WHAT IS YOUR OPINION ON THIS
SPECIFIC TECHNOLOGY?
“I have an electric Smart, which is a practical
version of it. It’s fucking amazing. I’ve
literally just ordered a new one. It’s super
nippy. It’s easy to park anywhere.
“I’m just waiting for more cars to be
available with that kind of battery
technology. I’ve not driven a Tesla, for
example, but I know that Mercedes is
coming out with some new cars. And next
year, for example, I think the Maybach will
have a hybrid engine.
“But I like the full electric. So there’s a
new EQC that Mercedes have just brought
out, which I’m waiting for delivery for. So
that’s going to be here in the UK, replacing
the car that I usually use here.”DO YOU EVER EXPERIENCE ANY
‘DISTANCE ANXIETY’ WHEN YOU
ARE DRIVING ELECTRIC CARS?
“I’m staying at hotels all the time, so [the
challenge] is finding an outlet to charge
overnight. But currently, where I live in
Monaco, where I currently charge it, it’s just
in my garage. So to park it and plug it in is
super-easy.
“And then, yeah, I think it’s becoming
more and more common. People are starting
to install those at home regularly. I’ve
actually bought a new place in the States. It
had one of those charging ports, so I need to
get an electric car there now.”WHAT’S THE ONE PRODUCT IN
YOUR HOME ENTERTAINMENT
SYSTEM THAT YOU CAN’T
ACTUALLY LIVE WITHOUT?
“In my home entertainment system? Well,
I mean, I watch a lot of movies, so I can’t live
without the TV. Watching Netflix on that.But then probably my sound system, I think.
I stick it on a laptop and play music.”YOU GO FOR THE WHOLE HOME
CINEMA SETUP?
“Yeah. And I’ve got a piano. Those are my
most valuable things.”OF COURSE, YOU’RE PRETTY
MUSICALLY INCLINED. TELL US
ABOUT THAT...
“Yeah. I just love playing. Well, trying to
play, and learning new songs. That keeps me
super-entertained.”HOW DO YOU THINK NEW TECH,
SUCH AS 5G, WILL CHANGE HOW
WE WATCH LIVE SPORT?
“I’ve always imagined... I remember I used toplay this [racing] computer game when I was
younger on the PC, with a massive monitor. I
remember I would go down and watch the
start of a real race, and then I’d go back up.
And often, I’d start that race.
“You could do the full hour-and-a-half
race distance in this game. Not connected to
the real team, but it was on a game, Formula- And I imagine the future being some sort
of virtual reality. You could sit and watch the
Grand Prix, and pull your visor down or
your headset down, and you could immerse
yourself in the actual race that I’m doing.
You can actually be in the race.
“I imagine with faster technology, that’s
something that’s going to come around in
the future – especially with gaming. So you
can actually race me in the race, but
virtually, from your home.”
54 T3 MARCH 2020T3 talk
“YOU COULD
ACTUALLY
RACE ME IN
THE RACE, BUT
VIRTUALLY
FROM HOME”