F1 Explains

Go to the F1 Nation podcast feed to hear our first episode of 2026. Christian Hewgill and Lawrence Barretto talk through all you need to know ahead of the new season

F1 Explains is moving to the F1 Nation podcast feed for the new season. Get answers to your F1 questions from Christian Hewgill and expert guests, plus race reviews and previews with Tom Clarkson - all in one place. Send your questions about the 2026 F1 season to F1Explains@F1.com Search F1 Nation on your podcast app, hit follow or subscribe, and you'll get every new episode of F1 Explains

Lando Norris' driving style, the food which fuels the Haas pit crew, the Apex GP cars from F1: The Movie and the team boss who lets his drivers use his office toilet. F1 Explains covered all this and much more in 2025 as we answered your questions on how the sport works. Christian and the team have chosen their favourite moments from the season, which include a world-first episode recorded inside...

In the months between the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi and the five red lights in Australia, Formula 1 teams are still be racing. They're building in factories, testing on simulators and wind tunnels, working flat-out to get their cars ready for a new era. New car design and power unit rules will change the game in 2026, so the work F1 teams do this winter is more important than ever. Williams Team...

What does a Formula 1 driver need to become a World Champion? Can they really approach a title decider as if it’s any other race? And is it better to be leading the way or chasing? Ahead of this weekend’s three-way title showdown between Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, two-time World Champion Mika Hakkinen joins Christian Hewgill in the Yas Marina paddoc...

In a shock reversal of the usual format, this episode of F1 Explains starts with a question that YOU have to answer. It's about an engine company with an incredible winning record in Formula 1. Any guesses? For decades, Ford won in Formula 1. Their engines powered drivers and teams to World Championships. In 2026, the company will return to the grid, partnering with Red Bull on a new F1 engine pro...

How do you start a brand new F1 team? Does joining at the start of new regulations in 2026 give Cadillac an advantage or disadvantage? What are the team’s goals?  Cadillac F1 Team CEO Dan Towriss joins Christian Hewgill to answer your questions and tell us what we can expect from F1’s newest team.  Dan also talks about their driver line-up of Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, Cadillac’s short and...

To answer the latest load of F1 Explains listener questions, Christian is joined F1TV expert James Hinchcliffe, IndyCar race-winner who recently drove an F1 car for the first time, and F1TV lead presenter Laura Winter, who once drove an F4 car but doesn't like to talk about it... Laura and Hinch answer your questions on the differences between F1 and IndyCar machinery, how Cadillac's arrival will...

How many members of an F1 team does it take to answer the latest batch of your questions? 5, as it turns out! Haas drivers Ollie Bearman and Esteban Ocon, Team Principal Ayao Komatsu, Race Engineer Laura Mueller and F1 ACADEMY driver Courtney Crone sat down with Christian Hewgill at the US Grand Prix in Austin. Ayao took questions about the parts Haas buys from Ferrari, and what he thinks about Ca...

When Formula 1 drivers want to go faster, they study squiggly lines on a screen. This is F1 data, showing how drivers accelerate, brake, steer and more. Hidden in the squiggles are the secrets of speed. Tom Stallard, Race Engineer to Oscar Piastri at McLaren, and former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer join Christian Hewgill to decode F1 data. Tom answers your questions on what data is recorded, how it is...

Once McLaren team mates fighting for the Formula 1 World Championship, now legends of the F1 Paddock, Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard know how it feels to be in the middle of a title battle. The pair join Christian Hewgill and F1 Explains listeners live on stage in Austin, Texas, to answer your questions. David and Mika explain how McLaren handled their title rivalry in the late 1990s, compare t...

What does ‘lift and coast’ mean and why do drivers use this technique? How do they reduce their speed under a Virtual Safety Car? Why do they use a different engine mode when driving in the pitlane? And what do the buttons on an F1 steering wheel do?  Sauber’s Gabriel Bortoleto joins Christian Hewgill in the paddock at the United States Grand Prix to answer your questions. Gabriel also reveals wha...

Without marshals, we wouldn't be able to go racing. In their bright orange jumpsuits, they're hard to miss. Hundreds of them are dotted around the track to ensure the safety of all the drivers competing in every series during a Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend.   So how do they keep drivers safe? What roles are different marshals performing at different parts of the circuit? How do they know which fla...

