Pressure ON George Russell | 2026 Canadian GP Preview | Formula 1 | F1 Podcast

[00:00:00] Formula 1 is back folks, it's time to go racing again. At this time, we're racing at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal. A special track for Formula 1 that's had years and years of heritage. You won't believe it, but this actually is one of the proper OG street circuits of Formula 1. One of the good old ones. And it's a circuit that's had memories. It's a circuit that literally has a wall named after all the champions that crashed there.

[00:00:26] And it's also a circuit where Sebastian Vettel once lost a race win because of a seagull. I'm still angry about that. But what an incredible place this is. How cool is it, Kunal, to be back in Montreal for the Formula 1 calendar? And now this time, two races in North America, back to back, with a bit of a gap though.

[00:00:45] You know, I'm actually a bit surprised because I was almost convinced that you will open this and you'll say this is the Indy 500 preview, which also is happening this Sunday. What you, Soumil Arora, claim, and I completely agree, is one of the greatest races on earth. I will say one of the greatest. I know you will say the greatest race on earth.

[00:01:05] Ooh, tough, tough, tough, tough, tough. Because when you talk about the greatest races on earth, and we're discussing the Indy 500 or the Monaco Grand Prix, it's hard not to also bring up the Nürburgring 24 hours after what Max has done this weekend.

[00:01:18] Wow, so much more to talk about. You know, let's look at it this way. There is the Indy 500, which Formula 1 was trying not to clash with all these years. Now they've taken them head on. But very curiously, the Canadian Grand Prix is actually starting two hours later than it normally would, just so that there is enough time for the Indy 500 to get done with.

[00:01:43] Okay, so if there's rain, Indy 500 happens on the Sunday. But if there are red flags, there are stoppages, there are, you know, race resumptions that happen, it could well be that Formula 1 just ends up missing out on the audiences that are watching the greatest race on earth. Well, that's an interesting perspective, because for many, it would be the opposite. For many, it would be a case of IndyCar being worried that Formula 1 might just end up taking their entire audience away. But I agree with you. IndyCar has its own audience.

[00:02:12] And this weekend is going to be a test for Formula 1, because a lot of fans have had their heads swayed away by different motorsport forms. There's a crazy Indy qualifying happening. As we mentioned, Verstappen has taken a whole heap of fans, 100,000 new followers followed the Nürburgring 24 Hours account, Kunal.

[00:02:30] So, clearly, motorsport fans are getting more aware. And as much as it's a test for all the drivers in the championship battle, which we should talk about and give you a lowdown of where we stand, I think it's also a big test for Formula 1 to see how its product ends up standing in comparison to all these other series. And, you know, I think of it as a brand manager. And, of course, the Formula 1 calendar can't be moved around just because there's an Indy 500 happening. Hence, you've got to figure your way around it.

[00:02:57] Which Formula 1 race would you pit against the Indy 500? Let's assume same start times. Which circuit would it be? To win? No, what I mean is Formula 1 pitching a Grand Prix versus the Indy 500. So, as a fan, you have to choose the Indy 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway or which Grand Prix.

[00:03:22] So, what I mean is at this moment on this Sunday, we have Montreal. Is that Formula 1's best step forward against an Indy 500 audience? So, it's like when you go to buy ketchup, you have two brands to purchase from. So, if you're a Formula 1 fan, you have to decide where to go. Do I choose Indy 500 at the Indianapolis or do I choose a Formula 1 Grand Prix ad? And I give you two options. Well, those two options would be Spa and Portimao, I think. Portimao doesn't have good racing in comparison.

[00:03:52] But, well, Spa in Baku. Spa in Baku. Okay, there we go. You know, the good thing is I would have also said Spa, but I would have chosen Suzuka. Oh, well. But it's difficult to make these choices, no? Indy 500 has one great circuit. We have maybe 24 of them. I don't know. Well, Indy also has a lot of good places, but this also is one of them. In fact, funny you mentioned, I think there's also some shared history between Formula 1 and IndyCar with this place.

[00:04:19] I think IndyCar has also run races here and if I'm not mistaken, part of the Driven movie was also shot here or something? I may be wrong in this case. But, well, big weekend overall though, because Formula 1 is clashing. And for a lot of people, they may come into this Formula 1 weekend thinking there's not enough stories. But there are a lot of them because this weekend, Mercedes are supposed to bring in serious upgrades, Kunal.

[00:04:44] And we are still yet to see if Ferrari's 11 upgrades work and how well McLaren's upgrades will work this time at a track that's pretty different to Miami. Yes. And I know we discussed Indy 500 and which race would go there. You gave an answer. I gave an answer. Before we address upgrades, Kunal Shah is here. He's saying Monza would mog the Indy 500. Yes. Like I said, several, several circuits that could actually be a Formula 1's pitch against the Indy 500 audience. No. Well, well. No? Monza, come on.

