Part 2: 2024 F1 Mid-season Review (funny takes only)

[00:00:19] Well, unlike Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes story, there will be no part to hear.

[00:00:24] Wait, actually, there will be a part to hear. What am I saying? I stumble over my words sometimes.

[00:00:29] But yes, it's a word stumbling thing that Lewis Hamilton has moved to Ferrari after years and years away.

[00:00:37] It makes you speechless, makes you say things you've not really thought well about properly because you can't comprehend how big this news is.

[00:00:44] And we're still going to relive it a little bit because this is the funny takes only episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, the mid-season special.

[00:00:53] So the jokes have to come in, right? And I think the joke's on us. We didn't know that Ferrari were really cooking Kunal.

[00:01:02] They have got the big man. They've got the big man. They want to win the eighth with the big man.

[00:01:07] The big man at the big team, John Elkin has said, Lewis is not coming here to enjoy his retirement.

[00:01:13] Maybe he should have said, enjoy his retirement like Kimi Raikkonen. Okay.

[00:01:18] But Lewis is coming here to win his eighth title. And I think that's going to be the story again for me for the second half of the year.

[00:01:25] By the way, thank you. Part two. We all said we're going to have a really long mid-season review.

[00:01:30] It's been so long that we had to take a decision to make it into part two.

[00:01:33] But yeah, so in the second half of 2024, the big challenge that Ferrari also has perception-wise is, will they be able to recover so that people stop questioning Lewis whether he's made the right decision?

[00:01:48] Because that's already started to happen.

[00:01:51] So it's, of course, a function of two things.

[00:01:53] First thing is Mercedes picking up the pace, which they have.

[00:01:56] But second, Ferrari not losing pace, which also they have.

[00:02:01] It's a little premature, right?

[00:02:03] Because I think it was the other way around.

[00:02:06] Initially, when people are saying that Mercedes definitely don't seem like they've understood or they're able to properly ace these regulations.

[00:02:13] And it's just been five races since they've really got a hold of their car and they're able to put in the right operating window.

[00:02:23] And these are the same few races where Ferrari have been stumbling after what seemed like a very good display in Monaco.

[00:02:33] They've gone the wrong way in terms of upgrades.

[00:02:35] Mercedes have gone the right way in terms of upgrades.

[00:02:37] And now people are, I think, really jumping a bit ahead of time to critique and say that Hamilton's probably made the wrong decision.

[00:02:46] I think it's much more than that.

[00:02:50] But even if Mercedes are competitive next year, I don't think he's going to mind it.

[00:02:54] Well, let's return back to Mercedes for a little bit, where because of Hamilton going, there's been a bit of a furor.

[00:03:03] It's opened up the opportunity for Mercedes to get Kimi Antonelli now.

[00:03:06] And that is a very interesting thing that's also turned around.

[00:03:11] And amidst this, Kunal, there's a bit of a statement that I really want to showcase to all of you and then get your take on.

[00:03:19] Because a few years ago, I think it was in 2019, Toto Wolff made the following statement.

[00:03:26] I don't think that you're given the possibility to learn in a Mercedes because you're being put in a car that is able to win races and championships in a high pressure environment.

[00:03:35] And I think it can go terribly wrong for a young driver that has the talent to become a world champion if he's thrown in that environment.

[00:03:42] I wouldn't want to burn him.

[00:03:45] Are we talking about Kimi Antonelli here?

[00:03:48] Definitely not, because it's the year that you said it was for George Russell.

[00:03:53] Right.

[00:03:53] And like I've said all along, you know, Antonelli getting promoted, of course, is talent.

[00:03:59] But it's also Toto Wolff's ego.

[00:04:03] You know, he missed out on promoting Max Verstappen.

[00:04:05] And Max Verstappen actually was weighing up whether to sign with Red Bull or with Mercedes.

[00:04:10] And one of the only reasons he went with Red Bull was because they were giving him an earlier promotion to Formula One than Mercedes was going to do.

[00:04:18] And Red Bull, of course, were the beneficiary of that.

[00:04:21] But now here, Toto Wolff has everything, a winning chassis, a winning power unit, a winning everything.

[00:04:26] Imagine they've not won anything since 2021 in terms of titles.

[00:04:32] But perception-wise, again, like we said in the first part of the episode, perception-wise, Red Bull is still going to be our pick in Sunfoot and Monza in the second half of the year.

[00:04:41] But perception-wise, again, 2026, all our money is in the Mercedes basket for getting it right.

[00:04:48] And Toto knows that.

[00:04:50] So what's the one thing they don't have, which is their own groomed, homegrown, homefound, scouted, talented, nurtured driver in Formula One who then becomes the next Max Verstappen or the Max Verstappen of the next era?

[00:05:04] And I think Toto, if he's made that statement back in 2019, that was at a time when Max Verstappen was not the world champion.

[00:05:12] So he's, of course, learned from letting Verstappen go.

[00:05:16] And he's, of course, learned from Alpine and McLaren that if you have a good enough driver, you give him a long run and then see him become world champion rather than him being snapped by your rivals.

[00:05:29] So I wouldn't fault him for trying to bring in Kimi Antonelli.

[00:05:33] But the fast-tracking is insane.

[00:05:35] Like the FIA changing the regulation.

[00:05:37] But would he say that?

[00:05:39] But would, I mean, if Lewis had signed on for another two years, he would probably say the same thing about Kimi.

[00:05:45] Yeah, I mean, that's just PR, right?

[00:05:47] That's just what these guys...

[00:05:48] Yeah.

[00:05:49] But this is also why they gave Lewis a one-year contract.

[00:05:53] So the whole Lewis Hamilton-Mercedes contract play, Lewis checkmated Mercedes, but it was Mercedes' losing move that Lewis sort of made the most of, I would say, right?

[00:06:05] And he could have sensed that, you know, Kimi Antonelli and things are happening around him and so on.

[00:06:11] But nobody would have imagined.

[00:06:12] Nobody, in fact, Kimi himself would have probably imagined it's going to be coming this soon into his Formula One career.

[00:06:19] Because now, unless a Max Verstappen wants to race for Mercedes in 2025, Kimi Antonelli is getting that seat in Mercedes next season.

[00:06:30] Isn't it weird that before a dynasty begins, they end up winning a few races in the season before that?

[00:06:35] And then the next year, the dynasty begins.

[00:06:38] Mercedes in 2013, Red Bull in 2021.

[00:06:40] Starts from somewhere and then look at how far they go.

[00:06:43] So this is, I feel the cycle coming back to Mercedes now.

[00:06:46] But man, it's been a crazy year for them as well.

[00:06:50] Overall, Austria was insane.

[00:06:52] Any more crazy, fun moments we can bring out about that?

[00:06:56] I would say their craziness also goes with what Sundaram said in the previous episode.

[00:07:01] It's all about that, you know, being in the right operating window with the right track conditions.

[00:07:07] And I remember, you know, Toto Wolf joking, saying I would love for it to be freezing cold in Spa.

[00:07:13] Because when it's colder, that Mercedes actually just, you know, comes alive.

[00:07:17] And that's been one of those, what do you say, magical moments that they've had in the last five odd races.

[00:07:27] Because there's a higher chance that even though it's a European summer, unless you're in Budapest, it's a cooler European summer.

[00:07:34] I mean, ask me in Oslo today, I was wearing two layers because it's a European or the Nordic summer.

[00:07:40] At least that's what we get a hold of.

[00:07:42] But I think my funniest thing, at least at the start of the year, was when Toto Wolf said that he studied.

[00:07:49] And Samuel, this one's for you.

[00:07:50] Toto Wolf said that he studied Manchester United's failures to avoid a team's decline.

[00:07:58] I take that as an interesting comment.

[00:08:02] Because in part, he is correct.

[00:08:04] He's saving that team a lot more in that way.

[00:08:07] Because even though keepers, Nille have gone, the confidence from Mercedes has not gone.

[00:08:11] And they're bringing in two young talents.

[00:08:13] And it all seems to be in that right direction.

[00:08:15] But, I don't know, maybe someone...

[00:08:18] I'm glad he didn't say Chelsea.

[00:08:20] I'm glad he didn't say Chelsea.

[00:08:21] I could have been crazy.

[00:08:22] But I think someone's sending him anonymous emails.

[00:08:25] So that he's being linked to think about Manchester United.

[00:08:28] And anonymous emails have been flying around Mercedes and their people.

[00:08:33] Lewis Hamilton got a few.

[00:08:34] Maybe it came in from someone who hacked the CrowdStrike system and then caused it a shutdown.

[00:08:39] And before that, he sent out an anonymous email.

[00:08:41] But that email was about Lewis Hamilton doing terribly.

[00:08:45] And people threatening Toto Wolf because you're sabotaging him.

[00:08:49] That's crazy.

[00:08:51] Yeah.

[00:08:52] And, you know, it was actually investigated by the police.

[00:08:55] And they said there's no criminal offense.

[00:08:58] And I think it was also a little fueled by Lewis saying, I don't know what's happening on Saturdays.

[00:09:04] And, you know, he was in this whole very prophetic moment which he often goes into.

[00:09:08] That's why I sometimes call him St. Lewis Hamilton.

[00:09:12] He was, of course, not hinting at anything.

[00:09:15] But, of course, you know, you can insinuate or you can misunderstand his courts as you would.

[00:09:22] Because he would be like, I didn't change anything after FP3 and my car's nowhere.

[00:09:25] And congrats to George on the pole.

[00:09:27] And those kind of questions that he would normally have.

[00:09:30] But that's the power of his fan base.

[00:09:33] There was an email which went out, which got investigated, which, of course, to me, the other interesting part of that email is it went to the same database to which Christian Horner's WhatsApp gate went out to.

[00:09:50] And my question to the three of us is, why don't we have this database?

[00:09:54] And we should send everybody, you know, their clippings of when we speak about them or their team in every episode.

[00:10:01] Because that is such a powerful database to have, don't you think?

[00:10:05] I would love to send my stats to them.

[00:10:08] Sure.

[00:10:08] Let's find them.

[00:10:10] And they will use them without giving you credit.

[00:10:12] That's crazy, man.

[00:10:13] That's crazy.

[00:10:14] It's okay.

[00:10:16] But there was also this social media controversy where I think George was the first one to get a podium.

[00:10:24] And the team said, our first trophy of the season.

[00:10:26] And then, boom, they, of course, missed out on Hamilton's sprint race podium.

[00:10:33] China.

[00:10:34] China.

[00:10:35] And then, of course, they turned around and said, you actually don't win a trophy for a sprint race, which is true.

[00:10:40] You win a plaque.

[00:10:41] Right.

[00:10:41] But there we go.

[00:10:42] It was one of those things.

[00:10:44] And then the most cheeky thing that Mercedes did.

[00:10:48] And, you know, of course, this is a racing team, most dominant in its era, seven back-to-back wins, whatever, etc.

