Hello, and welcome to Pit Talk, a Fox Sports and Speed Cafe Formula one podcast. On today's episode, Max Verstappen wins his fourth consecutive World championship after finishing fifth behind a dominant George Russell led Mercedes one two in Las Vegas, and General Motors is set to join the grid in twenty twenty six with its Cadillac brand. Just don't call it ANDRETTI. My name's Michael Lomonato, motorsport writer for Fox Sports Australia. It's great to have your company and the company of my co host from Speed Cafe. He likes to think of himself as the Cadillac of Australian motorsport journalists.

Hello, and welcome to Pit Talk, a Fox Sports and Speed Cafe Formula one podcast. On today's episode, Max Verstappen wins his fourth consecutive World championship after finishing fifth behind a dominant George Russell led Mercedes one two in Las Vegas, and General Motors is set to join the grid in twenty twenty six with its Cadillac brand. Just don't call it ANDRETTI. My name's Michael Lomonato, motorsport writer for Fox Sports Australia. It's great to have your company and the company of my co host from Speed Cafe. He likes to think of himself as the Cadillac of Australian motorsport journalists.

It's not gosh, I don't know quite what that means, but we'll go it. Does that make me like the luxury varieties, isn't it? Yes?

It's not gosh, I don't know quite what that means, but we'll go it. Does that make me like the luxury varieties, isn't it? Yes?

I feel like. I mean, it only really applies in America because I don't think Cadillacs are sold anywhere else. But it's sort of like it's the answer to the Rolls Royce, isn't it if you're a Cadillaca whatever, you know, it's a thing.

I feel like. I mean, it only really applies in America because I don't think Cadillacs are sold anywhere else. But it's sort of like it's the answer to the Rolls Royce, isn't it if you're a Cadillaca whatever, you know, it's a thing.

Yes, I like that. Yes, I'm the I'm the Cadillac in Australian motorsport journalism just a bit in Australia.

Yes, I like that. Yes, I'm the I'm the Cadillac in Australian motorsport journalism just a bit in Australia.

Yeah, leather, interior, wood paneling probably, Yeah, you know, one of those weird gearboxes that are on the side of the steering column. They've understood that that's all about.

Yeah, leather, interior, wood paneling probably, Yeah, you know, one of those weird gearboxes that are on the side of the steering column. They've understood that that's all about.

Because I don't drive it that they drive it. Could you drive a stick, yes, versus a well what else do you drive?

Because I don't drive it that they drive it. Could you drive a stick, yes, versus a well what else do you drive?

Hopefully that's an innovation they bring to Formula One in two twenty six, so we will talk about that a little bit later on. Let's catch you up though, before we get into the Las Vegas Grand Prix title winning antiques and of course the big news about the expansion of the grid in twenty twenty six. To the five top news stories you might have missed in the last week. And let's start with a story close to home. It's Jack Dowan who's confirmed the race number he'll be competing with next year. He's adopting Kimmy reichen AND's former number of seven, though that wasn't his first choice.

Hopefully that's an innovation they bring to Formula One in two twenty six, so we will talk about that a little bit later on. Let's catch you up though, before we get into the Las Vegas Grand Prix title winning antiques and of course the big news about the expansion of the grid in twenty twenty six. To the five top news stories you might have missed in the last week. And let's start with a story close to home. It's Jack Dowan who's confirmed the race number he'll be competing with next year. He's adopting Kimmy reichen AND's former number of seven, though that wasn't his first choice.

No, he wanted number twelve, didn't he, And that was being taken by Kimmy Antonelli. You've got the paperwork in first sofa rules, first come, best dressed. But I love that doing has gone. That kim me such an idol of mine. I want to sort of represent. So ye, I'm going to be number seven. KIMMI chose seven because well, that's the number that you already had.

No, he wanted number twelve, didn't he, And that was being taken by Kimmy Antonelli. You've got the paperwork in first sofa rules, first come, best dressed. But I love that doing has gone. That kim me such an idol of mine. I want to sort of represent. So ye, I'm going to be number seven. KIMMI chose seven because well, that's the number that you already had.

So without I forgot about that. That's very good. Let's go home at a Red Bull now. Well, Helmut Marco, the Red Bull Motorsport advisor, has confirmed there'll be a meeting of F one shareholders at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to finalize the brand's four car driver lineup. And this is of course with Sergio Peer is still very much in the spotlight after another disappointing qualifying and Grand Prix.

So without I forgot about that. That's very good. Let's go home at a Red Bull now. Well, Helmut Marco, the Red Bull Motorsport advisor, has confirmed there'll be a meeting of F one shareholders at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to finalize the brand's four car driver lineup. And this is of course with Sergio Peer is still very much in the spotlight after another disappointing qualifying and Grand Prix.

Yeah, it's interesting because I don't think frankcolor Pinto did himself any favors during qualifying in Vegas either, so I think his stocks dropped a little bit. Yeah, it's funny that there's now where was where there was once really easy solution. There's not so many easy solutions there, so to be curious to see exactly what happens at Milton Keynes in the weeks around Christmas.

Yeah, it's interesting because I don't think frankcolor Pinto did himself any favors during qualifying in Vegas either, so I think his stocks dropped a little bit. Yeah, it's funny that there's now where was where there was once really easy solution. There's not so many easy solutions there, so to be curious to see exactly what happens at Milton Keynes in the weeks around Christmas.

Let's go over to Mercedes now and picking up off something we mentioned last week, comments from Toto Wolf in an official Mercedes Behind the Scenes book linking Lewis Hamilton's short term contract and eventual departure to him nearing the end of his shelf life. Toto Wolf's insisted those comments were taken out of context, and he since clarified that he made everyone has a shelf life, including himself, and that both him and Hamilton have since spoken and cleared the air.

Let's go over to Mercedes now and picking up off something we mentioned last week, comments from Toto Wolf in an official Mercedes Behind the Scenes book linking Lewis Hamilton's short term contract and eventual departure to him nearing the end of his shelf life. Toto Wolf's insisted those comments were taken out of context, and he since clarified that he made everyone has a shelf life, including himself, and that both him and Hamilton have since spoken and cleared the air.

Yeah, I mean, he's not wrong. Everyone does have a shelf life, of course, but when you put it in black and white like that, then it's printed in a effectively an authorized book, Mercedes authorized book, then it just stings a little bit. So yeah, he sort of moved to clarify that when he tried to clarify it on Radio four during the week as well, and again over the weekend when he was asked about it. So ultimately I went, Lewis has got two more races with with Mercedes, and then he changes color. He'll go off wearing red, and Toto's got the opportunity to build the next Lewest, so to speak. So it's all sort of worked out the way he almost saw it.

Yeah, I mean, he's not wrong. Everyone does have a shelf life, of course, but when you put it in black and white like that, then it's printed in a effectively an authorized book, Mercedes authorized book, then it just stings a little bit. So yeah, he sort of moved to clarify that when he tried to clarify it on Radio four during the week as well, and again over the weekend when he was asked about it. So ultimately I went, Lewis has got two more races with with Mercedes, and then he changes color. He'll go off wearing red, and Toto's got the opportunity to build the next Lewest, so to speak. So it's all sort of worked out the way he almost saw it.

Sticking with Lewis Hamilton as well. Now it's been confirmed that he won't be getting his first taste of a Ferrari car until next year, with Mercedes absolutely holding on to him through the end of December for what it says will be an enormous parade of postseason celebrations of one of the most successful single stints with the team in Formula One history. That will deny him, of course, appearance in the postseason Test with Ferrari. Not so though, for Science, which Ferrari is happily allowed to race for Williams in that postseason test.