[00:05:14] Of course. What beats the turns 1, 2, turns 4, 5, all those entries. It's just a chicane. So, so what? You still turn left and right. Well, man. Okay. On to Formula 1 things in Miami. Several questions that will get answered. What will Mercedes' response be? Lots of teams split their upgrades between Miami so they get to learn more before they get more in Canada. Mercedes said, we're going to just straight come to Canada with our upgrades.

[00:05:43] Can they actually get there in the fight? I mean, they've been in the fight. They've still won everything. They've still scored everything. But there's one thing which Mercedes doesn't have in Formula 1 this year, despite all that dominance on the list. Do you know what that is? It's a very cheeky thing. Well, they've had a 1-2. They have a 1-2, yeah. They've never led the opening lap of a Grand Prix. Yeah, that's true. Mercedes have not led an opening lap in 2026. That would come down to Ferrari.

[00:06:10] And on the side, Ferrari are also unhappy with Formula 1, rather FIA in this case, for allowing teams the start-up procedure before the race, because then their start advantage has been compromised. And that's another drama that's cooking in the background with the whole starting incident. Hey, Kimi's starts have also not been the best, have they? I don't think he fixed it for Miami as well. No, and he has lost positions at the start of every Grand Prix this season. So, Kimi's starts have not been good.

[00:06:39] Let's see how he's improved them between Miami and Canada. Although in Miami, he said, for once, I did everything right. But then the power unit didn't support me. So, it's always a plus-minus thing here. But the leaders of lap 1 this season have come from third on the grid or fourth on the grid. It has either been Hamilton in China, Piastri in Japan, Leclerc in Miami, or Leclerc in Australia. So, never a Mercedes leading a Grand Prix.

[00:07:05] So, will their upgrades finally get them to lead the opening lap of a Grand Prix? That's the main question I would love to see. Because they're winning everything else. With ease, with comfort, free air, all of that. Are they though? Are Mercedes going to win that easily in Montreal? That question needs to be asked after Miami. I know Miami is a different circuit and McLaren have been good there. But surely, surely, surely they've got something, right? McLaren, to back a punch against Mercedes.

[00:07:32] Especially if you consider, you know, Mercedes hasn't necessarily won just on your pace. The last couple of races, there was a Mercedes safety guard intervention that had happened where Kimi won. And then you could argue Kimi was fantastic in Miami. And McLaren just faded away after, you know, getting the sprint. But yes, your point is, we will still have a Mercedes. Will they bounce back? Will McLaren finally win a race after chasing down Mercedes in the last two races? And then what about Ferrari?

[00:08:01] All these big upgrades and another big upgrade coming to Canada. Will they stop being the chasers? I want that one race this season. Not Monaco. But any other race but Monaco. Where McLaren... Sorry, where... So, where was it? Yeah, I was saying, I wanted one race this season where Ferrari actually lead and dominate. Which was the last race? You actually remember that happening, Somali? Mexico City 2024. Carlos Sainz's last race win.

[00:08:30] But after that... No wonder you remember it. Have to, have to. Was it also that the last Ferrari win ever? It has now been more than 555 days since the last Ferrari win by driver 55. It's been a while. And I'm now thinking, this is where we really find out if Ferrari have got the car for the title or not. We're nearly at the quarterly mark of the Formula 1 season. 25% will almost be over and done with.

[00:08:59] In fact, 25% will be over and done with at the end of this round. Normally, normally, this would be a big moment in the title. Usually, if you're doing well at this stage, you do end up carrying on. Or it's got to go catastrophically... It's got to be a major catastrophe for it to go haywire from there. I just think of Red Bull Racing in 2024. What happened with Max and that sort of decline. Or you pick it up from this moment. And Ferrari, this is where they've got to pick it up.

[00:09:26] This is where it's got to work or at some point you feel the title may be far away. Because if I look at the team standings right now, it's already 70 points. That's the gap between Mercedes and Ferrari. 70 points at this stage already. Now or never. And for McLaren, yes, it's even more than that. It's upwards of 80. But you get a feeling McLaren are on the right trajectory. Especially with what's happened in the last two races. Yeah, and I think it was just that unfortunate double DNS which is going to haunt them for

[00:09:54] several races of the season as they play catch-up. Also, Andrei Astela saying we need to learn our engine maps. And get the right deployment strategy to happen as well. I'm sure teams would have gotten smarter as the season have progressed. Even if there has not been a lot of races. As a very dear friend of the show, Solvik is here saying, ad hoc breaks in the calendar. Impacting viewership. Especially for the new ones who are not anchored to the sport yet. So what does he actually mean by that? Because we're already in mid-May.

[00:10:22] It's 19th of May when we record this. So we've only done four races in the season. And George Russell's first and only race win was all the way back in March. So he's not won for almost two months. But, Sol, you did some math. Which actually brings good news that we've not had a lot of races yet. Okay. But in the next 10 race weekends. Or rather, next 10 weekends. We have seven races. And then straight away, the summer break. Isn't that awesome? Yes. That's incredible.

