I took on the role of Deputy Chief Recovery. Before stepping into that position at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, I was sent to Bahrain to train and gain international experience in an established Formula 1 environment. So, somewhat unusually, one of the most important early steps in my Formula 1 journey happened abroad.
Bahrain then became much more than a training experience. Since 2017, I have continued working as Deputy Chief Recovery at both the Azerbaijan and Bahrain Grands Prix. Over the years, Formula 1 has also taken me to Abu Dhabi, Spa, Monza and other events, giving me the opportunity to work alongside marshal teams from many different countries and to see how Formula 1 operates in very different environments.
My motorsport experience has also expanded beyond Formula 1 to Formula 2, Formula 3, Formula 4, Porsche, and the FIA World Endurance Championship. Today, alongside my role as Deputy Chief Recovery, I also work as a marshal trainer, conducting annual training for both new and experienced marshals.
It is quite a different world from my everyday work at FChain. But after ten years, I have realised that the two worlds have more in common than you might expect: responsibility, preparation, communication, trust and, above all, teamwork.
And behind everything millions of people see on a Formula 1 weekend, there is another world that television rarely shows.
Behind the Barriers
Formula 1 today is much more than a motor race. It is one of the world’s most recognisable sports and entertainment brands. Formula 1 reported a global fanbase of 827 million people in 2025, an increase of 63% since 2018.
In 2026, the championship features 11 teams and 22 drivers competing across 24 Grands Prix. They are the people the world sees. But behind the drivers, cars and television cameras stands a much larger operation — and marshals are an essential part of it.
Baku gives a good idea of the scale. Over the first ten years of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, more than 35,000 applications have been submitted to its Marshal Programme. Applications increased from 2,379 in 2017 to 4,201 in 2026, with around 1,100 marshals working across 40 marshal posts at this year’s Grand Prix.
And “marshal” does not mean one particular job. The people spectators most easily recognise are those working trackside with flags, but Formula 1 relies on different specialist marshal teams responsible for communication, incident response, track operations, recovery and other safety-related functions. Different roles require different skills, but ultimately we all have the same objective: to keep the circuit safe and allow racing to continue.
My area is Recovery. At the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, our wider Recovery operation involves around 180 people, including recovery marshals, communicators, vehicle and equipment operators and team leaders. When a racing car is damaged in an accident, suffers a technical problem or cannot leave the circuit under its own power, our job is to recover it safely and help return the track to racing conditions.
Preparation is just as important as what happens during the race. Alongside my role as Deputy Chief Recovery, I conduct annual training for both new and experienced marshals. We work through safety, communication, equipment, incident assessment and different recovery scenarios. Experience does not mean you stop training — in motorsport, the more responsibility you have, the more important it becomes to keep refreshing the fundamentals.
From the grandstands, all of this is largely invisible. And in many ways, that is exactly how it should be. When the marshal operation works well, the spectators can concentrate on what they came to see: the racing.
When Something Goes Wrong
Recovery is one of those jobs that can be completely quiet for a long time — and then suddenly every second matters.
As Deputy Chief Recovery, my responsibility is not simply to remove a car from the circuit. I help coordinate the people, vehicles and equipment within my area, assess the situation and make sure the recovery is carried out safely and efficiently. We work in close coordination with Race Control, and nobody enters the track simply because a car has stopped. One of the principles we use in training is very simple: fast is good, but safe is mandatory.
And no two incidents are exactly the same.
Baku has given us some particularly challenging examples. During qualifying in 2019, Robert Kubica crashed at Turn 8 in the extremely narrow Castle section. Not long afterwards, Charles Leclerc crashed his Ferrari at almost exactly the same place. Recovering a damaged Formula 1 car from such a narrow section of a street circuit is very different from recovering one from an open run-off area.
More recently, Oscar Piastri’s accident at the 2025 Azerbaijan Grand Prix created a different problem: the front of the car became caught in the barrier. You cannot simply attach a recovery vehicle and pull. You have to understand how the car is trapped, what further damage movement could cause, which equipment to use and, most importantly, how to keep the marshals working around it safe.
One of my most memorable examples from Bahrain involved Charles Leclerc and demonstrated an entirely different kind of danger. We had gone almost the whole race without a single recovery from an on-track incident. Then, after the finish, Leclerc stopped and we were called to recover the car. It took time, but that incident illustrates something very important about our work: sometimes the most professional thing a Recovery Team can do is nothing — until it is safe to act.
In average, we are making around 20-30 recoveries during the weekend in total.
That is why preparation and communication matter so much. Formula 1 has an interesting habit of giving you exactly the situation you did not expect. Our job is to be ready for it.
From Baku to the World
One of the things I value most about Formula 1 is that marshalling is an international community. You may arrive at a circuit thousands of kilometres from home and, within a very short time, find yourself working alongside people from completely different countries who understand exactly what you are there to do.
I experienced this myself from the beginning. Azerbaijan and Bahrain played an important role in my development and has remained part of my Formula 1 life ever since. Over the years, I have also had the opportunity to work at circuits such as Abu Dhabi, Spa and Monza. Every Grand Prix is different — the circuit, weather, organization and local culture — and every trip gives you something new to bring back home.
The same exchange works in the opposite direction. Azerbaijan has developed a strong international marshal programme of its own. For the 2026 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, 110 international marshals from 40 countries were selected, while approximately 400–500 international applications are received each year.
Selection is not simply about being a Formula 1 fan. International marshals are expected to bring relevant experience, discipline and an understanding of safety procedures. Once selected, however, they do not come to Baku simply as guests. They become part of the team, working alongside local marshals and sharing experience from circuits around the world.
And this is one of the best parts of marshalling. Formula 1 gives you an opportunity to travel and experience places such as Spa, Monza or Bahrain in a way that is completely different from visiting as a spectator. You work with people from around the world, exchange knowledge, build friendships and see how the same sport is organised in different countries.
After ten years, I still learn something new every time I put on the overalls. And perhaps that is one of the reasons I keep coming back.
How to Become a Marshal — and Why I Keep Coming Back
One of the questions I am often asked is: how do you actually become a Formula 1 marshal?
There is no shortcut that takes you straight to the side of an F1 track. It starts with training, discipline and a willingness to learn. In Azerbaijan, the Marshal Programme has developed significantly over the past ten years, creating a pathway for people to gain experience locally and, eventually, internationally. Today, around 25–30 Azerbaijani marshals work at international Grands Prix each year, taking the experience gained in Baku to circuits around the world.
For international marshals wishing to work in Baku, previous experience is important. We look not only at where someone has worked, but also at their role, level of experience and ability to become part of an existing team. Formula 1 may look glamorous from the outside, but marshalling is first and foremost about responsibility. You need to follow procedures, communicate clearly and understand that sometimes the best individual decision is simply to follow the team.
For me, that international community has become one of the most rewarding parts of Formula 1. Over the years, I have met people from dozens of countries, worked at some of the world’s most famous circuits and experienced races from a perspective that very few spectators ever get to see.
And after ten years, I still come back.
Partly because every Grand Prix is different. Partly because there is always something new to learn. And, of course, because travelling to places such as Bahrain, Spa or Monza to work at a Formula 1 race is not exactly the worst way to spend a weekend.
But above all, it is the people and the feeling of being part of one team. When something happens on track, nationality, profession and background suddenly become irrelevant. Everyone has a role, everyone depends on someone else, and everyone is working towards the same goal.
During the week, my world may be FChain, clients and business. On a Formula 1 weekend, it is Race Control, radio communication, recovery vehicles and a completely different team.
Ten years later, I am fortunate to still be part of both worlds — and I am not planning to leave either of them anytime soon.