Sticking with Lewis Hamilton as well. Now it's been confirmed that he won't be getting his first taste of a Ferrari car until next year, with Mercedes absolutely holding on to him through the end of December for what it says will be an enormous parade of postseason celebrations of one of the most successful single stints with the team in Formula One history. That will deny him, of course, appearance in the postseason Test with Ferrari. Not so though, for Science, which Ferrari is happily allowed to race for Williams in that postseason test.

Yeah, slightly different arrangement science from Ferrari to Williams as opposed to Hamilton to Ferrari. But it makes sense as well. If you get a blockbuster signing like Hamilton, you want to make a big deal of it. You don't want to put him in white overalls and a nondescript Tolmot and a sponsorer's car like I did with Aston Martin did with Fernando Alonzo a year or two back. You want to make a big song and dance about it. You'll want you want that PI hit. So that's one reason even if you could get him not to test him. But there was not even any attempt to buy Ferrari to go and get him because they just knew it wasn't really going to be an option. And Hamilton equally, you know, he briefly had a conversation with Toto Wolf and he's going to stop. Really an option, isn't That's not really an option. So everyone's sort of on the same page with it. It's not it's not that he's been denied, it's just they're a bigger commercial interests out there and it didn't serve anyone's best interest to make a move. What three weeks earlier then he'd otherwise be able to jump in a Ferrari.

Yeah, slightly different arrangement science from Ferrari to Williams as opposed to Hamilton to Ferrari. But it makes sense as well. If you get a blockbuster signing like Hamilton, you want to make a big deal of it. You don't want to put him in white overalls and a nondescript Tolmot and a sponsorer's car like I did with Aston Martin did with Fernando Alonzo a year or two back. You want to make a big song and dance about it. You'll want you want that PI hit. So that's one reason even if you could get him not to test him. But there was not even any attempt to buy Ferrari to go and get him because they just knew it wasn't really going to be an option. And Hamilton equally, you know, he briefly had a conversation with Toto Wolf and he's going to stop. Really an option, isn't That's not really an option. So everyone's sort of on the same page with it. It's not it's not that he's been denied, it's just they're a bigger commercial interests out there and it didn't serve anyone's best interest to make a move. What three weeks earlier then he'd otherwise be able to jump in a Ferrari.

Yes, and can you imagine the hype Ferrari will be able to build that first private test in an old cars. I think they've already foreshadowed. It's always great. I always liked seeing, you know, the Ferrari test track when people gather around the fences, not in the track because they're always closed, but there's always a way to see the car going around so well.

Yes, and can you imagine the hype Ferrari will be able to build that first private test in an old cars. I think they've already foreshadowed. It's always great. I always liked seeing, you know, the Ferrari test track when people gather around the fences, not in the track because they're always closed, but there's always a way to see the car going around so well.

That there's this bridge that runs over one end and you can stop there jump a fence, and I've never done it obviously because you can't stop. You can't there, but yeah, you can see actually quite a fair bit of the Actually, you know, the best place to watch the Ferrari test track. I can't remember all bates name now, but so many restaurant has his office. Whoever's now in his office, it looks out over over two thirds of the circuits. Makes magnificent view. That's where you want to go. And I've got no idea how you yourself in there, but best seat in the house.

That there's this bridge that runs over one end and you can stop there jump a fence, and I've never done it obviously because you can't stop. You can't there, but yeah, you can see actually quite a fair bit of the Actually, you know, the best place to watch the Ferrari test track. I can't remember all bates name now, but so many restaurant has his office. Whoever's now in his office, it looks out over over two thirds of the circuits. Makes magnificent view. That's where you want to go. And I've got no idea how you yourself in there, but best seat in the house.

Become a technical director for obvious you get there, all right, that's all you need if you just want to watch some promotional.

Become a technical director for obvious you get there, all right, that's all you need if you just want to watch some promotional.

Light that over. By early January you'll.

Light that over. By early January you'll.

Be sorted and coming back close to the home. Former if One driver Tim Schenkin and former race Supercars race director as well. We'll depart the role of Clark of the Course for the Australian Grand Prix. It's a role he's held since the eighties, that's spanning back to the Adelaide edition of the Grand Prix. Very long tenured career, essentially being one of the senior officials of Australia's biggest motorrate.

Be sorted and coming back close to the home. Former if One driver Tim Schenkin and former race Supercars race director as well. We'll depart the role of Clark of the Course for the Australian Grand Prix. It's a role he's held since the eighties, that's spanning back to the Adelaide edition of the Grand Prix. Very long tenured career, essentially being one of the senior officials of Australia's biggest motorrate.

Yeah, he's held all sorts of positions with the FAA as like a circuit inspector and Safety Commission member and all sorts of things. Doesn't hold any of those commission memberships now. But yeah, he was deputy race director of the Australian Grand Prix in that eighty five and eighty six, took the sorry deputy clerk of course in eighty five and eighty six, became clerk of course from eighty seven and held that threw up until this year and then next year he will no longer hold that role. The word I'm hearing is it will be David Murray, which makes sense because he's been the clerk of course in aby Daby for the last couple of years, so he's Australian. He's already doing the job in other regions.

Yeah, he's held all sorts of positions with the FAA as like a circuit inspector and Safety Commission member and all sorts of things. Doesn't hold any of those commission memberships now. But yeah, he was deputy race director of the Australian Grand Prix in that eighty five and eighty six, took the sorry deputy clerk of course in eighty five and eighty six, became clerk of course from eighty seven and held that threw up until this year and then next year he will no longer hold that role. The word I'm hearing is it will be David Murray, which makes sense because he's been the clerk of course in aby Daby for the last couple of years, so he's Australian. He's already doing the job in other regions.

A little indicator there of the different states where from our pronunciation of clerk and clerk isn't it?

A little indicator there of the different states where from our pronunciation of clerk and clerk isn't it?

Is it lego lego? This is this is the big one.

Is it lego lego? This is this is the big one.

I didn't even know that was up for dispute because it's not. It's the story we left out is of course the Formula one Lego sponsorship. You would have seen it on the Giants for you, you're very excited about it.

I didn't even know that was up for dispute because it's not. It's the story we left out is of course the Formula one Lego sponsorship. You would have seen it on the Giants for you, you're very excited about it.

Man I'm going to need a bigg bookshel oh I have my hot wheelsion one lego and the other.

Man I'm going to need a bigg bookshel oh I have my hot wheelsion one lego and the other.

Let's move on there to the Las Vegas Grand Prix, and before we talk about, of course, the race itself, which does have some pretty interesting permutations with the Constructors Championship and maybe even the form guide going into the last two rounds of the season. The big story, of course, to come out of Formula one's premier event is that Max for Staffan is a four time world champions the championship we've seen coming for quite a while now, but expt as good relief. In fact, that was his word, relief to get it finally sealed and done. It took him only fifth place on the road despite running as high as second at one point in the race. All you needed to do was finish ahead of Lando Norris and with McLaren have. I think it's least competitive round in months in the start of the year. Really was as good as done by the time we got to the end of the Grand Prix. It's it's sort of interesting that I was thinking about this today because he's won four in a row. It just feels like the status quo in some respects, and I think it's important to recognize that four world titles is not only a big number of world titles, actually is extremely rare. He's now one of only six who have won that or more. He is in the elite of the elite Formula One drivers club.