[00:10:50] But yes, it's also going to get very chaotic. Like these next 10 weeks, Formula 1 is going to be in the washing machine. And you either come out clean or you get totally washed away. I'm thinking for anyone in this mix. Because seven races in 10 races. Sorry, seven races in 10 weekends is mad. Especially given all the travel. Then you're going from North America all the way down to Europe. And you've got a full belt over there.

[00:11:18] And you're doing a lot of races constantly. You have Silverstone. You have Monaco. Catalonia. Belgium. Hungary. These are races that can literally make or break the season. And on top of that, you've also got to map your upgrades out. Because a lot of teams will then be getting more upgrades as the season goes on. So, you get a feeling these next 10 weekends will really shape up the title. And even from a driver's point of view, Kunal. I'm thinking, George must win here.

[00:11:45] If George doesn't assert dominance in Montreal and Kimi ends up winning three in a row, that's going to be four in a row. Yeah. Only driver in history who could win four first-time race. Well, no. That's the only driver in history to score his first four Grand Prix wins consecutively. That's what Kimi could be going for. Yeah. But you made a very good point. You made a very good point. Is this one of those races where George Russell has felt most pressure in his life?

[00:12:12] Because up until now, he was not in a championship contending car. Here comes a championship contending car. Last three race weekends, it's been a washout for him when you compare it to Kimi Antonelli getting the run on him. Yes, you can argue he had bad luck in China and so on. But Miami was that weekend when Kimi was like, this is my circuit. I know what it takes to be quick around your low grip and all of that. Slammed it in. And here comes Russell. A circuit he's had two pole positions at. The last two poles have been George Russell.

[00:12:41] Also, he won the last two Canadian Grand Prix, hasn't he? Or at least last year he won, I believe, right? So my mind is all over the place with the numbers. No, Verstappen won that year. Verstappen won that year. Okay, so at least, you know, we know that George has had the last two poles and the win last year. The first of his two wins last year. And should Kimi win here? Of course, Kimi could then, you know, add more than a race's advantage in terms of points in just five races of the season.

[00:13:11] But apart from that, the psychological pressure for George would be here comes Kimi at a circuit I have necessarily gone good at and beaten me at it. So I'm waiting to see how that dynamic plays out. Will it still be, you know, George as the older brother treating Kimi as he does, you know, as they always project themselves? Or will there be gloves out at some point? Yeah, this is that deciding moment where we find out it could change so much within the Mercedes garage also. It's going to be a pressure-filled weekend.

[00:13:39] And to make it more fun, we're going to have two races because it's a sprint weekend. And that means more volatility and more areas for Kimi Antonelli to be able to tidy up to because starts have been a legitimate problem for him. Two starts is going to be a big pressure-filled moment for Kimi Antonelli. One that we hope he's worked on because it didn't quite look that good in Miami too.

[00:14:04] You rightly mentioned, Kunal, if he wins the Grand Prix, if I'm only counting the Grand Prix points, Antonelli will be at 125. Nobody else is going to be on 100. Wow, isn't that so exciting for a race or for a series that's also trying to attract younger audiences?

[00:14:23] This whole push, imagine having, you know, the youngest driver on the grid beat some of the stalwarts, some of the older drivers, black and blue in his silver, black Mercedes-Benz car. And a couple of questions I will just take. Who has the top speed advantage now? Is it still Mercedes? And that's a great point, Sovic, because this is the part, this is the race where Somal's favorite acronym in Formula One will come into play. The ADUO. You remember the last?

[00:14:52] And the beauty of the ADUO is nobody really knows who's got the fastest engine because people are trying to stay within limits. So they get some concessions for upgrades and so on. So at the moment, it's all down to setup. It's all down to engine mapping and how teams want to extract lap time. But clearly Mercedes seems to be, you know, the class of the field. And like Jenson Button said a couple of races ago that everybody wants a Ferrari engine for the start of the race and a Mercedes engine for the rest of the race.

[00:15:22] Stick with that. Literally. Literally. And also aero. What sort of aero compromise are they making? Because you could also go for a lower downforce setup. A low downforce, low drag, that kind of compromise. And you could boost your top speed up a little bit too. It's very hard to tell. Teams with same power units sometimes have different top speeds. It's all possible. Well, a comment from F1 with Prabha. Hello, my friend. We are live. We are live. Join in on the conversation. Lots to discuss.

[00:15:50] As we preview the Canadian GP. And Sandy M19, he or they, rather let's say they, we don't quite know. But they're saying, definitely hoping for a Max win. Well, the feel is back now, we're hearing. In Miami, Max took a big leap forward. And suddenly Isak Hajar, who was on par with him throughout the entire first three races, went eight tenths back on an average. Which, Verstappen's kind of back.

