It was about to be a busy few weeks for James Hinchcliffe. When we met in Austin, he was just starting off a triple-header, having joined the F1 TV team for the series’ North American swing. In between filming spots, he roamed the paddock picking up information he could put to good use, then picked up a microphone the moment any on-track action — practice, qualifying, the race — wrapped up. When the cars were off the track, Hinch (as he’s often called) was on.
He’s gone from racing IndyCars to analyzing F1 drivers, but his career path was more of a street circuit than a straightaway. Eleven years in IndyCar (from 2011 to 2021) means Hinchcliffe knows what it’s like to battle for position on track. But even before he made it into America’s top-tier open-wheel series, he had dipped a toe into broadcasting — only to come back when he hung up his helmet from being full-time driver. After spending a couple of years as an analyst for IndyCar and IMSA on NBC Sports, Hinchcliffe got a call from F1 TV.
“Coming here, I did feel a little bit of imposter syndrome,” he remembers. “I’ve never raced the cars, I haven’t been on most of the tracks.”
As Formula 1 expands in North America, so has Hinchcliffe’s presence on F1 TV subscriber’s screens: from covering three races in 2022 to eight races this year.
Despite the hectic schedule, the gracious 37-year-old Canadian talked to Motorsport.com about drilling Alex Palou for F1 information, hanging out with his childhood hero, and why IndyCar deserves more respect from the FIA.
How did you get into F1?
My love for F1 started as a kid. My dad was a huge fan. Growing up in Canada, most young kids, their dads love hockey and they grow up loving hockey. [But] my dad wasn’t Canadian, he was British. And he loved motorsports. So I just grew up with this huge passion for racing.
My earliest memories of life, honestly, are sitting watching races with Dad — on Sunday mornings, Formula 1, and Sunday afternoons, IndyCar. And going to the IndyCar race in Toronto. So, literally as far back as I can remember, I’ve been a fan of the sport. And I really started following and paying attention to F1 in ’96, when Jacques Villeneuve moved over from IndyCar and we had a Canadian to cheer for. So that’s kind of when I got diehard into F1.
How’s your relationship with Jacques Villeneuve? You probably see him regularly now here in the F1 paddock.
It’s great. We’ve become good…
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