We put a surprisingly large number of races in the bin and begin the countdown to the day talkback radio callers start complaining about traffic around Albert Park during the grand prix.
Featuring Luke Smith from Autosport. Max Verstappen wins the first races of his title-defending season after outmanoeuvring Charles Leclerc in an enthralling battle to the chequered flag.
BWT Alpine F1 Team reserve driver Oscar Piastri joins hosts Matt Clayton and Michael Lamonato to discuss the specifics of his new role, staying physically and mentally ready in case he’s called into action (04:55), how he’s satisfying his thirst for competition without racing and the lessons he’s already learned from the team’s race drivers, Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon.
Max Verstappen pinched victory from Charles Leclerc in a tense conclusion to the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Dutchman launched his bid for victory late, with Leclerc having controlled most of the race until the final 10 laps.
Leclerc inherited the lead from poleman and erstwhile leader Sergio Perez, who had been managing the pace until his first pit stop, on lap 15.
Continue reading on RACERSergio Perez has taken his first F1 pole position in an elongated qualifying session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after a major crash for Mick Schumacher delayed the completion of Q2.
Schumacher ran deep onto the curb at Turn 10 which unsettled his car and spun it backwards in a shower of sparks. It slammed sideways into the concrete barrier at the exit of Turn 11, ripping both right-hand wheels from the chassis, and was catapulted further down the track, eventually coming to rest at Turn 12.
The German was reported to be conscious and talking but had to be extricated from the car by the medical team, after which he was transported by ambulance to the medical center. Haas said afterwards that he appeared physically fine but would be airlifted to hospital for precautionary checks.
Continue reading on RACERCharles Leclerc completed a sweep of practice sessions at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, once again leading Max Verstappen.
The Monegasque improved his time at the last moment with blistering pace through the first sector before losing time to the Dutchman over the balance of the lap to edge the Red Bull Racing car by just 0.033s.
But Verstappen will feel comfortable knowing there was more pace in his car but for a mistake on his last flying lap that sent him clattering over the curbs at Turn 22.
Continue reading on RACERCharles Leclerc set the fastest time of second practice of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix… shortly before crashing out of the session.
Leclerc set the hour session’s quickest time despite encountering traffic in the final sector, which prevented him from setting even a personal best time at the split. Regardless, his lap of 1m30.074s went unbeaten through the hour, with Max Verstappen slipping into second and 0.140s off the pace.
But after switching to long-run simulation Leclerc made moderate contact with the barrier at the apex of Turn 4 and broke his left steering arm. He was able to crawl back to pit lane, but his session was over.
Continue reading on RACERharles Leclerc beat Max Verstappen to the top spot of the late-afternoon opening practice session at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Ferrari driver took top spot on the second push lap of a new set of soft tires as the session clock expired, pipping Verstappen by 0.116s — though the Dutchman used a set of hard tires for his best lap, distorting the gap.
The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is run at night, so track conditions during first and third practice in the afternoon are not representative of qualifying and the race. The track surface was also very dusty at the beginning of the session, particularly off line and in the pit lane, and drivers struggled with gusty conditions around the seaside circuit.
Continue reading on RACERWe introduce you to the untitled People’s Anorak and pitch to you a new six-part television series based on the life and times of Otmar Szafnauer. The Bahrain Grand Prix also happened.
Charles Leclerc claimed a commanding victory at the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix after preseason favorites Red Bull Racing had both cars retire from the race with engine problems.
Carlos Sainz followed the Monegasque home to complete Ferrari’s first 1-2 finish in more than two years, while Lewis Hamilton was a late beneficiary from Red Bull’s misfortune to claim an unlikely podium finish.
Poleman Leclerc started the race strongly, sweeping across the track at launch to cover the apex ahead of Max Verstappen, who started alongside him on the front row.
Continue reading on RACERCharles Leclerc has flipped the script on reigning champion Max Verstappen to snatch pole from the Dutchman at the death in qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Verstappen had been in a commanding position throughout the weekend, including the early stages of qualifying, but Ferrari had a little extra in hand for Q3, with Carlos Sainz leading Leclerc to a provisional front-row lockout.
Leclerc found time with his second lap, but Sainz couldn’t squeeze any more from a fresh set of tires, gifting his teammate top spot.
Continue reading on RACERMax Verstappen topped final practice for the Bahrain Grand Prix ahead of Charles Leclerc in a difficult-to-read session.
The Dutchman was just 0.096s quicker than Leclerc, though both drivers dropped time on their final soft-tire runs. Verstappen locked up at the first turn and opted to abandon the lap for a second attempt, while Leclerc said he was missing performance in the final sector.
Leclerc appeared to be closer to the limit in his Ferrari generally, having spun off the track at turn 11 as he tried to power over the curbs. The gravel trap saved him from a crash with the barriers by feet.
Continue reading on RACERhe first day of official timed action at the Bahrain Grand Prix is in the books, and Formula 1 is finally getting some answers about the real competitive picture for the season ahead.
The answers are good for Max Verstappen and in particular Ferrari. The reigning champion led the way at the end of the all-important second practice session, the only representative hour of running before qualifying, but there almost nothing to split him from the pursuing Ferrari drivers.
The answers were undoubtedly bad for Mercedes. The team must be sick of saying, ‘I told you so’ this week, but it really did tell us not to expect much from the car in Bahrain, and not much is exactly what it delivered.
Continue reading on FOX SPORTSMax Verstappen has lit up second practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix, putting Red Bull Racing at the top of the time sheet ahead of both Ferraris.
Verstappen, who was quickest at this track at the end of preseason testing, lowered the benchmark from earlier in the day to 1m31:936s. But he was pursued closely by Charles Leclerc, whose Ferrari was just 0.087s slower.
Leclerc’s best time was set on five-lap old tires and the fifth lap of a qualifying simulation run, suggesting that the C3 compound is holding its own in Bahrain this season. Indeed, the majority of the field completed competitive long-run simulations on the red-walled rubber in the second half of the session, with Verstappen’s race pace in particular looking strong.
Continue reading on RACERPierre Gasly topped the first official timed session of the 2022 Formula 1 season for AlphaTauri, leading Ferrari teammates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz in first practice at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The Frenchman used the soft tire with around 15 minutes remaining to edge the Ferrari driver to the top time by 0.364s.
“What a lap,” exclaimed his impressed engineer. “That was nice. We get into the mojo now.”
But Ferrari’s pace was more eye-catching, for neither Leclerc nor Sainz, who was less than half a tenth further back, used the soft-compound tire yet were both comfortably within half a second of the lead. Leclerc even had time to spin his car on the red-marked rubber that would carry him to his quickest time and still finish the session second overall.
Continue reading on RACERMichael Lamonato joined Matt Grubelich to preview the first stop on the F1 calendar in Bahrain.
The hot and humid Indonesian Grand Prix will test riders and bikes to their limits in just the second round of the MotoGP season, but Jack Miller has a secret weapon inside his leathers.
He’s from Townsville.
The forecast for Mandalika all weekend is for 30 degrees and around 80 per cent humidity, and there’s a permanent risk of thunderstorms throughout. But that’s no big deal for Queenslander Miller.
Continue reading on FOX SPORTS