[00:10:55] In Spain, they brought the same spec of their floor, just lighter.

[00:11:03] And they didn't have to declare it.

[00:11:06] Okay.

[00:11:06] So it was only later that people found out.

[00:11:09] Because if it's the same spec, you do not need to declare it.

[00:11:12] Okay.

[00:11:13] So that was one of those cheeky things that I realized, saying, oh, wow, it is the same spec, just lighter, their floor.

[00:11:19] And they didn't need to declare it.

[00:11:21] So people didn't know it was sort of under the radar kind of thing.

[00:11:24] That's an interesting one.

[00:11:26] Oh.

[00:11:27] Yeah.

[00:11:27] And Lewis Hamilton, talking on social media also, Lewis Hamilton has had this one interesting moment.

[00:11:34] I think it was Spain when he said in the interview, I'm not on social media.

[00:11:40] And he's going and talking.

[00:11:41] And then guess what?

[00:11:42] His phone is beeping.

[00:11:44] Ping, ping, ping, ping.

[00:11:45] And it's most probably a social media notifications.

[00:11:49] Because he, of course, has this coy smile on his face saying, oops, am I actually not on social media or am I on social media?

[00:11:58] Hamilton's had a few funny incidents, I would say, when it comes to social media.

[00:12:03] Right from his Twitter days, when he was spotting Jensen Button.

[00:12:07] Didn't he put a telephone on Twitter one day?

[00:12:10] And one day, was he on Snapchat during some press conference?

[00:12:15] And everyone was like, yeah, we'd like to know what you're doing.

[00:12:18] And he's had a few of those.

[00:12:20] And he was on Snapchat when Bernie Eccleston actually had warned him to not use social media when he's on the podium and all of that.

[00:12:27] And this was back in that era where.

[00:12:29] So 2016, I think.

[00:12:30] Probably.

[00:12:31] During the press conference.

[00:12:33] Yeah.

[00:12:34] But do we have anything on George Russell?

[00:12:35] We've just gone Wolf and Hamilton.

[00:12:37] Just talks of the pecking order in Mercedes in terms of personalities, right?

[00:12:41] Yeah.

[00:12:42] George Russell might be the number one driver next year.

[00:12:45] But he still needs to step up to be that number one personality who's representing the Mercedes brand, I would say.

[00:12:51] And it's going to be interesting.

[00:12:52] Mercedes did not found the bottom of why Lewis is not really very, very good on Saturday.

[00:12:58] And so you see all those excuses coming up.

[00:13:01] People that have been talking about sabotage and something else.

[00:13:04] In fact, one time in Miami, it was just sheer bad luck.

[00:13:07] A gust of wind came in.

[00:13:09] And that really impacted Lewis Hamilton's lap.

[00:13:11] He was at a certain part of the circuit where it impacted his car quite a fair bit and completely lost performance.

[00:13:18] And that's been the extent of which randomness has been behind these performance gaps as well sometimes in qualifying.

[00:13:24] Which have been extremely close, like we said.

[00:13:27] I think Lewis and George are just a tenth away.

[00:13:31] Hamilton's just been a tenth away from George Russell.

[00:13:33] And that's just as close as it can get in qualifying, I would say.

[00:13:40] Yeah, just as close as Sargent and Albert.

[00:13:42] Absolutely.

[00:13:45] Which was six and a half tenths.

[00:13:47] A little more.

[00:13:48] Yes.

[00:13:50] But any fun takes on George Russell?

[00:13:53] Or do we not have any?

[00:13:54] I mean, he doesn't tend to have any jokes.

[00:13:57] So why should we on him?

[00:13:59] No, but yeah, I have one fun take.

[00:14:01] He doesn't have a joke, but he sort of made a joke of himself when he said, I was busy focusing on my dash when he was involved in wheel-to-wheel battle with Fernando Alonso.

[00:14:11] And he binned it and he blamed it all on Fernando Alonso.

[00:14:15] And then pretty much everyone was convinced that it was Fernando Alonso.

[00:14:19] Poor Fernando Alonso.

[00:14:20] So this is where he would have repeated a non-English speaking driver bias, which he's always repeated for those 20 years he's been racing in Formula One.

[00:14:29] I guess there is nothing more on George Russell.

[00:14:33] There's nothing more on George Russell.

[00:14:34] Why don't we move on to Ferrari?

[00:14:36] Samuel's favourite, Carlos Sainz.

[00:14:38] Or no, should we just do Frederic Vassour?

[00:14:41] What about him?

[00:14:42] Take over, Samuel.

[00:14:45] Is he going to be the one who's going to drive Ferrari to a World Championship?

[00:14:51] Do you think he's getting replaced?

[00:14:52] We're answering big questions today, huh?

[00:14:55] Or at least asking them.

[00:14:57] Yeah.

[00:14:58] We're trying to give some sort of answer as well.

[00:15:01] This one, I think it's a matter of time, really.

[00:15:06] He'll get closer than anyone ever has.

[00:15:08] And now that Ferrari have accepted Lewis Hamilton, which they wouldn't do, someone of his calibre, someone of his kind, someone who's not inherently Italian.

[00:15:17] On top of that, the colour element also makes a difference because Ferrari traditionally are belonging in a country that's still not 100% racism free.

[00:15:25] At least when you look at it from a football standpoint as well.

[00:15:28] Many incidents have been recorded from a few years ago.

[00:15:31] Yeah.

[00:15:32] Okay.

[00:15:32] Wow.

[00:15:33] No clue.

[00:15:33] It's a big thing that's happened.

[00:15:34] I don't follow football.

[00:15:35] But maybe that could be a generational shift that, hey, we're adjusting to a more equal sort of team where a non-Italian bias probably wouldn't be as heavy.

[00:15:46] Because if you notice it, most of the Ferrari drivers from the top era, apart from Kimi, they all speak Italian.

[00:15:52] Kimi was the only one who outlasted it, apart from all the others.

[00:15:55] So maybe I think they're accepting it a bit more and then hopefully Lewis can help them transform that.

[00:16:00] But the decline, man.

[00:16:02] Or maybe Lewis is learning Italian for all he knows.

[00:16:04] If that's what's going to give him the edge, maybe he's learning Italian.

[00:16:07] Yeah, exactly.

[00:16:09] But I think the fact doesn't change.

[00:16:12] They need a bit of time.

[00:16:14] And the variations are insane, Sundaram.

[00:16:17] Because I was just wondering, right?

[00:16:20] Ferrari tend to sometimes screw it up but then be very, very good.

[00:16:24] This year, I was confused about which team is the best at being Ferrari.

[00:16:27] Which is it firstly Mercedes from having pole in the UK and then a win for Lewis Hamilton to Russell being not out of Q1 with that sort of randomness.

[00:16:36] Or Ferrari, who won at Monaco, an incredible win where we all thought them and a clerk were back.

[00:16:42] Eventually, they ended up finishing where in Montreal qualifying?

[00:16:46] 11th and 12th.

[00:16:47] And that's typical Ferrari.

[00:16:49] I find it quite funny that you say that it's a case of time for Ferrari.

[00:16:54] That team's not won a championship since 2008.

[00:16:58] We've already spent a fair amount of time trying to find the perfect team and the perfect operation for them to really put forward a championship bid that lasts till the end of the season or doesn't just end at the mid-season break.

[00:17:13] But that's unfortunate when you feel that they've gotten everything right.

[00:17:19] I know he's making a lot of moves with respect to personnel and he's got the driver and now they're bringing in upgrades.

[00:17:25] They win Monaco.

[00:17:26] They make a huge statement.

[00:17:28] Leclerc wins from pole finally.

[00:17:30] And then they really go downhill in Canada.

[00:17:34] And it feels like it's that whole cycle once again.

[00:17:38] And it's the depression that comes with it as well.

[00:17:41] Well, it's a very tricky situation being a Ferrari fan as well because you really don't know if the high is going to last long or is it just going to be a quick sudden dip that follows right after it.

[00:17:53] But I really hope and it's I mean just being a Formula One fan for that long, it really hurts not seeing McLaren and Ferrari win titles.

[00:18:02] I'm not even saying driver's championships.

[00:18:05] They've got to be at the front.

[00:18:07] They have got to be at the front.

[00:18:08] And maybe McLaren will win a Constructors Championship this year.

[00:18:11] Ferrari is still nowhere close to it.

[00:18:13] We'll get to McLaren later.

[00:18:14] But you explained it very well, the highs and the lows.

[00:18:17] This is why if there was any Formula One team that could have a theme park to its name with roller coasters that are absolutely world famous for their undulations.

[00:18:30] And all the ups and downs that you feel it has to be Ferrari.

[00:18:36] But my question started off very differently.

[00:18:41] Do you guys think Frederic Vessour is going to get replaced or will he be the one getting Ferrari the titles?

[00:18:49] I don't think he's going to be replaced.

[00:18:51] For what?

[00:18:53] I don't think so.

[00:18:55] They've had as bad as a time as they've had with Mattia Benotto.

[00:18:59] There have been positives and it looks like he is making moves in the positive in that direction.

[00:19:05] But what really holds them back eventually is strategy.

[00:19:09] And sometimes it feels over ambitious.

[00:19:11] I don't know which race was it.

[00:19:12] Was it?

[00:19:13] You just name it and there's a good chance that it was that race.

[00:19:16] Yeah, so that's the thing.

[00:19:18] Sometimes it just falls.

[00:19:19] It just comes down to where the strategy team makes the call during a Grand Prix.

[00:19:26] And I don't think so.

[00:19:28] Frederic Vessour is going.

[00:19:29] I think he's going to have a good enough run at least until maybe 2026 and see where they are that year.

[00:19:35] I don't think so.

[00:19:36] He's going sooner than that.

[00:19:37] I think so too.

[00:19:39] I think so too.

[00:19:40] It'll be a while.

[00:19:42] I feel this will work out.

[00:19:44] You just need to see the positivity around the team eventually.

[00:19:47] With every defeat, it's not a complete disaster.

[00:19:51] The media are not killing him.

[00:19:53] I think progress is slow but it'll be there.

[00:19:55] I think Ferrari will get back to that level soon.

[00:19:58] But we didn't answer Kunal's question.

[00:19:59] He asked if Frederic was a win.

[00:20:03] That's a tough one.

[00:20:05] With Ferrari, we never know.

[00:20:06] Is there someone else?

[00:20:08] Is there someone else who could do it?

[00:20:10] At this point, I don't think so.

[00:20:11] So, I think, I don't know.

[00:20:15] I think I would at least think that it could be Vessour.

[00:20:18] With Leclerc and Hamilton, maybe 2026.

[00:20:21] If they get everything right, maybe.

[00:20:24] Interesting.

[00:20:25] And then, of course, it'll be Hamilton winning the drivers and not Leclerc.