[00:16:17] Yeah, it was all down to getting him to feel comfortable. And that's, again, one of the stories I'm looking out for. Max Verstappen qualified up front and then spun at turn one. And we saw that beautiful spin. He collected no one and just, you know, lost positions. What would the race look like if Max is battling at the front with the Norris's taking the challenge to the Mercedes cars? Let's assume it's Mercedes at the front. McLaren's chasing them. Ferrari's always been like, we'll watch you guys. We want the best seats in the house.

[00:16:47] Because, you know, when we are ahead, the rear view mirrors are too small for us to catch the action. So Ferrari is happy doing the chasing. But will Max squeeze in and where will he be? And just to answer what we are talking, you know, with all the upgrades, it's shocking how they haven't won yet. You know, Frederic Basur is emphasizing on how there's a culture change and they're bringing all these innovations.

[00:17:05] And at the end of the day, this culture change is about the ultimate KPI or key performance indicator metric that he's taken for every division that's working on the Ferrari car is lap time. So it's no longer just what the front wing is giving or just what the rear wing is giving, but how we all together are reducing lap time. And that's what he's saying he's doing. So will they actually bring it in? And he already said there'll be a different world championship after Miami.

[00:17:32] Let's see if there's a different world championship after the Canadian Grand Prix song. Oh, there will be. There will be for sure. We'll find out which way things are going. And then the European calendar will come in and Mr. Vapas' comment will start to play in as well because they're asking, do you think that mistakes will affect reliability? And mistakes can happen when you've got so many races consistently. Because the same crew will be going around, the same drivers will be going around as well.

[00:18:00] They're barely going to get to spend time at home. That happens. It can make a bit of a difference. It's going to be very fun. And this will continue all the way around. I mean, let's not forget the same thing matters for McLaren as well within their inter-team battle. Because it was only last year that Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri were at this circuit fighting for dominance within the team. And they crashed. And that was a big turning point. This very circuit.

[00:18:26] So we may be speaking about Mercedes and what their upgrades can do and about the frustration at Ferrari. But an equally bigger fight, an equally big fight is going on in McLaren as well. And it's between the drivers. McLaren drivers love that front straight in Canada. We've seen Button and Hamilton crash there. We saw Piastri and Norris crash there. But that could be the case even with the Mercedes drivers if they go chasing each other, which they will, which I'm hoping, which I'm pretty sure they will. But why don't we take a few minutes to discuss the circuit?

[00:18:54] Because this is a very interesting circuit, especially with what you said. It's a proper street race, but also, you know, fields of a permanent race. Long straights, which need you to have low downforce. But a lot of corners, which are also, you know, growing up driving go-karts and race cars, it was always stop and go corners. Okay. So it's like suddenly there's a corner, then they're like, we'll turn left and then we'll turn right. Or if you're turning right, we'll also turn right and then turn left. So lots of left, right, right, left combinations.

[00:19:22] But interestingly, given how power units and engine mapping also helps extract lap time, the lap time dependence on power unit is very asymmetric. The energy demand is low in the first half of the racetrack because there are lots of Mickey Mouse corners or so to say Mickey Mouse and much higher in the second part. So this creates a challenge with all the engine mapping because you remember there's this long straight and the hairpin and then a long straight back.

[00:19:50] So it's so interesting that with power units, now you're also seeing, especially this year's power units, you're seeing how circuits are also divided into these zones where where do I use more power or where do I actually harvest more power and so on. So that's another factor to remember as well, because it is a fantastic circuit, Samuel. What's it apart from the Wall of Champions? Or should we just get to Wall of Champions, your favorite corner? Well, there's so many. There's so many. I'm thinking of the hairpin at the back.

[00:20:19] It's a place where lots of dive bombs can be sent. Lots of drivers can have low speed spins. And we've even seen Robert Kubica come in at full speed. And I think at that final hairpin, Nigel Mansell once thought the race was over because that's where they used to have the old start-finish trade. And then he realized, whoops, I'm going to go up ahead and to the place where we have the new start-finish trade. That happened in the past as well. But I'm thinking turn one is a very exciting corner.

[00:20:48] Seriously, we say this everywhere, but Canada turn one really is a place of a lot of chaos. It's one of those very tricky left-righty things where you come in and you've got a corner followed by a corner. And there's barely any time to react. And drivers can clobber into each other. Drivers can spin out and go on the cross. People can get pushed away. So many people get pushed on the outside, towards the left-hand side after turn two. And you're almost pushed in the wall with nowhere to go. And that sort of squeezing can happen as well.

[00:21:17] Very similar to how it may be at Jeddah after the first chicane. So it's chaotic. It's a place where drama happens. And not a lot of long corners, Kunal. No, not a lot of long corners. And a lot of rapid direction changes. Not high-speed direction changes, but rapid, you know, medium to slow speed directional changes, which this year's cars actually appreciate. They're more agile as they go. And one of my favorite things, curb riding.

