Mattia Binotto and Guenther Steiner touring a winery is the wholesome opening to ‘Drive to Survive’ we needed

In the official trailer released before Season 5 of the Netflix series Drive to Survive, producers teased a number of the major storylines that unfolded during the 2022 Formula 1 season. There was a tense discussion between Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff and Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner regarding Mercedes’ aerodynamic struggles, as well as a discussion between FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem and Horner regarding Red Bull’s cost-cap violations. Internal discussions at McLaren regarding driver Daniel Ricciardo — in many ways the face of the series — were also highlighted.

So when the fifth season of the docuseries debuted on Friday, fans of both the sport, and the Netflix series, waited to see how the season would begin.

It began in the best way possible, with “Guenther and Mattia’s Vineyard Adventure.”

Instead of a more heated topic, the first episode opened with Haas Team Principal Guenther Steiner and Ferrari Team Principal Mattia Binotto poured into a tiny green Fiat 500, taking a drive through the hills of Italy before stopping at Binotto’s vineyard to drink wine, share a meal, dish about F1, and toast to the year ahead.

Guenther even brought his friend a gift, a blue apron with the monogrammed “Mattia” on the front.

Fans of the sport, and the series, quickly realized that this was the buddy comedy they did not know they needed:

Unfortunately for the two team bosses, that might have been the high point of their seasons. Haas finished eighth in the Constructors’ Championship — which to be fair was an improvement from their tenth-place finish in 2021 — and while Ferrari’s season started well, it did not end well.

But we can deal with those storylines later. For now, we are just going to bask in this wholesome start to the season, and the idea of a full series with these two touring vineyards and getting into all sorts of misadventures.

I’d watch ...