[00:20:29] That I don't know.

[00:20:30] But okay, I'll tell you what.

[00:20:33] Hiring Lewis Hamilton has actually extended Frederic Vessour's term as a Ferrari team principle,

[00:20:39] I would think.

[00:20:40] Because that's like that forbidden food prize possession, which Frederic Vessour was one of

[00:20:46] the big reasons why Lewis signed there as well.

[00:20:48] And also, I'm pretty sure Lewis would have also asked on, are you going to sack Frederick

[00:20:54] just after I join?

[00:20:56] Because that's happened before.

[00:20:58] You get signed by a team principle who's not your team principle when you go racing.

[00:21:01] And then there is animosity there.

[00:21:03] Or is he staying there for longer?

[00:21:05] So, I think Lewis going there is also a sign that Ferrari are going to trust Vessour a little

[00:21:10] more.

[00:21:10] But since it's all fun takes only, right?

[00:21:14] Frederic Vessour seems like he uses the media very well to make board presentations after Spa.

[00:21:21] This is what he said.

[00:21:22] So, mid-season review, mid-season takes.

[00:21:24] We've reduced the gap to Red Bull Racing by 300%.

[00:21:28] Boom.

[00:21:29] Okay.

[00:21:31] 60% more points.

[00:21:32] Really?

[00:21:32] Yeah, he said these things.

[00:21:33] We have scored 60% more points than one year ago.

[00:21:37] Okay.

[00:21:38] A couple of races ago, he said, we've got 45 seconds in the last 12 months to the leaders,

[00:21:44] which is great.

[00:21:45] All of this is great.

[00:21:46] But dear Frederick, and I love him from his sour days.

[00:21:49] I've met him.

[00:21:50] He's a great chap.

[00:21:51] Very funny.

[00:21:52] Probably the fun.

[00:21:52] If there's one team principle I would love to bring to talk and make everyone roll on their

[00:21:58] floor listening in, it's Frederic Vessour.

[00:22:01] He is the funniest guy in all the press conferences.

[00:22:03] He laughs even before his own jokes are over.

[00:22:06] Okay.

[00:22:07] But Frederic Vessour has not been brought so that he cuts the gaps to the leaders.

[00:22:12] Yes, that's a step towards becoming a leader.

[00:22:15] Right?

[00:22:15] But he's been brought on.

[00:22:17] So, they lead.

[00:22:18] So, they are in the battle.

[00:22:19] And the way Ferrari has gone from fighting with Red Bull Racing at the start of the year

[00:22:24] to now being fourth is where the whole technical challenge of Ferrari lies, I would say.

[00:22:33] And what are they going to do with Charles Leclerc?

[00:22:35] I mean, Leclerc is going to turn old in that Ferrari and still be that good boy who gets all the wrong strategy.

[00:22:44] And I mean, wasn't that one race?

[00:22:47] And I'm just looking here because I wrote it here.

[00:22:49] In Canada, he made a mistake qualifying.

[00:22:52] Something happened.

[00:22:52] I'm sure it was a team thing.

[00:22:54] They had a double DNF.

[00:22:55] And then Mia, who has been his media assistant, whatever you call it, you know.

[00:23:02] She's always with him with all the media.

[00:23:04] Has been with him since the sauber days.

[00:23:07] Okay.

[00:23:08] She shows him something on the phone, which was basically a team statement.

[00:23:12] And then Leclerc actually very angry says, I'll say what I want.

[00:23:17] And he says that in front of all those cameras.

[00:23:20] So Leclerc, I mean, he's had a new engineer, Brian Bozzi.

[00:23:25] Of course, Chevy's been let go off and whatever.

[00:23:28] But it's still the same old strategy mistakes, right?

[00:23:33] And just puzzles me what's going to happen to that team.

[00:23:36] I mean, if there was one highlight moment for Ferrari this year,

[00:23:40] apart from winning the Monaco Grand Prix,

[00:23:42] Australia was thanks to Max's retirement, remember.

[00:23:46] Their highlight was Gerhard Berger's Ferrari, which was stolen in 1995,

[00:23:54] was finally found by the cops almost 30 years later.

[00:23:59] That's the highlight for Ferrari.

[00:24:03] But if Leclerc does not win the title with Ferrari,

[00:24:07] I think that's going to be one of the most disappointing stories in Formula 1,

[00:24:13] considering how much of hype was made or is still being made that he is a Ferrari boy.

[00:24:20] And he's also often gone on to say that I'm going to be world champion with Ferrari.

[00:24:24] But like you correctly said, all the strategic mistakes and the frustration,

[00:24:29] especially in the Leclerc camp compared to Sainz's case.

[00:24:32] It's going to be a very sad, sad tale if he does not win the title.

[00:24:37] I mean, if he does win a title, but it's not with Ferrari,

[00:24:39] I think it's going to be a very sad one.

[00:24:41] But I have two points to say here.

[00:24:42] I think Ferrari have, of course, hired Lewis Hamilton because it's Lewis Hamilton.

[00:24:49] But they've also hired Lewis Hamilton because they probably believe

[00:24:53] they're not going to win it yet with Leclerc.

[00:24:55] Leclerc is not ready.

[00:24:57] They're not ready.

[00:24:57] They're not ready to get there.

[00:24:58] Could be.

[00:24:58] Imagine if Ferrari, I mean, Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso

[00:25:05] were inquiring with Red Bull Racing if they could become their second driver.

[00:25:09] This was early on in the season before they re-signed, extended, Checo Perez.

[00:25:15] Would Ferrari have even considered Hamilton if they had a Max Verstappen

[00:25:19] and they were winning?

[00:25:19] No.

[00:25:20] No.

[00:25:21] No.

[00:25:22] So maybe Ferrari also don't have the confidence.

[00:25:25] And that leads me to the second point.

[00:25:27] Does Charles Leclerc even have another team he could go race for in Formula 1?

[00:25:32] After seeing all those dreams with Ferrari, is there even a bigger dream anyone could race for?

[00:25:38] I mean, look at Kimi Raikkonen.

[00:25:40] He was nowhere in that Sauber or Alfa Romeo or whatever you call it.

[00:25:45] But anyway.

[00:25:46] You get lost.

[00:25:48] It's going to be a little odd seeing Charles Leclerc in different overalls.

[00:25:53] Especially if he turns up like Aston Martin.

[00:25:55] We've always teased that.

[00:25:57] It's going to be very odd seeing him in black or silver or green overalls.

[00:26:02] If it's not red, it's going to be very odd.

[00:26:04] But yeah.

[00:26:04] I swear, dude.

[00:26:05] Seriously.

[00:26:06] Drivers get lost after they're done with Ferrari.

[00:26:09] Seriously.

[00:26:10] It's a finishing ground in a way.

[00:26:13] Leclerc has been sold on that dream for so long.

[00:26:16] Well, anything more on Ferrari, guys, before we move on to McLaren, who have also been such a big force this year?

[00:26:24] Good moment of Charles Leclerc.

[00:26:26] He met with that Indian actor's son, Ibrahim.

[00:26:29] Ibrahim, yeah.

[00:26:29] Oh, that happened this year too.

[00:26:31] And he said namaste.

[00:26:33] Right?

[00:26:34] And that went viral in India.

[00:26:36] Because we love it when people say namaste.

[00:26:38] So if you ever tweet us next time or reach out on Instagram, you can start by saying namaste and we'll probably take even more notice of your comments.

[00:26:46] Crazy.

[00:26:48] But I...

[00:26:48] Sorry, I'm just...

[00:26:49] I'm just...

[00:26:50] I was just trying to go back and see when was the last time a driver left Ferrari and then went on to win a championship.

[00:26:55] I think the last person to do that was Frost.

[00:26:59] Wow.

[00:26:59] Wow.

[00:27:00] Yes.

[00:27:02] Not Vettel, not Alonso.

[00:27:05] Not wrong, right?

[00:27:06] Yeah.

[00:27:06] No one else has done it.

[00:27:07] No, no, no.

[00:27:09] Wow, man.

[00:27:10] 30 years.

[00:27:11] Which leads us on to the other iconic powerhouse team of Formula One, McLaren.

[00:27:17] Man, they've had a weird year.

[00:27:19] Where do we start?

[00:27:20] Do we start at the random things that have happened to them or the random things that they've done?

[00:27:26] I think the former would be a good idea.

[00:27:28] Because we've spoken a lot about and we will continue to chat a lot about their operational issues like Norris' starts, their pit stop calls.

[00:27:37] But they had a motorhome fire in Spain, which somehow is a place where a lot of motorhome fires tend to happen.

[00:27:43] Ask Williams about that.

[00:27:45] And then they won a race, which McLaren did soon afterwards after that as well.

[00:27:48] So that was weird.

[00:27:51] After Kriti Sandin came to Formula One, who we should also talk about, Donald Trump actually was before her in terms of crazy celebrity collaborations of sorts.

[00:28:01] He was found in the McLaren pit box.

[00:28:03] And Donald Trump said, well, it's a great place to be.

[00:28:06] Landon Norris made a comment which was apparently, you've got to respect someone like Donald Trump for what he does.

[00:28:13] He's a man who's accomplished a lot.

[00:28:14] So you've got to respect him.

[00:28:16] I never imagined this to happen.

[00:28:18] Ever.

[00:28:20] And then...

[00:28:21] Wasn't it in Miami?

[00:28:22] Miami, Miami.

[00:28:23] Wasn't it the same weekend?

[00:28:24] And then McLaren had to issue a statement saying they're neutral and whatever and something.

[00:28:29] But talking about the motorhome, I think in Spain, yes, they had fire.

[00:28:33] In Hungary, they had leakage.

[00:28:36] In Monaco, it was not ready on time.

[00:28:39] So I'm glad that McLaren's issues are not on track.

[00:28:45] Because if McLaren had issues on track, okay, can you imagine?

[00:28:51] They did, right?

[00:28:51] In Hungary.

[00:28:52] No, no.

[00:28:52] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:28:53] What I mean is if they were not competitive.

[00:28:54] They're on that 10 race streak of scoring podiums.

[00:28:57] If they had issues on track and they were not as competitive.

[00:28:59] I don't think we would have enjoyed 2024 as much.

[00:29:32] That's a very interesting point.

[00:29:34] Mercedes.

[00:29:35] And really have a shot at the title by not being a works team.

[00:29:39] So that's a very interesting situation which I feel that...

[00:29:43] And again, we just have to go back to the start of 2023.

[00:29:47] McLaren were nowhere.

[00:29:48] I think they were fighting for 16th or 17th in Jeddah.

[00:29:51] And a couple of races in, they brought in the upgrades and it just turned their whole campaign around.

[00:29:57] And that continues even till this season.

[00:29:58] So that means that in this budget gap era and sliding scale, it is possible if you get everything right.

[00:30:06] You can put your car in the very front.