Let's move on there to the Las Vegas Grand Prix, and before we talk about, of course, the race itself, which does have some pretty interesting permutations with the Constructors Championship and maybe even the form guide going into the last two rounds of the season. The big story, of course, to come out of Formula one's premier event is that Max for Staffan is a four time world champions the championship we've seen coming for quite a while now, but expt as good relief. In fact, that was his word, relief to get it finally sealed and done. It took him only fifth place on the road despite running as high as second at one point in the race. All you needed to do was finish ahead of Lando Norris and with McLaren have. I think it's least competitive round in months in the start of the year. Really was as good as done by the time we got to the end of the Grand Prix. It's it's sort of interesting that I was thinking about this today because he's won four in a row. It just feels like the status quo in some respects, and I think it's important to recognize that four world titles is not only a big number of world titles, actually is extremely rare. He's now one of only six who have won that or more. He is in the elite of the elite Formula One drivers club.

Yeah, he now surpasses in center Jackie Stewart, Nikki Lauder. All these three time world champions and three time champions has nothing to seize that at all. Winning a Grand Prix full stop is a hard enough feat. Tag on the podium is if you. But what's what's great is that this championship has been different to his previous three. Twenty one obviously very combative all the way through, had to get the elbows out and muscle is way by at points with Hamilton, and that was great. Twenty two he came back from a sluggish start, reeled in Leclair and then ran away with it, sort of from a French Grand Prix on which really wasn't it last year obviously it was the Red Bull World Championship and everyone else just competed. And then this year, yeah, he had that really strong start, but he'd been playing a reguard action pretty much since what the Spanish or austring Or or pri He said post race that for sort of seventy percent of the season he's not had the fastest car. It's just he's made the most of the opportunities he's had and then he's lucky that others haven't done that. And if you look at it, he's definitely got a point because McLaren should have had a one two in Silverston. There's a couple of other instances where they have had better results than what they did, probably Austria where they retired, Lando as well, where Max stayed on track and got a couple of points. It's those sorts of things that in the moment don't look that significant, but the cumulative effect can be astronomical. And it's doing that. It's that consistency, just doing what you have to do, making sure you maximize. It's that word. It's maximized. I always talking about maximizingal happen. It's maximizing the opportunity. If that opportunity can only bring you fifth, which is what it could do on Saturday night for Max, you take fifth. So yeah, I think of the four World Championships that he's one, I think this is probably the most mature, it's the most composed, just not the most impressive, because nothing is going to top last year, but it just shows another side to Maxims. There's still flashes of the old Max but it just showed that he's now more mature, more rounded, more complete racing driver than what we saw in twenty one and twenty two.

Yeah, he now surpasses in center Jackie Stewart, Nikki Lauder. All these three time world champions and three time champions has nothing to seize that at all. Winning a Grand Prix full stop is a hard enough feat. Tag on the podium is if you. But what's what's great is that this championship has been different to his previous three. Twenty one obviously very combative all the way through, had to get the elbows out and muscle is way by at points with Hamilton, and that was great. Twenty two he came back from a sluggish start, reeled in Leclair and then ran away with it, sort of from a French Grand Prix on which really wasn't it last year obviously it was the Red Bull World Championship and everyone else just competed. And then this year, yeah, he had that really strong start, but he'd been playing a reguard action pretty much since what the Spanish or austring Or or pri He said post race that for sort of seventy percent of the season he's not had the fastest car. It's just he's made the most of the opportunities he's had and then he's lucky that others haven't done that. And if you look at it, he's definitely got a point because McLaren should have had a one two in Silverston. There's a couple of other instances where they have had better results than what they did, probably Austria where they retired, Lando as well, where Max stayed on track and got a couple of points. It's those sorts of things that in the moment don't look that significant, but the cumulative effect can be astronomical. And it's doing that. It's that consistency, just doing what you have to do, making sure you maximize. It's that word. It's maximized. I always talking about maximizingal happen. It's maximizing the opportunity. If that opportunity can only bring you fifth, which is what it could do on Saturday night for Max, you take fifth. So yeah, I think of the four World Championships that he's one, I think this is probably the most mature, it's the most composed, just not the most impressive, because nothing is going to top last year, but it just shows another side to Maxims. There's still flashes of the old Max but it just showed that he's now more mature, more rounded, more complete racing driver than what we saw in twenty one and twenty two.

It was interesting to hear him sort of try to compare titled, because of course nothing lives up to the first, because your first world championship win, the emotions of that unmatchabum. Obviously he won that in not just the controversial circumstances but in a real bare knuckle fight with Lewis Hamilton. Over the course of the season. There's not literally nothing between them going into that last race, a really harder earned championship victory. The second one, for me was always sort of like one off a wave of Red Bull's momentum in the new title ear and I say that not to minimize his efforts there, but sort of just was the championship the defense that felt inevitable as Ferrari's challenge collapsed last year, though I thought it was really interesting to hear him continue to say and as he is entitled to that. It remains an underratedly difficult title win, and I think it is worth remembering how hard it is to be so close to perfect, for Red Bull to win all races but one, for him to win all but two of those races as well to set the records that he did. Obviously, we have more Grand Prix now to win to accumulate those big numbers, but just that the mental and physical toll of being so close to perfect shouldn't be underestimated. But I do think you're right, and it was interesting to hear he's an engineer. Jean Pierre Lambias said GP talk afterwards about there is this different element of him now not needing to win everything. I think that was almost his exact words. He doesn't feel like he needs to go out in every race and throw his car around and really get his shoulders out to win every Grand Prix. He's happy to play the numbers game more. I think this is really the first time we've seen that, and as you mentioned, we do still sometimes see the old I have to win Max for Stafford, particularly in some of those battles at Lando Norris. I think he's one also, we talked about at the time He's one sort of almost joker race of the year was the Hungarian Grand Prix where he just kind of got stoppy. He wasn't happy, But I also think that was kind of the race he had to have because afterwards, I think he accepted that the car couldn't not that it could win Anymorks. It has obviously won since, but it wasn't the car from the start of the year, and he went into that mode subsequent, which was that I've got to win this championship by playing this defensive game. Just worth pointing out. You're talking about the Spanish Grand Prix and that was the last race he won before Brazil. So before that ten race victory drought his lead after the Spanish Grand Prix was sixty nine points. His lead now is sixty three points. So over the last twelve races he's lost six points to Lando Norris. And that's the period really in which Ian McLaren was arguably the faster as faster car. A little bit before that, dating back obviously to the Miami Grand Prix we remember, but in that period of time, obviously McLaren was ahead of Red Bull Racing pretty much in every race I think I would say every race in that period, and the margin was six points. And that's not just as tempting as it's going to be in the wash up just about McLaren and Lando Norris missing chances that that's undoubtedly part of the story. It is the fact that Max mistappened to use your word maximized, to use his name maxed. He maxed his opportunities to play that defensive game, and I think that is something that is the way he's not won a championship before, and I think that is to obviously, to his credit is the world champion, but it's another stringing his bow that'll be fascinating to see deployed overcoming years, particularly next to you, when we expect the title to be more competitive.