[00:21:42] I love it when Formula 1 cars are riding curbs, just hogging and eating them up all the time. And it's a five-meter long pit lane. But again, this pit lane has an anomaly where actually, when you go into the pit lane, you don't lose as much time as you otherwise would with a 400-meter long pit lane. Because the pit lane cuts through the last chicane. So you're actually going in faster through the pit lane as well compared to the other circuits. And my favorite corner has to be the last corner.

[00:22:11] Because just the sheer dedication it needs on a qualifying lap to get there, hit the apex, get early onto the throttle. And then there's always this thing that I notice. There are some drivers who just go dead straight, okay? Or there are some drivers who are going cross. And I'm like, unless you've got that momentum, isn't that cross line, that diagonal line a little slower? Because you're carrying more, you know, you're sort of driving more distance. I don't know. What do you think? Well, it's all about how much you can straighten it out, I suppose.

[00:22:41] And then how daring are you? And if you're Williams and sometimes the suspension is going through things like having only three wheels on the ground and one wheel off the air, that's going to be an even more problematic thing. In fact, this weekend will test suspension reliability. Because curb riding is a big thing. And how much do you dare as a driver? I'm thinking if you're not confident about your seat, if you're not confident about how things are going on, and you don't end up pushing that hard or don't end up wanting to take that extra bit of risk,

[00:23:11] you could be horribly slow, especially in qualifying. And that's a point James Hinchcliffe mentioned before the race. You have to take that final corner twice in qualifying. You want to set up your lap and then also during your lap. It's a fun, fun, fun, fun place. Yes. And there is a Lando, not a Lando, there is a Lance Stroll grandstand out there. Let's not forget the hero of the day is going to be Lance Stroll. It's his home race. Stroll Grand Prix.

[00:23:37] And for anyone questioning whether fan bases can make a difference, here is Lance Stroll's record at his home race. So he's been knocked out in Q1 five out of seven times at his home race. Okay. Yet he has gone on to score points five times. So a Q1 knockout could very well come. Although he's said, you know, Aston Martin can do special things. Could very well. Isn't that certain? Isn't that the first thing you're going to put? And I have a question for you guys.

[00:24:05] If blindly you had to put a Formula One team anywhere on the qualifying rankings this weekend, where would you put Aston Martin? And I think we all know the answer. I think we all know what two positions. It's not a good PQ1 knockout, Kunal, is it? Well, you never know. It's been, you know, the good thing is Aston Martin keeps saying, Adrian, you kept saying we are three to four months beyond schedule. Well, if this is the start of their season and it's Australia, let's assume four months into the season, March, April, May. So two and a half months.

[00:24:36] Let's say this is the start of their season and this is Australia. What can they do? Can they get out of PQ1? Let's just put a position. We worked on improving drivability. Honda has said that. But that doesn't mean they're more horsepower. Where are we putting them? Where are we putting Aston Martin after qualifying? So there are 22 cars. Let's remember. I will go with either 18th and 21st or 19th and 21st.

[00:25:00] I'm going 22nd and 20th. Okay. So we are both saying that there will be one car that will get in between them or an Aston Martin will get in ahead of one car, which is basically just Fernando Alonso. Exactly. Exactly. That's if they get through because bumpy braking zones, lots of vibration. Man, it's going to be tough for Aston Martin. It's going to be, well, exoteric? No, not immediately.

[00:25:29] We do have a few more things to talk about, especially what could go on at this weekend and also what's been happening around the world of Formula 1. Actually, let's get to that because a lot of things have been happening since we've been away. And chief of which has been Max Verstappen introducing hundreds and thousands of Formula 1 fans, what other forms of motorsport look like. And people have fallen in love. And some say, Kunal, Formula 1 are not liking it.

[00:25:56] On social media, Formula 1 put out a post talking about their rich heritage and legacy while Verstappen was at the Nürburgring 24. And there was not one post about the Nürburgring 24 on Formula 1's page. Do you get it, firstly? I get it. And let me remind you, I had to go and check if Bernie Eccleston actually went back to buy Formula 1 because that's what Bernie Eccleston would do.

[00:26:21] He would not let his drivers race elsewhere and create an opportunity to watch his star drivers at another competing racing series. And that's the main point. I think one of the other points that I really was disappointed was 13th of May, which was six days ago now, was Formula 1's 76th anniversary. 13th of May 1950 was one of the first, not was, one of the worst, the first ever Grand Prix World Championship at Silverstone. And guess what? There was no celebratory post.

[00:26:51] There was no happy birthday. Here's a cake for all of you 900 million fans or whatever in the world. I'm puzzled. What about Heritage? What about, I don't know, Formula 1 probably feeling the pinch that, oh my goodness, that Max Verstappen factor is for real. Yeah, and Heritage is under question now given where we're also going. And Sandhya says that 24 Nürburgring was pure adrenaline. Max was amazing. Oh, he was. Oh, he was. But you know who we're a bigger fan of? Take a guess. It's not a driver. It's a car.