[00:30:08] And they've not copied Red Bull.

[00:30:11] Yeah.

[00:30:12] Which is also a great thing.

[00:30:13] They've found their own way of making things work.

[00:30:15] And they are quick whether it's hot or cold as well.

[00:30:19] And they just are sharpening their tools on the pit box, on the pit wall I would say.

[00:30:24] Because the one area they've been lacking in has been strategy.

[00:30:27] We've decoded that in several preview and review episodes that we've had this season.

[00:30:33] But I think my funny take here is McLaren suddenly were quick in the low speed, the slow speeds as well.

[00:30:40] And they came back and said, we actually don't know why our quad is quick.

[00:30:44] It's quicker than anticipated in the slow speed sections.

[00:30:48] But at least when we go to SunFood, Zac Brown is going to tell us if McLaren are going to prioritize Lando Norris in a world championship this year.

[00:30:57] Which they may almost never win, I guess.

[00:30:59] But not just strategy decisions in real time.

[00:31:03] But even decisions on which driver to back, which are not real time, are a bit questionable, I would say, from McLaren's.

[00:31:11] And pretty much every single person, including the three of us, are giving Andrea Stella tips on how to go and win races in Formula One.

[00:31:19] That's true.

[00:31:21] There's been so much of that weirdness in the pit box.

[00:31:25] But they've got to overcome that.

[00:31:27] The car is fast.

[00:31:28] The drivers are well-primed.

[00:31:29] They're also pointing in all one direction completely.

[00:31:32] It's good to see McLaren doing well.

[00:31:34] I think one funny thing we can point out is Andrea Stella taking shots at Max Verstappen for the way he's been driving.

[00:31:42] That has been hilarious.

[00:31:43] But a serious note, Lando Norris' starts.

[00:31:46] Guys, we have to talk about this.

[00:31:49] Lando Norris has not been a good starter for a while.

[00:31:52] It's something that he's admitted to as well.

[00:31:55] And there are so many races since Oscar Piastri has come in,

[00:31:59] where his starting has been something where you need to pay attention to.

[00:32:03] Well, take a look at this.

[00:32:05] Why is Oscar Piastri the first McLaren driver to win a race in that team?

[00:32:09] Qatar Sprint 2023, Lando Norris, he had a bad start.

[00:32:13] This year as well, there were many instances.

[00:32:15] Miami, where he dropped a few positions.

[00:32:17] Silverstone, where he lost P3 to Verstappen.

[00:32:19] He lost Spain from pole and went down to third.

[00:32:22] He lost the lead in Hungary as well.

[00:32:24] And in Belgium, he had an unforced error which dropped him from P4 to P7.

[00:32:28] So, starts are clearly a concern for Lando Norris.

[00:32:31] He's come out and mentioned this.

[00:32:32] If he has to be that next level driver, that start has to be crucial.

[00:32:36] Because in modern day Formula 1, less so now than it used to be a couple of years ago,

[00:32:40] because the overtaking delta is so much, you need a good start.

[00:32:45] Track position is vital.

[00:32:46] So, for Lando, losing those vital positions at the start is a big loss.

[00:32:51] It is.

[00:32:51] It is.

[00:32:52] And can you imagine of all the good races he's had, all the wheel-to-wheel actions he's done,

[00:32:56] the one thing people remember and will continue to do so is the fact that his darts are all over the place.

[00:33:10] Yeah.

[00:33:33] Right.

[00:33:35] Something to watch for.

[00:33:36] Much as, I would say, P3 and if he's got another home race coming up.

[00:33:41] Because I loved his home race trend.

[00:33:43] Of course, it was Australia.

[00:33:44] And then he said, did I say, you know, I'm 116th Chinese because that's where some of my ancestors were.

[00:33:50] And then in Monaco, he just realized he couldn't play that joke anymore.

[00:33:53] So, he said, Charles Leclerc is just going to adopt me and I'm Oscar Piastri Leclerc this race weekend.

[00:33:59] I think it's fantastic when, you know, drivers get comfortable, get performances,

[00:34:05] and then their personalities are able to come out to the media and the public for us to enjoy this way.

[00:34:12] Absolutely.

[00:34:12] But I would prefer it that the rivalry takes over when they're fighting for wins and championships.

[00:34:17] I would like to see that happen.

[00:34:19] And keep the brotherhood aside and be a little bit more how Rosberg and Hamilton were.

[00:34:26] That's how I would prefer it.

[00:34:28] But, no, but I'm thinking maybe is this the moment where Zac Brown says, you know,

[00:34:36] Max Verstappen is 78 points ahead of us in the driver championships.

[00:34:40] Mathematically, it is possible.

[00:34:42] But we put our focus on the constructors championship rather than really giving either driver

[00:34:50] preference to see if they can win the drivers.

[00:34:53] 78 points in the driver's championship, 42 points in the constructors championship.

[00:34:56] I think that's where McLaren's focus has to be.

[00:35:00] They've been very noble with them so far.

[00:35:02] That's been good.

[00:35:03] Very clear in terms of what the way forward is.

[00:35:06] That's been good to see.

[00:35:07] And it's great to see McLaren coming back.

[00:35:09] But again, as we've been mentioning, it's a teenage team.

[00:35:12] They're learning.

[00:35:13] It's a young outfit with the same name from their glory days, but not the same people from their glory days.

[00:35:19] So, wait for them.

[00:35:20] They are coming close towards that win.

[00:35:23] But well, McLaren, do we want to talk about more?

[00:35:25] Fiastri has given great moments.

[00:35:27] He's been incredible this year.

[00:35:29] There's one thing which I think Fiastri put up a tweet today.

[00:35:35] Revealing that he actually had a broken rib after the British Grand Prix.

[00:35:38] So, you didn't know that?

[00:35:41] No.

[00:35:42] There was a tweet out today.

[00:35:44] No, wow.

[00:35:44] Him summarizing the first half of the season.

[00:35:48] So, he put up an x-ray image, I suppose, of him having a broken rib.

[00:35:52] I'm not sure how he got it.

[00:35:54] He's not revealed that.

[00:35:55] But supposedly, it happened the day after.

[00:35:57] I mean, the x-ray is from the day after the British Grand Prix.

[00:36:00] And the very next race, he went on to win.

[00:36:03] So, turns out the trend is if you have any sort of surgery or any sort of injury, you could go on and win the next race.

[00:36:10] It's happened with Carlos Sainz with appendicitis in Australia.

[00:36:15] It happened with Lando Norris who had a small, small, I would say, wound from the break between races.

[00:36:23] And he went on to win Miami.

[00:36:24] I mean, Oscar Piastri had a broken rib and he went on to win the next race.

[00:36:27] My goodness.

[00:36:29] I didn't know the rib.

[00:36:30] Now, that's going to be the breaking story.

[00:36:32] Breaking story in sound food.

[00:36:34] Definitely.

[00:36:36] But where did he break it in the Silverstone race?

[00:36:40] I don't think he did, though.

[00:36:42] But did he say Silverstone?

[00:36:44] He didn't say Silverstone.

[00:36:45] But the x-ray says 11.12 on the Monday after the British Grand Prix.

[00:36:51] Unless this is some accident which happened indoors or something of that sort.

[00:36:55] Yeah.

[00:36:56] That's absurd.

[00:36:58] Interesting.

[00:36:59] Wow.

[00:37:00] People are not...

[00:37:00] Everyone's asking him in replies.

[00:37:02] Absolutely.

[00:37:03] Casually dropping that he broke a bone.

[00:37:05] Expects no questions.

[00:37:07] All good.

[00:37:07] Did you facture it?

[00:37:08] Was it racing?

[00:37:09] I think we just need to go write it.

[00:37:10] He'll have three more people who probably...

[00:37:15] My goodness.

[00:37:16] And it's what?

[00:37:17] The L6 rib fracture.

[00:37:20] I just hope it's not with the compressions of these cars and how stiff their suspensions are.

[00:37:26] And so I don't believe so.

[00:37:28] We would have known that if that would have probably happened.

[00:37:35] But who's going to pick?

[00:37:37] Which is the next team to go to?

[00:37:38] Should it be Alpine?

[00:37:39] It should be.

[00:37:40] No, no.

[00:37:40] It should be.

[00:37:40] If you're talking about Oscar Piastri, it should be Alpine.

[00:37:43] Because I think that wonderful gesture they had when he won the race and they congratulated him on Twitter on his win.

[00:37:51] I think that was a very good gesture.

[00:37:53] Because we all know what happened there, right?

[00:37:58] But my...

[00:37:59] Good gesture but they were hurting.

[00:38:01] Good gesture but they were hurting.

[00:38:03] And you know, they couldn't even have been, oh, that could have been us.

[00:38:07] Because there is no way they could have been winning with this car.

[00:38:10] With everything that's been going on there.

[00:38:13] And that's of course, I think Alpine's biggest headline for the year has to be Flavio Briatore joining them as Luca De Meo's executive advisor.

[00:38:27] Not as team principal, but doing what he's doing.

[00:38:29] He's still acting like a team principal, taking all these decisions on dropping them from being a works team and getting Mercedes engines.

[00:38:38] But my favorite Flavio moment was when he actually said, I'm a genius in Formula One.

[00:38:46] When was the last time a personality who was not a driver said that they are the best in the world of Formula One?

[00:38:55] I mean, we used to drivers saying that.

[00:38:57] Let's remember.

[00:38:58] Okay.

[00:38:58] When was the last time a non-driving personality said something like this?

[00:39:04] I'm a genius in Formula One.

[00:39:05] Maybe just Bernie Eccleston could have said and gotten away with something like this.

[00:39:09] Maybe William Story.

[00:39:11] Well, that guy.

[00:39:15] Man.

[00:39:16] But the confidence is back.

[00:39:18] The boisterousness that Alpine needs.

[00:39:20] What?

[00:39:21] Just by hiring Flavio Briatore?

[00:39:23] He brings in a winner's mentality.

[00:39:24] Say what you want.

[00:39:25] Win at any cost.

[00:39:26] Well, I'm pretty sure Otmar Safnauer had that mentality and Prunov Famine did as well.

[00:39:32] And Esteban Ocon most definitely has, which is why a lot of drivers and a lot of fans hate him.

[00:39:38] But Briatore negotiated his own contract for at least three months.

[00:39:44] Can you imagine?

[00:39:45] You know, Flavio Briatore is an expert when it comes to negotiating contracts.

[00:39:50] And history is proof for that.

[00:39:52] He snapped Michael Schumacher from the Jordan F1 team after just one race with them.

[00:39:59] And the rest is history, obviously.

[00:40:01] But he also snapped Fernando Alonso from Ferrari from John Todd.

[00:40:05] Something that he wasn't very pleased with.

[00:40:07] So he's capable of doing those things, of course.

[00:40:11] And we have Singapore also coming up very soon.

