Time to crown a F1 World Champion in Las Vegas? 2024 Sin City Grand Prix Preview

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[00:01:20] I find it weird that it's that time of the year again. But we're not talking about the Las Vegas GP in the same light as we were last year. Maybe the excitement has worn off. But this is still quite a big event, guys. Welcome to the Las Vegas Grand Prix. This is the Las Vegas Grand Prix Preview on the Inside Line F1 Podcast. Or as we shall call it, Kunal, the Sin City Grand Prix Preview?

[00:01:43] Now we are talking. Now is where the excitement comes in. It's just about the race name for you, right? If it's Las Vegas, yeah, it's just another race. Tree trays under the lights.

[00:01:53] What if you call it the Sin City Grand Prix? Does that get you excited as much, Samuel?

[00:01:57] Nah, I think names are just names. Especially when you have something like the 2020 Grand Prix, Della Italia made in Italy.

[00:02:06] What is the full name again, Kunal? I keep on forgetting about Mizano. Not Mizano, Emula. Whatever. But you can't top that.

[00:02:13] Sin City, I think it's the names aside though.

[00:02:17] I love the fact that F1 is planning to go just as grand this year as well with all the organization and everything.

[00:02:25] And the best part is for fans, the ticket prices have come down.

[00:02:29] So the sins are being committed slightly less by Formula 1 now this year.

[00:02:33] It is less and ticket prices to me is the most interesting part.

[00:02:37] If you're a Formula 1 fan, there's a 44% discount on the tickets for this weekend's Las Vegas Grand Prix.

[00:02:46] So, you know, I often say if the cost itself is a million pounds, a 44 pound is still about little more than half a million pounds.

[00:02:53] It's expensive, no doubt. But I believe it's not going to be a sellout.

[00:03:00] But they're trying hard to sell tickets. Either way, I think it's a great spectacle to watch.

[00:03:05] And I'll tell you why I'm excited is, of course, street race, low grip, different conditions, cold conditions.

[00:03:11] It's going to be the third race being held this season on a Saturday summer, which is interesting.

[00:03:18] And I would say, I think the other part is, I love the fact that it's Liberty Media that's the promoter of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

[00:03:28] And so, you know, a lot of people might ask, okay, so what's the difference?

[00:03:32] Well, the difference actually is in the numbers, okay?

[00:03:36] Liberty Media promoted the Las Vegas Grand Prix the first time in 2023.

[00:03:42] This, you know, as we know, have spent over $240 million just on the paddock and pit buildings and various other permissions

[00:03:50] and putting up all the pre-event marketing and the headline acts and whatever else.

[00:03:55] So it's a lot of cost.

[00:03:56] But Liberty Media actually saw a 25% increase in revenue in 2023.

[00:04:02] Okay, so they made $2.57 billion in 2022.

[00:04:07] And they closed 2023 at $3.22 billion in 2023.

[00:04:12] And they have attributed this 25% increase in revenue to the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

[00:04:21] That's insane.

[00:04:22] Can you imagine?

[00:04:24] One race out of 24.

[00:04:28] And that's a 25% increase.

[00:04:31] It's a large attribution.

[00:04:32] It's not the only attribution.

[00:04:34] What I mean is, the Las Vegas Grand Prix is one of the largest reasons for this increase.

[00:04:39] It's not the only reason.

[00:04:41] But Somal, can you imagine if Liberty Media starts promoting more races by themselves?

[00:04:47] What could happen to that $3.22 billion number?

[00:04:51] It'll seem small in comparison to what the capabilities, possibilities are.

[00:04:57] And maybe we should break down.

[00:04:58] So what does a promoter do?

[00:04:59] And how is it that Liberty Media actually makes more money?

[00:05:02] Well, quite simple.

[00:05:03] When you're a promoter and you raise a sponsor, okay, so let's say it's the Indian Grand Prix

[00:05:09] and Samuel Arora is promoting it.

[00:05:11] He pays Formula One a race hosting fee to sublet or to license the Indian Grand Prix moniker,

[00:05:18] which he's able to then monetize.

[00:05:20] And let's say he raises a sponsor.

[00:05:21] Okay, he gets the chunk of the sponsorship, but he also is supposed to pay a percentage of

[00:05:28] that sponsorship fee to Formula One, including percentages on gate receipts.

[00:05:33] And depending, you know, if it's a European circuits, I would say the terms are more

[00:05:37] promoter friendly.

[00:05:38] If it's a new race promoter like the Middle East or some of the other emerging markets,

[00:05:45] the terms are more Formula One friendly, right?

[00:05:49] Which means that the promoter could actually have a bad deal.

[00:05:51] But in this case, Formula One keeps all gate tickets, all sponsorship revenue,

[00:05:56] and everything that's there.

[00:05:58] And that's why it's such a cash burning, no, cash earning, cash tingling, whatever,

[00:06:03] you know, those plings that you hear on Spotify.

[00:06:06] Formula One probably hears that all the time.

[00:06:08] And it's also the event where they charge the highest.

[00:06:11] The premium prices are unreal for every hotel room, for every ticket, for every party,

[00:06:16] for every meal as well.

[00:06:18] And I'd say it's all worth it because it is Las Vegas and there can't be a better place

[00:06:23] to have a race like this.

[00:06:24] I mean, I'm just thinking, right?

[00:06:25] Think of all the famous boulevards in the world.

[00:06:28] Formula One once floated the idea of doing a race around the Buckingham Palace.

[00:06:31] This, you can't really get that level of royalty.

[00:06:34] But the level of opulence, you certainly can get that in Las Vegas.