It was interesting to hear him sort of try to compare titled, because of course nothing lives up to the first, because your first world championship win, the emotions of that unmatchabum. Obviously he won that in not just the controversial circumstances but in a real bare knuckle fight with Lewis Hamilton. Over the course of the season. There's not literally nothing between them going into that last race, a really harder earned championship victory. The second one, for me was always sort of like one off a wave of Red Bull's momentum in the new title ear and I say that not to minimize his efforts there, but sort of just was the championship the defense that felt inevitable as Ferrari's challenge collapsed last year, though I thought it was really interesting to hear him continue to say and as he is entitled to that. It remains an underratedly difficult title win, and I think it is worth remembering how hard it is to be so close to perfect, for Red Bull to win all races but one, for him to win all but two of those races as well to set the records that he did. Obviously, we have more Grand Prix now to win to accumulate those big numbers, but just that the mental and physical toll of being so close to perfect shouldn't be underestimated. But I do think you're right, and it was interesting to hear he's an engineer. Jean Pierre Lambias said GP talk afterwards about there is this different element of him now not needing to win everything. I think that was almost his exact words. He doesn't feel like he needs to go out in every race and throw his car around and really get his shoulders out to win every Grand Prix. He's happy to play the numbers game more. I think this is really the first time we've seen that, and as you mentioned, we do still sometimes see the old I have to win Max for Stafford, particularly in some of those battles at Lando Norris. I think he's one also, we talked about at the time He's one sort of almost joker race of the year was the Hungarian Grand Prix where he just kind of got stoppy. He wasn't happy, But I also think that was kind of the race he had to have because afterwards, I think he accepted that the car couldn't not that it could win Anymorks. It has obviously won since, but it wasn't the car from the start of the year, and he went into that mode subsequent, which was that I've got to win this championship by playing this defensive game. Just worth pointing out. You're talking about the Spanish Grand Prix and that was the last race he won before Brazil. So before that ten race victory drought his lead after the Spanish Grand Prix was sixty nine points. His lead now is sixty three points. So over the last twelve races he's lost six points to Lando Norris. And that's the period really in which Ian McLaren was arguably the faster as faster car. A little bit before that, dating back obviously to the Miami Grand Prix we remember, but in that period of time, obviously McLaren was ahead of Red Bull Racing pretty much in every race I think I would say every race in that period, and the margin was six points. And that's not just as tempting as it's going to be in the wash up just about McLaren and Lando Norris missing chances that that's undoubtedly part of the story. It is the fact that Max mistappened to use your word maximized, to use his name maxed. He maxed his opportunities to play that defensive game, and I think that is something that is the way he's not won a championship before, and I think that is to obviously, to his credit is the world champion, but it's another stringing his bow that'll be fascinating to see deployed overcoming years, particularly next to you, when we expect the title to be more competitive.

Yeah, I'm now really excited about next year because we do have three or four teams that genuinely seem to have a chance mersaities that still sort of comes and goes. I'm sure we'll talk about them in a little bit, but yeah, it's this year has been a little bit prost esque from Max and Prost. For those that aren't as old and nerdy as I am, alarmed, Prost used to basically work out what he needed to do and do that, do no more? Well, why risk the car? Why go out and try and set the fastest lapping qualifying when fourth was good enough? Why go out there and try and risk passing Center or Mansel or whoever it might be to get third when the points are fourth was good enough. It do that routinely through his career. I think I think he damaged one chassis during his entire time with McLaren. I can't think of too many cars he damaged, but that was the sign of a really mature, composed driver, and that there's a reason he was called the professor. And I just got a little hint of that, particularly the back half, not Mexico. Put that one aside, because that was that was more of the old brash Max. But okay, that one weekend out of it, and I think you've got a really different looking Max with Staffan. And that's a frightening thought because if he's as fast as he was, as canny on track as he's always been, and now this composed, this mature, the sure himself, that's a hell of a combination.

Yeah, I'm now really excited about next year because we do have three or four teams that genuinely seem to have a chance mersaities that still sort of comes and goes. I'm sure we'll talk about them in a little bit, but yeah, it's this year has been a little bit prost esque from Max and Prost. For those that aren't as old and nerdy as I am, alarmed, Prost used to basically work out what he needed to do and do that, do no more? Well, why risk the car? Why go out and try and set the fastest lapping qualifying when fourth was good enough? Why go out there and try and risk passing Center or Mansel or whoever it might be to get third when the points are fourth was good enough. It do that routinely through his career. I think I think he damaged one chassis during his entire time with McLaren. I can't think of too many cars he damaged, but that was the sign of a really mature, composed driver, and that there's a reason he was called the professor. And I just got a little hint of that, particularly the back half, not Mexico. Put that one aside, because that was that was more of the old brash Max. But okay, that one weekend out of it, and I think you've got a really different looking Max with Staffan. And that's a frightening thought because if he's as fast as he was, as canny on track as he's always been, and now this composed, this mature, the sure himself, that's a hell of a combination.

The only thing left really now and there is there is no gap in Max with Staffan's legacy, this no one becomes a full time world champion and leaders going, oh, but what if you know this se that good? Like obviously, we can rank world champions in ways that aren't simply the number of titles they won. People will have opinions, for example about Sebastian Vettle being a four time world champion I had instead of having three. You may rank them in a different way, and that's perfectly fine, and you may r bax this happen a different way. I don't think he's anything we need to see from him to know how good he is. I think he's obviously in that generational talent category. I think the last thing we need to see now, and this goes back to the point about twenty twenty five, is how does he manage potentially a multiple car title fight, because we've seen him head to head with Lewis Hamilton, but there's not a not an asterisk come back to me. I'm not talking about AVDB again, just that it was his first title. He's clearly much more mature now. I've no doubt he would approach that season a different way now. But then there was also the angst of that bit of feud as it became by the end of the year, particularly in the between the teams, almost more between the teams and the drivers themselves. That really colors how that title panned out, like it was such a rivalry, almost more than that a pure on track battle, if you like, the the subc two to one, because he had a performance advantage and need to execute that. But that's how they were this year's defensive. As we said, next year, if it's a multiple car battle, that's going to be a fascinating test of all the qualities we know about him Because we haven't seen him in that situation yet. I think we're still unlikely next year, regardless of his teammate, to see how he goes up against a competitive teammate. I guess that will be another element that we haven't seen yet. But then again, not every World champion champion has to deal with that. In fact, often we find that the drivers who really dominate don't have particularly competitive teammates. And that's not necessarily a slide on the teammates as much as it is a pump up of how good these drivers are. But that's going to be that fascinating final chapter, particularly because inevitably, with the exception of I suppose if Lewis Hamilton ends up in that mix, which he may well, he obviously won't have gone head to head over the course of a season against any of these guys because in his competitive era, none of them have been competitive.

The only thing left really now and there is there is no gap in Max with Staffan's legacy, this no one becomes a full time world champion and leaders going, oh, but what if you know this se that good? Like obviously, we can rank world champions in ways that aren't simply the number of titles they won. People will have opinions, for example about Sebastian Vettle being a four time world champion I had instead of having three. You may rank them in a different way, and that's perfectly fine, and you may r bax this happen a different way. I don't think he's anything we need to see from him to know how good he is. I think he's obviously in that generational talent category. I think the last thing we need to see now, and this goes back to the point about twenty twenty five, is how does he manage potentially a multiple car title fight, because we've seen him head to head with Lewis Hamilton, but there's not a not an asterisk come back to me. I'm not talking about AVDB again, just that it was his first title. He's clearly much more mature now. I've no doubt he would approach that season a different way now. But then there was also the angst of that bit of feud as it became by the end of the year, particularly in the between the teams, almost more between the teams and the drivers themselves. That really colors how that title panned out, like it was such a rivalry, almost more than that a pure on track battle, if you like, the the subc two to one, because he had a performance advantage and need to execute that. But that's how they were this year's defensive. As we said, next year, if it's a multiple car battle, that's going to be a fascinating test of all the qualities we know about him Because we haven't seen him in that situation yet. I think we're still unlikely next year, regardless of his teammate, to see how he goes up against a competitive teammate. I guess that will be another element that we haven't seen yet. But then again, not every World champion champion has to deal with that. In fact, often we find that the drivers who really dominate don't have particularly competitive teammates. And that's not necessarily a slide on the teammates as much as it is a pump up of how good these drivers are. But that's going to be that fascinating final chapter, particularly because inevitably, with the exception of I suppose if Lewis Hamilton ends up in that mix, which he may well, he obviously won't have gone head to head over the course of a season against any of these guys because in his competitive era, none of them have been competitive.