[00:27:21] The Dacia Logan. I don't know what has got it right. The Dacia Logan has more impressions than Formula 1 in the last week. Listen, we could do a separate podcast on the Nürburgring 24, which we should. But it's outstanding, Karl, that Verstappen's bringing so much media attention there. And if anything, I think the fact that he's gotten to do the Nürburgring 24, I think that would have made him so happy and more committed to Formula 1. Because now he's had his off. He's enjoyed it. He's tried it.

[00:27:49] And he knows that this is something he can do in his career, I believe. So now back to the day job, where it's not going as bad as it was at the start of the year. No, absolutely. And sometimes you just get saturated with your day job. And you're like, I just got to go and have some fun and do some. Yeah. You know, what does it say? You go moonlighting on the weekend or something. That's what Max was doing. It's a holiday. Yeah. It's a holiday. And very, very exciting. Because there were several other things, right, that happened as well. Max went racing.

[00:28:18] Some of the other drivers just went to watch another very popular racing series, which you have kindly hosted in India for the Sony Sports Network. Formula E racing in Monaco. Monaco E-Prix. Again, alongside the Cannes Film Festival. Somehow, I don't know why. Formula 1 was always a part of the Cannes Film Festival. You'd watch that during the weekdays and then come watch the Grand Prix on the Sunday. That position is now gone. They pumped Monaco out. They've pushed Monaco to June. That's why.

[00:28:45] Because they wanted to have Miami to be in one calendar slot. But then they also wanted a two-week break between Miami and Canada. So, we're going to North America. Not once. Not doing this whole circle there. We're going there, coming back, and then going there again. Yeah. So, Monaco Grand Prix. Monaco E-Prix. Lando Norris was there. Bortoletto was there. Hulkenberg was there. Carlos Sainz were there. And they were all so, you know, what I love is, all Formula 1 drivers were like, great. You've got some really great drivers out there.

[00:29:12] So, in general, drivers doesn't matter which series they're racing and have a lot of respect and they're appreciating the drivers. But when you speak to Formula E drivers, they love the drivers. But they're like, uh-uh, that's not a Formula 1 car. Especially Lucas Degrassi, given how aggressive he gets to be on social media about his hate for Formula 1 technology. But who else did what else during this break, that forced break that we had? One sec. I have no idea who Declan Rice is.

[00:29:40] But instead of saying that, I'm going to ask you, do you know Stephanie Rice is? That's the generation I belong to. Exactly. You see the difference? Well, okay. That we both know. You need to know the right rice. Okay. And, you know, for me, that hit home because my sister actually heads digital marketing for L'Oreal. So, I'm like, wow, that's a brilliant campaign. And Alia Bhatt's business partner is actually a very dear friend of mine. So, I'm like, even more wow. And then, of course, there's Carlos Sainz, your favorite driver.

[00:30:09] And there's Charles Leclerc. I'm yet to meet someone who doesn't like Charles Leclerc. And I think that was a great mashup. And I loved how, you know, Alia Bhatt was, you know, doing that. And then the whole internet went, you know, like, oh, you know, it's Formula One, that sport where you just go round and round in circles. And people are trying to, you know, create memes of that. But I'm pretty sure that this moment will further increase the 84 or 89 million fan base that we have in India. It was lovely to see that. And what else did we see?

[00:30:39] There was a lot that happened because there was very little racing that happened, at least in Formula One. They were like, you got to wait. You got to wait for your turn or something. Wait till you're older. But imagine this. Max Verstappen went GT racing. Lance Stroll wants to do GT racing. Kimi Antonelli is saying he wants to do GT racing. Is this a sign of times to come? Formula One, if they don't make the tech change, their drivers will just go and have fun elsewhere. Yeah. Yes.

[00:31:05] One more thing happened, which was Valtteri Bottas' rented Cadillac was stolen and then was under FBI investigation. So Valtteri's biggest headline story of the season is this. Rents a Cadillac or rather has a Cadillac car to drive around. And this was for the Miami Grand Prix. Car gets stolen. And the FBI is investigating because they were concerned that with his parking pass inside the vehicle, somebody could use to just get inside the Miami Grand Prix.

[00:31:34] That's how popular the Miami Grand Prix is. You can't find a passcode, you know, take a driver's car, you know, mug it, take it, steal it and then try and drive it. I'll tell you what else happened. And Jack Brown wrote to the FIA saying we don't want team alliances, okay, because of Mercedes' apparent interest in buying Alpine as well. So Jack Brown basically said, don't send it to Toto Wolves, but sell it to my friend Christian Horner.

[00:32:00] So we get Horner back because Horner is desperately trying to come back to Formula One. And Samuel, he met with the owners of BYD, the Chinese electric car company. And something very interesting, you know, a couple of years ago when a Cadillac was announced as the 11th race and the American team entering Formula One, Mohamed Ben Sulaim, the FIA president said, I would actually even like a 12th team if it's a Chinese Formula One team. So Horner picked on that and he said, I would love to have a Chinese Formula One team starting from scratch.