[00:06:38] And I think it's genuinely a landmark for Formula One to have a race here.

[00:06:41] And more than anything, more than just having a race, Formula One is actually having quite

[00:06:47] a big opportunity this time to genuinely make it the biggest party.

[00:06:51] Because we walk into the Las Vegas GP with a realistic chance of crowning a champion.

[00:06:57] Haven't we crowned him already, Kunal?

[00:06:59] Don't we know who it is?

[00:07:01] Is there even a championship battle?

[00:07:02] I'm wondering.

[00:07:04] Because as it stands, the permutations and combinations really just don't play in Landon Norris' favour.

[00:07:09] Long story short, if Max beats you, that's the season over and done with.

[00:07:14] And in my opinion, that should happen because then they can focus on the bigger prize.

[00:07:18] McLaren, that is.

[00:07:19] That is the Constructors' World Championship.

[00:07:20] Where they can stop holding Oscar back and let them fight.

[00:07:25] That to me is...

[00:07:26] Win-win for everybody.

[00:07:28] Win-win for everyone.

[00:07:29] Max doesn't have to worry.

[00:07:30] McLaren doesn't have to worry.

[00:07:31] Oscar can be his own person.

[00:07:33] And then Lando can drive pressure-free without the pressure of a championship.

[00:07:36] And, you know, I think Max Verstappen is 62 points away after scoring his 62nd win in Formula One

[00:07:46] in Sao Paulo, Brazil, a couple of weeks ago.

[00:07:49] For all those who believe in numerology, that's always a good thing.

[00:07:52] You know, 62 points, 62, 60-second win.

[00:07:55] And, Salim, the interesting question is, yes, if you actually go to the next slide.

[00:08:01] So what does Max need to do to win the title in Las Vegas, right?

[00:08:07] And that is quite simply, as you put, he needs to finish ahead of Lando Norris.

[00:08:14] But how many times has that actually happened in the last 10 races?

[00:08:17] I think only a handful of times.

[00:08:19] Yeah.

[00:08:21] So there's a good chance that we'll keep asking this question over the entire triple header

[00:08:27] only for Max to actually be crowned world champion in Abu Dhabi, which would be a bit of a surprise

[00:08:33] given the start that he had to this particular season.

[00:08:37] There we go.

[00:08:37] So Max Verstappen is champion if he finishes in front of Lando.

[00:08:42] Could be any position.

[00:08:43] Or if Lando fails to score.

[00:08:46] Okay.

[00:08:46] Lando hasn't failed to score.

[00:08:48] And I think he's very interesting.

[00:08:51] Lando's points finishes are 20 out of 21 possible options.

[00:08:55] Same as Max.

[00:08:56] Okay.

[00:08:57] In 2024.

[00:08:57] And for Lando to continue to remain in the fight and keep having the British media and

[00:09:03] fans hyping up our title battle, he needs to outscore Max by at least three points this

[00:09:10] weekend.

[00:09:10] Yeah.

[00:09:10] And it just seems like it's all over.

[00:09:14] We're at the very end of the line with this.

[00:09:16] And I think a championship battle in the permutations really makes unrealistic results seem like a

[00:09:23] possibility.

[00:09:24] Like at the start of the season, if you'd asked Lando Norris to finish ahead of Max Verstappen

[00:09:28] and outscored him by at least three points, he would have said, ah, that's going to be

[00:09:31] very tough.

[00:09:32] Lando needs to have the perfect race.

[00:09:34] And then suddenly we're treating it as a possibility just because we're at the end of

[00:09:37] the season and we want to see a championship fight.

[00:09:39] It's going to be hard.

[00:09:40] It certainly is going to be hard.

[00:09:42] But the dynamic has also changed.

[00:09:43] And that's the interesting part.

[00:09:45] This no longer is a standard mid-season 2024 F1 race where McLaren have the upper hand

[00:09:51] walking in.

[00:09:52] We will get to the track characteristics in a second.

[00:09:56] But long story short, we have no clue which team is going to be the fastest one here.

[00:10:01] Logic would suggest Ferrari looking at past trends.

[00:10:04] McLaren generally have been very good everywhere.

[00:10:06] And we don't really know just how good that Red Bull upgrade is Kunal in the dry.

[00:10:10] So we're in all sorts of fun stuff going around here.

[00:10:15] But we should talk about the championship battle and what could potentially happen in the race

[00:10:19] in a bit.

[00:10:20] Before that though, we have to firstly say thank you to everyone.

[00:10:24] It's a moment of taking a slight bit of pause before we get back into the deep end.

[00:10:28] Because we've been receiving so many fun comments, questions, predictions.

[00:10:32] So many people have reached out to us and have appreciated our work.

[00:10:36] And for that, we really have to put our hand on our heart and say thank you.

[00:10:39] Thank you for listening.

[00:10:40] Thank you for watching.

[00:10:41] And you can interact with us.

[00:10:43] We are always available on at InsideLineF1Pod on all social media platforms.

[00:10:48] Instagram and Facebook as well.

[00:10:50] We still have that active.

[00:10:52] And of course, all of us have our individual Twitter platforms too.

[00:10:55] And on our social media platforms, Kunal, we had a question coming in.

[00:11:00] Here's a question from Toby Godfrey, which is,

[00:11:03] Will Ferrari be as strong as 2023 or perhaps stronger?

[00:11:08] George was pretty handy last year.

[00:11:10] Do you think Mercedes could surprise us?

[00:11:13] I think we should turn it around as a bold prediction question.

