William Thomas Buxton (born 14 February 1981) is a British motorsport journalist, commentator and presenter best known for his coverage of Formula One with the Formula One Group from 2018 to 2024. He is currently the lead commentator for Fox Sports' coverage of the IndyCar Series beginning with the 2025 season.[3]
Will Buxton | |
|---|---|
 Buxton in 2024 | |
| Born | William Thomas Buxton[1] 14 February 1981 Portsmouth, England[2] |
| Nationality | British |
| Alma mater | University of Leeds |
| Occupation(s) | Presenter Journalist Sports commentator Author |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Employer | Fox Sports |
Early and personal life
editBuxton was born in Portsmouth, but grew up in Malvern, Worcestershire. He attended King's School, Worcester where he was a chorister at Worcester Cathedral under Donald Hunt. He went on to study at Lord Wandsworth College and Sixth Form College, Farnborough in Hampshire before studying politics at the University of Leeds.[2][4]
In 2018, Buxton announced he was engaged to Victoria Helyar, who worked in marketing for the Racing Point F1 Team.[5] They got married on 16 April 2022.[6] The couple have a daughter, born on 5 July 2023.[7] Buxton also has an older daughter from a previous relationship.[8]
Racing career
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2025) |
In 2014, Buxton was invited to participate in the inaugural Florida Winter Series. He drove at three events, alongside future Formula One drivers Max Verstappen, Lance Stroll and Nicholas Latifi.[9]
Motorsports journalism
editWhilst at university Buxton started writing for GrandPrix.com. In 2002 he joined the Official Formula 1 Magazine, and was a staff writer there until it closed in February 2004, when he went on to freelance work.[2]
Buxton was offered the role of press officer for the inaugural GP2 Series of 2005, and was later promoted to Director of Communications. In 2008 Buxton became editor of the GPWeek virtual magazine, and in 2009 he started providing live commentary for the GP2 Series and GP2 Asia Series for Formula One Group.[10]
In 2010, Buxton joined Speed, an American motorsports cable channel which was owned by Fox Sports, as their Formula 1 pit-lane reporter until they lost the rights to broadcast F1 at the end of 2012, which Buxton claimed he found out about through posts by Speed Channel colleagues on Twitter.[11][12] In 2013, the American broadcasting rights for Formula 1 went to NBC Sports, where Buxton resumed his role as pit-lane reporter, as well as later joining NBC's broadcast team for the IndyCar Series, until 2017.[13]
In a Sky Sports F1 interview in December 2017, Buxton supported the changes Liberty Media had made whilst running Formula 1, despite these changes having lost him his job at NBC Sports.[14]
Buxton returned to Formula 1 in an official capacity in 2018, becoming Formula One Group's first Digital Presenter.[15] He hosted a number of features on F1 TV and the official F1 YouTube channel, including Weekend Warm-Up (formerly Paddock Pass), a feature he carried over from NBC.[16]
Buxton has appeared in all seven seasons of the Netflix documentary series Formula 1: Drive to Survive based on the 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 Formula 1 seasons, giving his opinions on the events covered in the series.[17] He is often used by the show's producers as a reference point for new viewers, explaining racing concepts and terminology for non-motorsport fans. Many of his sound bites have become memes in the Formula 1 community, a fact Buxton is aware of.[18]
In 2019, Buxton released his first book, titled: My Greatest Defeat: Stories of Hardship and Hope from Motor Racing's Finest Heroes, featuring illustrations from Giuseppe Camuncoli.[19]
On 14 January 2025, Fox Sports announced Buxton as its lead commentator for its first season covering the IndyCar Series in 2025, alongside James Hinchcliffe and Townsend Bell as race analysts. As a result, Buxton left his roles with F1TV.[3]
Filmography
edit| Year | Title | Role | Network | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019–2025 | Formula 1: Drive to Survive | Himself | Netflix | [20][21] |
| Year | Title | Role | Network | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018–2022 | Paddock Pass | Himself | F1TV | 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022 season. | [22] |
Games
edit| Year | Title | Type | Platform | Developer | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | F1 2020 | Sport | PlayStation, Xbox and PC | Codemasters | [23] |
| 2021 | F1 2021 | Sport | PlayStation, Xbox and PC | Codemasters and EA Sports | [24] |
| 2022 | F1 22 | Sport | PlayStation, Xbox and PC | Codemasters and EA Sports | [citation needed] |
References
edit- ^ Buxton, W. (27 June 2019). My Greatest Defeat: Stories of Hardship and Hope from Motor Racing's Finest Heroes. EVRO PUBLISHING.
- ^ a b c "About Will Buxton". 13 May 2009. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ a b "FOX Sports Unveils Broadcast Team for NTT INDYCAR SERIES". foxsports.com. 14 January 2025. Retrieved 14 January 2025.
- ^ "About Will Buxton". The Buxton Blog. 13 May 2009. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ "Who Is Will Buxton's Wife? Had Tweeted About His Engagement With HIs Girlfriend". Ecelebritymirror. 31 August 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ Yadav, Khyati (17 April 2022). "F1 Fans Jibe At Newly-Married Will Buxton- "If You Are Married…"". Essentially Sports. Retrieved 3 May 2022.
- ^ "@wbuxtonofficial on Instagram". instagram.com. 8 July 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
- ^ "Will Buxton Wife: Who Is Victoria Helyar?". thesportsrush.com. 27 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
- ^ Buxton's Racing Debut: Episode 1, 17 March 2014, retrieved 17 November 2021
- ^ Rowe, Callum (1 May 2012). "Q&A – Will Buxton". Fast Cars On The Track. Retrieved 28 June 2024.
- ^ Gordon, Claire (12 October 2012). "Sports Reporter Will Buxton Fired Over Twitter". AOL.com. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ "F1 and Speed channel splitting after this season". Archived from the original on 14 October 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
- ^ "Will Buxton - Fox Sports Press Pass". Retrieved 16 February 2025.
- ^ McAssey, Pat (14 December 2017). "Despite Losing NBC Job, Will Buxton Supports Liberty's Vision For F1". New England Sports Network. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ Nelson, David (19 March 2018). "Will Buxton joins Formula 1's in-house team". Motorsport Broadcasting. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
- ^ "Will Buxton - SAFE is Fast". safeisfast.com. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
- ^ Formula 1: Drive to Survive (TV Series 2019– ) - IMDb, retrieved 29 November 2023
- ^ "Will Buxton's art of the obvious: "I don't mind being a meme"". dive-bomb.com. 7 March 2025. Retrieved 10 March 2025.
- ^ ""My Greatest Defeat" by Will Buxton reviewed · RaceFans". RaceFans. 2 June 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- ^ "Will Buxton". IMDb. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ ""I can honestly so it's the best so far"- Will Buxton on F1 Drive To Survive season 3". The SportsRush. 12 March 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ "Formula 1". F1 TV. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ "The 'F1 2020' Racing Game Can't Keep Up With Reality". www.vice.com. 10 August 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
- ^ "F1 2021 Game Review: A turbo-charged triumph". Racing Games. 12 July 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2021.