The Red Bull Ring is an F1 track in Austria. It’s a shorter, fast circuit where drivers often have chances to pass each other, particularly in the braking areas between key turns.
If a track tends to produce the fastest laps of the year, it generally means it’s smooth and fast. That makes it easier to tell which cars are set up well, because lap times reflect those differences quickly.
A poll sitter is the driver who qualifies first and starts the race from pole position. In F1, starting at the front can be a major advantage because it helps avoid traffic and can control the pace early.
Overtaking just means passing another driver during the race. On some tracks it’s easier because there are places where you can brake hard or get a better run out of a corner.
“Electric off the line” means the car gets extra help from its electric motor right as it starts accelerating. That can make the car feel quicker off the start of a corner. In F1, that early punch can help you gain position before the straight.
A turbo is a device that helps the engine make more power. It uses the car’s exhaust to spin a turbine, which pushes extra air into the engine. More air usually means more power, which matters a lot when you’re trying to go fast on straights.
They’re talking about the Austrian Grand Prix and how races there can turn out differently than expected. Some tracks make it easier for strategy or tire changes to affect the winner. So a team that’s not clearly fastest might still have a chance if things go their way.
An engine upgrade means the team brings improvements to the engine so it can make more power or work better. In F1, teams time these upgrades for certain races where they think the extra power will help.
Brake horsepower is a way to describe how much power the engine makes. It’s measured at the engine itself, not after the power has been sent through the car’s drivetrain.
Term
hogger temperatures
This sounds like they mean very hot conditions. Heat can make tires and car parts work less efficiently, which can lead to slower driving, mistakes, or even reliability problems.
Term
Grand Prix wings
In F1, “wings” are the car’s aerodynamic parts that push it down onto the track for better grip. “Minimal” wings here suggests the drivers aren’t getting big aero changes, so the performance differences may come from other areas.
Person
La Clair
Leclerc is a Ferrari Formula 1 driver. The hosts are saying he got into an incident during a race and it cost him the win.
Hamilton is a famous Formula 1 race driver. The hosts are saying he’s doing well lately, but that this particular track doesn’t suit him as well as some others.
Person
Rosberg
Rosberg is a former Formula 1 champion. The hosts mention him as an example of a driver who had contact and still ended up winning.
It’s basically how much of the lap the car spends with the gas pedal fully down. More time at full throttle usually means the car is working harder and can change how fast it is and how much energy it uses.
They’re talking about recharging the car’s energy system. In F1, the car can store energy when slowing down, then use it later to help with acceleration.
F1 teams don’t all get the same tires. Pirelli brings different types, and the labels (like C3 and the other numbers) tell you how grippy or long-lasting they are.
This is just talking about pit-stop strategy—how many times teams expect to change tires during the race. Different tire wear conditions can make one strategy better than another.
Teams choose tire types and plan how many laps each one will last. “Medium for 40 laps, hard for 40 laps” is basically a guess at how long each tire will stay fast enough.
Straight line speed is how fast the car goes when the track is mostly straight. It’s influenced by power and aerodynamics, and it’s a common way to pinpoint what’s holding a team back.
Speed traps are specific spots on the track where they measure the car’s top speed. If you’re not fast there, you’re usually losing time on the straights.
“Ground effect” cars use the air under the car to push it down onto the track. If the car rides too high or too low, that grip can change a lot, so driving confidence matters.
In racing context, “cornering” refers to the combined process of steering, braking (if applicable), and managing grip through a turn. Driver confidence during cornering often reflects how predictable the car’s balance is at the limit.
Term
nifty on the brakes
“Nifty on the brakes” is shorthand for braking with precision—modulating brake pressure to stay balanced and keep the tires in their effective grip range. In F1, small improvements in braking technique can translate into meaningful lap-time gains.
A “half a tenth” is 0.05 seconds, commonly used in motorsport to describe very small lap-time differences. At the front of F1, changes that seem tiny can come from braking points, traction out of corners, and aerodynamic efficiency.
Person
Charlotte Clair
Charlotte Clair is mentioned as a driver to watch, with the host highlighting her qualifying strength. The segment suggests she may bounce back if Hamilton doesn’t dominate this weekend.
A “qualifying fiend” is a driver who consistently performs extremely well in qualifying sessions. In F1, qualifying matters because it determines starting position, which can strongly influence race strategy and track position.
Graham Staircase is credited by the host as a Patreon supporter whose input influenced the analysis in this segment. The host says Staircase put “La Clair” under pressure, prompting a look at prior teammate results.
The Dodge Challenger is a car built for strong acceleration and high performance. It’s designed to feel exciting to drive, with big engine options depending on the model. It might be mentioned when the conversation is about competing with another car or chasing speed.
Spielberg is where the Austrian Grand Prix track is located. It’s a circuit where braking and corner entry matter a lot, so small errors can cause big incidents.
Mercedes is the F1 team in this discussion. The hosts are saying Mercedes has had battery-related problems, and that can affect how well the cars can use their extra energy in a race.
In F1, the car uses a battery to store and reuse energy. If there’s a battery problem, the team may have to hold back power or adjust the race plan to avoid damaging the system.
“Intra-team fights” means teammates racing each other for position. If the car has a problem, the team may tell them to stop fighting so they don’t make it worse.
George Russell is one of the drivers for Mercedes. The hosts are talking about how he might feel after Barcelona and whether he can help the team score more points.
The power unit is the car’s main energy system. It’s more than just the engine—it includes the hybrid parts that help the car accelerate and recover energy.
F1 cars have a minimum weight rule. If a car isn’t at that minimum, it usually means it’s heavier than it needs to be, which can make it slower or harder to manage.
“Top line speed” means how fast the car can go on the straight. In racing, that affects passing and how hard it is to defend your position.
Term
skinny
“Skinny” here means using a narrower tire than usual. In wet or tricky conditions, that can help the tire cut through water and grip better.
Term
Tyreware
This is about tire wear—how fast the tires get worse during a race. If they wear out quickly, you’ll usually have to pit more often to keep the car fast.
“Two stops” means you change tires twice during the race. Pit stops cost time, so teams try to pick the number of tire changes that keeps the car fast without losing too much time.
The Chevrolet Corvette is a sports car made for fast driving and handling. Different “C” numbers like C3, C4, and C5 refer to different generations of the Corvette. The podcast mention suggests they’re talking about how those versions can be set up for performance, including things like tires.
F1 tires have different “types” (compounds). Softer tires usually grip better but wear out faster, so teams have to manage them carefully during the race.
An “aero package” is the car’s set of wings and body shapes that affect airflow. Better aerodynamics can make the car stick to the track and go faster, especially in corners.
The “aerodynamic department” is the group that designs how air moves around the F1 car. Their goal is to make the car grip the road better and reduce drag so it can be faster.
“Hybrid era” means the current generation of F1 cars that use a mix of engine power plus stored energy. The car can save energy when braking and then use it later for extra acceleration.
Downforce is the “suction” effect from the car’s shape and wings that presses the tires onto the road. More downforce usually means better grip in corners.
Late braking means braking later than usual, right near the turn. The idea is to keep more speed before the corner, but you have to brake carefully so the car stays controllable.
Curbs are the raised edges at the track sides. Drivers use them to help guide the car through corners, but if the curbs are changed, it can affect grip and penalties.
Track limits are the boundaries on a race track—where you’re allowed to drive. If you go outside them (like onto grass or gravel), you can get warned or penalized, and it can also be dangerous.
Person
Kim Biantangelli
The host is talking about a driver (Kim Biantangelli) who’s been getting warnings for going outside the allowed track area. In racing, that can mean you’re taking corners too wide or cutting where you’re not supposed to.
“Midfield” just means the teams that aren’t battling for wins every race, but also aren’t usually at the very back. They’re the teams competing around the middle of the results.
Haas is a Formula 1 racing team. The hosts are talking about how the team thinks it didn’t perform well enough—both with the car’s speed and with how they ran the weekend.