[00:11:17] Because that's what we always do before the race.

[00:11:20] And that is going to be my bold prediction, Toby.

[00:11:22] I think Ferrari are going to be the team ultimately who have the upper hand.

[00:11:25] I'll explain why in a bit.

[00:11:28] But that's my bold prediction.

[00:11:29] What do you see in this whole battle, Kunal?

[00:11:31] I think so as well.

[00:11:32] You know, this circuit is going to play to their strengths.

[00:11:36] They love street circuits.

[00:11:37] And I think especially street circuits with colder temperatures and low grip,

[00:11:45] I think they will actually be stronger than 2023.

[00:11:49] And while we are hyping up Verstappen versus Norris,

[00:11:51] I actually would love to see Norris versus Leclerc.

[00:11:54] And how close can that come for comfort for Lando Norris?

[00:11:58] And if that does get too close for comfort,

[00:12:01] will he actually still get even more nervous?

[00:12:03] Because, hey, from being the championship challenger,

[00:12:06] imagine finishing third if that were to happen.

[00:12:11] Yes, he's up against Leclerc and Ferrari,

[00:12:12] who haven't always been consistent either.

[00:12:15] I mean, when the track and the characteristics play to their strengths,

[00:12:19] they've nailed it.

[00:12:19] But their off days have been far worse than, say, McLaren's and Norris'.

[00:12:25] So I get a feeling the Ferraris will definitely be the team to watch.

[00:12:30] And in such cases, Carlos Sainz himself has said that Leclerc just has that understanding of how to rotate a car under low grip,

[00:12:40] in slow speed conditions, and why Charles is just so strong when it comes to such circumstances.

[00:12:47] So I think Charles Leclerc is definitely one of those.

[00:12:52] You know, there we go.

[00:12:53] Yeah.

[00:12:53] Your favourite quote, even though you're a Carlos Sainz fan, Samuel.

[00:12:57] I love this quote.

[00:12:59] Sainz, if you're listening in, has said,

[00:13:01] and this is after Azerbaijan qualifying, where Leclerc smoked everybody.

[00:13:05] He said, it's all about braking here in Barco and having the confidence to stop the car as late as possible.

[00:13:11] Trusting that car is then going to turn into the corner.

[00:13:14] That's where he excels around here and when he's particularly comfortable from the beginning of FB1.

[00:13:18] That's what Carlos Sainz said about Leclerc.

[00:13:21] And if you look at it in terms of circuit characteristics,

[00:13:24] if you look at it in terms of how the last vehicle circuit is put up,

[00:13:27] lots of long straights, lots of really slow corners,

[00:13:31] lots of places where you need to accelerate out of being at, what, 110, 120 kilometers per hour.

[00:13:37] These are areas where Ferrari are excellent.

[00:13:40] Monza was one of those circuits.

[00:13:42] Baku was one of those circuits.

[00:13:44] And the low grip, the cooler conditions,

[00:13:47] that is all something that plays in their hands.

[00:13:49] They won Monza, they won Monaco, they won Baku,

[00:13:51] and they won Mexico City as well.

[00:13:53] And Leclerc was pretty good in almost all of them.

[00:13:57] That's why my money is on him.

[00:13:58] And looking at the layout, yeah, it's hard to tell.

[00:14:00] It's not a Ferrari circuit.

[00:14:01] In fact, we should cast our minds back to 2023,

[00:14:05] where Ferrari were not as fast Kunal,

[00:14:07] but they nearly beat Prime Max for snapping in Prime Red Bull Racing,

[00:14:11] had it not been for a few issues here and there.

[00:14:13] And that is, of course, Max winning in spite of getting a penalty.

[00:14:16] But there was a realistic chance

[00:14:18] that Leclerc could have gotten P1 that day.

[00:14:20] And that Ferrari has only gotten better since.

[00:14:22] Especially on the Sunday.

[00:14:24] You know, that Ferrari last year was really quick on the Saturday.

[00:14:27] What do you mean Sunday?

[00:14:27] There's no Sunday here this weekend.

[00:14:30] Oh my God.

[00:14:31] Is that the catch for Ferrari?

[00:14:33] Is that where their systems are like,

[00:14:35] we are supposed to be quicker tomorrow.

[00:14:36] It's too bad the race is today on a Saturday.

[00:14:39] Could that be the Achilles heel for Ferrari?

[00:14:42] Somal, you know.

[00:14:43] But my goodness.

[00:14:45] Yeah, it's a Saturday race.

[00:14:46] And the layout is actually interesting.

[00:14:48] Of course, it always reminds me of two things.

[00:14:50] Or now three things.

[00:14:52] First is, it's the inverted pig layout, which is extremely funny.

[00:14:57] The second is, there were 31 possible layouts.

[00:14:59] And they will actually pick this one.

[00:15:02] And the third is, you know, for all the comments Max Verstappen has made

[00:15:06] about the Las Vegas Grand Prix, him feeling like a clown,

[00:15:10] how it's more entertainment and less sport and all of that.

[00:15:13] Well, this is the longest race of the calendar.

[00:15:17] So there is actually more sport here, more racing here.

[00:15:20] Yes.

[00:15:21] In Las Vegas, given that it's 309.958 kilometers of race distance.

[00:15:27] And typically it's supposed to be 300 kilometers race distance.

[00:15:31] Okay.

[00:15:31] But Formula One just said, let's make it easy.

[00:15:34] Let's have a 50 lap race instead of 49 laps.

[00:15:36] That's my feeling.

[00:15:37] Wait, wait, wait.