[00:40:14] But something doesn't sit right with me that Flavio is back within that same team and in a position of power.

[00:40:20] And he's able to influence decisions.

[00:40:23] Something doesn't sit right with me in that sense that the person who was behind the biggest controversy of Formula 1 maybe or the century, he's back in that same place.

[00:40:32] I feel it's because they voted.

[00:40:34] But if he manages to bring that team to the front, sure, maybe everyone's okay to forgive him.

[00:40:41] But I don't know.

[00:40:42] It's odd.

[00:40:42] I think he's readying Alpine to be sold off.

[00:40:46] Or they're going to not sell off the team but get in more investors where they'll say, here's a road car manufacturer with a racing car presence with one of the best engines you can think of.

[00:40:58] If we've got the best facilities, come invest.

[00:41:03] And he's going to run it as a business.

[00:41:05] Much like Formula 1 or much like football teams that exist just because there is business in participating in the EPL or whatever leagues they participate in.

[00:41:12] Even if it doesn't mean they end up winning.

[00:41:15] So that's probably where they're going to go, I would say.

[00:41:18] But the best drive for Alpine this year, hands down, goes to Esteban Ocon.

[00:41:26] When he took his Alpine company car to Grove to Williams' factory.

[00:41:32] And Alpine, through GPS data, found out that Ocon was visiting Williams.

[00:41:38] And that sort of accelerated this whole decision making on letting just go off.

[00:41:44] Yes, this has happened.

[00:41:46] This is news.

[00:41:49] It's not the first of it.

[00:41:50] No, no, I'm dead serious.

[00:41:52] There was GPS data.

[00:41:54] It was a company car that Esteban Ocon took.

[00:41:57] And that's what led.

[00:41:58] I have to search this up, but okay.

[00:41:59] Yeah.

[00:42:00] And then since I'm talking of Ocon.

[00:42:02] The best Gasly drive, I think he drove a Senna old car.

[00:42:06] And he drove, Samuel, you're going to love this story.

[00:42:08] He drove the H-pattern gearbox because that's what those beautiful cars had back then, right?

[00:42:14] And he said that he ended up in fourth instead of second at one corner.

[00:42:19] Of course, I would have hated to assume he would have gone in second instead of fourth because then probably the engine would have just blown up into pieces.

[00:42:26] Man.

[00:42:26] But I guess, I know Sundaram's reading up on the Ocon going to Williams in an Alpine car news.

[00:42:34] You're actually right.

[00:42:35] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:42:35] This is news from a couple of weeks ago.

[00:42:38] Yeah.

[00:42:39] Isn't it insane?

[00:42:40] Like, and of course.

[00:42:43] And the person I think who revealed it was Martin Budkowski.

[00:42:45] Yeah, Martin Budkowski.

[00:42:46] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:42:47] That's correct.

[00:42:49] But who do you guys think will be Alpine's second driver in Formula One?

[00:42:56] Isn't that almost sealed?

[00:42:58] No.

[00:42:59] Jack Doon?

[00:43:00] I have a different view.

[00:43:01] Valtteri?

[00:43:02] After Samuel tells.

[00:43:03] Mick?

[00:43:03] Valtteri.

[00:43:05] Mick Valtteri?

[00:43:06] I have a feeling that if Flavio is lining up for investors and Alpine is looking at this as purely money-making thing as they could, right?

[00:43:17] Because that's what the business model allows you to do of Formula One.

[00:43:21] You know, expenses are limited.

[00:43:22] You still earn money and they're still valued at a billion dollars.

[00:43:25] Let's remember.

[00:43:27] Could Flavio Briatore bring Mick Schumacher for what everyone thinks Mick Schumacher is there for, which is all the marketing reasons, right?

[00:43:34] And then, let's remember, Sundaram just shared this beautiful story of, you know, Briatore knowing which driver to get and he took Michael Schumacher away from Jordan, you know, 30 years ago, literally.

[00:43:48] Right?

[00:43:48] So could that be one of those stories?

[00:43:52] This is how Mick Schumacher makes his comeback to Formula One.

[00:43:56] Lots changing.

[00:43:57] Lot is changing.

[00:43:58] I mean, this Briatore development could...

[00:44:01] That's the norm at Alpine.

[00:44:02] Change is the norm.

[00:44:03] Change until there's nothing left of yourself, including not wanting to become an engine manufacturer.

[00:44:10] And I still can't comprehend it.

[00:44:13] I still cannot comprehend it.

[00:44:15] Pour your heart out.

[00:44:16] Some will pour your heart out.

[00:44:17] It's like a chef saying, I don't want to cook.

[00:44:21] That's...

[00:44:21] What are you here for then?

[00:44:23] I mean...

[00:44:24] It's like a volcano saying, I won't burst out.

[00:44:27] What are you there for?

[00:44:28] Are you going to outsource your love from someone else or from a different volcano?

[00:44:32] You're the volcano.

[00:44:34] You have the energy and you're letting it go.

[00:44:36] This is an advantage teams would die for.

[00:44:39] But it's the sad reality now.

[00:44:41] There's no customers.

[00:44:42] And so Alpine feels it's better off relying on Mercedes instead of developing its own engine for 26.

[00:44:48] Yeah, and not just 26.

[00:44:49] As early as 2025.

[00:44:51] I mean, the urgency seems so much that they're willing to let go of the current engine just to see where they land next year as well.

[00:45:00] Of course, there are some union-related challenges that Alpine will be facing in France and so on,

[00:45:08] which is why there is a delay in sort of making the announcement.

[00:45:11] Because they've sort of agreed to go ahead with Mercedes, is the understanding.

[00:45:16] But they need to go through a legal process before they make such an announcement and shut down the factory

[00:45:22] and help save the jobs of all those people who have currently been employed in their power unit building facility.

[00:45:30] But the one strong story out of Alpine this year, sporting story, is that Ocon and Gasly in head-to-head are 100th away from each other.

[00:45:42] It's 0.015.

[00:45:46] Isn't that incredibly exciting for a team that they've shuffled.

[00:45:50] They were the slowest to suddenly becoming fifth, sixth fastest for a couple of races.

[00:45:56] And then now somewhere between seventh and eighth fastest.

[00:45:59] To have drivers equally drive to the caliber of the car, irrespective of where they are in the pecking order, is pretty fabulous.

[00:46:08] And I think that Ocon-Gasly partnership was actually fairly strong.

[00:46:12] Fairly strong in the impact it had to carbon fiber or to the hearts and minds of Alpine-Tier principles.

[00:46:19] Maybe that's why they have to leave.

[00:46:20] They can't tolerate the drama.

[00:46:21] It's happened.

[00:46:22] They've had a couple of scraps on track.

[00:46:26] Australia 2023.

[00:46:27] Jada also, I think, was it this year?

[00:46:29] Monaco, the famous one.

[00:46:32] Monaco, yes.

[00:46:34] They really don't like each other.

[00:46:35] It's evident.

[00:46:39] But, I mean, Alpine have made strides since from where they started at the start of the season.

[00:46:44] I think they finished.

[00:46:45] They qualified 19th and 20th in Bahrain.

[00:46:50] But since then, they have made improvements through the year.

[00:46:53] Now they have put themselves in the points as well.

[00:46:56] And from what I see, they've also made improvements in the pit stops.

[00:47:00] Because Alpine was one of the slower teams towards the start of the season.

[00:47:04] And yes, even they've had five second plus pit stops.

[00:47:07] But in the last couple of races, they've been right up there.

[00:47:11] 2.3, 2.2 on average.

[00:47:13] So, I think it comes to that stage, right?

[00:47:17] The start of the season, there's a lot of teething issues for all teams.

[00:47:20] And then slowly as things start getting a little settled towards mid-season,

[00:47:25] everyone starts improving even there.

[00:47:27] But yeah.

[00:47:28] Alpine's up there even in the pit stops.

[00:47:30] Williams is not.

[00:47:31] Williams is dead last.

[00:47:33] Williams is not.

[00:47:33] Which is a good reason why we should...

[00:47:35] Did Carlos Sainz read the data, pit stop data before signing?

[00:47:38] Are we doing Williams now?

[00:47:39] Yeah.

[00:47:40] Let's jump to Williams.

[00:47:42] Yeah.

[00:47:43] Yeah.

[00:47:43] Yeah, because, I mean, it's a little astonishing.

[00:47:46] And I think the reasons for that is out there.

[00:47:50] Williams was one of the quickest teams in the pit stops.

[00:47:53] When was it?

[00:47:54] 2015, 2016.

[00:47:55] They had the world record at one point.

[00:47:58] But I think later on, it really became an issue of budget.

[00:48:02] Of not having enough money to upgrade their tools, hardware, software.

[00:48:09] And I think this is at least my opinion.

[00:48:12] This whole Carlos Sainz move to Williams is...

[00:48:15] People are speaking what the vision and what James Walls is doing.

[00:48:20] But quite clearly, there's a lot that Williams has to do in terms of infrastructure.

[00:48:26] If I'm not wrong, Williams negotiated...

[00:48:28] What do you call it?

[00:48:29] A higher...

[00:48:30] CapEx.

[00:48:31] CapEx budget.

[00:48:32] CapEx budget.

[00:48:33] And what James Walls said, I wanted at least 100 million.

[00:48:37] But I've been given 65 million.

[00:48:39] Oh.

[00:48:39] And that's for next year, I suppose.

[00:48:42] Or that's for this year.

[00:48:43] So, that probably means that even come 2026, it's not necessary that Williams is going to be up there at the front.

[00:48:52] Sorry, Samuel, to say that.

[00:48:53] But it looks different.

[00:48:56] It looks difficult, at least in my opinion.

[00:48:59] But remember when the 2014 regulations came in, Williams actually, by virtue of having the Mercedes power unit, was the second fastest team at one point.

[00:49:11] Right?

[00:49:12] Yeah.

[00:49:12] So, that's what...

[00:49:13] I think Carlos Sain signing for Williams is their biggest high point.

[00:49:17] After months of publicly chasing him down, you know, it sort of reminds me of that movie, Will Smith, Hitch?

[00:49:28] That movie on dating?

[00:49:32] Right?

[00:49:32] There was this...

[00:49:34] No?

[00:49:34] Okay.

[00:49:34] Anyway.

[00:49:35] You know, they signed on engineers and they issued a press release.

[00:49:38] When last did an F1 team issue a press release for signing up?

[00:49:41] 26 engineers.

[00:49:43] Right?

[00:49:43] They issued it, of course, in English.

[00:49:45] And there was a...

[00:49:46] I can tell you confidently, since this is a funny take only, there was a Spanish translation of it sent to a particular motorsport family that resides in Spain.

[00:49:57] Okay.

[00:49:58] It's a funny take only.

[00:49:59] How are you getting all this information?

[00:50:01] It's a funny take only.

