Formula 1, explained for rookies

The way I look at it is it's a peace time arms race between European powers that gained popularity after WWII.  The best and the brightest have extreme design challenges every year, and cars evolve at a rapid pace to get marginal edges over other teams, which improves technology for road car tech.  Now they are developing efficient designs to cut fuel usage which will benefit everyone.   Also, as a light comparison to war, the drivers are essentially pilots engaged in dogfights, and when you understand the style, strengths  and backgrounds of the drivers, coupled with their machinery, it can make for very exciting encounters.  There's a lot too it, and as someone who has watched since 88 as a kid, it's never been more engaging and accessible for fans.   I do however think Indycar is a much more fan friendly event with similar great racing and is more driver focused.  Getting on the paddock like Cleo did is extremely expensive and out of reach unless you have some kind of hookups, but for Indycar it is feasible for normal people.