The Autosport F1 Podcast

Luke Smith, Alex Kalinauckas and Stuart Codling are fresh from watching qualifying for the Mexican Grand Prix, and here to analyse the grid for Sunday’s main event.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The FIA, Formula 1's governing body, has handed Red Bull Racing a $7 million fine and an aerodynamic testing reduction after striking an agreement over its breach of Formula 1's $145m budget cap in 2021. The FIA revealed after the Japanese Grand Prix that both Red Bull and Aston Martin were in breach of F1’s financial regulations for 2021, putting them at risk of sanctions. Red Bull fiercely denie...

It has been one of F1’s worst kept secrets, but Audi has finally named Sauber as its "strategic partner" to enter Formula 1 in 2026. Sauber has confirmed that Audi will buy a stake in the company, but we don’t know how much We know they will begin increasing their stake, but we don’t know when. Ferrari have a Sauber engine supply deal until the end of 2025, but that means supplying a competing roa...

Martyn Lee is joined by Luke Smith and Mandy Curi, who were both at Circuit Of The Americas this weekend, to look back at the United States Grand Prix. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Luke Smith and Alex Kalinauckas analyse the grid for United States GP, which differs slightly from the order they crossed the line because of various power unit penalties. We pay tribute to  Dietrich Mateschitz, as it was announced shortly before qualifying that he had sadly passed away following an illness. Luke and Alex also reflect on the current resurgence of Formula 1 in the United States, as...

It’s not unheard of in Motorsport, but certainly not common, for a newly crowned champion driver to up sticks and move to a back-of-the-grid team. But that’s exactly what is happening in Formula E next season. Stoffel Vandoorne will move to the Dragon Penske squad as drivers champion and join a team with two points to their name in 2021-2022. Today we ask: How will the grid look different next sea...

Extreme weather is nothing new to Formula 1. But it seems more recently, it is becoming an issue for the cars. Seven sessions up to the 2022 mid-season break required wet or intermediate tyres: the events in Imola, Monaco, Montreal and Budapest. Since then, add Singapore and Suzuka. We hear a lot about how rain levels the performance, how it throws the form book out of the window, how it shakes up...

Formula 1 2022 could have been Ferrari’s triumphant return to the top. Both world championships were in play as Ferrari stole an early lead. Three races in, Charles Leclerc was 46 points clear of Max Verstappen and more importantly Ferrari looked to have pace in their pocket. Fast forward, and in Suzuka just over a week ago Verstappen’s title was a formality with a margin of 113 points over Lecler...

Every Formula 1 driver has to fight for their place on the grid, and they only need to glance across to the Formula 2 paddock to see 22 drivers all with an eye of putting you on the unemployment line. For example, take the next F2 race at Yas Marina in November. Last year’s F2 races were won by Zhou Guanyu and Oscar Piastri, two names which have displaced legends Kimi Räikkönen and Daniel Ricciard...

“When I crossed the line, I didn't know that I was World Champion, there was a lot of confusion but I thought it was quite funny“.  Those are the words of Max Verstappen. At the Japanese Grand Prix, the 25 year old Dutchman won his second World Championship with a dominant performance in the wet. But it wasn’t just his supremacy in Suzuka, his 32nd GP win, which led to his title coronation. After...

As the 2022 Formula 1 season played out, particularly Max Verstappen's battles with Charles Leclerc, we naturally focussed on performances race by race. Now that Verstappen has secured his second drivers title, we think it's time to reflect on the sheer scale of his dominance.  Verstappen won 12 Grand Prix this season plus the sprints in Italy and Austria.  Consider we've only had 18 race meetings...

Red Bull Racing and Aston Martin have both been found to be in breach of Formula 1’s cost cap rules. We're going to tell you exactly what they’ve done, and what it means.   We’ll find out:   • Everything we know so far about Red Bull’s overspend • How the teams are policed, and why we’re still talking about 2021 • What this mean for the teams who complied, and potential punishment for Red Bull  Le...

