Lindsey Vonn Considered F1 Driving Career, Reconsidered Due to Pregnancy Restrictions

Olympian Lindsey Vonn retired from competitive skiing in 2019 after a crash during her final competition and has since gotten engaged to NHL star PK Subban. However, she nearly pursued a new career in recent years. Vonn almost joined Team Red Bull and became a Formula 1 driver.

Vonn made the revelation during a recent interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger. The pair drove around discussing multiple topics while going over the speed limit. During the conversation, Vonn explained that she previously hit 130 mph on the Autobahn and that she also showcased her driving on a Formula 1 track. She also dropped the news about a “pregnancy clause” being the reason for her passing up the opportunity to join the racing league.

“I was thinking about switching, going to Formula One,” Vonn explained. “Like actually trying to be a racer, a driver. But, I couldn’t because they wanted me to commit, what was it, 3 years? And, they’re like you can’t get pregnant, you can’t do anything. I’m like hmm, I don’t know if I really want to do that.”

While Vonn did not want to make the anti-pregnancy commitment, she has considered other options. For example, NASCAR was a possibility for the former competitive skier if she didn’t make it in F1. Neither foray into motorsports became reality for Vonn, but she took away some surprising information about salaries.

“The amount of money Formula 1 has is just … I mean, probably the salary of one racer is probably the total amount of money that ski racing has for their annual budget as a sport. [Lewis Hamilton] makes more money than all of ski racing combined!” Vonn said during the drive.

Interestingly enough, Subban interrupted the conversation with a video call. He immediately faced questions about Vonn’s driving style and whether she was “showing off” for the cameras. The NHL player did confirm that she does enjoy going fast, but he clarified that she also uses caution during her outings. Vonn wasn’t just being reckless while going fast.

If Vonn had joined Formula 1, she would have drawn considerable attention. She is a former Olympian and is no stranger to competition, but the arena would have been very different. Still, facing off with figures such as Lewis Hamilton would simply provide yet another challenge for the decorated athlete. Although the sacrifice to achieve this goal would have been a major hurdle.

Ultimately, Vonn passed up the opportunity to join F1, but she is embracing her future with Subban. They are building a life together and are enjoying the experience. As the video showed, part of the process involves Subban constantly singing to Vonn.