Aya Kamatsu is a Haas team leader who helps run the team. In this clip, he’s describing why Haas struggled—both because the car wasn’t fast enough and because the team didn’t execute as well as it should have.
In racing, “operationally” means how well the team actually runs the event—planning and executing decisions. The point here is that Haas didn’t manage the weekend as effectively as they should have.
In F1, communication is how well the driver and team talk to each other during the race weekend. If it’s not good enough, the driver may not get the right feedback or strategy guidance at the right time.
“Longer-form corners” are turns where you’re cornering for longer instead of just a quick flick. Cars that don’t have the right grip or balance can struggle to hold speed through them.
“Qualify well” means you set a fast lap in qualifying and start the race near the front. Starting up front often makes it easier to finish higher because passing can be hard.
LIVE
Thank you for listening to the Late Breaking F1 podcast.
Make sure to check out new episodes every Wednesday and every Sunday.
Hello and a very welcome to the Late Breaking F1 podcast presented by Harry Eid, Sam Sage
and me, Ben Hawking, for our Austrian GP preview. I've got to be honest guys, I was really
worried about that intro because those words coming out of my mouth in that order have
not been done for a while.
321 we're back!
Three, yeah!
There's so many new listeners who are like, what on earth have I walked into?
Who the hell is this Harry guy?
This guy's got an open shirt and glasses on, surprised his thighs aren't out on the camera.
There's three of us folks. How are you back?
I'm back, back again. I've done this bit already, but back with all of us.
This is lovely. We've already wasted half an hour talking absolute nonsense.
It's a million degrees in the UK right now, which is not helping things.
We are but three boys about to boil in the name of podcasting for you all.
Oh gosh, I hope the new Prime Minister of the UK says it's the law to have air conditioning
in houses from now on.
We tackled the new Prime Minister in our Patreon episode yesterday mate, it's fine.
Today it's much more important, it's the 10 year anniversary of Brexit.
Oh good! I've got a great topic to start a podcast on.
Great stuff.
She's talking about the Austrian GP instead.
That's a bit of an idea.
Feels like it.
Round eight of the 2026 season takes us to the fast and scenic Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.
The circuit has featured on the calendar periodically since 1970
and has been a mainstay in the midseason since 2014.
The Red Bull Ring is one of the shortest on the calendar
and gives us the quickest lap times of the year.
Last year's poll sitter Lando Norris completed a lap in under one minute and four seconds.
Despite only featuring 10 corners, this circuit is usually a good one for overtaking.
The run up to turn three is a popular spot, as is the run down afterwards to turn four.
The weather at the moment, much like here, looks very hot and dry.
About 33 degrees Celsius, that's 91 Fahrenheit.
A little bit warmer than what we had in Barcelona last time out.
We're going to kick off the preview with Ferrari because they are looking for
a second win in a row.
And the good news is, the last time they had the opportunity to do that,
they succeeded, albeit towards the end of the 2024 season.
So, Harry, the Red Bull Ring, maybe a bit of a test of power.
Maybe an area that Ferrari haven't been particularly strong in as of yet.
Can they go back to back?
It's always tough to count on Ferrari to be good.
I mean, it'll be good.
But...
Took him seven seconds to look for a second.
Quite long ago.
The last episode, I got a Garibaldi reference in about 70 seconds.
Just trying to listen. I'm very excited.
Yeah, look, Ferrari, they're making progress, aren't they?
Certainly, in the hands of Lewis Hamilton, they've been making steady progress throughout
this season, especially in the last two races.
Obviously, Hamilton won the last one.
But, Monica, who's very strong as well, as he was in Canada.
I still have my doubts about this one.
If they can be competitive here, then maybe we've got a championship challenge
on our hands, boys.
Sorry, whisper it.
Championship challenge.
But, yeah, this one's going to be a real test for them.
Because, like I said, the engine power has been there.
A kiddie's heel so far.
That small turbo that has been electric off the line
is probably one of the things that's letting them down
when they get to the end of the straight versus their competitors.
So, yeah, we'll see.
Austria is a women, because obviously you need good straight line speed here.
But we often get a bit of a, I don't want to say mixed up,
but sometimes you can get an odd race.
Something odd seems to happen in Austria.
And maybe Ferrari can capitalise on that.
So, yeah, I think they'll be in the mix.
I suspect that the Mercedes-powered cars here,
McLaren and Mercedes, may have a bit more of an edge.
But I would not count Ferrari out.
See how that impacts our poll 123 of course,
that will come up later on in the episode.
Sam, what do you think?
I've seen some pessimism from people online
that this isn't going to be Ferrari's track.
Barcelona was good, but this isn't going to be quite as good.
You on board with that?
I think there's some real similarities actually here.
So, they're bringing the engine upgrade.
And this is touted to improve the engine output by 50 brake horsepower.
And that's pretty solid in terms of a Formula 1 car for 1 engine upgrade.
That's a nice number as well to give you a little boost.
And hey, in Spielberg, you need that extra oomph going down a straight.
And also, it's going to be hot.
Barcelona was hot.
And I feel like the Ferrari coped well here.
We've seen that the Mercedes and the McLaren
have both struggled against the hogger temperatures
and they made mistakes or they've had reliability problems.
So, another tick in the Ferrari box.
The thing that does worry me at the moment
when it comes to Austria in particular,
but also historically at the moment, are their drivers.
Both drivers here have picked up very minimal Grand Prix wings
over the previous year.
Charlotte Clair has won here.
I think it was 2022.
The first Ferrari winner, Austria, since 2003, I think it was.
And then Lewis Hamilton only has two here, one officially, of course.
And then one at Benga, as we were talking about this earlier,
the Styrian Grand Prix, which of course was its alter ego.
Not doing too well, I guess.
Evil alter ego.
Yeah, I assume it's like the Hulk and Bruce Banger
or something like that is how I imagine it is.
And then on top of that, to pile onto the misery,
Charlotte Clair is not having a very good Banger result.
He ended up coming out of the race
after not being particularly quick in Barcelona,
of course, having the issue in qualifying.
He then crashes in Monaco before that.
And then before that, of course, we have Canada,
where he's slower than his teammate quite comfortably.
Before that is Miami, where he has the spin
under all his own conditions and falls again
behind his teammate, I think, to eighth place.
It was Japan, the last time that we saw Charlotte
kind of come to me, Lewis Hamilton.
And even then, before that was China, where Hamilton beat him again.
So, La Clair's form, not in his top books right now,
and it is Hamilton that's riding high.
But as I just mentioned, Hamilton,
this is not a good track for him in comparison
to the rest of his record.
So, the car might be good,
but other drivers can be able to do this.
Also, weirdly eerie that both of them won very similarly
after having contact with another driver on the racetrack
to then go on and take a victory.
Hamilton hit Rosberg, won, but Verstappen hit La Clair, lost.
It was very interesting on the last lap, I think.
Yes, that was a very interesting grand prix.
You're right.
I don't think this track quite suits Ferrari
as much as Barcelona did.
But I don't think it's as far different
as you'd expect either.
I think that the makeup of the track is somewhat similar
in that, if you think about Barcelona,
the first sector's a lot about power.
Same at Austria, I would argue.
The middle sector is more about cornering speed,
and we saw Ferrari were really good
in that middle sector in Barcelona.
Again, fairly similar, I would say, at Austria.
And then the final sectors may be a bit of a balance,
a mix of both.
I think, again, that is representative across both tracks.
I think in terms of the full throttle percentage
that you get on a lap, pretty similar.
I think the battery and how easy it will be
to regenerate that throughout the grand prix.
Again, I don't think there'll be much to choose.
So if Ferrari were confident,
obviously they go on to win Barcelona,
there's no massive reason to believe
they can't do that here as well.
I think the biggest difference is maybe that,
again, that middle sector that is maybe more tailored
towards Ferrari and Barcelona.
Whilst there is a similar sort of layout in Austria,
it's not as long as the middle sector is at Barcelona.
So maybe their best sectors don't make up
as much of the lap as what we had last time out.
But yeah, a lot of similar conditions as well.