Yeah, it's going to be really interesting. It'll give you an idea of who the most complete driver is, who can drive around the inherent weaknesses and strengths of their caro to flatten that curve out and produce week in week out the most consistent performances. Because that's what next year is going to be. It's it's not going to be winning on your good days, it'll be minimizing your losses on the bad days.

Yeah, it's going to be really interesting. It'll give you an idea of who the most complete driver is, who can drive around the inherent weaknesses and strengths of their caro to flatten that curve out and produce week in week out the most consistent performances. Because that's what next year is going to be. It's it's not going to be winning on your good days, it'll be minimizing your losses on the bad days.

All Right, let's change tack now Matt to the Las Vegas Grand Prix broadly, because while Max with Staffan obviously was the story for winning the title, would have on any other weekend been the biggest story as well. McLaren Mercedes, where did that come from? A one two finish, not just a one two finish, but a dominant one to finish. George Russell once he' fended off Carlos char Leclair early in the race, and that battle last there only a couple of laps before the Ferrari's tires absolutely went off. The cliff was totally unchallenged. Could have done this race without stopping twice, really only stopped twice because everyone else did and wanted to cover off the possibility. Lewis Hamilton rose from tenth on the grid to finish second and was only five seconds behind the last few laps before that gap grew slightly larger after that showed the pace he had to be able to cut through the field comfortably. The team's most convincing weekend of the year, and this is after probably his least convincing weekend of the year in zau Palla. Weekend so bad that Louis Hamilton suggested he didn't want to I didn't want to come back to finish the season. That's how bad it was. I mean, where did this come from? We talk about the cold conditions, the smooth track, but at several points this weekend I certainly got the sense that even the team wasn't totally convinced what was going on.

All Right, let's change tack now Matt to the Las Vegas Grand Prix broadly, because while Max with Staffan obviously was the story for winning the title, would have on any other weekend been the biggest story as well. McLaren Mercedes, where did that come from? A one two finish, not just a one two finish, but a dominant one to finish. George Russell once he' fended off Carlos char Leclair early in the race, and that battle last there only a couple of laps before the Ferrari's tires absolutely went off. The cliff was totally unchallenged. Could have done this race without stopping twice, really only stopped twice because everyone else did and wanted to cover off the possibility. Lewis Hamilton rose from tenth on the grid to finish second and was only five seconds behind the last few laps before that gap grew slightly larger after that showed the pace he had to be able to cut through the field comfortably. The team's most convincing weekend of the year, and this is after probably his least convincing weekend of the year in zau Palla. Weekend so bad that Louis Hamilton suggested he didn't want to I didn't want to come back to finish the season. That's how bad it was. I mean, where did this come from? We talk about the cold conditions, the smooth track, but at several points this weekend I certainly got the sense that even the team wasn't totally convinced what was going on.

So I remember after FP one, I wrote the session report and I wrote that Mercedes was fast, but let's not put anything in that. Ferrari McLaren is where it's going to be, and then we'll work out what red Bull was doing. Then after FB two, Ferrari's fast, McLaren's there. Still don't know what red Bull are doing, but Mercedes has started to look interesting. FP three Mercedes is kind of looking good, but Ferrari's still fast, McLaren's still fast. Still don't know what red Bull was doing. Then quality and then the race. They did it all, even though they topped every session. They also managed to do it somehow by going under the radar because no one expected that form to continue. Ferrari, by rights is a faster Carria's just in those conditions it wasn't. And I think it's got a lot to do with tires and graining and everything else. We know the Mercedes is very good when the conditions are cool. The conditions were very cool in US Vegas, and that's we've seen now sort of two extremes. At one end, you see the extreme heat where tires grain, and one nge you see the extreme cold where tires grain, and at some point in that spectrum in between, there is a happy place for every team. For some it's very narrow. For some it's a lot broader, but Claren's, for instance, seems to be quite broad somewhere in the middle of that, maybe towards the hotter end, but messages we know it's an arrow towards the bottom end of that range. So all the raw ingredients and in hindsight look back on, it was obvious Mercedes was always going to be fast there. I don't know why I didn't consider them more seriously heading in, because once you stepped back and realized what was happening, there's obviously this place to what we saw in even sour Palla, if you take the red flag out of it. There. George was very quick cooler conditions given the rain in Belgium it was cooler that weekend. Even the British Grand Prix was cooler again, so there's a trend here. Now we're going to Katar next weekend that's not going to be cool and funnily enough, George still seems to think it'll go well there, but that's a different one for Vegas. I don't know how we all missed it. It was there right in front of us. That has been all season for our Mercedes was going to absolutely decimate everyone and we all, every single one of us. I feel, mister Well to be fair. So did Mercedes. I say this just because they seemed confused as the week went on. But to go back to those comments of George Russell, at one point he was saying he didn't want to take a new engine this weekend. He wanted to save it for Katar because he didn't expect to be competitive. He does expect to be competitive in Ktar because the layout should suit the car, which is high speed and smooth. Though the heat element is the big unknown there obviously, or would appear not to be unknown, it wouldpep to be known that it won't be good. But nonetheless he seems to think it'll be okay this weekend. While the cold conditions were in place, the layout shouldn't have suited the car because it hasn't typically been good in these sort of short duration traction zone, all that kind of stuff. It's normally Ferrari territories. Isn't really where Mercedes has been competitive. But it was cold enough that and they got the set up right enough. That's the other element. They really set the car up well. It's a little bit more downforce but that turned out to be exactly what was needed to print the tize from graining up in the way Ferraris did that made the car work, So they really did surprise themselves there. So don't don't feel you are still the car lack of Australia.

So I remember after FP one, I wrote the session report and I wrote that Mercedes was fast, but let's not put anything in that. Ferrari McLaren is where it's going to be, and then we'll work out what red Bull was doing. Then after FB two, Ferrari's fast, McLaren's there. Still don't know what red Bull are doing, but Mercedes has started to look interesting. FP three Mercedes is kind of looking good, but Ferrari's still fast, McLaren's still fast. Still don't know what red Bull was doing. Then quality and then the race. They did it all, even though they topped every session. They also managed to do it somehow by going under the radar because no one expected that form to continue. Ferrari, by rights is a faster Carria's just in those conditions it wasn't. And I think it's got a lot to do with tires and graining and everything else. We know the Mercedes is very good when the conditions are cool. The conditions were very cool in US Vegas, and that's we've seen now sort of two extremes. At one end, you see the extreme heat where tires grain, and one nge you see the extreme cold where tires grain, and at some point in that spectrum in between, there is a happy place for every team. For some it's very narrow. For some it's a lot broader, but Claren's, for instance, seems to be quite broad somewhere in the middle of that, maybe towards the hotter end, but messages we know it's an arrow towards the bottom end of that range. So all the raw ingredients and in hindsight look back on, it was obvious Mercedes was always going to be fast there. I don't know why I didn't consider them more seriously heading in, because once you stepped back and realized what was happening, there's obviously this place to what we saw in even sour Palla, if you take the red flag out of it. There. George was very quick cooler conditions given the rain in Belgium it was cooler that weekend. Even the British Grand Prix was cooler again, so there's a trend here. Now we're going to Katar next weekend that's not going to be cool and funnily enough, George still seems to think it'll go well there, but that's a different one for Vegas. I don't know how we all missed it. It was there right in front of us. That has been all season for our Mercedes was going to absolutely decimate everyone and we all, every single one of us. I feel, mister Well to be fair. So did Mercedes. I say this just because they seemed confused as the week went on. But to go back to those comments of George Russell, at one point he was saying he didn't want to take a new engine this weekend. He wanted to save it for Katar because he didn't expect to be competitive. He does expect to be competitive in Ktar because the layout should suit the car, which is high speed and smooth. Though the heat element is the big unknown there obviously, or would appear not to be unknown, it wouldpep to be known that it won't be good. But nonetheless he seems to think it'll be okay this weekend. While the cold conditions were in place, the layout shouldn't have suited the car because it hasn't typically been good in these sort of short duration traction zone, all that kind of stuff. It's normally Ferrari territories. Isn't really where Mercedes has been competitive. But it was cold enough that and they got the set up right enough. That's the other element. They really set the car up well. It's a little bit more downforce but that turned out to be exactly what was needed to print the tize from graining up in the way Ferraris did that made the car work, So they really did surprise themselves there. So don't don't feel you are still the car lack of Australia.