[00:50:02] No, no, no.

[00:50:04] But, you know, and then, of course, who is a top gear guy?

[00:50:09] Jeremy Clarkson saying, Adrian Newey is looking for homes in Oxfordshire.

[00:50:14] Right?

[00:50:15] Which I think if there's one team Adrian Newey has a very high chance of showing up at is Williams.

[00:50:23] Right?

[00:50:24] That was the team which he left because he was not consulted for some moves.

[00:50:28] He wanted ownership.

[00:50:29] Could James Wals be that one team principal who says, I'm happy to give you ownership, even though I think Wals doesn't really have ownership himself?

[00:50:39] Okay.

[00:50:41] But could that be that one, you know, last swine swong for Adrian Newey saying, I'm going to go back to where it all started, bring it back to the top.

[00:50:51] And with Carlos Sainz, with a Mercedes engine and Alexander Albin, I think it would be a very, very weird twist in the tale of Formula One if Adrian Newey went there.

[00:51:03] But yes, Samuel, I have to hear it from you.

[00:51:05] Of course, you love Carlos Sainz.

[00:51:08] You have to say something about this marriage between Sainz and Williams.

[00:51:12] A marriage of convenience where Williams know they need another star driver.

[00:51:19] It's just that they got the best of the lot.

[00:51:23] That gives them an opportunity to put a target to the team at the back, which is incredible.

[00:51:28] But for Carlos Sainz, it's a matter of, hey, at least I've got the best engine for 26.

[00:51:32] And they can only get better from here.

[00:51:34] What?

[00:51:34] They're only P9, right?

[00:51:35] So how far can it get?

[00:51:37] How bad can it get?

[00:51:39] And in the meantime, I don't think people will forget his value because if he can develop the Williams in the same way he has developed Renault and then McLaren and now Ferrari,

[00:51:48] there is a proven track record of this guy being a valuable asset.

[00:51:52] For all you know, he might still go to Audi.

[00:51:55] It's just that when Audi get to a more stable position, I think it's a good move for him because he now can look at the 2026 season,

[00:52:03] assess his options and be like, hey, you're a good team.

[00:52:07] You need a good driver.

[00:52:09] I could be the one.

[00:52:10] And there will be slots opened up.

[00:52:12] Hopefully that is.

[00:52:13] So it's a marriage of convenience.

[00:52:15] Just one correction.

[00:52:17] He did nothing at Renault.

[00:52:18] He was wiped out by Nico Halkenberg in Renault before he went to McLaren when McLaren were actually the last team or the second last team in the Constructors Championship.

[00:52:31] So, yes, I agree.

[00:52:32] Carlos is great talent.

[00:52:33] But there was nothing heroic that he pulled off in that Renault where he was, I think, half a season there and whatever, one and a half seasons.

[00:52:41] I can't even remember.

[00:52:43] No, but one of the good things for Sainz is that he has always been adaptable to different cars, right from McLaren and then Ferrari.

[00:52:52] So it's not a case of him going and struggling with these cars.

[00:52:55] And it's just, for me, quite sad that Carlos is turning 30, I think, this year.

[00:53:01] And this is supposed to be his prime.

[00:53:03] And I genuinely feel he's going to be finishing probably outside the points.

[00:53:08] And it's not fair in a way that he isn't given a top drive.

[00:53:12] But unfortunately, this is Formula One and it is what it is.

[00:53:16] But a bit sad seeing how his trajectory is going to be like.

[00:53:22] Yet another long wait.

[00:53:23] Yet another long wait.

[00:53:24] It was the case with McLaren.

[00:53:26] McLaren are now at the front.

[00:53:27] And he's done a couple of years at Ferrari.

[00:53:30] Possibly they might challenge for the championship in 26.

[00:53:33] He's going to, that's going to hurt him a lot.

[00:53:36] What's next?

[00:53:37] Oh, before ours should we go to Andretti?

[00:53:39] We'll never forget them.

[00:53:41] Yes.

[00:53:42] We'll never forget them.

[00:53:43] Yeah.

[00:53:44] We'll never forget them.

[00:53:45] Andretti is already delivering, by the way.

[00:53:47] They're already, their first few hires were two lobbying firms in the US to get the US Congress

[00:53:53] to put pressure on Formula One.

[00:53:55] And Formula One has now confirmed that they are under investigation or whatever to, from

[00:54:01] the US Congress and judicial system on this whole thing of saying no to Andretti for joining

[00:54:07] Formula One.

[00:54:08] So imagine they hired the right lobbying firms and those lobbying firms have delivered.

[00:54:14] So can you imagine what Andretti could have done if they were given the chance to actually

[00:54:19] race at Formula One?

[00:54:21] And exactly.

[00:54:22] I would love to see that.

[00:54:23] Dude, if they can go to Congress for it, they can do anything.

[00:54:26] And Congress is the opposite of progress, right?

[00:54:28] So imagine.

[00:54:30] I hope nobody from India is listening because you've opened the can of worms.

[00:54:34] No, but that's, no, no, it's not just in India.

[00:54:37] It's probably around.

[00:54:38] This is also an ad in a newspaper, I think 10, 15 years ago.

[00:54:42] Yeah, this is just one of those daddy jokes.

[00:54:43] The opposite of pro is con.

[00:54:45] So the opposite of Congress is progress.

[00:54:50] Yeah, but...

[00:54:51] But is that all that we've got on Andretti?

[00:54:53] They hired Pat Simmons, by the way, who, remember folks, is the current...

[00:55:00] I'm not sure what his exact position is at the moment, but he's working with Formula One,

[00:55:04] isn't he?

[00:55:05] He's consulting...

[00:55:07] Not sure, not sure.

[00:55:08] But he will be the CTO of Andretti when he joins in at the end of 2026.

[00:55:13] And Andretti have opened up a new base in Silverstone.

[00:55:17] And Mario Andretti got told by the Liberty Media CEO, Greg Maffei,

[00:55:20] who also, by the way, has brought more to GP.

[00:55:22] He said that, Mario, I want to tell you that I will do everything in my power

[00:55:26] to say that Michael never enters Formula One.

[00:55:29] That's according to Mario Andretti.

[00:55:30] That's what he apparently got told.

[00:55:34] So it's a big war.

[00:55:37] And one that it's a little sad to see going against Andretti, to be honest.

[00:55:42] I'm not entirely sad there, but I know where you're going.

[00:55:47] You can have more teams, more drivers, more competition.

[00:55:49] But there are no guarantees of competition in Formula One

[00:55:54] because there are so many teams actually looking.

[00:55:55] I think Toyota is now interested in joining Formula One as well.

[00:55:59] Porsche, with all their money, is interested in joining Formula One as well.

[00:56:04] Apex GP.

[00:56:04] Wasn't even high-tech.

[00:56:06] Yeah, high-tech.

[00:56:08] Apex.

[00:56:08] Apex.

[00:56:11] So, at the moment, I'm just happy to celebrate that Andretti hired lobbying firms

[00:56:16] to put the pressure on.

[00:56:17] That pressure is on Formula One.

[00:56:18] And let's see how that whole drama unfolds.

[00:56:20] I agree.

[00:56:21] I would love to see 11th team on the grid.

[00:56:24] Two more vacancies?

[00:56:25] Yes, please bring that on.

[00:56:27] But we should now go to Haas, right?

[00:56:30] It's a good time.

[00:56:32] The...

[00:56:32] Always the last team?

[00:56:34] Always the last team?

[00:56:35] No, no, no, no.

[00:56:37] There's a...

[00:56:38] Oh, yes.

[00:56:39] Racing bulls left.

[00:56:40] We have one more.

[00:56:40] Okay, which one do we do for first, guys?

[00:56:43] Your call.

[00:56:44] Let's do Haas.

[00:56:44] Haas, not last.

[00:56:45] Yeah.

[00:56:45] They've done fantastic to not be spoken of last.

[00:56:48] And then, in general, we should talk of Formula One overall as a sport as well.

[00:56:52] So, Haas will definitely not last.

[00:56:54] Haas.

[00:56:55] Okay, let's go to Haas.

[00:56:56] Sundaram opened up with some brilliant pit stop data in the first part of the episode.

[00:57:02] Maybe you want to just repeat that because I think it was so good that it should bring

[00:57:06] Haas back into context.

[00:57:07] Which is very surprising for me as well.

[00:57:09] But yes, Haas has been the slowest team in the pit stops.

[00:57:13] The only thing is they've not been as slow as Sauber on certain occasions.

[00:57:17] It's not been 40, 50 second pit stops.

[00:57:20] But Haas has never done a pit stop that's been quicker than 2.5 seconds.

[00:57:24] And they're the only team not to do so.

[00:57:26] And 70% of their pit stops this year have been over 3 seconds long.

[00:57:31] And that can be quite defining.

[00:57:33] If you're in undercut range or overcut range with another team or driver and you're one

[00:57:39] second slower than them, then you're losing position on track.

[00:57:42] But quite clearly, it's a case of them not having the best tools available.

[00:57:47] And all of that.

[00:57:48] But they've had a very impressive season.

[00:57:50] And one other thing which I probably have to do a little bit of digging to understand as well.

[00:57:55] If you see the last, I mean the 14 races of the season, Haas has been very, very quick

[00:58:01] in the speed traps.

[00:58:03] And at least in qualifying, they've posted some of the highest top speeds this season.

[00:58:10] Quite clearly explains that they prefer the lower drag configuration.

[00:58:18] But they have made definitely an impression.

[00:58:20] I'll have to be very honest.

[00:58:22] I didn't really think much of Ayao coming in because he was already part of that team.

[00:58:27] But he's turned things around by some way, I'd say.

[00:58:32] So they've had a good first half.

[00:58:34] I think there's no way to disagree.

[00:58:36] Nobody would probably disagree with that.

[00:58:39] And Haas, funny takes only.

[00:58:41] So Haas' pit stops are slow because they never imagined that their car would be so fast that

[00:58:46] they would be focused on their pit stops being slow now because the focus was always on a

[00:58:50] slow car.

[00:58:51] But Nico Hulkenberg, what a revelation.

[00:58:53] I remember, Sundaram, it's one of your stats that for the first time, a driver from Haas has

[00:58:58] not gone into retirement.

[00:59:00] Oh, yeah.

[00:59:00] That has been picked up by another team.

[00:59:03] And that's Hulkenberg going to Audi with Matteo Binotto.

[00:59:07] Again, a case of one team principal signing you, but another team principal actually racing

[00:59:12] with you as well.

[00:59:14] But for Haas, you know, it's a very, very interesting case study because Kundar Steiner said Gene

[00:59:21] Haas didn't want to invest.

[00:59:22] But now Gene Haas is investing, right?

[00:59:25] Ayao Komatsu has said, we are just spending the same amount of money, but spending it differently.