It's hot and Sammy just raised that maybe Ferrari
are dealing with these hot temperatures
better than McLaren and Mercedes are.
And if you look at tyre wear,
like we had finally two and three stop races in Barcelona,
I'm not sure we'll get to three stops here,
but we are again using the C3, four and five tyres,
same as last year in Austria, same as Barcelona.
And last year we had a mix of one and two stop races.
So this might not be as straightforward
as some of the early races of this year,
where it was just medium for 40 laps,
hard for 40 laps, and you're done.
I don't think we'll be in that situation.
So I think they've got a few reasons to be optimistic,
but to bring it all back around to what Harry started his point with
is Ferrari. So you can't, you can't trust them too much.
Harry, what do you make of that rumoured engine upgrade
that they are bringing?
Is that going to answer all of their problems?
I mean, they don't have got too many problems for Ari,
which again is unusual for them.
But like I mentioned, I think, you know,
straight line speed has been their Achilles heel.
So this can't, this can't make it worse.
I don't think it's necessarily going to,
you know, put them at the top of the speed traps this weekend.
But like, like you said, there's, you know,
and as I said earlier, there's other factors
that could come into play here at Austria.
And if just that little bit of extra straight line speed,
even if it's not at the top and not faster than them,
you know, than the Mercedes, if it puts them in the mix more
and allows them to utilize the, you know,
the skills they have on the tires and stuff like that,
then yeah, it could, it could be the thing
that makes all the difference for them.
So yeah, I'm not expecting them to shoot to the top of the,
the speed traps, but who knows?
Yeah, I, based on the upgrade that's coming,
it doesn't seem like it's a massive one in its own right
and seems to be more about the first in this project.
And it's like the, it's the appetizer almost for what's to come.
But even if it equates to a 10th of a second per lap,
as an example, like a fairly small improvement,
a 10th of a second was the difference between Hamilton
not being on pole and in the last race.
And you aggregate that over a full race distance,
you're talking like seven or eight seconds
that one 10th per lap can find you.
So even small improvements could be really critical
for Ferrari this weekend.
Sam, you mentioned some of maybe Leclerc and Hamilton's
struggles at this track previously.
It feels like Leclerc's have been relatively inconsistent.
I was looking through some of Hamilton's stats here
and we're so used to seeing him win 567 times at a circuit
and we're coming from a track that he's now won at seven times.
He does only have two pole positions here.
His teammate Bottas at Mercedes had three by the way.
And whilst he has, we'll call it two wins here
based on the Syrian GP as well,
Rosberg won here twice as Hamilton's teammate,
Bottas won here twice as Hamilton's teammate
and so did Russell in 2024.
Should that concern him?
It is odd to see Hamilton on the back foot when it comes to statistics.
He so regularly dominates so many of these, you know.
I think I saw a list the other day that was like Hamilton now holds
the top 20 oldest Grand Prix wins on the grid right now
with Perez being 21st or something like that.
You can see another record.
Alonso is crying.
My man's never getting on the top spot.
I'm so sorry.
But I think Hamilton will take it in his stride.
I think if there's any driver this year that looks at a challenge
and goes, I feel better this year, I can do a good job.
It's going to be Lewis Hamilton right now.
He looks so confident in braking zones.
Now we've seen over the last couple of seasons,
especially with the ground effect cars,
he really struggled with confidence in the car,
especially through braking and cornering.
It looks like that is almost his advantage over all the rest around him.
Now turn three especially, but also the downhill into four.
And then the final corner, you need to be pretty nifty on the brakes.
I do think that if he could gain an extra half a tenth overall
on all drivers there, the little from the 15 brake horsepower
from the engine, the fantastic acceleration
that the Ferrari has to kick onto these straights,
they're all little things that might chip away.
I mean, Hamilton, in theory, could be very competitive,
but don't rule out Charlotte Clair.
We know he's a qualifying fiend,
and I think he will quite comfortably bounce back.
Yeah, I was looking through some of both Lewis Hamilton
and Charlotte Clair's stats earlier today.
The reason I was looking through Charlotte Clair's stats,
I have to shout out Graham Staircase on Patreon,
because Graham Staircase put La Clair under pressure.
And I had to go back to when was the last time
that La Clair lost to a teammate five races in a row,
which will happen if he loses to Hamilton this weekend.
You have to go back to versus Sebastian Vettel
very early on in 2019 when he just joined Ferrari.
That's how far you have to go back for the last time
he was really struggling versus a teammate in this way.
He does have, again, a bit of a mixed relationship with Austria.
It even goes very well for him, win in 2022,
multiple second place finishes as well,
or he's had some absolute stinkers here as well.
So which way it goes?
It feels like he needs a result.
Yeah. What about Mercedes, Harry?
Kimmy Antonelli, up until maybe Barcelona,
felt like he could do no wrong.
He's living off these multiple wins in a row,
and suddenly he's brought back down to a no fault of his own
due to a due to retirement.
How important is it for him to bounce back from that?
I don't think it is that important at all,
because for him, obviously, he doesn't want to lose another 25 points
to Hamilton 18 to his teammate.
But for him, personally, he'd overtaken his teammate in that race
was slightly unlucky with the VSC,
although, albeit, I think maybe Hamilton on the pace he had won anyway.
So I don't think he necessarily needs to look at this and go,
I need to make up for Barcelona,
because I don't think he didn't do too much wrong,
though he was still very competitive
and was set to gain on his nearest rivals.
So, obviously, a strong result is still needed.
He wants to beat his nearest challenger,
but I don't think this is necessarily a situation
where he needs to bounce back.
Like you say, I think a strong result will do absolutely just fine.
And I think mentally for Antonelli, we've seen already,
he's very strong in the head.
I don't think the retirement from Barcelona
is going to weigh on his mind too much at all, to be honest.
This is a bit of a strange one, Sam,
in that Austria last year for Antonelli
did not go very well at all in that it lasted three corners.
Now, thanks to other junior series,
he knows this track quite well anyway.
But in terms of racing experience at Spielberg,
in F1, incredibly limited.
Yeah, the last two times he's visited here, he has DNF'd.
Last year, you'll remember, he had that very infamous moment
where he basically cut across the turn three braking zone,
went straight into the side of Max Verstappen.
Not great, not ideal in that situation.
Great for Austria.
Yeah, and then in F2, of course,
he also had a DNF the last time he was here in Junior Formula as well.
So he's not living the dream
where it comes to great results at Spielberg.
But I think much like what Harry said,
I don't think King Eves to throw himself into this race
and get himself all pumped up and psyched up again.
I must get the word, I must bounce back.
Because he's already created this buffer,
he's already got this lovely little cushion to drive us around him.
And if Ferrari are going to start playing a regular part
in the fight for wings, Russell's fight back to the top just got harder.
Because he doesn't have to beat his teammate anymore.
He might have to beat the Clare, he might have to beat Hamilton.
And McLaren's might be more competitive here
because they were closing the gap
before they had a bit of a dire one in Barcelona.
So it genuinely might allow him
to just kind of relax into the weekend, settling.
And you know what, if he picks up a second place and Russell wins,
is it really a problem? No.
Because Russell doesn't even go into second place in the standings.
Yeah, I don't think he needs some win here necessarily.
He wouldn't turn one down, I'm very sure of that.
But equally, I don't think this is one where
it's make or break, Antonelli needs to get back into win a circle.
Like if it happens, great, he'll just want a solid result,
whether that's a podium or just being able to show
similar pace to what he had in Barcelona again,
a track that he didn't really get the opportunity
to show what he could do last year.
But yeah, similar to what you said earlier, Sam,
I am a bit concerned about Mercedes a bit more generally here,
just again, based on those battery issues.
We know it's caused them to back out of
intra-team fights earlier on in the season
because they were worried about the health of these batteries.
And as the temperature rises,
and again, this is going to be even warmer than it was at Barcelona,
there might be something that Mercedes are a little bit worried about.
We spoke a lot about reliability
when it comes to Mercedes on our Patreon episode
that we recorded yesterday,
and we'll be out very soon for those of you on Patreon.