You're okay. It's all right. Sadies didn't know either. What was interesting about Mercedes winning this though, was that have been Ferrari obviously did not recovered to third and fourth, despite after qualifying sounding pretty confident both Carlos Science and Charlotte Clair that they would win this race because for all the reasons we expected them to be competitive here that it was going to be well. The call was actually the twist in this because they typically aren't not as strong in cool conditions to see like they were last year. But the layout should have been all Ferrari in the same way that Baku was very much Ferrari race, even monster similarities there because of all the high speed nature of it, but couldn't manage the tires this weekend, didn't set up the car properly. Three and four is still pretty good behind such a dominant Mercedes team, but it means crucially that they did not outscore McLaren by very much in the Constructors' Championship, was just twelve points I think it was. It's what is the twenty odd points now between them? Twenty four points with two rounds to go, so damage still done. And in fact, if you go back and look at how many points they've outscored McLaren by in this America's leg the last four races, it is twelve point seven points around I think. So if they continue that trajectory, actually they will win the constructors Championship. We do have two very different races coming up compared to everything we've seen before. But what do you feel like is the vibe around Ferrari after this weekend, because it is in a sense job done. Did comfortably outscore McLaren, not by as much as they would have accepted, but it turns out that was never on the cards because the ads were so good. But two more difficult rounds coming up. How do you think they'll reflect on this weekend and the points scored against McLaren.

You're okay. It's all right. Sadies didn't know either. What was interesting about Mercedes winning this though, was that have been Ferrari obviously did not recovered to third and fourth, despite after qualifying sounding pretty confident both Carlos Science and Charlotte Clair that they would win this race because for all the reasons we expected them to be competitive here that it was going to be well. The call was actually the twist in this because they typically aren't not as strong in cool conditions to see like they were last year. But the layout should have been all Ferrari in the same way that Baku was very much Ferrari race, even monster similarities there because of all the high speed nature of it, but couldn't manage the tires this weekend, didn't set up the car properly. Three and four is still pretty good behind such a dominant Mercedes team, but it means crucially that they did not outscore McLaren by very much in the Constructors' Championship, was just twelve points I think it was. It's what is the twenty odd points now between them? Twenty four points with two rounds to go, so damage still done. And in fact, if you go back and look at how many points they've outscored McLaren by in this America's leg the last four races, it is twelve point seven points around I think. So if they continue that trajectory, actually they will win the constructors Championship. We do have two very different races coming up compared to everything we've seen before. But what do you feel like is the vibe around Ferrari after this weekend, because it is in a sense job done. Did comfortably outscore McLaren, not by as much as they would have accepted, but it turns out that was never on the cards because the ads were so good. But two more difficult rounds coming up. How do you think they'll reflect on this weekend and the points scored against McLaren.

I think we've got a really interesting insight into Ferrari at the moment on the cool down lap and Charla Clair's comments to his race engineer Brian Bozzi the response to Carla science and disobeying team orders allegedly, but then he refused to be joining it. It was bizarre. He's had a long ran and then immediately afterwards Carlos has been spoken about something completely different when when he was asked why Charles might be unhappy, and then when Charles was asked he refused to speak about it, So that there's something bubbling away behind the scenes there. I wonder if there's this growing sense that Carlos doesn't need to drive for Ferrari anymore because he doesn't He's not going to drive for Ferrari anymore, so he may as well drive for Carlos and therefore he doesn't need to worry about team orders, who just worry about Carlos orders. So there's that winter of discontent bubbling away behind the scenes. You know, those sort of comments from from Charles talking about how you know, being the nice guy always screws him of paraphrase, there tactical that's not the work of you. That's not one on track pass, that's not one disobeyed team order, that's the culmination of a number of them. So I wonder if that's growing pressure, growing concern that it is starting to slip away. They need to close up on McLaren maybe a little bit more quickly than they have done, to really make sure that they've got a good shot of the Constructor championship. And also I wonder if it's just a frustration thing that Carlos and Ferrari thought they would win that race and shot up for that matter, thought that they would win that race and then got their pants bean off them by by Mercedes. So they was sort of bruised ego on a few different fronts. Wrap that all together and you've got a team that heading into the weekend had a degree of swagger about it, coming out of the weekend just doesn't feel like it's got that same confidence. And even though it beat McLaren, you still look at McLaren, I think, yeah, they're probably gonna be world champions, don't you.

I think we've got a really interesting insight into Ferrari at the moment on the cool down lap and Charla Clair's comments to his race engineer Brian Bozzi the response to Carla science and disobeying team orders allegedly, but then he refused to be joining it. It was bizarre. He's had a long ran and then immediately afterwards Carlos has been spoken about something completely different when when he was asked why Charles might be unhappy, and then when Charles was asked he refused to speak about it, So that there's something bubbling away behind the scenes there. I wonder if there's this growing sense that Carlos doesn't need to drive for Ferrari anymore because he doesn't He's not going to drive for Ferrari anymore, so he may as well drive for Carlos and therefore he doesn't need to worry about team orders, who just worry about Carlos orders. So there's that winter of discontent bubbling away behind the scenes. You know, those sort of comments from from Charles talking about how you know, being the nice guy always screws him of paraphrase, there tactical that's not the work of you. That's not one on track pass, that's not one disobeyed team order, that's the culmination of a number of them. So I wonder if that's growing pressure, growing concern that it is starting to slip away. They need to close up on McLaren maybe a little bit more quickly than they have done, to really make sure that they've got a good shot of the Constructor championship. And also I wonder if it's just a frustration thing that Carlos and Ferrari thought they would win that race and shot up for that matter, thought that they would win that race and then got their pants bean off them by by Mercedes. So they was sort of bruised ego on a few different fronts. Wrap that all together and you've got a team that heading into the weekend had a degree of swagger about it, coming out of the weekend just doesn't feel like it's got that same confidence. And even though it beat McLaren, you still look at McLaren, I think, yeah, they're probably gonna be world champions, don't you.

