When Daniel Ricciardo stood atop the podium at the 2018 Monaco Grand Prix — his racing shoe unlaced, filled to the brim with champagne, and tipped the bubbly liquid into his mouth — the image seared itself into the brain of a university student 900 miles away. Six years later, that student, Alex Witty, debuted the latest prototype for his sustainable sneaker brand along the same stretch of the Mediterranean Sea Ricciardo sped past in 2018.

Formula 1, made famous by deafening and gas-chugging V-12 and V-10 engines, has committed to a more eco-friendly future: in 2019, the series set a 2030 net-zero deadline. But amid team musings on how to green-ify all the moving parts (14,500 to be exact), the very things that move the sport’s cars are often lost in the margins. And tire waste from Formula 1 is just a fraction of a larger global problem.

“We're talking 1.5 billion tires a year being used, with plenty more being manufactured,” Witty says. “That number is only going to increase with the wider adoption of electric vehicles based on the weight and the strain put on these tires.”

Pirelli, Formula 1’s official tire supplier through 2027, achieved the highest level of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) environmental accreditation in 2021. The company has a 2030 goal for producing tires with 60 percent renewable materials and, ahead of the 2024 Formula 1 season, used Forest Stewardship Council Certified tires for the first time — meaning that natural rubber was used and deforestation did not occur as a result. While Pirelli reuses tires for landscaping mulch and basketball courts, most tires end up fueling UK cement factories. Although more environmentally friendly than a landfill, the process has a slew of its own faults, including contributing to poor air quality. 

From manufacturers to teams, progress is inching, rather than speeding, forward. But as Witty knows, it’ll be drivers — Formula 1’s most recognizable faces — that can help convince fans to care about the sustainability behind a motor race.

Alpine Formula 1 driver Pierre Gasly and former driver-turned-Formula 1 presenter Naomi Schiff leaned into the mission behind Compound, with Gasly posting a picture on Instagram sporting one of the brand’s hoodies made from recycled materials. 

For Witty, part of Compound’s challenge is proving sustainability can be cool. And what better way than through the world of fast cars and big personalities?

“I've always wanted to promote sustainability and circularity, but I want it to be fun,” Witty says. “I want it to be sexy. I want it to be desirable.” 

Convincing consumers may not be as difficult as it sounds as Formula 1’s audience grows younger and more diverse. Gen Z is comprised of value-driven shoppers: 70 percent say they are more likely to open their wallets for brands that actively reduce environmental impact, according to Forbes. A stylish start-up with a sustainable mission at its core should be exactly what the new Formula 1 fan wants. 

The son of a motorsport journalist/Formula 1 commercial director and an environmental conservationist, Witty insists there was never an “ah-ha” moment where he fell in love with racing or sustainability; it was always there. The idea of packaging a solution to the motorsport waste crisis into a trendy streetwear brand, however, was all Witty. But there was still one big hurdle Witty had to clear: “The million dollar question is how do you go from tires to a shoe?” 

“We all use fashion for self-expression besides the basic function of staying warm,” Witty explains. “I thought that was such a fantastic way of pushing our message of sustainable design and circular economies. What better route than to put it into a product that's worn every day that isn't just used but one takes pride in? I think there's a lot you can tell about people by their footwear.”

Compound’s foray into the motorsport space comes at a time when fashion investment in Formula 1 is at an all-time high. Brands with ties to the Bay Area’s skateboarding culture and London’s grime resurgence overshadowed the Strip’s shotgun wedding chapels as each team partnered with a streetwear fashion company during the inaugural Las Vegas Grand Prix in November.

Fashion has always had deep roots in the sport: From Michael Schumacher proudly wearing a United Colors of Benetton-branded racing suit while hoisting a trophy in the 90s to Rolex becoming synonymous with success as the gilded timepieces accompanied two speedy Sirs: Sir Malcolm Campbell and Sir Jackie Stewart. And Formula 1’s industrial coveralls and balaclavas, a staple in late 20th-century workwear, influenced the rise of modern-day streetwear style.

In the last decade, as Lewis Hamilton used the paddock to showcase his style, luxury fashion began using Formula 1 as inspiration for their runways: with collections from Tommy Hilfiger and Marc Jacobs to Moschino and Prada.

With streetwear entering the high fashion space, today’s Formula 1 is a perfect partner: both are working to marry virality with a luxe image to appeal to young consumers. Companies are eagerly lining up to pour dollars into the sport through, most notably, fashion sponsorships.

Hugo Boss’ Hugo, a ready-to-wear streetwear brand, is now one of the top sponsors of Visa Cash App RB, formerly AlphaTauri. Kappa and Palace Skateboards supply Alpine’s pink camouflage race kits while Tumi and Reiss collaborate with McLaren. And Louis Vuitton — Hamilton’s favorite race day brand — partnered with the Formula 1 Grand Prix de Monaco in 2023. From Haas’ Palm Angles to Mercedes’ Awake NY, each team has a resident fashion factory on hand. In total, luxury fashion’s ties to Formula 1 and its 20 drivers amounted to $18.8 million in earned media value (EMV).

But despite Formula 1’s surge in profitability, its stars’ fashion bonafides still haven’t caught up with other sports: English Premier League football players still reign supreme. While Formula 1 team streetwear brands Mitchell & Ness and Palm Angels peaked in search popularity over the Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend, others — like Red Bull’s Cherry LA — only lifted slightly. Despite Hugo Boss signing on to VCARB in February, Google search history didn’t increase. “I think Formula One has a little bit of time still until it's synonymous with fashion and streetwear,” Witty says.

The sustainability — both longevity and eco-consciousness — of the racing craze concerns Witty as a fan and pseudo-stakeholder whose business depends on Formula 1’s sex appeal.

“In my tiny hometown, I started seeing people in the street — I wouldn't say people in my hometown are fashionable or even dialed in — wearing Mercedes jackets and McLaren merch,” Witty recalls. “And I was thinking ‘Fuck, it's made it all the way to my really small little countryside hometown.’” 

But like with any trend, the speed of fashion’s popularity cycle spins nearly as fast as a set of Pirelli C5 tires. Witty tells me he hopes motorsport apparel will have the same lasting impact on fashion as football kits and NFL jerseys. “I would hate to see it dip and become cringe,” he says.

Cringe is a death-knell for any youth-powered trend, as Witty knows. But even if Formula 1 becomes “so last year,” Compound has a vision for longevity.

“We're going to make our shoes as cool as possible for you and give you as much of a story as we can that makes us different and enables you to show your passions and your interests with your fashion choices,” Witty says. “We just hope we've done this in a cool enough way that you're now going to pay slightly more attention to global impacts.”

Compound recently tested its “cool” factor in Monaco with the unveiling of the Monte Carlo prototype, which is tentatively set to become commercially available for the start of the 2025 season. Scattered amid the principality’s penchant for billionaires in pressed white linen, the start-up’s sneakers reflected the shifting demand for affordable and ethical fashion wrapped up in a skater-boy style.

Witty’s vision of Ricciardo sipping race-winning champagne out of a sneaker he designed isn’t likely to happen in Monaco this year, nor will the company alone solve the motorsport waste crisis. Instead, it’s just the beginning of a solution that Witty isn’t sure he should even be driving.

“It shouldn't take a uni student from Brighton to try and take on the global waste crisis of tires,” Witty says. “I would love Compound to be a case study to inspire others to do even bigger and better things.”