How will George Russell be feeling, Harry,
because you picked up some points over Antonelli in Spain,
much needed points.
Much needed points, but I do worry mentally for George Russell,
how he's feeling after Barcelona,
because as you've already touched on,
I think he was still overtaken by his teammate on track, on pace.
So I worry for him,
if he's able to, it's weird to say,
bounce back from a result where he's gained points,
but I think he does need to bounce back somewhat.
I think he can, sometimes it is all it takes in F1
and the psyche of a driver,
even though the overtake from Antonelli was not ideal for him,
just the fact that he's gained some ground back on him
might just be enough to switch something in Russell.
You never know how it can go.
And I think if we look at last year's championship battle
between Piastri and Norris,
I think at one point in the season,
you'd be quite confident to say that Piastri had this sewn up,
given how strong he was and how mentally strong he was,
and things started to fall apart later on.
So things can change quite quickly.
The points he gained are important.
I think he needs to continue to build on that,
and it's important this weekend that he does beat him on track on pace.
Yes, and we'll have to see that goes.
Of course, Russell did beat Antonelli on pace last time out,
but very much only in qualifying.
Will that carry through to the race or not?
And George Russell, even though it was a rather fortuitous one,
has taken a victory at the Red Bull Ring before.
Let's take a short break on the other side.
We've got a team that are bringing a major upgrade.
But for who, Chris Kamara?
Oh, don't go back.
Welcome back, everyone.
Let's focus on Red Bull, of course, vested interest from Red Bull this weekend,
something of a home race,
depending on where your class Red Bull is being from.
And I'm sure there will, as always, be a lot of support for Max Verstappen in the stands.
Laura Meckies was asked about a potential upgrade that will be coming at the track.
He said, there's no doubt that the Austrian package alone will not be enough.
We know we'll have some further steps needed.
But what is important is that on that continuous closing the gap trajectory
that we've been on since post-Japan,
is that we continue to get closer, that we don't talk anymore about four tenths,
but hopefully about less, which four tenths is the gap that Meckies seems to think
that they are currently losing out on versus maybe Mercedes and maybe Ferrari as well now.
Sam, do you think that this upgrade can get them in contention?
It's tricky to go without understanding fully what parts they're deciding to bring here.
And it's still relatively unknown where those upgrades are going to sit.
A bit that worries me about the conversation, the interview that you mentioned,
was when asked about the weight of the car, Meckies kind of sidesteps the question
and responds with, eat less.
That's what I'm going to do here in Austria.
I'm going to eat less.
So you think there's kind of worrying that you don't feel particularly confident
to talk about the fact that you've still got a chunky car, and it's a straight line track,
and you need to be light and nimble to go quickly in a straight line.
So if they can get closer to McLaren, great.
That's a big success, or in the words of George Russell, great success.
I like this car.
It's a skid of road back to Australia, isn't it?
Yeah, they can be close to McLaren here, and they're not going to be in that awkward gap
between sixth place and then most likely lost them or ghastly driving around at the back of
the points.
That's a good step forward.
But Meckies seems very clear that this won't be the kind of the decision-maker.
It won't be what brings them back to full action.
What they can rely on, though, is that clearly that ECU, that power unit they've got in there,
is very, very good.
So if they're able to actually bring in some major power upgrade, or at least maximise the
engine they've got under the hood of the car, they might now be a bit more competitive in
the first and third sector specifically.
Yes, that almighty ICE that they've got.
Good job, guys.
You're right in that Red Bull are being very coy about what they are and aren't bringing as part
of this upgrade.
We've had a bit more maybe directness from other teams about exactly what they're targeting here.
We don't really know what it is.
I think he's right in that he's saying that they've improved since Japan,
and their first major upgrade of the year came in Miami.
And I remember a lot of the conversations we had going into that Miami race,
because we had so many conversations that we could have across those episodes at that point
in time.
We were talking about how important it was that they got this right, because in Japan and in
China, they were essentially part of the midfield, rather than being part of that top three or
four group.
And it did work.
You know, Verstappen was on the front row.
He was competing higher up than what we'd seen previously.
I think Barcelona was an expected struggle.
Weirdly, and I know it is weird, a long straight and medium speed corners aren't what Red Bull
like.
And it sounds weird, because again, they have the best ICE, but that battery is hurting them
so much that apparently that type of track isn't good for them.
This track, again, isn't too dissimilar from that.
So if the upgrade does work here, that's pretty encouraging that they might have solved some
issues.
You're right, Sam.
Biggest issue about the car, it's not on the minimum weight.
They aren't the only ones.
William's certainly another that are guilty of that.
They are focusing on getting that down as low as they possibly can.
They believed around the time of Miami that this was the upgrade that would see them to that
minimum weight.
I don't know what to make of his response to the question in that he wouldn't answer it directly
on have you actually got there or not.
I'm a little bit worried like you are that maybe they're not there yet, but we'll have to see.
Harry, do you think that this upgrade can help Red Bull help the staff and get into some podium
or even winning contention?
Yeah, I think, like Sam says, it really depends on what the upgrade tackles here.
Because, yeah, if it is the weight, that could be a real help.
Coming from Mekki's makes it sound like if he ever sees the staff on a hatchet with a snack
in their hand, he's just going to bat it out like, no, you cannot be.
You cannot be eating more food.
If you're cutting half, it's half the calories.
You should have twice as much.
You always want no calories, dust.
Yeah, so if that can help reduce the weight there, maybe or if it's going to
help top on speed, then that could help.
But like you said, it's been a struggle where there are tracks where the battery is letting
them down and I think this could be another case of that here for Red Bull.
I've got images of them sending the staffer now on like monster spec wings,
just being like, off you go, son.
It just doesn't stop for turn three.
Keeps going.
Deal with that.
Takes off into the steering hills.
Yeah, because I would be alive at that point with the sound of Max screaming.
Yeah, but I do.
If it's one of those, if someone like the staff could just handle it for the middle
sector and then it gives them enough top line speed and I think they'd do it.
Yeah, we should say I'm dubious, but maybe it will help them get into the mix.
I don't think it's going to catapult them to the front anyway.
We need the return of some of the staffing strategies from the middle of last year,
where it was just, here's a really weird setup for you, Max.
Go and get poll and see if you can just be really wide out on track.
Do you know, was it last year when it was raining at Silverstone and he had the skinny as well?
Yeah.
Off you go.
Deal with that.
Have fun.
Yeah, the other maybe slight issue that I've got about Red Bull and whether their upgrade
tackles this or not, I don't know.
Tyreware seems to be quite bad for them at the moment versus some of the other top teams.
So again, if it's looking like hot temperatures, a lot of Tyreware, two stops,
maybe even three stops, that could be a concern.
What compounds have we got going to Austria-Benz, you know?
Yeah, C3, C4, C5, so the three softest possible tyres in the range.
Okay, that should be interesting.
Yeah, I like that.
I like that. Don't mind that at all.
This is going to sound like a very negative question, Sam.
Are they just doomed because of the way that a duo was fallen for them?
We're talking about upgrades, whether they can get in contention.
Is it just a bit of a plaster until these other teams make their engine upgrades
and they fall back again?
A duo is such a silly system.
In principle, in the most basic theory, it should work as a balancing level.
But why are we creating a system that where teams are out there,
brains, motorsport brains that make engines and make things that go quickly,
are out there to make themselves look as bad as possible, to try and do as well as possible?
It's just, it's a bit farcical.
And I do think that Red Bull have been stung here because they put together clearly a very good engine,
but their battery is going to be so poor that it just means that they've kind of
got one set full with maybe these error upgrades.
But now the Africa two-scope is back because they've actually made a good enough product on one side
where batterying energy is so important that they're now going to kind of be shafted,
essentially, where the likes of Mercedes already have a better aero package.
You can just go past them.
McLaren, who arguably are very similar, if you've got better,
will go past them with the thing I think Mercedes and Ferrari get double that.
They go even further and they're still comfortably better.
It feels like it's going to be a really tricky battle.