Yeah, because this is a track that just absolutely didn't suit McLaren and the next one absolutely will. Kat Arts where Osco Piastre won the sprint last year, and Abi Dhabi maybe I think might be a bit more of a toss up the McLaren probably still just simply because McLaren's been so good at so many tracks this year, probably ahead, but could be a fascinating conclusion. The ferrari thing for me. The more I've been thinking about it, the more interesting I feel it is because there is the team orders element. I think you're right, there's a degree of Carlos science feels relatively unencumbered by team orders. He didn't do it in any aggressive way. If he in fact did ignore team orders, it's unclear. I had gone back and looked through the on bards to try and hear all the radio but there is an element of that for me, though Charletclair's outburst, there's a little bit of the fact that this has sort of happened before. I think was it was it Silverston, I was earlier this year. I have to go back and remember the race where there was sort of a little bit of unhappiness as well around the way that the drivers had responded to team orders. So there's clearly something that's happened before around Charlot Clair's under standing of whether or not Carlos has been obeying what he believes to be the rules of engagement or whatever. Is that element of it. But I think there's also a degree of and we saw it a lot in this race from Carlos that he's really able to take the race on himself, and that includes the strategy role, the pit roll he saw before Ferrari seemed to this was going to need to be a two stop race. For Ferrari felt like he lost time waiting for that to happen. Did execute a team order, I thought really well by letting char Leclair through while Lewis Hamilton was behind both of them without letting Lewis through it it was really quite masterfully done as much as a team order can be done. And it seems like the unhappiness actually stems from the fact that after Carlos signs had made so many of the strategy calls, had sort of run the race for himself emerged as the faster to kind of that last stint, and when Charles was told he wasn't going to be passed, just barged passed rather than lose lap time waiting to be told he could go through, or waiting for Charles Ties to warm up after that pit stop. Part of for me, part of that frustration we see from Charles from time to time in relation to science is the fact that he doesn't have that in his game, that Carlos Science may not be faster than him, although they're pretty close, but let's say outright speed, he's not quite as fast as him, be kind of better at managing these complicated races where things don't go to plan, where Ferrari can't just win the one two in the way they expected them to. It's not surprising to me that Carlos Science ended up ahead, even though Charlotte Claire was ahead on that first lap and looked quicker. I think the frustration is there and sort of and this is maybe a question for us later in the year when we do a season wrap up or look forward to next year or whatever. But I'm also not sure that Lewis Hamilton is that guy either, And that's going to make it a really interesting line up for me, because how many times do we hear at Mercedes Lewis Hamilton will occasionally argue back around strategy calls, but it's usually after the factory he goes, ah, this was the wrong goal, rather than in Carlos Seins's case, he'll tell them beforehand and maybe nine times out of ten they'll change their mind and do whatever he says, because they kind of trust him. That's kind of interesting to me because I do think that Ferrari was pushed to a two stop strategy, that the strategy that ultimately got them the three to three four OLO. I think they might have got it anyway because of Carlos's insistence. If they don't have a driver like that next year, they'll lack a little bit I think for that. So I just thought that was interesting. I think that just a real little bit of mindset. Maybe it's a little bit of Charles also recognizing, and he's very good at recognizing his weaknesses, that he'll be lacking something next to your relative to Lewis. So I find that that that situation sort of interesting in a broader perspective. Let's just talk really quickly that I wrap this up before we move on about McClaren, because this was it was his worst qualifying performance of the year by pure pace. I wasn't the lowest starting position, but worse by pure pace. And then I think probably it's least competitive race since bah Rain. Looking back at it, I have to go back and look at the numbers. It was the first time they've gone two races in a row without getting a podium, that's for certain. Since Bahrain and Saudi at the start of the year, they are really talking about this being a one off and in fact, weirdly bit of a profitable one because they learned. They think why the car didn't work this weekend. Are you confident that the last two races they can bounce back or in this really weird and wild season where we've seen form swing so dramatically for every team except McLaren, really, is this the moment where McLaren's form starts to swing a little bit?

Yeah, because this is a track that just absolutely didn't suit McLaren and the next one absolutely will. Kat Arts where Osco Piastre won the sprint last year, and Abi Dhabi maybe I think might be a bit more of a toss up the McLaren probably still just simply because McLaren's been so good at so many tracks this year, probably ahead, but could be a fascinating conclusion. The ferrari thing for me. The more I've been thinking about it, the more interesting I feel it is because there is the team orders element. I think you're right, there's a degree of Carlos science feels relatively unencumbered by team orders. He didn't do it in any aggressive way. If he in fact did ignore team orders, it's unclear. I had gone back and looked through the on bards to try and hear all the radio but there is an element of that for me, though Charletclair's outburst, there's a little bit of the fact that this has sort of happened before. I think was it was it Silverston, I was earlier this year. I have to go back and remember the race where there was sort of a little bit of unhappiness as well around the way that the drivers had responded to team orders. So there's clearly something that's happened before around Charlot Clair's under standing of whether or not Carlos has been obeying what he believes to be the rules of engagement or whatever. Is that element of it. But I think there's also a degree of and we saw it a lot in this race from Carlos that he's really able to take the race on himself, and that includes the strategy role, the pit roll he saw before Ferrari seemed to this was going to need to be a two stop race. For Ferrari felt like he lost time waiting for that to happen. Did execute a team order, I thought really well by letting char Leclair through while Lewis Hamilton was behind both of them without letting Lewis through it it was really quite masterfully done as much as a team order can be done. And it seems like the unhappiness actually stems from the fact that after Carlos signs had made so many of the strategy calls, had sort of run the race for himself emerged as the faster to kind of that last stint, and when Charles was told he wasn't going to be passed, just barged passed rather than lose lap time waiting to be told he could go through, or waiting for Charles Ties to warm up after that pit stop. Part of for me, part of that frustration we see from Charles from time to time in relation to science is the fact that he doesn't have that in his game, that Carlos Science may not be faster than him, although they're pretty close, but let's say outright speed, he's not quite as fast as him, be kind of better at managing these complicated races where things don't go to plan, where Ferrari can't just win the one two in the way they expected them to. It's not surprising to me that Carlos Science ended up ahead, even though Charlotte Claire was ahead on that first lap and looked quicker. I think the frustration is there and sort of and this is maybe a question for us later in the year when we do a season wrap up or look forward to next year or whatever. But I'm also not sure that Lewis Hamilton is that guy either, And that's going to make it a really interesting line up for me, because how many times do we hear at Mercedes Lewis Hamilton will occasionally argue back around strategy calls, but it's usually after the factory he goes, ah, this was the wrong goal, rather than in Carlos Seins's case, he'll tell them beforehand and maybe nine times out of ten they'll change their mind and do whatever he says, because they kind of trust him. That's kind of interesting to me because I do think that Ferrari was pushed to a two stop strategy, that the strategy that ultimately got them the three to three four OLO. I think they might have got it anyway because of Carlos's insistence. If they don't have a driver like that next year, they'll lack a little bit I think for that. So I just thought that was interesting. I think that just a real little bit of mindset. Maybe it's a little bit of Charles also recognizing, and he's very good at recognizing his weaknesses, that he'll be lacking something next to your relative to Lewis. So I find that that that situation sort of interesting in a broader perspective. Let's just talk really quickly that I wrap this up before we move on about McClaren, because this was it was his worst qualifying performance of the year by pure pace. I wasn't the lowest starting position, but worse by pure pace. And then I think probably it's least competitive race since bah Rain. Looking back at it, I have to go back and look at the numbers. It was the first time they've gone two races in a row without getting a podium, that's for certain. Since Bahrain and Saudi at the start of the year, they are really talking about this being a one off and in fact, weirdly bit of a profitable one because they learned. They think why the car didn't work this weekend. Are you confident that the last two races they can bounce back or in this really weird and wild season where we've seen form swing so dramatically for every team except McLaren, really, is this the moment where McLaren's form starts to swing a little bit?

Well, I think firstly, let's not put too much on a single result. Every team has an achilles heel. You know, we saw Singapore last year for the all conquering red ball, so let's keep it in context a little bit. We know the guitar on paper should suit that, you know, the McLaren so we should see an improved result. You know, it was the team's worst result since round four. What was that? Japan? Off the top of my head, Bahrain, Saudi, Australia, Japan. Yet so it was the worst result since Japan, the third worst result of the season fall and the worst being the Bahrain grow on pre So it's been a long time since I've had a performance like this, and that's I think what's jarring, especially when you consider that Mercedes has often had up and down results. Ferrari to an extent that has had up and down results. I've been more consistent of late, of course, and Red Bulls were very consistent in the side of the year, but they've dropped off a little bit, so I've almost sort of become accustomed to seeing swings from the other teams, not McLaren. So now we see a little bit of a wobble from McLaren It stands out to us, and that's why I don't think we need to rate take too much from it. They still scored fifteen points, so they did go home empty handed, by by any stretch of the imagination. They're still leading the Constructors Championship, still comfortably in the points. You know, it's not like they were scraping through in ninth and tenth. So if that's one of the worst races of the year for them, then you kind of take that, don't you.