Martyn Lee is joined by Dutch F1 journalist Erwin Jaeggi, Autosport’s Luke Smith and Alex Kalinauckas to review a wet afternoon at Suzuka, where once again confusion from the sport's decision makers became an unnecessary talking point. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Luke Smith is joined by Matt Kew to look at a busy day on and off track in Japan. The polesitter was lucky not to have been penalised, after veering in front of another car in Q3. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we're talking about one of the motorsport stories of the year. If you’re not following this one, prepare to be amazed. Colin McRae’s previous record of being the youngest champion at 27 hasn’t just been beaten, it has been smashed, by 22 year old Finnish driver Kalle Rovanperä. · How did Kalle break the mould and dominate WRC so young? · What similarities do the Rovanperä's have to other rac...

Today we're going to tell you the story behind Nyck de Vries’s crazy 24 hours in Monza. It was the ultimate job interview for a 2023 Formula 1 contract. At last weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix we were delighted to see Alex Albon return after an emergency appendectomy and serious complications, ultimately requiring him to be put on a ventilator.    It was because Albon couldn’t drive at Monza that N...

Martyn Lee is joined by Matt Kew and Jess McFadyen to analyse the Singapore GP. Confirmation of the result took over two hours following an investigation by the stewards. Whilst the provisional result was ultimately confirmed, once again Formula 1 fans were switching off their TV not knowing who the winner was. On the podcast today we look at the damage caused by such delays and what Formula 1 can...

Welcome back to Part 2 of Alex's special travel diary. This is a format we haven't tried before, so we hope you enjoy it. We asked Alex to record a short update at the end of each day to talk about the life of a travelling Formula 1 journalist.  Today we hear from Alex getting up close to the cars on Friday morning, and the why he thinks it's important to watch the action from various corners to b...

Sorry to listeners who already downloaded this podcast. Some of Alex's audio needed to be re-uploaded, in this fixed version. Today, we're talking about the Singapore GP practice times, some breaking news about two teams possibly exceeding the budget cap, and finally something we’ve never done before. So we’d love your feedback. First up Martyn will run you through the practice results and news, t...

Today, we're taking you into the world of Formula 1 pit stops.  Why are they harder on the teams than ever?  How have the mechanics had to change because of 2022's rules?  And can the fastest pit stop record ever be beaten?  Let's get up to speed with Autosport's Luke Smith.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today we're going from Formula 1 and taking two steps down the single-seater ladder. With the championship wrapped up at Monza, we’re taking a look at FIA Formula 3  • Why is F3 a series every F1 should have their eye on? • Who had a standout season this year? • And which names we might just be seeing a lot more of in the future Let's get up to speed with Autosport's Megan White. Learn more about...

On today's podcast, we're featuring something from out sister channel, GP Racing's Flat Chat with Codders. If you like it, please consider subscribing to that podcast for future episodes. Published monthly to coincide with the magazine, Stuart Codling is joined by Mark Gallagher and Matt Kew to discuss the biggest talking points in Grand Prix racing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcast...

Kevin Turner and Stefan Mackley join Martyn Lee for the final part of our current series of "Top 10..." drivers.  We're ending with Tyrrell. Already a successful entrant of other people’s cars, Ken Tyrrell became a Formula 1 constructor at the end of 1970. By the time his team closed its doors at the end of 1998, after being bought by British American Tobacco, Tyrrell had racked up 23 world champi...

Martyn Lee is joined by Tom Howard to analyse a fairy tale weekend for Hyundai at WRC's Acropolis Rally Greece. As other teams fell by the wayside, Hyundai picked up a remarkable 1-2-3 result for the first time in history, and a 1-1-1 result marking their third win in a row (Finland, Belgium and Greece). What makes this story more remarkable is from how far back Hyundai came in 2022, with a Rally1...

There's much to discuss on the podcast today as Formula 1 wraps up it's European races for 2022. Why were we waiting hours for the final grid last night?  Could Max Verstappen deliver another recovery drive caused by engine penalties? Or would the Italian fans see their polesitting hero Charles Leclerc stand on top of the infamous Monza podium? To answer all that and more, Martyn Lee is joined by...