[00:59:30] So was Gene Haas or was Gunter Steiner turning around and saying, you cannot do that?

[00:59:35] You cannot do this?

[00:59:36] Or was Ayao not doing it because he wanted to oust Gunter Steiner and become team principal

[00:59:41] because their turnaround has been completely engineering driven.

[00:59:46] And I love it because Formula One is an engineering sport, right?

[00:59:49] I remember pre-season testing.

[00:59:52] All they focused on was extracting long runs data and race pace and so on.

[00:59:57] And guess what?

[00:59:59] That's one team with the highest number of P11 positions.

[01:00:03] And that's been the Haas Formula One team.

[01:00:06] And Gunter Steiner is taking them to court because of the team using his media image,

[01:00:14] public image to take themselves forward.

[01:00:17] I mean, Gunter, if you're listening, which we know you are, just give it up, right?

[01:00:21] Haas is just let them go.

[01:00:23] They're doing well.

[01:00:24] They're doing well without you.

[01:00:25] Maybe he's taking them to court because he's like, oh my God, they're spoiling my image

[01:00:28] by doing well after I've quit the team.

[01:00:31] That's possible.

[01:00:32] But I think Haas have already a lot of stuff on the plate with, I think their court case

[01:00:38] with Ural Khali is also on.

[01:00:42] Didn't they lose that one?

[01:00:44] I think something of that sort.

[01:00:46] Or some delayed refund, something of that sort.

[01:00:49] Yeah.

[01:00:49] I believe they're going to lose that one if my reading is right or whatever has been reported

[01:00:53] or it's not that Haas is on as strong a footing as one would have thought, right?

[01:00:59] Before.

[01:00:59] Before.

[01:01:00] But Kevin Magnussen, you know, for all that being a team player, he's not the driver who's

[01:01:06] getting a chance next year with all the penalty points he took and everything in the first

[01:01:12] half of the season to give Nico Alkenberg the priority to score points.

[01:01:18] And then Magnussen, for the most obvious penalty, which I thought he should have had in Monaco,

[01:01:23] he didn't get one.

[01:01:24] And he's been clean ever since he sort of peaked and got all those penalty points coming in.

[01:01:30] But I don't think we're going to see him in Formula One again, ever.

[01:01:34] Unfortunately, what a guy.

[01:01:36] What a comeback.

[01:01:37] Yeah.

[01:01:38] What a character.

[01:01:40] What a character.

[01:01:41] I agree.

[01:01:41] But Haas still have that fighting spirit because at the end of the day, when you're fighting

[01:01:47] for so little points, you need a driver who can make the most out of it by any means necessary.

[01:01:53] They finally, finally have hired a youngster along with an experienced driver.

[01:01:59] Haas have had nine seasons in Formula One.

[01:02:01] Eight out of nine have been with two experienced drivers.

[01:02:04] The one season where they didn't was the one where they had Nikita Mazepin and Mick Schumacher

[01:02:09] and that one turned out to be a failure.

[01:02:11] But they've changed that.

[01:02:12] This is an Ayao move.

[01:02:13] They want someone like Oliver Bearman, who they feel is ready to be a young talent who

[01:02:18] can prosper in that car.

[01:02:19] Something that Haas have been teasing for their entire existence basically, but have never

[01:02:23] done.

[01:02:24] And so they believe that Esteban Ocon has the right tools to get the most out of a good

[01:02:29] day.

[01:02:30] Sometimes be a little aggressive, which is what you need, but then be that kind of fast driver.

[01:02:34] And I feel they've got their best driver pairing yet, honestly.

[01:02:38] Yeah, yeah.

[01:02:39] You think so?

[01:02:39] Definitely.

[01:02:40] I think so.

[01:02:42] I'm not too sure of Oliver Bearman, honestly.

[01:02:46] He had a great race in Jeddah.

[01:02:47] Could it be a Nick De Vries situation?

[01:02:50] You know, Nick De Vries got that race and Monza got that point, got Williams.

[01:02:53] And you know, when I look at Bearman in Formula Two, something just doesn't make a click.

[01:02:58] And Joe Guanyu made a great point.

[01:03:00] He said, I was top three in Formula Two when I got progressed into Formula One.

[01:03:04] And now there's a driver outside of the top 10 in Formula Two who's got a seat next year.

[01:03:10] And he's actually getting more support than I did for making the move when I did with,

[01:03:15] you know, Sauber three years ago or whatever.

[01:03:18] Yeah.

[01:03:19] But that's how it is, right?

[01:03:21] If you're a part of a driver academy and if luck goes your way, you're at the right place

[01:03:26] at the right time.

[01:03:26] So, he did impress.

[01:03:28] He did impress in Jeddah with very limited time.

[01:03:31] But maybe a question to the both of you.

[01:03:34] Haas is P7 in the constructors right now.

[01:03:37] Seven points behind RB and 16 points ahead of Alpine.

[01:03:43] Are they going to finish P6, P7, P8?

[01:03:46] Oh, P6 for me.

[01:03:48] You're saying they're going to beat RB.

[01:03:49] Yes, I get a feeling.

[01:03:51] RB is, there's a reason why RB is the last of all the teams we're talking of.

[01:03:56] But I get the feeling they've got this momentum.

[01:03:59] And see, let's remember, none of the RB drivers actually want to race for RB.

[01:04:04] Are we segwaying into RB than racing bulls?

[01:04:08] I think it's, you know, great livery.

[01:04:12] I love it.

[01:04:13] I love Yuki Tsunoda and everything he's done in this year.

[01:04:17] We spoke about it.

[01:04:18] But he actually spoke of RB when he spoke of...

[01:04:19] Grouse and Liberty.

[01:04:20] Yeah, I said Liberty.

[01:04:21] I know.

[01:04:22] Yeah.

[01:04:22] I just look at that car and I'm like, wow.

[01:04:25] Otherwise, those special liveries just bored the hell out of me.

[01:04:29] Right?

[01:04:30] But a great looking car.

[01:04:32] Reminds me of Superman in several ways.

[01:04:34] Maybe that's just one of those.

[01:04:35] Yeah.

[01:04:36] But, you know, we spoke of RB pretty much when we spoke of RBR in the first episode.

[01:04:42] Especially Tsunoda and Ricardo and all of that.

[01:04:44] So, we don't really need to go very long here.

[01:04:47] But at least I just have one thing, which was Yuki Tsunoda said if he ever started a music

[01:04:51] band, it would be called the Mustache Dreamers.

[01:04:55] And I think he said that because the poor thing doesn't grow a mustache just yet.

[01:05:00] Right?

[01:05:00] It's the summer break, which is why you see my full beard anyway.

[01:05:04] And he would pick three drivers as his band members.

[01:05:08] Daniel Ricciardo, mustache.

[01:05:11] Valtteri Bottas, mustache.

[01:05:13] Kevin Magnuson, mustache and beard.

[01:05:15] So, mustache dreamers is what Yuki Tsunoda said.

[01:05:20] It's one of those things.

[01:05:21] I don't think I would ever understand how big a personality he is in Japan and that part

[01:05:28] of the world.

[01:05:29] And I'm pretty sure he is.

[01:05:30] But he's been impressive.

[01:05:32] That stat you mentioned about him, Sundaram, that really comes to my mind about being in

[01:05:36] the top 10 50% of the times.

[01:05:39] And it's come to a point where we're all, as Kunal did in the first part, vouching for

[01:05:45] him to be in that Red Bull instead of Daniel Ricciardo, which we thought would be the opposite

[01:05:49] case.

[01:05:50] Exactly.

[01:05:50] And I think it's the whole Honda association which is putting him out of the reckoning.

[01:05:55] But I mean, if you see Yuki Tsunoda's career, his best season in terms of points was his rookie

[01:06:02] season.

[01:06:03] I think he did 32 points or something of that sort.

[01:06:06] He's much lesser this year, but then I don't think so.

[01:06:08] You would disagree to say that this is his best season, at least in terms of performance

[01:06:13] and on track.

[01:06:14] And one thing that really blew my mind, I have two stats to mention.

[01:06:18] One thing that really blew my mind and kind of brought Tsunoda's performance to a bit more

[01:06:25] context was, I'm going to read out the number of laps each person.

[01:06:31] I mean, the driver.

[01:06:33] Okay, I'm going to tell you which driver has had the most laps in each position.

[01:06:37] Okay.

[01:06:38] Verstappen P1, Norris P2, Leclerc P3, Piastri P4, Sainz P5, Sainz P6, Hamilton P7, Tsunoda

[01:06:48] P8, P9, P10.

[01:06:51] He's done the most laps in these three positions.

[01:06:55] And each of them, P8, P9, P10 have been over 100 laps, which goes to show that he's been

[01:07:01] qualifying high up closer to the top, I think closer to P10 or P11.

[01:07:06] And he's managed to stay in those positions for that long.

[01:07:08] Sergio Perez has done quite a few laps in these positions, but Sainz P1 is even more than

[01:07:13] his.

[01:07:14] So this one really surprised me when I looked into this data.

[01:07:19] But the other thing is RB in general, they are the top three teams amongst the top three

[01:07:24] teams when it comes to pit stops.

[01:07:26] If you say in terms of average, then it is Red Bull, of course.

[01:07:30] Ferrari is P2.

[01:07:31] Not a lot of people say this, but Ferrari is P2 in terms of pit stops.

[01:07:35] RB is P3.

[01:07:37] In the last four races...

[01:07:39] Yeah, in fact, the last race was the first time a non-Ferrari Red Bull fastest pit stop

[01:07:45] happened and Racing Bulls was the one to take it, right?

[01:07:48] Correct.

[01:07:49] Racing Bulls was the quickest in Belgium, but Racing Bulls RB has been quicker than Red Bull

[01:07:54] on average in the last four races.

[01:07:57] In pit stops.

[01:07:58] Which is incredible for me.

[01:07:59] Yes, in pit stops.

[01:08:01] They've been doing 2.27, 2.30, 2.73 and 2.48, which is more than Red Bull in the last

[01:08:09] four races.

[01:08:10] They've been up there.

[01:08:11] They've been up there.

[01:08:13] Incredible.

[01:08:14] I'm not sure if it's a case of even those tools.

[01:08:17] I don't know if those tools can be shared or sold and everything, but yeah, RB is doing

[01:08:22] very well in pit stops.

[01:08:23] 2025.

[01:08:25] 2025, will Isaac Hatchar, who's had a brilliant Formula 2 season, get a call-up in Racing Bulls

[01:08:33] next year?

[01:08:34] Not over Liam Lawson, would they?

[01:08:36] No, but I think one of them has to go.

[01:08:38] Either Ricciardo or Sunoda have to go.

[01:08:41] Whether they go to Red Bull.

[01:08:42] 2025, Sunoda's there.

[01:08:44] Yeah, okay.

[01:08:44] Yeah, Sunoda's there.

