When first-year neuroscience student Gemma Weinhagen discovered Formula 1 racing through TikTok and Netflix's "Formula 1: Drive to Survive" documentary over the summer, she found herself instantly hooked.
The next semester, Weinhagen wanted to join a club on campus to meet like-minded people, but there wasn't an active group at the time. She decided to take things into her own hands and founded Formula 1 Fanatics.
Formula 1, also called F1, is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel, single-seater formula racing cars. The club is focused on watching races together and learning about the sport.
Weinhagen and the friends she introduced to the sport are newer to Formula One, so she wanted a club that is open to everyone.
"Our goal is to create a welcoming environment where people can share their interest for Formula 1 or motorsports in general, even though there's so many different aspects of the sport — marketing, fashion, engineering, just pure racing," Weinhagen said. "We just want to create an environment where people aren't being judged on what parts of Formula 1 they like, or just why they like Formula 1 in general."
Weinhagen plans for biweekly meetings with watch parties when possible and she has other ideas for crafting activities, such as making keychains for members' favorite racers or teams. She also said that she wants different activities, such as bingo, trivia and rewatching old races. Formula 1 has been around since the 1950s, so there is a lot for newer fans to learn, Weinhagen said.
Weinhagen also envisions snacks and meals themed around the international locations of races.
"For the Dutch Grand Prix, which would be our first in-person meeting in the fall, we'll probably end up going to Aldi, because they tend to have great European snacks, and getting stroopwafels or something like that, and possibly even cooking stuff with my roommate next semester," Weinhagen said.
Club Vice President Alexis Walters, a first-year chemistry student, developed an interest in Formula 1 by watching races with Weinhagen. Walters is a new fan, so she shares Weinhagen's goal of creating a safe space for anyone, regardless of what they like about Formula One.
"F1 (has a) very male-dominated fan base," Walters said. "So, we want to just have a safe space where people could ask dumb questions or just enjoy it and watch and be into anything."
The club has only had virtual sessions due to late race times, with some races starting as late as 3 a.m. Other challenges for Formula 1 Fanatics have been the cancellations of the Bahrain Grand Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix due to the war in Iran.
Despite these bumps, Formula 1 Fanatics has had successes too. The club was one of the 35 organizations to win $1,000 at USC's Gamecocks Lead, Engage and Discover Conference in March 2026.
One of the first people to join the club was third-year criminal justice student Cress Micklash. Micklash has been a casual Formula One fan for about three years, but she said she became obsessed two years ago. She used to live in Abu Dhabi, where races are often held.
Micklash heard about the club returning through an email. She didn't realize that other students on campus were also interested in Formula 1, so she took the opportunity, Micklash said.
Though Micklash is looking forward to in-person meetings, she said the virtual setup hasn’t dimmed her experience.
"The first time I joined the call, all I heard was yelling," Micklash said. "Someone's favorite driver, before the race even started, was already in the wall ... It was really funny. She's like, 'If I wasn't hosting, I would leave this call.'"
Micklash said that even if people don't have much knowledge about Formula 1, they can still join because the other members will be welcoming and explain everything.
"In that first call, someone had never watched a Formula 1 race the whole time," Micklash said. "We explained everything. They tried their best to welcome people that have no idea what Formula 1 is."
Formula 1 Fanatics will meet virtually over the summer to watch races. The club's information and details about their watch parties are located on its Garnet Gate and GroupMe accounts.