When F1 drivers crash, the FIA Medical Car rushes to the scene. It's a high-performance machine with a racing driver at the wheel and a doctor in the passenger seat. The Medical Car crew, Dr Ian Roberts and driver Bruno Correia, answer your questions about their vital jobs. They tell Katie Osborne and Christian Hewgill about responding to crashes, assessing driver injuries and the part of a Grand...

How different is driving at night compared to racing during the day? What impact does being a celebrity have on an F1 drivers’ life? How are car numbers decided? And what’s the process behind designing a special helmet? Williams’ Alex Albon joins Christian Hewgill in the Formula 1 paddock to answer your questions.  Get your question answered on the podcast Send your voice notes and emails to F1Exp...

What are race strategists doing during a Grand Prix? How are strategies decided for each driver within a team? What happens to that strategy when something unexpected happens, like teammates colliding with each other? And is Artificial Intelligence used when deciding the best tactics for a race? Bernie Collins, former F1 strategist at Aston Martin and McLaren, joins Christian Hewgill in the paddoc...

2025 is a year of change for Jonathan Wheatley. He left Red Bull in the UK to join Sauber in Switzerland. He also stepped up from Sporting Director to Team Principal. Jonathan answers your questions about moving from a World Championship-winning team to one seeking success. He tells Christian how he leads the hundreds of people working at Sauber's factory and at the racetrack, including drivers Ni...

Ferrari is synonymous with Formula 1 around the world. They’ve won more World Championships than any other team in the sport’s history. But is that success why they’re regarded as one of the most iconic names in F1? Or is there more to it? F1 Explains is at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza to find out what makes Ferrari so special. Christian Hewgill is joined by ESPN F1 journalist, Nate Saunders, w...

The driver hits the brakes. The car stops in the pit lane and 20 people go to work. Wheel guns roar. Tyres spin. The car speeds back into the race. An F1 pit stop is 2 seconds of precision under pressure. F1 Explains meets the people who make lightning-fast pit stops happen. Christian Hewgill puts your questions to Haas pit crew members Matt Thompson, Monique Hurrell and Marcus Farrer. Matt, Moniq...

Where do Formula 1 teams spot the drivers of the future? What are they looking for in young racers? And how did Mercedes guide Kimi Antonelli from karting to F1?     F1 Explains explores junior driver programmes, which exist to find talented young drivers and support them as they climb the motorsport ladder.   Most F1 teams have these academies. Red Bull signed a young Max Verstappen, Ferrari supp...

Being the boss of Formula 1 is a big job. F1 teams, drivers, race promoters, sponsors and more than 825 million fans worldwide rely on Stefano Domenicali to lead the sport forwards.   It’s a huge responsibility, so how does he keep everyone happy?    Speaking to Christian Hewgill, Stefano explains exactly what his job involves and how the role compares to his time as Ferrari Team Principal. He als...

He's a race-winner, a Haas driver and he lays claim to being the tallest person on the F1 grid (hairstyle permitting). Esteban Ocon joins F1 Explains to answer the latest batch of listener questions. Among the topics in our inbox: how drivers prepare mentally and physically, why they get handed a little paper ticket at their post-race weight check, how being tall affects the job of an F1 driver, a...

How do F1 teams help new drivers settle in? What are the secrets of Silverstone? Could Taylor Swift help Ollie Bearman go faster? Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu answers these questions and more in the latest F1 Explains live show, recorded at the British Grand Prix. F1 Explains listeners Eilín from Ireland, Maya from New York and honeymooning couple Amie and Sam join Ayao and Christian Hewgill o...

1996 Formula 1 World Champion, Damon Hill, and F1TV’s lead commentator, Alex Jacques, join Christian Hewgill at the British Grand Prix for an F1 history lesson - 75 years since the World Championship began at Silverstone in 1950. How did the pinnacle of motorsport begin? What did the first World Championship look like in terms of the cars, the calendar and the Constructors? Who were the sport’s bi...

F1 Explains will be live on-stage at the British Grand Prix with two special guests: Haas Team Principal Ayao Komatsu, and F1 legend David Coulthard will join Christian Hewgill to answer your questions. See you there! F1 EXPLAINS LIVE AT SILVERSTONE Friday 4th July Main Stage 1115-1145 Free to all British Grand Prix Friday or weekend ticket-holders Send your questions for Ayao and David to F1Expla...