[00:32:29] Well, he said that and there's also rumors of him being interested in being the boss of MotoGP. It's a lot of exploration for Christian Horner at this moment in time. I don't think anything is finalized yet. I think we're going to see the next move for Christian Horner coming sometime soon. I really wish it's not something like the boss of MotoGP. We need Christian Horner, make Horner racing, go racing as he always did. There was this brand of racing which only he did in Formula One, which I actually lack.

[00:32:58] I would say. And it's all very nice in Formula One right now. Everyone's too, everyone's very nice. McLaren are super nice. Mercedes are apologetic off the track, but ruthless on the track, but still, still nice. Red Bull Racing now with a lot of mechers, you don't, you don't sense them being that, that mindset of we are the way we are and you are just different from us and we don't care how you are. We're just going to beat you and we hate you for being the way you are in extreme cases. But you don't, you don't sense that tribalism. You don't.

[00:33:26] And could Christian Horner buy a Formula E team? And so we actually just spoke about it last episode. Could he buy a MotoGP and a Formula One team with all the investors he's got? And yeah, why not go even buy a Formula E team? Buy Prema. Yeah, buy Prema. At the moment, the biggest motorsport brand in the world is McLaren. Just given the sheer number of series they go racing in. Could Christian Horner make Horner Racing, you know, a competitor to McLaren when it comes to... I think that's a bit far-fetched. So I think he's going to enter one of the...

[00:33:56] Is McLaren the number one in the world right now? I would say the maximum number of racing series that they go in. They even did Extreme E at some point and they did Formula E and... Yeah. They're now entering the WEC in the hypercar class. So I don't know what... They've got their GT program too. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. IMSA as well. Yeah, yeah. McLaren have done a lot. Well, I was thinking Toyota for a second because they've got lots of Super GT. They've got rally cars as well. But not exactly. Yeah, yeah. You're right. McLaren probably. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

[00:34:26] It's true. So what else have we got? The Canadian Grand Prix is here. Does Max race E-Series? I thought he was a diehard raw brake horsepower guy. Yeah, I guess so. No, Samuel Max is still one of the fossil fuel. I need proper race engines. That kind of guy. I don't believe he's racing the electric series anytime. He's been very careful. He said, I drive all the cars, but not a Formula E or an electric Extreme E car. Even though the Formula E CEO called him. You're right. That's what happened.

[00:34:53] Jeff Dodds called Max Verstappen, invited him for a test, but Max didn't reply. So that's happened. I don't think he's going to race electric cars. But for everyone attending the Canadian Grand Prix, something very unfortunate. A piece of news that has come is that the strippers in Montreal are actually going on a strike. So they decided that during the Canadian Grand Prix, which is a very high revenue driver for their owners, if that's the way to put it.

[00:35:21] They said, we're just going to go on strike to protest against, I believe, wages. So the Canadian Grand Prix will definitely have to be fun only on track, Samuel. Good. Less distractions for Kimi Antonelli. It's better. A young driver like that should not have any distractions around him. It's good. Yes. Talking about distractions. We should move on. Quick. What are you, you know, 55 years of racing in Canada, 45 years at the Montreal circuit. I know you're going to do the official comms. I know you're preparing for, you know, what you need to speak this weekend on Fancor, on the Hindi broadcast.

[00:35:49] Just as you are going to do on the Wireplay broadcast. Yes. I finally, you know, we get the Wireplay studio. The calendar has been structured such that the early morning races, we don't have a studio here. And then Miami was the first studio, proper studio that we ran. So now we also have the Indy 500 with Dennis Hauger is racing along with the Canadian Grand Prix as well. So you'll get to see me on Wireplay as well. Thank you.

[00:36:12] But from history, I have fun memories from Canada, apart from world champions driving into the wall of champions. Sebastian Vettel locking up at turn one in 2016. Sebastian Vettel being penalized for what honestly was not a penalty fighting against Lewis Hamilton in 2019. That was sad. Well, Robert Kubica getting redemption in 2008 and winning a race after Lewis Hamilton bumped into Kimi Raikkonen.

[00:36:41] I was about to say the original Kimi, but well, that sounds odd to say. Kimi, Lewis bumped into Kimi. There's only one Kimi. This one's Andrea. There's only one Iceman. Drake is apparently calling his new album or his new song Iceman. How did you find out? You realize I have to do a show with you. I better be up with all the pop culture references. Oh, wow. That is so cool. Yeah, that was quite something. 2008, Daniel Ricciardo's first one in 2014. The Groundhogs. I like the Groundhogs in Canada.