[00:15:38] Is that going to be hard to explain to people?

[00:15:41] Like we have a 49 lap race.

[00:15:43] So we just say 50 lap.

[00:15:44] Is that what they were genuinely thinking?

[00:15:45] It's the FIA.

[00:15:48] And I know we are going to talk FIA later, but that could happen.

[00:15:50] We will.

[00:15:51] We will.

[00:15:52] Yeah.

[00:15:52] But more on the track.

[00:15:54] So the setup balance, sorry, the setup compromises are between top speed

[00:15:59] because there's a massive long straight where we saw Leclerc pull off

[00:16:02] a brilliant move on Perez last year for P2.

[00:16:05] It's 1.9 kilometers long.

[00:16:09] As we remember, you cross over, you know, 200 miles per hour, as they say.

[00:16:13] And so the setup compromises always between the high speed and the low speed stuff

[00:16:18] because there is a lot of low speed stuff.

[00:16:20] Turns one to four, turns seven, eight, nine.

[00:16:23] Lots of low speed rotation, turn 12 and turns and 14, 15, 16 as well.

[00:16:29] So this is interesting.

[00:16:30] If you're a Lando Norris fan and should he nail it and put his car on pole position,

[00:16:35] there'll be two things to look out for.

[00:16:37] First is he would have now 10 equal the number of poles that Max Verstappen has in 2024,

[00:16:44] which I think is impressive.

[00:16:46] But second is there is only a 112 meter run from pole position to the entry of turn one, right?

[00:16:56] Is it really a turn one, though?

[00:16:58] Well, it's not really a turn one, but I'm going to classify that as one.

[00:17:03] This is a second shortest after Baku.

[00:17:06] Okay.

[00:17:07] Now, Lando Norris, the only time he did not lose his lead at turn one was in Singapore.

[00:17:13] Again, a very short distance.

[00:17:15] So let's see how Lando gets challenged.

[00:17:17] If he puts it on pole, will he still get overtaken on the opening lap?

[00:17:22] Yeah, this is a very, very, very interesting layout.

[00:17:25] But I want to go back to something that you mentioned earlier.

[00:17:29] You mentioned about Max Verstappen complaining.

[00:17:32] I think that is a good place to go to because we can keep talking about the track

[00:17:35] and which team is going to be good till the Cavs come home.

[00:17:38] We've spoken about how good Ferrari are.

[00:17:40] McLaren generally have been very good everywhere.

[00:17:42] And this is another chance for them to showcase why.

[00:17:44] And their top speeds recently have been good.

[00:17:46] Not sure if that's down to the wing or just generally how the car has been.

[00:17:50] But they have been good there.

[00:17:51] But the low speeds is where fun will begin.

[00:17:53] And Andreas Teller feels that that's not where they're strongest.

[00:17:56] So we shall figure it out.

[00:17:57] But Max Verstappen has…

[00:17:59] This is where McLaren's mini DRS wing would have come handy.

[00:18:03] Yes.

[00:18:04] But now, of course, they voluntarily changed it.

[00:18:07] So they won't have that mini DRS advantage.

[00:18:09] So that's going to be interesting to compare versus Baku as well.

[00:18:12] And if we have a Piastri versus Leclerc again, I think it's going to be pretty phenomenal, right?

[00:18:17] I don't care who's battling as long as there's a bloody good battle up front.

[00:18:21] Absolutely.

[00:18:22] Even if it involves Sergio Perez.

[00:18:23] Who, by the way, last year was quite good.

[00:18:26] But I'm going to keep on bringing the conversation back to Max Verstappen because I think he's already said a lot of stuff that a lot of us think.

[00:18:35] So why duplicate the talking when we can have Max explain to the world what he feels about this whole event and the spectacle and everything?

[00:18:43] Let me read out a few of his quotes.

[00:18:45] 99% show and 1% sport.

[00:18:48] When he was on the podium, he said, you just stand up there looking like a clown.

[00:18:53] On the Las Vegas GP, he then said that I think Monaco is like the Champions League.

[00:18:56] This is like the National League.

[00:18:58] And the other line, he said, was if I was a fan, I would tear the whole place down.

[00:19:04] Harsh words for a Grand Prix that is actually one.

[00:19:07] And I think it can all be summed up in one whole moment, Kunal.

[00:19:10] When his teammate Sergio Perez had Bruce Buffer screaming his name right on his face,

[00:19:16] expecting Sergio Perez to come up with a huffed and puffed response.

[00:19:19] But all Sergio did was just stand there, smile awkwardly and like, I don't know, what am I supposed to do?

[00:19:24] What do you feel about this whole spectacle?

[00:19:26] I feel Formula 1 is treating it a bit too negatively, in my opinion.

[00:19:30] Might as well embrace it right now that you're here.

[00:19:32] I mean, this is what most people want.

[00:19:35] They want Formula 1.

[00:19:37] When I say fans, I know Max, of course, is a great fan of the sport.

[00:19:42] That's why he's also driving and that's why he's a world champion.

[00:19:46] It all starts from being a fan, okay, for every single one of us.

[00:19:50] And then it depends how much you hone that passion of being a Formula 1 fan.

[00:19:54] And I think as a fan, I love the fact that Formula 1 is only becoming larger than life.

[00:19:59] I mean, I no longer walk into social conversations where like,

[00:20:03] hmm, is Michael Schumacher still racing?

[00:20:05] Like, dude, what are you talking?

[00:20:07] Now they're like, oh, what are you saying?

[00:20:08] Could Lando have done any different?

[00:20:10] You know, was Mercedes all over the place?