Well, I think firstly, let's not put too much on a single result. Every team has an achilles heel. You know, we saw Singapore last year for the all conquering red ball, so let's keep it in context a little bit. We know the guitar on paper should suit that, you know, the McLaren so we should see an improved result. You know, it was the team's worst result since round four. What was that? Japan? Off the top of my head, Bahrain, Saudi, Australia, Japan. Yet so it was the worst result since Japan, the third worst result of the season fall and the worst being the Bahrain grow on pre So it's been a long time since I've had a performance like this, and that's I think what's jarring, especially when you consider that Mercedes has often had up and down results. Ferrari to an extent that has had up and down results. I've been more consistent of late, of course, and Red Bulls were very consistent in the side of the year, but they've dropped off a little bit, so I've almost sort of become accustomed to seeing swings from the other teams, not McLaren. So now we see a little bit of a wobble from McLaren It stands out to us, and that's why I don't think we need to rate take too much from it. They still scored fifteen points, so they did go home empty handed, by by any stretch of the imagination. They're still leading the Constructors Championship, still comfortably in the points. You know, it's not like they were scraping through in ninth and tenth. So if that's one of the worst races of the year for them, then you kind of take that, don't you.

Yeah, I mean it's a it's a rare race in which they were the fourth quickest car, but emphasizes that it was a rare race and they're still didn't leader the championship. They've still got some points to defend, so not at but it'll be interesting to see how they respond to what should be one of the strongest tracks of the year for them in Kata. Let's change tack now again, Matt, to wrap this up to the big news of the week. In fact, just before we recorded this it broke, so it gave us a good chance to talk about all of the details, and that is that Cadillac will be joining Formula One in twenty twenty six. Is the eleventh team, don't call it Andretti, even though that is the team that will be entering fundamentally, but in a rearranged structure. And this is a couple of different interesting elements to this one. I think it's worth reminding people how we got to this point because this team that will be entering has been that long running saga that has been the Andretti squad for the last couple of years. Really will be based out of Silverston, the factory that Andrettie has been building up and hiring people for and developing a car for. And I think you wrote earlier this year that they're going to have their first twenty twenty six shassis before the end of the year, so they're well ahead of the curve on that one. But it will now be a team owned by General Motors, a critical difference worth thirty. Then Formula One announcing this team, they did not mention the name Andretti at all. Is that what this is about, was it Andretti the sticking point the entire time, The irritant in the process for Formula One to accept this team is that the change that was needed to be made.

Yeah, I mean it's a it's a rare race in which they were the fourth quickest car, but emphasizes that it was a rare race and they're still didn't leader the championship. They've still got some points to defend, so not at but it'll be interesting to see how they respond to what should be one of the strongest tracks of the year for them in Kata. Let's change tack now again, Matt, to wrap this up to the big news of the week. In fact, just before we recorded this it broke, so it gave us a good chance to talk about all of the details, and that is that Cadillac will be joining Formula One in twenty twenty six. Is the eleventh team, don't call it Andretti, even though that is the team that will be entering fundamentally, but in a rearranged structure. And this is a couple of different interesting elements to this one. I think it's worth reminding people how we got to this point because this team that will be entering has been that long running saga that has been the Andretti squad for the last couple of years. Really will be based out of Silverston, the factory that Andrettie has been building up and hiring people for and developing a car for. And I think you wrote earlier this year that they're going to have their first twenty twenty six shassis before the end of the year, so they're well ahead of the curve on that one. But it will now be a team owned by General Motors, a critical difference worth thirty. Then Formula One announcing this team, they did not mention the name Andretti at all. Is that what this is about, was it Andretti the sticking point the entire time, The irritant in the process for Formula One to accept this team is that the change that was needed to be made.

There's a couple of different factors at play, and the truth will probably be somewhere in a mix of all of them. There is the Andrettie element. Michael Andretti, for some reason had enemies, Greig Mafe, Liberty Media CEO notably one of them. But if you remember back to when Michael Antretti was an F one driver, he tried to do it from the US. He'd jet in for events, even though that's thirty years ago. Memories in in Formula one along for whatever reason, him coming in being bright and brash about all of this just it got people off site. He didn't win any friends so that has been a little bit anti Michael. But it's important also to realize that Andretti Global and Michael Andretti was only ever really a front for Dan Towers anyway. The Towers is where the money is. He's Gamebridge and Group of thousand and one and the rest of it. He's got the money, he's got the connections. So by the restructure that's taken place at Andretti in recent months, Michael's gone off into a different advisory strategic sort of role. Towerist is running at day to day, So basically where you see TWG Group just superimposed Andretti Global over the top of that. Because the same thing, there's also been a little bit of window dressing happening about how this team is structured. The entrant, i understand is still TWG Group. That's the entrant that applied to the FAA and we had its application approved. This isn't a new application. There's not been a second expressions of interest process that's been opened. That happened last February. Four applicants were received, one of them the Andrette. The Andretti application that was approved last October got passed on to Formula one for commercial approval. We got rejected in January. Ten months on, it's now been accepted. It is the same project. You can change the name above the door, you can put a different sticker of it, you can paint in the carr a different color if you like, but it's the same project. Many of the reasons that Formula one said Andretti cannot come into Formula one still exist. This is hypocritical of Formula one to be living the team in now rather than ten months ago, and that speaks to me that being a personal issue rather than any way commercially founded. There's a whole Department of Justice investigation. There were FBI agents on the ground in Vegas investigating this, right. There's some serious stuff happening behind the scenes. In addition to this, this is part of quelling some of the concern that surrounds that Greg Mafey is leaving Liberty Media at the end of the year. Year Who will be replaced by John Malone, Liberty Media's founder. If I have been there for nineteen years there is no replacement. That's odd, isn't it? Nineteen years or nearly two decades of service and you don't future proof, you don't have a succession plan, you just right off into the sunset. I don't think he's riding off into the sunset at all. There's also been changes that Liberty media is such as Formula one is basically the only business left there. This stinks to me. I've been across the story in great detail for a long, long long time. I know more about this than I know more about the Andretti story and everything else, and I do my own children's birthdays. I really wish I was joking when I said that this is a complicated thing. What we've been sold this morning Australian time is fabulous news. Formula one first and foremost. It is amazing to have an eleventh team. We need it. An American team is good news. It's a shame it's not gonna have the in Jurney name because I think that would be a good selling point. But it's gonna be general motives and that's still amazing from Australia. We're gonna have GM versus Forward in Formula one pretty soon, so we're gonna have that red versus Blue rivalry sort of thing. This is good news and Formula one because it will bring him in new sponsors. Yes, it'll be competition for sponsors in the market, but that's that's a free market economy. You get that anywhere. But General Motive is going to pump in some money. But you don't think it's going to take up some tracks on advertising and some corporate hospitality and the rest of it. Of course, it is what do you think this is going to do for viewership in America? Do you think TV figures just went up? Absolutely, they did. The money that's going to come into Formula while off the back of this, I think it's going to be phenomenal. Hence I don't see the other team's arguments against it. Winding back six or eight months. I really want to see how this plays out. Don't get fulled. This is not General Motives in Cadillac designing a Formula one car and then in a couple of years time, putting their own power in it and going racing. This is Dan Towers and the Andretti project doing what they were already doing, selling naming rights or however they've structured that so that it looks like it's General Motors. It's exactly the same project, and it pisses me off that most people aren't seeing that and that there are people who think that we're stupid enough not to see that.