[01:08:45] So, either Ricciardo goes to Red Bull Racing and Perez is out or goes to Audi, as we said.

[01:08:51] I don't believe it'll be a Sunoda-Ricciardo for another season.

[01:08:58] That's my reading.

[01:08:58] It'll either be Lawson who'll get a seat in or, yeah, Lawson will get a seat in and

[01:09:02] Hajar is reserved.

[01:09:03] That could happen.

[01:09:04] Yeah.

[01:09:05] Thinking of the same here.

[01:09:06] But again, I'm also wondering, what is the merit of keeping Ricciardo on when you know

[01:09:11] that there's someone waiting?

[01:09:13] Maybe you can develop them.

[01:09:15] If you know that the other driver is a ready piece like Liam Lawson, maybe try someone

[01:09:20] else out.

[01:09:20] If you're so confident in Liam, it gives you the leeway to experiment with someone else.

[01:09:24] And what's the harm now?

[01:09:26] Heading into a new regulation, try it out.

[01:09:29] I think Red Bull Racing are keeping Ricciardo.

[01:09:32] A, of course, marketing reasons, but that's not the big reason.

[01:09:35] Is if in case Perez has to go, they believe more than any other driver in their pool currently,

[01:09:45] there'll be Daniel Ricciardo who will be able to step up.

[01:09:48] That's what they believe.

[01:09:49] Is that the right belief at the moment?

[01:09:51] Ever since Ricciardo left Red Bull Racing and then Renault and then moved to McLaren,

[01:09:56] he's just been a different driver, which we all think is Ricciardo 2.0, which is for once

[01:10:02] not as good as what the version one of Daniel Ricciardo was back in time.

[01:10:08] So it could either be that he's seen the last 10 races of his career, or if he genuinely

[01:10:13] makes that jump in performance versus Yuki Tsunoda, then could he get that last shot against Max Verstappen,

[01:10:21] which is what he's hoping for?

[01:10:22] I mean, what RB risk in this case is if they stick with Ricciardo and Tsunoda for next year,

[01:10:30] and Tsunoda then probably moves to a different team in 2026.

[01:10:34] And then if they finally decide to drop Ricciardo, then RB risks having two rookies in 2026.

[01:10:40] In that case, you would rather put Lawson in that second seat, give him a year,

[01:10:44] and then probably bring an Isaac Hajar in that second seat for 26.

[01:10:48] I think if there's any team that doesn't mind having two rookies in the car, it's racing goals.

[01:10:54] They've done that in the past.

[01:10:57] Yeah, and they pretty much exist so that they're able to feed in drivers in the Red Bull system.

[01:11:02] So if it means there's two rookies, why not?

[01:11:06] But like Somal says, there is no merit to keep Ricciardo.

[01:11:08] Okay, let's assume.

[01:11:09] Sergio Perez has a much better second half of the season,

[01:11:12] and he gets to keep that seat.

[01:11:15] Tsunoda is there already.

[01:11:17] You don't need Daniel Ricciardo anymore because he's not going to be moved into the Red Bull seat.

[01:11:21] Yeah.

[01:11:21] Might as well bring in Lawson.

[01:11:23] Which is exactly where it could be last 10 races of Daniel Ricciardo's career forever in Formula 1.

[01:11:29] I think so.

[01:11:30] It's a possibility unless there's a step up.

[01:11:33] Yeah.

[01:11:34] And, you know, if the media is to be believed, especially with this whole power struggle that's happened in Formula 1,

[01:11:41] Helmut Marko is still the advisor, driver-manager, junior driver person.

[01:11:47] But he still has lesser say in who will get into that car versus, say, Christian Horner.

[01:11:54] So that's why the moves that Red Bull have made up until now aggressive on seem not so aggressive

[01:12:01] because there's more of a say from the team rather than just one person deciding who's in the car next race.

[01:12:08] Maybe we should get Helmut Marko, Dr. Helmut Marko back on the podcast and get some more clarity.

[01:12:14] Well, that would be perfect, no?

[01:12:17] And it's been 73 minutes in if people have actually heard this.

[01:12:22] I don't know if Sundar is dropping a hint, but why not?

[01:12:25] I'm not dropping hints.

[01:12:26] I know that was one of our most explosive episodes.

[01:12:29] When was it?

[01:12:30] Last year.

[01:12:30] Yeah.

[01:12:31] It's time for yet another explosion, I would say.

[01:12:35] Let's see.

[01:12:36] But let's move on to the most explosive topic, which is Formula 1 and all the sporting-related fun moments we've seen.

[01:12:44] And my mind goes to Saudi Arabian Grand Prix when almost all drivers were paid to tweet about Khiddiya.

[01:12:55] Yeah.

[01:12:55] Some city that Saudi Arabia is, you know, developing.

[01:12:59] And then every driver had all four images.

[01:13:02] Basically, whoever wrote and asked them to copy-paste.

[01:13:04] Seems like that, you know, that IT cell that a political party runs, you know, in India.

[01:13:10] I'm not going to name them.

[01:13:12] Everyone was told, these are those four images and copy-paste this tweet or whatever message that comes out.

[01:13:18] And then pretty much every driver had the same looking tweet that came in and went out.

[01:13:23] So that was one of those moments.

[01:13:25] And then, you know, Samuel, you'll be very pleased.

[01:13:28] Las Vegas, I remember you were so upset with the pricing.

[01:13:32] I'm not upset, shocked.

[01:13:33] This year, it seems like a 50% price drop already.

[01:13:37] Like already, you know.

[01:13:38] And then my thing that I hope never happens is Formula 1 is exploring radio censorship.

[01:13:47] Drivers have been told to stop swearing on radios.

[01:13:49] And I don't know.

[01:13:51] Like, where does this go?

[01:13:53] What's next?

[01:13:53] Do you think you're going to tell drivers to stop driving and say, hey, you know what?

[01:13:56] Just let AI do the driving.

[01:13:57] Let these robots do the driving.

[01:13:59] I mean, radio is so essential of the whole, you know, delivery of the package of Formula 1.

[01:14:06] I hope that really stays.

[01:14:08] And then the final two, you know, the innovation of the year.

[01:14:11] They're trying to have air conditioning in the car for all those hot races, which I absolutely wish never happens.

[01:14:18] I mean, we're doing everything to add more weight to the car, simply put.

[01:14:22] Right.

[01:14:23] And then there was that funny wearable metallic trophy, which was like a metallic wreath in China, which I don't believe anybody ended up wearing.

[01:14:33] You know, that circular thing.

[01:14:35] Red Bull mechanics were doing the hula hoop with that trophy.

[01:14:39] Okay.

[01:14:40] And for them at that time in China, Red Bull was probably thinking we are winning so much.

[01:14:46] We can just do a hula hoop with this trophy.

[01:14:48] We're going to get several more this season.

[01:14:50] Guess what?

[01:14:50] They've not had a lot more, you know, in the last six, eight weeks or something.

[01:14:56] But I'm going to throw some predictions your way.

[01:15:00] Maybe the right way to close as well.

[01:15:03] Who do you think is going to win the Constructors' Championship firstly?

[01:15:06] Let's get down to that.

[01:15:08] I'm going McLaren.

[01:15:09] McLaren.

[01:15:10] You're going McLaren?

[01:15:11] Okay.

[01:15:13] Who do you think is taking the Drivers' Championship and when?

[01:15:17] I'm going Verstappen and Interlagos.

[01:15:23] Yeah, around the same time.

[01:15:25] Yeah, I think so.

[01:15:26] I'd say Las Vegas, Formula 1 crowning.

[01:15:29] Last Vegas.

[01:15:29] Moment for Las Vegas.

[01:15:30] Only in the second time in the history of Las Vegas Grand Prix, a driver wins.

[01:15:35] The Drivers' Championship.

[01:15:37] Seals it.

[01:15:39] We totally forgot to make another reference.

[01:15:42] Somal.

[01:15:43] Second time in Las Vegas' history.

[01:15:45] It reminded me of that.

[01:15:46] Oh, goodness.

[01:15:47] The first female Bollywood actress to turn up.

[01:15:49] Oh, goodness, guys.

[01:15:50] We forgot about that.

[01:15:51] Should we be closer on that?

[01:15:53] Somal's had a long day.

[01:15:55] One minute.

[01:15:56] One hour, 17 minutes in the history of the year.

[01:15:58] You know what?

[01:15:58] We wanted to mention that.

[01:16:00] Perfect way to close.

[01:16:01] We'll do that.

[01:16:01] Wow.

[01:16:02] Okay.

[01:16:02] Kriti Sanan apparently became, and I need to check my notes again for this.

[01:16:07] She became the first female Bollywood actress to appear at the F1 in Silverstone.

[01:16:14] It's a great achievement, mind you.

[01:16:16] It's a big achievement.

[01:16:17] The first female Bollywood actress to appear at the Formula 1 in Silverstone because I'm

[01:16:21] confused.

[01:16:21] Who was the first male Bollywood actress to appear at Formula 1 in Silverstone?

[01:16:28] What is that headline?

[01:16:30] I am.

[01:16:31] Yeah.

[01:16:32] The Silverstone specific, not Formula 1 race at Silverstone.

[01:16:36] Exactly.

[01:16:37] The mecca of motorsport.

[01:16:39] Where it all started.

[01:16:40] This is why I say you should leave the stats.

[01:16:41] This is why I say you should leave the stats to me.

[01:16:44] We agree.

[01:16:45] Seriously.

[01:16:46] Yeah.

[01:16:47] Done.

[01:16:48] Wow.

[01:16:48] But the next episode after this is straight away the sound food preview.

[01:16:52] So racing is back.

[01:16:54] We hope you've entertained people through the summer break.

[01:16:58] By the way, 5,000 followers on the WhatsApp channel in less than a month.

[01:17:04] That's that month.

[01:17:05] In less than a month, actually.

[01:17:07] So phenomenal stuff.

[01:17:09] If you're listening and you're on WhatsApp, just search for the Inside Line F1 podcast and

[01:17:13] follow us there.

[01:17:15] Lots of exciting updates that we keep sharing.

[01:17:17] It's been so great to see that channel grow and the entire family just keep on get bigger.

[01:17:23] But folks, you can join that channel by checking out the link in the description of this episode.

[01:17:27] And also, check out our channel for more because this has been part two of our mid-season review.

[01:17:33] And soon enough, by the time you're done listening to this, I'm pretty sure the race weekend will

[01:17:37] be around.

[01:17:38] So stay tuned for that as well.

[01:17:39] Take care, guys.

[01:17:40] Thank you so much for listening in.

[01:17:42] This has been an epic, epic episode.

[01:17:44] And we'll see you shortly.

[01:17:45] Bye-bye.

[01:17:46] Bye-bye.

[01:17:46] Bye-bye.

[01:17:46] Bye-bye.