Formula Fanatics #7 - Canada, Monaco and Spain!
BREAK/FIX the Motorsports & Vehicle Enthusiast Variety Show
Formula Fanatics #7 - Canada, Monaco and Spain!
BREAK/FIX the Motorsports & Vehicle Enthusiast Variety Show · Jul 2, 2026
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Term
Tifoso
A super-fan of the Ferrari Formula 1 team. It comes from an Italian word that jokingly compares being a Ferrari fan to having a highly contagious fever.
Person
Kimi Antonelli
A young Italian racing prodigy who was fast-tracked into Formula 1 by Mercedes. He is considered one of the next big superstars of the sport.
Person
George Russell
A fast British Formula 1 driver who races for the Mercedes team, known for being very quick in qualifying sessions.
Term
intermediates
Special tires used in Formula 1 when it's raining lightly or the track is wet but drying. They have grooves to push water away so the car doesn't slide around.
Place
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve
The race track in Montreal where the Canadian Grand Prix is held. It's built on a man-made island in the middle of a river and is famous for being very fast and narrow.
Person
Lewis Hamilton
One of the greatest race car drivers of all time, who has won the Formula 1 World Championship seven times.
Term
Balance of Performance
A system used in some racing series to make sure no single car model is too much faster than the others by adding weight or restricting power to the fastest cars.
Term
Drag Reduction System
A button F1 drivers can press to open a flap on their rear wing. This reduces wind resistance and gives them a temporary speed boost to help pass other cars.
Topic
Monaco Grand Prix
A famous Formula 1 race held on the narrow, winding public streets of Monaco. It is known for being incredibly difficult to pass other cars, making qualifying extremely important.
Car
Ford Focus
A very common compact hatchback made by Ford. The hosts make a joke that a multi-million dollar Formula 1 engine is using cheap electronics from this everyday family car.
Person
Flavio Briatore
A famous and controversial former Formula 1 team boss who helped lead teams to championships in the 1990s and 2000s.
Part
kill switch
An emergency button on the outside of a race car that instantly turns off the engine and all electricity. It's there so safety workers can safely shut down a crashed car from the outside.
Car
Ford F-150 Lightning
The Ford F-150 Lightning is a large pickup truck made by Ford that runs entirely on electricity instead of gasoline. It looks and functions like a standard truck but is powered by a large battery pack that you plug in to charge.
Concept
Triple Crown of Motorsport
A legendary achievement in racing where a driver wins three of the biggest races in the world: the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indianapolis 500, and the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Only one driver has ever done it.
Concept
silly season
The time of year in Formula 1 when everyone gossips and negotiates about which drivers will switch teams or get fired for the next season.
Car
Nissan Z
A famous line of Japanese sports cars made by Nissan that started in the late 1960s. They are known for being fun, rear-wheel-drive cars with powerful engines.
LIVE
Welcome to Formula Fanatics, the high-octane, sub-series of break-fix podcasts, drive-through motorsports news.
This is your pit stop for all things Formula One, from braking headlines and race recaps,
to insider analysis and paddock buzz. Whether you're a die-hard Tifoso, a Red Bull loyalist,
or just love the thrill of wheel-to-wheel racing, we've got you covered with up-to-date F1 news
delivered at full throttle. Strap in because the lights are out and we're underway. This is Formula
Fanatics. So Formula One Fanatics. Yeah, when we recorded the last drive-through, we were right
on the heels of the Canadian Grand Prix happening. So it feels like a millennia ago that the Canadian
Grand Prix happened.
Montreal, the first time we had a sprint race in Canada. It was exciting. I did not watch that one.
You didn't watch the Canadian Grand Prix? I didn't watch the sprint race. Oh, I did. It was great.
First stop was in seventh. There's Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes. Stroll didn't start. He had a front-right
issue. Kimmy had a great start. Thank God. The first time in a very long time. Hülkenberg went from
11th to 15th and then he went lawn mowing. It became a battle between Russell and Antonelli. I
mean, Canada was the race where it looked like Forza and the sprint race and the race race were
no different from another. The sprint race was just a compact version of mowing the lawn, jumping the
curbs. Antonelli and Russell going at it. Hopefully not trying to kill each other. And at the same
token, it ended with a bunch of more Forza moves and it was Russell, Lando, and Kimmy due to some
mistakes. So Kimmy kind of gave up the sprint race. Oh, in the sprint race? Yes, in the sprint race.