And they almost get a little bit of that newy magic in the sense of the aerodynamic department
to try and get them the step back in line that they needed.
Unfortunately, he does appear to be using some kind of dark aura.
No little magic going on at the moment.
Rustle up that bag.
Do you hate it?
Steven Mulhern type of magic.
Yeah, yeah. He's making a coin come out from behind your grand dad's ear in the nursing home.
And he drops the coin.
Oh, my sausage fingers.
She's like, wait, magic.
Alonso's in the old people's eye with him.
Show thing is out.
Shut up.
I have an important comment.
Adrian Newie is the least way guy I have ever met in my life.
That man has never weighed once.
Especially a way.
He's there.
He's a nod of approval.
He's not a way.
He's not a nod of approval.
He's got approval.
No, not at the moment.
What do you think, Ariz, if this upgrade doesn't come through for them?
Are we faced maybe with a prospect this year that Red Bull are only going to be able to
compete at very certain types of tracks like a Singapore or a Hungary or maybe Monaco that
we didn't quite see in the race, but we did at least see in qualifying?
It could well be.
And it kind of goes back to where they almost were at the start of the hybrid era, right?
Where that engine, or it was the Renault engine then, and they could only read really
few tracks where it was sort of tight and twisty and downforce reliant.
So Hungary, etc., Singapore, like mentioned, Monaco.
Yeah, it could well be, at least for this year, where they can only compete on
tracks that aren't going to affect them on the batteries so much.
So it's an important upgrade, but I fear it might be a little bit, not really on them,
like you said, but a little bit too little to date.
For those of you who are maybe hoping for a Verstappen victory or a better performance
for Verstappen versus what we saw last time out in Barcelona,
he has five wins here, five pole positions here, eight podiums.
So his track record is very good at this track, as it is at most tracks.
Is he the most successful driver here?
I feel like Alain Prost won a lot of Austrian GP, but I don't know off the top of my head.
In modern times, yes, yeah, he would be.
I think this track very much suits his style, by the way, like he's very,
I don't know, pushing the car in terms of late braking and like really aggressive corner entry.
That is Max Verstappen style, and that style very much does suit this sort of track.
And again, it's only 10 corners.
Like if you can make the difference in a couple of these corners,
you're kind of dealing with a third of the lap.
Like you can really make a difference as a driver here.
It'd be interesting to see how track limits play a part this year as well.
They obviously revamped the curbs quite recently.
So especially on that final corner, it's quite an aggressive curb.
We see a lot of track limits running wide.
And that might be a problem, again, for Kim Biantangelli,
who has had quite a few track warnings as of recent.
Yeah. And of course, you need to be very careful about track limits at some of these corners
in that you'll be met by grass or gravel.
So less of an ideal situation for him, even than a track limits penalty.
Harry, is it McLaren's time finally?
I think they're going to be strong here.
Is it their time finally?
I think I said this on Sundays episode, Ben.
They've been sort of sniffing at it for a little while.
They haven't quite got there.
Like a dog at a butcher.
Exactly.
I could get in there.
Could get a steak.
Yeah. I think McLaren are going to be strong here.
It's just about whether they can get in the mix,
but also execute a race.
I like not have a weird DNF or something like that.
So I'm sure reliability may be something they're concerned about,
if it is something that Mercedes is concerned about as well.
But pace wise, I think this could be a good weekend.
There's somewhere where I think both these drivers go well,
but Norris especially likes Austria, doesn't he?
So this could well be a strong weekend for him.
It feels like the team is playing catch up a little bit at the moment,
just based on, I don't think they've got an upgrade,
coming at least from what we've heard into this weekend very specifically.
They obviously had a tough start to the year, including pre-season.
And then even when they brought quite a large upgrade in Canada,
particularly relating to the front wing,
they had to take it off the car during that Canadian GP weekend,
didn't bother putting it back on for Monaco,
then did put it back on for Barcelona,
and they believe it's worked as expected three weekends later
than they thought it was going to.
So that could hurt them a little bit.
So I'm unlike Red Bull and Ferrari,
who have maybe gone for slightly more eye-catching big upgrades,
a couple of Grand Prix.
It sounds like, based on what Andrea Stella is saying,
they're going to go with a little bit more of a continuous improvement approach.
I think that might work in the long run,
but I don't know if in the short run that's going to quite get them there.
Yeah, it does work in the long run, I think.
Less risk, I believe.
If you've got a continuous improvement,
it stops you having one of these weekends where you bring eight upgrades,
as we've seen in the likes of Ferrari room before,
and going, six of these don't bloody work.
We've just spent loads of money on these and none of them work.
At least with McLaren, they could go with that M plate that we brought.
Yeah, it's annoying, but we'll just take it off again.
That is fine.
Bit annoying, isn't it?
Bit annoying.
Look at it.
Let her little scrub.
Get it off.
You don't work.
Get it out.
Yeah, I mean, they have been on the back foot all season, realistically.
On the back foot where it comes to the relationship with Mercedes,
it feels a lot more kind of cloak and dagger than it used to,
secret alleyways, and not understanding what's going on with the messaging,
the feedback, the problems with the car.
They even had that issue with the battery,
which it took them a whole other weekend to work out what was going on,
because the analytics have to come back from so far away.
It's so hard to understand for them to know what's going on
with the car when it's wrong.
And then they aren't creating the same level of chassis
that Mercedes is accusing as well.
And then it goes wrong in that sense with the upgrades as well.
So they're chipping away again.
But much like Red Bull, what's at the same extent?
They're still much like Red Bull.
It does feel like they're just on the back foot,
and they need something to really go their way.
And I do think that means something going wrong for the others
to allow them to basically get their foot back in the door.
Shall we, for the first time in quite a while, as a trio,
head to bold predictions?
Just an update for you, Harry, in the time you've been away.
There's been a lot of bold prediction action.
I've managed to extend my lead on you from zero to zero.
Oh, huge.
But Sam's got a couple right.
32
So it's 200
Yeah.
20
I believe is how it's said.
Yeah.
I've really used the time, the advantage that I've had on you
in that regard, to good effect.
I'm very proud of myself.
It's like when you play a kid, like Mario Kart,
you're like, yeah, you go for afterlap,
and I'll catch up with you, but you haven't caught up.
My control is not plugged in, though.
Yeah, your practice is wrung out.
It's all right.
You guys and producer Kersti are all way ahead of me
in a form of fantasy, so.
God, if it goes like that again for this one.
Also, that was a tough week after the moniker thing.
I've gone worse.
I've gone down again since the moniker day to standing.
I didn't look.
Bloody ghastly.
Bloody ghastly.
Harry, since you haven't done one of these in a while,
I'll let you go first.
What's your bold prediction?
No Mercedes on the podium.
Oof.
Not required for the bold element of the prediction, but why?
Couple of scrubs, aren't they, really?
Just rubbish.
Just rubbish.
That's real crap.
Don't know.
Maybe a DNF, like reliability in there.
Maybe Rossell has a Monaco-esque race.
I don't know.
I'm still annoyed that my bold prediction for Barcelona,
which was they would have contact and they would retire
Hamilton and Rosberg-esque from 10 years ago.
I'd still feel like that was on the cusp and it never quite came through.
Sam, can you extend your lead with this bold prediction?
I don't think so.
I don't think.
But I'm going to go with an Oli Behrman P6 or better.
I'm not going to ask a follow-up on that,
just because we are going to chat Hass after the break.
We are.
So it might well come up in that.
My bold prediction, I'm going back to the well.
It's been a couple of races, but I'm back.
It's going to happen.
Audi, top 10 finish for both drivers.
Come on!
The agent's the worst bit of the car.
This is a terrible choice.
No, it was fine last time out, apart from...
It's shut down because Lawson had to travel.
It's going to go great.
I like the idea of the Audi.
It's just like, no, I don't want to do that anymore.
Do banks say two in top tech?
Pour the car.
Cut the car.
They can't.
Well, I'm sure they can.
It can't go on like this.
It can.