[00:37:10] They're so cute, but they need to go away. I know it's bad on us to go racing in their environment, but dear Groundhogs, if I can send a message to you right now, I think it's a good time to go on the trees. Let's just vacate the track and you can come back. We'll give you a guided tour of the Formula One cars. But this time, the cars are actually equipped with moving aerodynamics, which in case a Groundhog comes in the way, you just flip the wings so it doesn't come on the car, but you just sort of knock it up.

[00:37:37] Since you're going Mario Kart racing, you know, you're suddenly seeing your wings are flat. The Groundhogs is going to be floor in the air. Yeah, and you're seeing like, okay, straight line mode. Oops, there's a Groundhog coming. Can I just flip the wings open? Like the Groundhog will be launched. Man. But on a serious note, there is... I'm glad we have catch-pencing in Formula One. It's many points. On a serious note, I made a note of some of the fun history stuff. Six-time first race winners in Formula One that have happened.

[00:38:07] Typically, I always have that memory and stat ready for the Hungarian Grand Prix. But no, Canada has six-time race winners. Gilles Villeneuve, Boatsen, Alessi, Hamilton, Kubica and Ricciardo. If there is a seventh race winner added this weekend, who could it be? Or even Hamilton and Ferrari would just seem like a new race winner, right? Yeah. Yeah. Well, if Hamilton's winning this weekend, something's gone on. Like something has happened in the race weekend for Lewis Hamilton to win. Let's... We should come back to this.

[00:38:36] If Lewis Hamilton ends up winning the Canadian Grand Prix, I think this will be a remarkable weekend and some madness must have happened. Like two or three safety cars, a red flag, the rain coming in, a lot like 2011. Or Ferrari's upgrades just finally work. Their race strategy just finally falls in place. Much as their pit stops that always fall in place as well. Yeah. Then I would consider that as seventh race winner, first-time race winner. Lewis in that Ferrari. Then, very interestingly, this was the first ever...

[00:39:06] This was a race where the first ever safety car was used. 1973 Canadian Grand Prix. And at that time, it messed up the race winner. So, for everyone thinking 2021 Abu Dhabi was probably the only time the safety car has messed up. Who wins the race? Well, the first time ever it was used, it also messed up a race. And then the Canadian Grand Prix has also had the first ever red flag in the history of Formula 1. In 1971. Isn't that awesome? Like, so much history.

[00:39:33] This is absolutely one of my favorite examples. And I use this every time. So, for those who are listening to us in the last 12-14 years, I've heard this. 1992 Brabham scored a 1-2 in Canada. And both their cars were powered by different engines. PK won with a Brabham BMW. And Patrice won with a Brabham Ford. In 92? Yes. Wow. How did that happen? Yes. But let's do predictions while you search. How did that happen? Sprint ball. Well, okay.

[00:40:03] Now I'm very curious at the same time. Which we shall get to. But sprint ball. George Russell. Still have to back George Russell. If not him, then who? And if not now, then when? Oscar Piastri. Sprint ball. That's who I am going with. And I believe Piastri has never finished on the podium in Montreal. He will also take the sprint win. Because both sprints in 2026 have been won from pole position. I'm going to go with George Russell on that. Because I like that stack of the sprint winner winning.

[00:40:33] But well, because it's a sprint and because it's Ferrari's new upgrades. Am I going to be crazy by saying Charlotte Clare close Hamilton for the win? No. It's not MotoGP. I don't think the third best team can come in and win. Run pre-qualifying. Who's on pole? It's Kimi. Oh my god. Swami, you're not betting your full year's salary on this. Come on. No, it's like I have to go to George because I've trusted George. And I can't leave him that easily in my predictions. But then I'm like, okay, if not George, then who? The McLarens?

[00:41:02] And then which of the McLarens? Because both of them have been so good. It's... Okay. Max Verstappen. Max Verstappen. A car that doesn't like curb riding traditionally is going to win on a circuit. It's going to get pole on a circuit where there will be curb riding. I was also going to pick Max Verstappen for pole, which means we're tied on that. But top three in the race. Russell and Tonelli and Piastri. Wow. So Max will be on pole but not be in the top three. Interesting.

[00:41:31] I think we're going to get a Max Verstappen victory as well, followed by Leclerc. I get a feeling Ferrari is going to be strong, given the nature of the characteristics. Leclerc will finally score a podium here. He's not at a podium here since 2019, his opening season with Ferrari. So it's going to be Verstappen, Leclerc and Lando Norris. That's my pick. Both the Mercedes cars off the podium. That would be crazy. By the way... And that means we need to end this because I've been completely crazy. Yeah, we must...

[00:42:01] Exoteric, if you're still watching, thank you for the shout out, man. Thank you for firstly subscribing to us. And then also, I don't know what the technical term for this is. Exoteric has sent us $10, which is so cool. Which is so cool. Cheers to you, buddy. Thank you. That's a coffee. It's more than a coffee and a bun as we call it in Norway. But thank you. That's the first that's happened. Yeah, we should do that. The first. And thank you. That's kind. I didn't even know that feature existed in YouTube. But thank you.