[00:20:13] And why is Lewis leaving them?

[00:20:15] You know, so Formula 1 entering social conversations,

[00:20:18] the way football has always been,

[00:20:20] or in India, the way cricket has always been.

[00:20:22] And I think that's to be, you know, that credit is to Liberty Media.

[00:20:26] And that's also credit for what they're pulling off with the likes of Las Vegas.

[00:20:32] I love the hype.

[00:20:34] I love the fact that even despite all the hype, there's still a great race that happens.

[00:20:39] And, you know, I understand Max doesn't like, you know, for him, it's different because this just means more marketing and media appearances,

[00:20:48] which every driver ends up hating after the third race of the season.

[00:20:52] So I stand with Max when he doesn't like it as a driver.

[00:20:56] I know I've been on the other side, but I haven't been a driver, of course,

[00:21:00] but I've worked with drivers on marketing and media appearances.

[00:21:03] And my goodness, it's a lot.

[00:21:05] Even for a midfield team like Force India, we had a lot of requests that we had to live up to.

[00:21:10] Okay, so I can't imagine what a three-time world champion now claiming his fourth title,

[00:21:15] hopefully in a four days time, you know, could end up feeling with all the new buzz and sponsors and money and media and fans that come into Formula One.

[00:21:26] Yeah, but again, there's a reason why you're rich.

[00:21:31] There's a reason why you get paid 40, 50 million dollars a year because people want to see a piece of you.

[00:21:37] I know your main job is to drive a race car.

[00:21:41] I know that's what you fell in love with the sport for.

[00:21:43] But that's what the sport is all about.

[00:21:45] You wouldn't be that rich.

[00:21:46] Hell, I think you wouldn't want to be that rich.

[00:21:49] You just want that piece of mind.

[00:21:50] But these are not problems you can buy your way out of, clearly.

[00:21:53] There's a reason why they pay you the big bucks.

[00:21:55] So you've got to pay for immediate time.

[00:21:57] Yeah, I'll tell you what, Samil.

[00:21:58] The best Las Vegas Grand Prix comeback could actually be that Max Verstappen ends up winning in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

[00:22:07] And he actually enters one of the casinos or one of those big party areas or whatever and throws a party.

[00:22:15] And then guess what?

[00:22:16] The joke's actually on him because he won in Las Vegas.

[00:22:18] And then he entered the Sin City, the entertainment capital of the world to go celebrate his race or not even race, world championship win, his fourth world title.

[00:22:30] Which I think he becomes a fifth driver to win four consecutive titles, if I remember correctly.

[00:22:38] Verstappen, Vettel, Schumacher, Hamilton and who else?

[00:22:46] Who else won?

[00:22:47] Fangio.

[00:22:47] Of course, nobody else.

[00:22:49] Yeah, that's insane.

[00:22:51] But that's Max.

[00:22:54] There's lots of other interesting talking points to talk about as well.

[00:22:57] Let's particularly get down to the fun numbers and the fun stats and the conditions you can expect in the race.

[00:23:05] Because in my opinion, that is going to be a big talking point more than anything else.

[00:23:10] This five race winners in the last five races.

[00:23:12] No driver has points finishes in all races and no driver has made it to Q3 in all the races.

[00:23:17] And by the way, we're missing F1 stats guru in this episode.

[00:23:21] If he was all along, we could have had more stats in this one.

[00:23:24] But that we'll reserve for the review where he will surely be back.

[00:23:27] But there's that.

[00:23:29] And you found the best win on them all, Kunal.

[00:23:30] Well, 90 points for Leclerc, Verstappen and Norris in the last five races.

[00:23:34] I think we're in for a really, really good one.

[00:23:37] And this is the hallmark of 2024.

[00:23:40] That three drivers from three different teams have scored the same number of points in the last five races.

[00:23:48] And I think it gives me goosebumps when I see this stat.

[00:23:53] Because when you, of course, you know, you talk all the other stats.

[00:23:57] Five different drivers have won the last five races.

[00:24:00] That's the unpredictability.

[00:24:01] I mean, last year we all went to a race thinking, yeah, Max is going to take the win and maybe even pole and the fastest lap.

[00:24:08] Sitting today on the Tuesday recording, we have no clue who actually is going to win this race weekend.

[00:24:15] And conditions into play, characteristics into play, upgrades into play, team orders into play, strategy into play.

[00:24:22] The margins are so fine.

[00:24:24] Just the way Lando Norris keeps pointing each time.

[00:24:27] It's this fine, those margins.

[00:24:29] And I love that.

[00:24:30] And I love that it's going to be cold in Las Vegas again, which is pretty interesting, Somville.

[00:24:37] I know you love the cold Somville, much like I do.

[00:24:38] I do.

[00:24:40] I do.

[00:24:40] I probably love it more than you do.

[00:24:44] You live in Oslo.

[00:24:44] It's cold all the time.

[00:24:45] You must hate the cold now.

[00:24:46] We just had snow this morning.

[00:24:47] So I'm loving it.

[00:24:50] You know, do you hate the cold?

[00:24:51] No, I forget.

[00:24:52] You've lived in Mumbai most of your life.

[00:24:54] So for the Norwegians, they might be bored.

[00:24:56] But I think you're still in the novelty phase yet, aren't you?

[00:24:58] Not yet.

[00:24:59] I mean, almost eight winters.

[00:25:01] I still love the cold.

[00:25:02] I mean, I love every weather.

[00:25:04] I love it when it's raining as well.

[00:25:06] But my weather preferences and choice is different.