The amount of times they have had the fifth fastest car
and then just not converted it.
One of these races at some point,
and it will be one where I don't predict it,
they are actually going to get it done.
So it won't be this one.
We'll see.
What about pole 123
Harry, we know there won't be any Mercedes
in the 123 section of your predictions.
What's it looking like?
Pole will be George Russell.
First will be Lewis Hamilton.
Second will be Lannan Orris.
And third will be Charlotte Claire.
Whoa.
Back-to-back Lewis Hamilton victories predicted by Harry Eid.
What have you got, Sam?
Pole, Charlotte Claire.
The wing, Charlotte Claire.
Second place, Lewis Hamilton.
Third will be Antonelli.
I'm kind of mashing your two predictions together
a little bit here, because on pole, I've got George Russell.
Taking the win, I've got Charlotte Claire.
Oh, no, no.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Second place, I've got Lewis Hamilton.
Third place, I've got George Russell.
What's Elita Kimi going?
He's a forfer.
Sorry, Italy.
Yeah. Again, what I predict usually ends up being wrong.
So actually, Italy's very happy about what I've said there.
Before we go to our next break, just a quick one.
We did mention this on Sunday's episode,
but just to mention it again, a bit of a rarity from us.
There won't be a qualifying review
for the Austrian GP on Saturday.
I hope you'll forgive us.
I think it's a pretty good reason.
Stack, stack, stack.
It is Harry Eid's stag do, and for whatever reason,
he has invited both myself and Sam to be there.
So it feels right to attend that.
If we did an episode that afternoon, it would be chaos.
We can't do a recording on that afternoon.
As mentioned there, we are doing go karting.
So there's some form of motorsport involved in the day.
True, very true.
What do you want from us?
The rest of the weekend won't be impacted.
By the way, we'll still be doing a race review on Sunday.
We'll be doing power rankings for those on Patreon on Monday.
So that is remaining unchanged,
but there won't be a qualifying review on Saturday.
And I cannot wait to read all the comments on Saturday
that say, where's the qualifying review?
Is it coming out yet?
And even though I know some of them will be sarcastic,
it'll still get me.
I know you're hearing with your ears, but are you listening?
We love you guys.
We love you.
We're going to go to our second break.
On the other side, we're chatting ass.
Welcome back, everyone.
Let's get into the midfield.
And I want to spend a bit of time on Haas.
And we spoke a little bit about Haas in the break
that we just had in a slightly different context.
Aya Kamatsu, after the Barcelona race,
was asked about the weekend that didn't go very well.
He said, this weekend, the car wasn't quick enough,
and I think operationally, we weren't good enough.
From day one this weekend, we didn't operate the level
we should be operating at,
and that has had a knock-on effect into today.
In the race, communication wasn't good enough.
Yes, the car needs to be improved and be faster,
but we're not getting the best out of it.
As a team, we need to look at ourselves
and improve very quickly.
A disgruntled Aya Kamatsu, Sam.
Yeah, I'm not sure that's going to cook up a taste
in the kitchen.
So hopefully he's got some fresh ingredients out there,
and he's kind of mixing something up.
My boy likes to cook.
Yeah, I think Haas could be better here.
Now, I'm not going to expect groundbreaking results,
and I must commit my bold prediction of Behrman in the top six
is a bold one indeed.
It's based on a lot of the fact that Haas's reliability
is actually stronger than a lot of the field,
and that comes because of the Ferrari power unit
that they've got there.
It tends to be treating them quite well.
Also, with the rumored engine upgrade,
if they receive this,
I think it could help them just a little bit.
And Haas's downfall is aerodynamic.
They're struggling with longer-form corners.
Now, that plays a very small part of this Austrian racetrack.
So if they can qualify well, Behrman,
probably not Archon, sorry, Ben,
then I do think that they might actually achieve
a little bit more than they did in Barcelona.
I still think it's an uphill battle,
but I do think that overall,
this is going to be a better result
because they were pretty woeful in Barcelona.
But that is partially because I think the track,
especially the middle part,
just did not suit the characteristics of the car.
Can they do anything about Alpine racing bulls here, Harry?
Yeah, I'm a Sam.
I think this will be a better weekend for Haas.
They seem to, and obviously, come out to say,
executionally, they weren't great in Barcelona,
but they do seem to have a bit of an up-and-down season
on pace or execution of races, etc.
So it's one of those.
I mean, the midfield, as ever, is still pretty tight
and form seems to fluctuate quite a lot.
But if they can just pull together a good weekend,
I think they can get a strong result here.
But yeah, it's kind of reliability,
like you said, Sam's going to be a factor pace-wise.
Maybe they won't be the quickest still,
but if they can just be in the mix,
who knows what can happen.
They started the year very well.
It's almost as if, and it's not been overnight,
but it's turned sour for them.
It just seems to be a gradual reduction back down
to wherever they sit at the moment, 9th or 8th.
It's almost as if they took a shower
at the beginning of the season,
and they smell really good,
and they just haven't taken a shower since.
It's not like one day the smell's going to hit you,
but over time, it's going to make an impact.
And I promise that's not related to current,
very hot conditions at all.
Ocon's put his hand up in class,
and you've just, oh, hang on.
I ain't never experienced that before.
Don't do my boy Ocon like that.
He's been a bit wiffy, mate.
Yeah, but to be fair to the rest of the midfield,
and I'm specifically talking Alpine and Racing Bulls here,
and not Audi,
they have done a very good job in the last couple of races
of maximising what they've got available to them.
Alpine have been consistently okay kind of everywhere,
and credit to them.
They've been top seven in every Grand Prix this year,
which for a midfield team is pretty good going.
Racing Bulls, and this is a stat that doesn't feel right,
but somehow is.
In the last two races, so Monaco and Barcelona,
the only team to have scored points with both drivers
is Racing Bulls, and credit to it.
It's a pretty consistent lineup at this point in the year,
which I'm not sure we were banking on at the beginning of the season
with Lawson.
His form is kind of a bit up and down coming into 2026.
Limblad, of course, the only rookie on the grid,
and yet both of them seem to be doing a really reasonable job right now.
Where it leaves Haas is quite a few points down
on both of them in the championship,
but they've even been maybe a bit lucky, Haas,
that Williams have kind of gone back a little bit
in the last couple of races,
because otherwise they might well be ahead
of Haas in the championship as well.
17 points in the first two races for the team.
They've had four in the last five,
that probably speaks volumes.
And whilst the pace isn't there in race trim,
I think the bigger issue at the moment is that qualifying pace.
Let's have a look at the average grid positions for both drivers.
Bearman is 14.57, so on average,
getting out of Q1, but only just.
Ocon is 14.71.
It's, they're basically exact.
Night day, ain't it?
Night day, how baggy is?
Yeah, Bearman is a full 0.014 ahead of Ocon.
Destroying him.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
I think that indicates that this is again a bit of a Haas issue,
that both of them don't seem to be able to get much from it on a Saturday.
So until they solve that,
maybe this is the weekend they start to do so,
it's tough to see them competing with the rest of the midfield, I think.
Yeah, I think they need to be careful, you know, looking over their shoulder.
You said about Williams, I think they'll have much better Grand Prix
than they did at Barcelona.
James Vowles was really quite disgruntled about how the car was performing.
They had the issue with the camera falling into the car,
Albin wasn't performing anyway, wasn't great.
The science is kind of keeping that float at the moment.
But it is only a matter of time, I think,
as well until Audi actually properly turn up.
They could deliver a whole weekend.
I know we joke about it, but they do have okay pace from midfield car.
Morgaco was good.
They just couldn't really turn it into something,
and there were glimmers of something being good at Barcelona.
You saw Holgerberg chasing down Lawson until the kill switch
was fully engaged by a pebble.
It just feels like, if Haas aren't careful,
that will slip from being in front of these two,
to very quickly behind them both.
What do you think about Sumen by operationally not good enough?
Did they have a very slow pit stop in Barcelona?
I feel like Bearman had a slow stop.
Might well have done.
Yeah.