In the race race, I wrote down colder track temperatures than the sprint and a little bit of
rain. So that made track conditions very different the next day. And that meant piaustry starting
on intermediates. That's right. Both McLaren did. It was the dumbest strategy ever. Buffoonery.
Was nobody reading the weather report? I mean, the Vilniuv track is not Lamar. It's not eight and a
half miles around that on one side of it, it could be raining. On the other side of it, it's going to
be dry. It's a freaking potato and it's like two miles long. Whatever they're thinking. It took a
gamble. It did not work. No, it didn't. And then we had this whole extra formation lap chaos because
there was a problem with Linblad. So then the race was basically delayed, but they're doing like
parade laps around the, I felt like we did the first five laps at like 20 miles an hour. We just
kept reforming the race to have a better start. And then that allowed Lando to change his tires.
And then Oscar like drops like way back. This is Bonoto's genius. And the Audi's also started
on intermediates. That's right. Maybe he thought it was raining where he was because he was crying
so much his eyes were wet. He's like, oh, he sucks so bad. Get better, dude. There's solid in the middle.
They're solidly sucking. I'm out of the middle. They're so terrible. But Lando ends up in the pits,
which gives Kimmy the lead. Kimmy and Russell are back at it again. It was a, Canada was an
exciting race. It really was like, it was cartoony and it was Forza like everything you
wanted last year's Formula One race to be between Piazzarri and Lando, which didn't happen, although
Lando's goofy move that he tried to pull. Russell holds onto the lead. There's like a ton of back
and forth. And then I wrote down lap 31, he cuts the turn and abandons the race WTF. And that's the
moment where I thought, because Kimmy got around him, that he was just having a temper tantrum
and he shut the car off and decided I'm done. I'm going home. And he like died in the worst spot.
But apparently there was like an issue with the car. Like the motor just went boom. And that was
the end of it. But he did throw a temper tantrum because then he got, he got a find for it. Did he?
I didn't know that. Yeah, I believe he got a fine. Yeah, he was fine. Was that for swearing on
television? Is that what that was for? That was for throwing his stuff onto the track like a child.
That's right. That's right. I do remember that. Yeah. And then Lando has a gearbox problem. So
that that McLaren's out. Piazzari ends up with a penalty because of Albin. And then Perez suddenly
goes out as the front suspension just disintegrates. That was wild. He's just like going along. It's
like, boop, there goes the whole front end. You're like, wait, what the hell was that wild?
LeClaire has a code brown moment. Hulkenberg spins and the race ends with Hamilton on the podium.
So it's Antonelli, Hamilton and Verstappen. And I wrote down Cadillac is hot trash.
Botas was 45 seconds behind Stroll who was a lap down. Hot garbage. Yeah. You're glossing over.
Am I something? What? What? What? Tell me. Hamilton on the podium. That was his second
time on the podium. Yeah. Weren't you the one who said he was washed up? He should hang it up.
He's too old. He should give up racing. He should go back to basket weaving or whatever the hell and
hang out with Kim Kardashian and steal towels and do all that other crap. Is he stealing towels for
real? She did. No. Are you serious? She stole Kim Antonelli's towel because he sprayed champagne
in her eye. This time it was champagne. Oh. So she's so he did. There's a whole meme about there's
a whole Antonelli responds with a whole video of like, Hey, have you seen my towel? Oh my God.
I didn't know about it. See, I don't. This is why I would get sucked down such a rabbit hole
if I spent any more time on social media. I missed all of that stuff. And then she gifted him a
special towel. This is here especially for you or something like that. Yeah. There's a whole thing.
You missed the whole thing. Is that because you follow her on Instagram? Is that what it is?
I mean, I wouldn't have seen any of this stuff. No. It's because I follow Antonelli and like
what the F1 and stuff like that. Got it. Okay. But Hamilton on the podium,
but he's washed up. He should give he should hang it up. He's terrible. He's just like Alonzo.
Blah, blah, blah. There are three people that should retire. And that's Alonzo, Hulkenberg,
and Hamilton. I believe Hamilton is is he second in points in the championship now? Or is he still
third? I thought he was ahead of Russell now. Yes, he's second. He's second in championship
points. Driver's championship. As of Spain, but he's not going to catch Kimmy. There's no way.