[00:25:09] The cold will have an impact on tires.

[00:25:14] Pirelli are bringing the same softest three compounds as last year.

[00:25:18] Tire introduction is critical.

[00:25:20] Tire locking phases and braking phases are critical.

[00:25:24] And that's going to be key.

[00:25:25] It's one of those races where going longer in the race actually brings more benefit than trying to undercut someone.

[00:25:33] Just because the gentle introduction that you need to do with tires actually costs you more lap times after you've pitted.

[00:25:42] And it's seemingly going to be a two-stopper race.

[00:25:45] That's the quickest way around Las Vegas, they end up saying.

[00:25:49] And this year, actually, some of the sessions are earlier in the night rather than later.

[00:25:56] Because I remember last year, I think FP2 ended at some 4 a.m. local time or something.

[00:26:01] Yeah.

[00:26:01] But it's now all happening a couple of hours earlier on the Thursday night.

[00:26:05] Oh, you know why it did?

[00:26:07] Manholes.

[00:26:08] They are back.

[00:26:09] We are back talking about manholes.

[00:26:11] I thought this was a problem left behind in 2023.

[00:26:15] But, well, I'm sure there would.

[00:26:17] You know what?

[00:26:18] I just want to be a part of that planning commission meeting.

[00:26:20] Or rather just be a fly on the wall when Formula One was planning how to organize this race.

[00:26:25] Because the number one thing on the list mustn't have been VIP zones or hospitality suites.

[00:26:31] Or how do we make sure that the access points are great?

[00:26:33] How do we make sure that the residents are disturbed as little as possible?

[00:26:37] Number one agenda must have been,

[00:26:38] God damn, we've got to bolt down those manhole covers properly this time.

[00:26:42] Because last year, it was such a mess.

[00:26:44] Didn't they have to put the fans out?

[00:26:49] Make sure that the security people were paid extra because we technically crossed over to a different day.

[00:26:54] And as a result, also had to postpone FP2 by what?

[00:26:57] Two, three hours or something like that?

[00:26:59] Yeah, it was ridiculous.

[00:27:01] And they had a court case.

[00:27:02] Yeah.

[00:27:03] And Carlos Sainz had to, you know, he had a damaged car.

[00:27:07] And then Ferrari actually complained because of that damaged car.

[00:27:10] They lost P2 in the Constructors' Championship.

[00:27:13] Various, various things because they lost a significant amount of points.

[00:27:17] But, and, you know, Constructors' Championship also includes the crash box.

[00:27:24] And being within the cost cap and so on.

[00:27:27] But manhole covers very critical.

[00:27:29] You know, we may think street races have been around the corner for several years.

[00:27:32] In fact, Monaco has been a street race for the longest since.

[00:27:36] But manhole covers still be a challenge.

[00:27:38] And my mind also goes back to when MBS,

[00:27:42] Mohamed Ben Sulayam, the FIA president,

[00:27:44] the controversial president,

[00:27:46] actually tried to not get the circuit homologated.

[00:27:51] Because the homologation also happened on the Wednesday or the Tuesday just before the race.

[00:27:56] So very fine margins.

[00:27:57] We almost would have been in Las Vegas but not had a race.

[00:28:01] That's what it could have been like.

[00:28:03] But anyway, you know, good race from last year to remember.

[00:28:07] And I'm pretty sure Formula 1, being the promoter themselves,

[00:28:10] have learned their lessons.

[00:28:12] And they know what to actually take forward.

[00:28:15] Well, there have been a few changes though.

[00:28:18] While the FIA would have certainly done their part in terms of making sure

[00:28:22] that all the manhole covers are bolted down,

[00:28:24] I think it's a good time, Kunal,

[00:28:26] to talk about all the changes that have been happening behind the scenes.

[00:28:30] Okay, how do we tell the world?

[00:28:33] By the way, this is it.

[00:28:36] Meet your new race director, Rui Marquez.

[00:28:39] He's the race director for Formula 2.

[00:28:42] And he's also done Formula 3 before,

[00:28:43] along with multiple other global world championships.

[00:28:47] But because we're talking of new race director,

[00:28:50] inadvertently we're talking about the people who have left the role as well.

[00:28:54] Because Nils Wittig, is that the right way I'm pronouncing his name?

[00:28:59] The press release said that Nils Wittig, the former race director,

[00:29:02] has stepped down and has left his role as the race director.

[00:29:06] But later, we realized that he was actually fired.

[00:29:10] And this is an admission he made himself,

[00:29:12] that I was told to step down.

[00:29:13] I was released from my role.

[00:29:16] And I am baffled by this,

[00:29:18] because Eduardo Freitas, the man you see in the middle of your screen,

[00:29:20] was also let go of his role midway through the season.

[00:29:23] Same with Nils.

[00:29:25] And you don't let go of a race director three races

[00:29:28] before the end of a season.

[00:29:30] And your justification is surely not,

[00:29:32] oh, we're giving him a chance to learn something.

[00:29:34] Especially when the drivers and constructors' world championships

[00:29:37] are theoretically on the line.

[00:29:38] And you're going to a vastly complex circuit like Las Vegas,

[00:29:42] where the race director's challenge is just quadruple,

[00:29:45] if that's the right way to put it.

[00:29:46] I have said something fishy, Kunal.

[00:29:49] The FI had one race director in Charlie Whiting for decades,

[00:29:52] now three since 2019.

[00:29:55] We are building up a legacy.

[00:29:57] But I sense something's reactionary up there.

[00:30:02] Okay, I'll put the question to you this way.