Maybe some was wrong with the kitchen when he was cooking.
Oh, yeah, me too.
I got no gas.
There he said.
I'm going to have to go get some wood.
Yeah, I was, because he doesn't address it directly, does it?
You're a commasso.
It must be that.
I'm assuming they're just going to actually hire some more people
and spend up to the cost cap,
because they're running on bloody fumes out there.
This is just a pleat-a-gene.
This is all this is.
A pleat-a-gene, such a great album title.
Are you commasso with this failure album?
A pleat-a-gene!
I mean, he's already been singing that multiple times.
Yeah, I was wondering whether it was something to do with the setup of the car.
I know they had some issues with tire wear,
particularly on Ocon's side of the car,
in that they didn't feel very happy about the setup
that they'd gone with from sort of FP2 fruit to Grand Prix.
I don't know if it was a bit of a shot at,
whether it's Ocon or the team to be like,
in terms of communicating what they need from a setup,
not being able to do it as effectively as they possibly could, I don't know.
Mysterious from art.
Indeed.
Who do you think is winning the midfield scrap, Harry?
What in the season?
This weekend, specifically,
if you had to pick a driver, let's say, rather than a team.
Pierre Gasly.
He's doing the business, isn't he?
He's doing the business,
despite what I said about his running my fantasy,
or making it worse.
Yeah, Gasly's been on top form,
I mean, he's been on top form really for the past couple of years,
but he couldn't show it last year.
Yeah, give him a car that's good enough,
and Gasly will deliver.
So I'd place my safe money on him,
not that I've got any safe money.
I was thinking a bit about the sort of midfield scrap, Sam,
and thinking, with qualifying in Barcelona,
how important it was in that Lawson managed to outqualify Lindblad,
and Lindblad, whilst he did a very good job on it,
was kind of on that weird strategy
that I don't think he would have been on if he had made it to Q3.
Similar to Audi, again, Bortoletto,
dropped back a couple of positions off of not getting to Q3.
Suddenly, he's behind a Hass and can't really take advantage of it.
It feels like that scrap to get essentially two cars
that can get through to Q3 from the midfield.
It's really important that these teams nail that Q2 session
to make sure it's them.
Yeah, I agree. That's why I think it's Max Verstappen
who's winning the midfield battle.
Oof.
Oof, size large.
Second time again.
I mean, he is only 14 points clear up here, Gasly,
who actually splits the two Red Bulls in the standings.
Yeah, in the standings.
Gasly's seven clear of haggle right now.
So the gulf is not that wide, I'm afraid, Red Bull fans.
I know that's really difficult to hear,
and Red Bull have been struggling,
but Gasly is doing the business.
He's turning up nine to five,
he's clocking out on time, and he's getting it done,
and getting it done consistently enough that Liam Lawson,
who you argue is actually the next closest contender,
is 13 points back.
13 points in the midfield right now is really hard to score.
That's going to be, I think, four or five draw
and pre-finishing seventh, eighth, ninth.
If you can gank it, if Gasly isn't there.
You need another Monaco where there's a lot of DSFs.
You need some crazy penalty race or something,
or you need to be the guy who gets that lucky third or fourth,
which happens maybe once or twice in a season.
It's tricky to overturn that.
It is between Gasly and Lawson,
and I think that Gasly's just got that quality,
despite this being by far Lawson's greatest few races.
I think he's really stepped up.
I want to praise Liam Lawson.
I think he's really come into his own this season,
after I did give him a bit, a little bit of a stick very recently.
You can have it, you of course.
I think you're biased for Lawson.
Do you think so?
Yeah, yeah.
And the people in the comments agree.
This is great to hear.
Yeah, consistently, actually.
It's always the problem.
Glad that I swayed the public opinion.
Far from that.
It's me, Gasly.
Okay, good answer.
Under pressure.
Harry, who or what is under pressure?
I am going for Charlotte Clare.
It's quite an easy one,
but the boy needs a good weekend, doesn't he?
He just needs my boy.
My boy.
My boy, my boy.
Centric Le Clare.
Centric Le Clare.
Can't be a thing.
He's dead.
Harry Potter is dead.
Two different things.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
We'll stop misquoting Potter.
Yeah, okay.
Go for Charlotte Clare.
He needs just a solid good weekend,
one that's not in a barrier at any point.
Ideally.
You know, that'd be good.
Write that in the book.
Sam, who or what is under pressure?
I'm going Alex Albin for this one.
Okay.
He's only a point behind Carlos Sainz in the standings,
but it does feel like there is a big of a gap
in what they're able to muster up in that Williams right now.
I do think that this track will suit Williams a little more
than what we saw at Barcelona.
I expect them to be more competitive
in that midfield battle.
I do think there might be a point or two up for grabs for them
with that Mercedes power unit coming into play,
especially if the weight can keep coming off that car.
But Albin has been struggling.
He's regularly behind Sainz quite comfortably.
Barcelona, I think, was worrying.
So the book where, Ben,
I think you mentioned this a few episodes ago.
You said that you think that we've basically found paraphrasing,
that you found Albin's limit,
and that Sainz is that first proper challenge,
and Albin's comfortable.
They can't really seem to overturn him,
and maybe that is starting to come true.
So I think Albin needs a bit of a result.
I'm going to go with a team.
I'm going to go with Red Bull.
I think that upgrade is absolutely massive,
and it's not just for this season.
Again, we've spoken about how those are duo upgrades.
They are coming for the other teams.
They're not going to be coming for Red Bull.
If they don't go very far in terms of this upgrade,
and Verstappen is looking at the situation
as it is in F1 at the moment,
it still hangs in the balance
as to what his future looks like.
It could be quite important in that regard.
What do you think we'll know?
This is one of those things that's going to go on and on and on.
Do you remember when Mercedes still had the sign,
Lewis Hamilton, and it was like testing was about to start?
It was February.
Are you here, Lewis?
I don't know, man.
Where am I going, man?
He will, man.
He's got a race.
At that point, you had Esteban Gutierrez in the pits like,
come on, come on.
It's my turn.
Stay there, I'm not going to go.
I don't know what the axe is for.
It's American, man.
But he's Mexican.
Lewis is saying it.
Oh, right.
I thought Gutierrez was saying it.
Okay.
Okay.
Oh, it's still hot to laugh at this man.
Esteban wouldn't struggle in this thing.
I fear a lot of the last 10 minutes is just utterly unusable.
We're back.
Are we so back again?
We're going to take our final break.
On the other side, it is the proper return of back and forth.
Yes!
Welcome back, everyone, to the final part of today's preview for the Austrian GP.
We've just got time to play F1 back and forth.
F1, back and forth, it's F1.
Back and forth, it goes backwards.
Then goes forth, it's F1.
Back and forth, F1.
It feels so good to be back and forth.
Very good.
Well done, both of you.
Yes, the actual proper return of back and forth,
where Harry and Sam will have to give correct answers to a certain question,
until one of them can't think of a correct answer, or gives an incorrect answer.
Today, there are 16 correct answers to this question.
I want you to name the 16 circuits that Lando Norris has had at least two podiums at.
Two.
Yes, two, and there are 16 of them out there.
I'll give you two strikes each on this one as well.
So, we will start with Sam.
I will go for Austria.
Seems like an appropriate place to start, and it's absolutely right.
Red Bull Ring 2020, 2021, and 2025.
Should also mention as well, I am looking for circuits here,
so even if they've had different Grand Prix names, it all counts under the same name.
Spielberg.
Yes.
Harry.
I will go for Monaco.
Monaco is a correct answer.
If I can find it on the list.
Yes, there it is.
Exactly two podiums.
2021, and of course the win that he took there last year, 2025.
Sam, back to you.
I'm going to go for Imola.
Imola, the only circuit that he's managed to get a podium at four times,
which is pretty impressive, given he's only raced there five times.
2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025.
Harry, back to you.
Silverstone.
Silverstone is a correct answer.
In each of the last three years, 2023, 2024, and of course a victory last year, 2025.
Sam.
Barcelona.
Barcelona is a correct answer as of last weekend.
That number is also three in the last three years as well, 24, 25, and 26.
Harry.
Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi is a correct answer twice there in 2024 and in 2025.
Of course, winning the race in 2024, winning the championship there with a third place in 2025.
Sam.
Miami.
Miami, a correct answer.
Another one where he's got three in each of the last three seasons,
including his first ever victory.
Harry.
Monza.
Monza is a correct answer.
Again, three times a winner, podium sitter there.
2021, of course, which his teammate crossed the line to win,
but then has also had podiums there the last two years, 24 and 25.
Sam.
Suzuka.
Suzuka, correct answer, 23 and 25.
Harry.
Bahrain.
Bahrain is not a correct answer.
He's only had one podium there.
All right.
So we've had our first strike.
Sam, back to you.
Did Harry say the hungara ring?
Harry has not said the hungara ring?
I will go with the hungara ring.
And a good choice that is.
Three times he's had a podium there, again, in each of the last three seasons.
Harry.
Spa.
Spa is not a correct answer.
Oh, dear.
Again, he has had a podium there, but just the one.
Wow, how many strikes we got?
That was your last one.
You've had.
You've had your two.
Crikey.
Sam, back to you.
It's free balling, I suppose.
Another one.
Harry's got one more until he's out.
Oh, Austin, I will go for.
Austin is a correct answer.
Yes, twice, which we've had the pleasure of seeing both of these 2023 and 2025.
Harry.
Zambor.
Zambor.
You've done a very good job here of picking out the circuits
that he has exactly won a podium at.
A very strange one in that he's won there,
but he hasn't actually had any podium in second or third there.
So, Sam, you are the winner of back and forth.
There were another five answers out there, if you want to have a go at any of them.
Qatar.
Qatar, only one podium there.
Damn it.
Shanghai.
Shanghai, two podiums there.
Yes, in 2024 and 2025.
Australia, Melbourne.
Yes, same two years.
Mexico.
Mexico.
Same two years as well or a man out.
Gosh.
That might be me done.
The other two on the list were Interlagos.
He's got two podiums there.
And Singapore.
He's had three podiums.
Oh, of course.
The other, because you named four of the five places that he's had one podium at.
The only other one he's had one podium at is Montreal.
And for those of you that might be interested,
the circuit he's been to the most where he has no podiums at all is Baku.
Before we get out of here, we've just got time for one more thing,
which is, of course, the greatest segment in all of podcasting.
It is the LB question of the week.
Week.
Oh, it hits.
Oh, it slaps.
LB question of the week.
Thank you for everyone who put their answers in on both Instagram and on X.
We went with, after the success in Spain,
what's the most Ferrari way possible to follow it up in Austria?
I'm going to kick start this one with that Mikey's Mikey chap who's saying
a Sherlock-er contract exception to 2038.
You can't be out here in public saying this sort of thing,
because he reads it and he will go, that's a great idea.
Wait, that's possible.
More pain.
Obi-John Kenobi on Instagram says that they'll bring back Ricky.
Ricky.
Oh, hello.
Oh, hello.
Oh, hello.
Oh.
Amanda's gone with, if a three-stop worked in Spain, let's do it again.
They just don't, they don't care about tyre wear anymore.
They will just go, we did a three-stop and it worked.
We're going to do it again.
That's how life works now for us.
Yes.
Sparkles, Kendra said they line up 12
but don't realize they've misread and turn up to Australia instead of Austria.
Can see it.
It could happen.
It could happen.
Drew Davis on Instagram says they are too sleepy
to drive due to the spaghetti dinner ladies for the car barry.
No.
I read that and immediately scroll past it.
That is dreadful.
Well done.
Another one from me from Michael.
Yeah, Lewis, we want you to box for wets.
What?
It's not even raining.
From mango.
Obviously, I think that is a quote from our jingle.
He's not even in the race.
Yeah, that's it.
That is it.
Boulding by 40.
I don't know how that feels.
Qualify 1-2, then get group penalty to start 11-12.
I don't finish the rate.
I think six and seven.
Oscar Van de Poel is utilising the new feature on Instagram where you can leave photos and comments.
It's just on the screenshot of Fro's post from last year
where it says, taking away the most points from Austria would be three people.
I've forgotten about that.
That doesn't make any sense.
Oh, I've forgotten about that.
You need a wing to do that.
Oh, that was great.
Speaking of triumphs in previous years, I've gone with Sunil's answer here that I've left.
Decide to give their Canada 2024 upgrade another shot to see if it works this time.
Keep trying Ferrari.
My last one is from Buku City Edition, who's saying,
four stopper, an extra one for good luck.
That's how it works.
Last one for me.
A couple of these have actually come up.
This one's from Jay Dradi on Instagram saying,
the person with the blue thing will summon the rain godson or stay godson.
Leave him at home.
Blue thing guy.
Come on, bring it back.
Not the blue thing guy.
Last one for me is from Jorge on Twitter.
Their ado upgrade will be so good that their engine will catch fire during the race.
Oh, that will actually happen.
Yeah, right.
Thank you again to everyone who completed their answers on both Instagram and on Twitter.
It's very much appreciated.
We'll be back with another question of the week very soon.
Again, we're not going to be back on Saturday,
but we are going to be back on Sunday, Sam, for the race review.
Yeah, I've got to watch it rather than Harry's back.
I thought it could be fun.
Okay.
Oh, hell yeah.
I've had this one cooking for a little while as well.
It's been brewing.
It's been brewing.
I thought I'll save it for him.
The year may be it's risen.
Kamatsu has been working on it for me in the kitchen.
Right.
Would you rather accept 10 years in prison flat out?
No early parole.
You've got to serve all 10 years and then you're free to go.
How long you got to spend in prison, but your parent of your choosing
has to wing the F1 title on the hardest difficulty with simulation damage on the game
in one season.
And they can repeat as many times as they want.
And when they wing it, you get out.
Oh, man.
What takes longer?
That parent winging?
I'll take the 10 years, man.
There's no chance my dad's getting that done.
Can you give your mother a 10?
I'll see you in 10.
I've got faith in your mother.
You can do it.
I think my parents could crack it.
The thing is, in that situation, I'm paying a sim racer to coach there.
Well, that wasn't part of the would you rather.
Why can't it be?
Your mum got to learn.
Yeah, from an expert.
Fair enough.
Fair enough.
Let me know in the comments, what would you do?
Commit to the 10 years or can that parent step up?
Wow.
Any other part of the outro?
That raises other bits.
Yeah, I suppose I should do them before I melt.
Thank you for listening, of course.
It's good to have the three of us back on the show.
It's always delight.
Is it?
No, actually, it's not.
Go back.
Tell her I'll go back.
Don't care which one of you goes.
Just make sure at least one of you.
Who only?
Too many crap jokes in this episode.
Discord is available.
Now, we won't be there on the weekend on Saturdays.
Make sure for Sunday, back in the Discord,
full race review, chatter as we go.
So, it'd be lovely to chat with you, meet with you.
And if you want to get on the submissions,
that's the place you do it as well.
Patrons available and follow us on social media,
late breaking, F1 everywhere.
We'll see you then in the meantime.
I've been Samuel Sage.
I've been Ben Hawking.
And I've been Hermano.
And I remember.
Keep breaking late.
Man.
Love you, Hermanos.
About this episode
The Late Braking F1 Podcast sets up the 2026 Austrian GP with a quick track primer on the Red Bull Ring—short, fast, and usually good for overtaking—before centering Ferrari’s bid to repeat a win. The hosts weigh Ferrari’s straight-line struggles against an engine upgrade and the impact of heat, tires, and hybrid energy recovery. They also look at Red Bull’s upgrade limits, Mercedes’ battery worries, and the tight margins where “a 10th of a second” can swing outcomes.
The LB boys are back as a THREEE to preview all the action at the Red Bull Ring, discussing whether Ferrari can make it two wins in a row, if Antonelli can bounce back, and whether Red Bull’s latest upgrades could help them secure a podium on home soil...