[00:30:04] Do you think Brazil was responsible for Nils Whiting being

[00:30:07] ousted from that job?

[00:30:08] I didn't see any major obvious glaring issues,

[00:30:11] but that's what some theories say.

[00:30:13] No, I think, frankly, I don't think Nils going

[00:30:16] was anything to do with logic alone.

[00:30:18] I think it was to do with ego, to do with politics,

[00:30:21] to do with controversies and all of that.

[00:30:24] Just the way everyone thought he stepped down,

[00:30:27] but actually he was asked to go,

[00:30:29] and the FI actually didn't choose to convey that.

[00:30:32] Either way, I think we just have to live with it.

[00:30:36] I mean, unfortunately, Max's championship

[00:30:40] has seen a different race director come and go each time.

[00:30:45] It's the fourth race director in his fourth world championship,

[00:30:48] if you will, you know, almost call it that.

[00:30:51] And that is such as the challenge of Formula One,

[00:30:54] such as the challenge of the FIA,

[00:30:56] you know, where you got to play the politics the right way.

[00:30:58] And I would put it the other way.

[00:31:00] So Rui Marquez is actually a great example

[00:31:05] of the Formula One feeder series, right?

[00:31:08] In 2025, we are seeing so many drivers

[00:31:13] from Formula Two graduate to Formula One.

[00:31:15] Duhan, Behrman, Antonelli, Colapinto around maybe,

[00:31:20] Lawson as well, Bortoletto as well, right?

[00:31:24] In 2024, we saw a team principal in Oliver Oaks

[00:31:28] get promoted from Formula Two,

[00:31:30] high-tech Grand Prix to Formula One with Alpine.

[00:31:33] So guess what?

[00:31:34] Now we are seeing a race director

[00:31:36] being promoted from the Junior Series to Formula One.

[00:31:40] So lots of dream come true moments.

[00:31:42] So lots of different talent

[00:31:43] in the world of motorsport drivers,

[00:31:46] team principal, and now a race director as well.

[00:31:49] Yeah, lots of chopping and changing though.

[00:31:52] I think you said the right word, ego.

[00:31:57] I think that's the way we can describe

[00:31:59] the last presidential reign in the FIA.

[00:32:01] Honestly, it's always been about ego

[00:32:05] when you're the FIA president, come to think about it,

[00:32:06] because you're leading the global organization

[00:32:08] of regulating the sport.

[00:32:10] And regulation is control,

[00:32:13] and control is all about ego and power.

[00:32:15] But this has been a whole new spectacle altogether.

[00:32:18] But okay, what do we chat about next?

[00:32:20] There's lots of fun stuff.

[00:32:22] I think the calendar is a good talking point.

[00:32:24] Yeah.

[00:32:25] But yeah, I think that's a good one

[00:32:27] because we have seen a change

[00:32:29] and Monaco is now staying for longer.

[00:32:33] But...

[00:32:34] But?

[00:32:34] But no, I think Monaco staying for longer is great.

[00:32:39] No, but they haven't changed.

[00:32:41] Yeah, time of the race.

[00:32:43] Yeah, it's going to happen in June,

[00:32:45] which is great for sustainability

[00:32:46] because Canada happens earlier,

[00:32:48] which is also great.

[00:32:50] Although everyone first thought

[00:32:51] that taking Monaco away from that Sunday

[00:32:54] of May means the Indy 500 won't have a clash.

[00:32:57] But remember,

[00:32:59] Formula One as a business

[00:33:01] doesn't give a damn about the Indy 500.

[00:33:03] So now the Canadian Grand Prix

[00:33:04] will clash with the Indy 500 broadcast

[00:33:07] when it happens.

[00:33:08] But that's that.

[00:33:09] And I think the 2025 calendar

[00:33:11] finally confirmed to 24 rounds.

[00:33:14] We've got three triple headers

[00:33:16] and one strange looking break

[00:33:18] in the month of July,

[00:33:20] which is almost 21 days

[00:33:22] between Silverstone and Spa.

[00:33:26] And typically July is when you have

[00:33:28] five weekends and five rounds of racing.

[00:33:31] But they've spaced it out.

[00:33:32] And there's also the F1 Academy,

[00:33:35] which is racing everywhere

[00:33:36] where Formula 3 and Formula 2

[00:33:37] are not racing.

[00:33:40] But in general,

[00:33:41] a fairly decent calendar

[00:33:42] for 2025,

[00:33:44] I would say, Somal.

[00:33:44] Yeah.

[00:33:45] And the same triple header remains

[00:33:47] at the end.

[00:33:48] Last week is Qatar Abu Dhabi.

[00:33:49] I think we're going to get used to this

[00:33:50] for quite a good while.

[00:33:52] And it's a good way to end, right?

[00:33:54] Three different circuits

[00:33:55] in terms of their characteristics.

[00:33:56] Three night races in the desert,

[00:33:58] as Sundaram pointed out

[00:33:59] when we were recording another episode

[00:34:00] earlier this morning.

[00:34:01] There's lots of fun stuff

[00:34:03] happening over there.

[00:34:04] And we almost have two summer breaks,

[00:34:05] which can't be too bad.

[00:34:06] And we can't justify that gap

[00:34:09] between Canada and Baku anymore now.

[00:34:12] So I think we're in a good space.

[00:34:13] Yeah, I would say so.

[00:34:14] And even the, in fact,

[00:34:15] the upcoming triple header,

[00:34:16] all night races,

[00:34:19] again, becoming one of those norms as well.

[00:34:22] But I would say,

[00:34:25] Formula 1's never been in better sporting health.

[00:34:28] It's been in good business health

[00:34:29] ever since Liberty Media took over

[00:34:31] in the last few years.

[00:34:32] Budget gaps have come in and so on.

[00:34:34] But that's not really always

[00:34:36] translated to the business,

[00:34:38] sorry, the sport of Formula 1.

[00:34:40] But this year,

[00:34:41] I think Formula 1 is also

[00:34:42] in great sporting health.

[00:34:44] Like we keep saying

[00:34:45] almost every episode,

[00:34:46] do not let this season end.

[00:34:49] Yes.

[00:34:49] But it is going to end

[00:34:50] in three races time.

[00:34:51] So bring in your friends

[00:34:52] and your family

[00:34:53] and everyone you can

[00:34:54] to watch the race,

[00:34:56] to bring them,

[00:34:58] to bring them,

[00:34:59] to, you know,

[00:35:01] to enjoy

[00:35:02] this sort of sporting greatness

[00:35:04] that we are witnessing.

[00:35:05] Exactly.

[00:35:06] Exactly.

[00:35:08] And when we are,

[00:35:09] and it's not,

[00:35:10] it's just not sporting greatness

[00:35:12] at the top of the field,

[00:35:13] also at the bottom.

[00:35:14] And this for me is,

[00:35:16] I think,

[00:35:16] the best note to end

[00:35:17] this episode on.

[00:35:18] Because look at this,

[00:35:20] Kunal.

[00:35:20] P6,

[00:35:21] P7,

[00:35:21] P8,

[00:35:22] separated by five points,

[00:35:24] all three of them.

[00:35:25] There's

[00:35:26] $17 million

[00:35:27] reportedly up for grabs

[00:35:28] between these positions

[00:35:29] if you're 8th

[00:35:30] and,

[00:35:30] which is if you get up to P6.

[00:35:32] And Alpine now have a lead

[00:35:33] which they are not sure

[00:35:34] if they can hold on to.

[00:35:35] So it's,

[00:35:36] it's going to be a

[00:35:37] phenomenal ending

[00:35:38] of the season

[00:35:39] in many ways.

[00:35:40] And not just at the bottom,

[00:35:41] at the top,

[00:35:42] there's a realistic chance

[00:35:43] that Ferrari could become

[00:35:44] Constructors World Champions

[00:35:45] and McLaren

[00:35:46] may just end up

[00:35:47] losing their grip

[00:35:48] if things go south.

[00:35:49] I think there's a lot

[00:35:50] of fun stuff planned out.

[00:35:51] And for all the Mercedes fans there,

[00:35:53] Mercedes are confirmed

[00:35:54] fourth

[00:35:55] in the Constructors Championship

[00:35:57] already.

[00:35:57] So they've,

[00:35:58] they've sealed fourth

[00:35:59] after Sao Paulo,

[00:36:02] which I don't know

[00:36:03] if you're satisfied

[00:36:04] with that or not,

[00:36:05] but either way.

[00:36:06] And I think the same

[00:36:07] is with Alpine,

[00:36:08] although Alpine could still

[00:36:10] get Aston Martin

[00:36:11] if they get a double podium

[00:36:12] because Aston Martin

[00:36:13] scored

[00:36:15] zero points

[00:36:16] over the last triple header.

[00:36:17] And

[00:36:18] yeah,

[00:36:19] so

[00:36:19] let's see how that all goes.

[00:36:20] And I think even in the

[00:36:21] Drivers' Championship,

[00:36:23] Samuel,

[00:36:23] Valtteri Bottas

[00:36:24] not finishing last.

[00:36:25] That's what I'm cheering for.

[00:36:26] Oh yeah.

[00:36:27] Because

[00:36:28] that's,

[00:36:29] that would be an unfitting end

[00:36:30] to a very good career

[00:36:32] that he's had in Formula 1.

[00:36:33] And people will look at it

[00:36:34] and say,

[00:36:35] oh,

[00:36:35] he was once 23rd

[00:36:36] in a 20 driver championship.

[00:36:37] But that's not the truth,

[00:36:38] my friends.

[00:36:39] That is not the truth.

[00:36:40] We,

[00:36:41] in fact,

[00:36:41] we need a Valtteri Bottas

[00:36:43] celebration moment as well

[00:36:45] in front of his home fans

[00:36:47] on the car.

[00:36:48] I have to mention it

[00:36:48] at least once every episode.

[00:36:49] So here we are

[00:36:50] at the very end with it.

[00:36:51] Now we,

[00:36:52] we need that with Bottas too.

[00:36:53] But yeah,

[00:36:54] so many fun things

[00:36:55] in the last week

[00:36:56] as GP.

[00:36:57] Okay then,

[00:36:58] thank you for watching folks.

[00:36:59] We will be back

[00:37:00] with the review

[00:37:01] on Sunday

[00:37:02] because the race is on Saturday

[00:37:04] so we are going to record

[00:37:04] a day earlier

[00:37:05] and send in your questions

[00:37:07] generally.

[00:37:07] We want to know

[00:37:08] what you think about the race,

[00:37:09] what just happened,

[00:37:10] your thoughts on it all

[00:37:11] and we'll have F1 Stats

[00:37:12] go along with us

[00:37:13] as well for that episode.

[00:37:14] But on behalf of Kunal,

[00:37:15] it's myself,

[00:37:16] Samuel.

[00:37:16] This was our last

[00:37:17] Vegas GP preview

[00:37:18] and we'll see you on Sunday.

[00:37:20] Bye-bye.