He's actually a lot closer than you think. I think he's only like 70 points away.
There's a lot of season left. There's a lot of races left and hopefully ladies reliability.
Ferrari is getting upgrades too. He's 40 points, 41 points behind. Yeah, he's only 41 points away.
That's two races. If Kimmy gets a DNF, it ain't over yet. No, it's a long way to go. And then,
and then yeah, I believe both Ferraris are getting two upgrades. They're getting upgrades too. BOP,
baby. That's the mid season change, right? They're allowed to do like a bunch of stuff
for like the halfway point, right? I think this is all coming off of some rule changes that they
made because of the issues at the beginning of the season. Right. Which as of Canada, despite the
antics, I feel like that break we had because of the excursion that we were having or still,
I don't know what the heck's going on with that either anymore. The Middle East races were cancelled.
So we all had all that time for Kimmy to practice his launches and everything. I feel like they
figured some stuff out, rebalanced the power and not a BOP thing, but balanced the power
distribution with the hybrid system because the racing feels a little bit more like last years.
They did it after, they didn't do it then. They did it after the near horrific wreck of Beerman.
Yeah. So after Suzuka. No, he did wreck, but like when he crashed trying to avoid the huge
difference in speed, I was after those two cancelled races, I thought. Yeah, I think that was after
Miami. But yes, they did rebalance things as a result of that incident. So now you don't see
anymore the weird Mario Karting. It's less Mario Kart passing. It's more subtle. Yeah. There's
definitely a turbo boost, more like DRS kind of thing going on, which is, you know, I think we're
all used to that. But the way it was before was just ridiculous. Yeah. The racing I feel has
definitely gotten better. For sure. It's definitely more palatable now. And stroll still sucks.
That dude's never getting any better. So Canada, any more hot takes on Canada?
I do love the fact that Canada, and I quote, is shaped like a potato.
It looks like it a, okay, I'll take it back. It looks like a croissant.
A croissant croissant because it's in French, Quebec, Montreal, French Canada. So it looks like
a croissant. How do you say potato in French? I know frites or fries other than that. I don't
I don't think I'll raw frites. Yeah, right. But if you look, so actually you can, I think we talked
about this before Tanya and I a couple of years ago, we went up to visit some relatives in Montreal,
and we took an afternoon to go over to circuit to Gévanu, and you can drive it. It's open
every day of the week. It's a park, and it goes around the casino and all this kind of stuff.
You can drive it with your car as long as you stay out of the way of the pedestrians. Everything
is there, you know, the curbs and all the kind of stuff. It's not that long. It's like 2.4 miles.
It's like driving NJMP or summit point. It's like, it's very tight. It's very small. There's not a
lot of runoff space. And if you look at its shape from above, I mean, yes, it's an island, but I
call it a potato because it's like, it's just like a little potato. But you know, croissant, sorry,
it looks like a croissant. It's not that exciting. It's one of those legacy tracks, like you have
to run it. But then there's legacy tracks like the next one. Yeah, like the funeral procession.
God, Monaco. Why do we still race at Monaco tradition? Monaco should be Formula One classic.
Like I feel like they should all be given 1970s era Formula One cars and then go race
and do like a classic thing to just go isn't racing glamorous like it was in the old days.
Because the new cars, even these new shorter cars are still too big to go around that track. It's
pathetic. Like watching their hand movements, the amount of like full lock they have to give it to
go around the hairpin and stuff. It's just wild. And the car barely gets through there and they're
just crawling at like 20 miles an hour. It's awful. They should do Monaco and go carts.
That would be exciting too. Get rid of these Formula cars for Monaco or just do Monaco,
but do it in a special way and make them run it on foot. Valetary Bottas would love their bicycles,
right? He'd love that. We all know that Monaco is where you qualify finish. Pretty
much how it is. And as Sam said to me when we were talking about it, he goes, what are you talking
about, man? The qualifying is the racing. There is no race. And I'm like, yeah, that's very true too.
So I call it a funeral procession because it is, they're just like doing parade laps and there's
zero passing and you know, it is what it is. So qualifying, Antonelli, Verstappen, Hamilton,
Leclerc, except we broke the rule this year. You didn't finish where you started because Verstappen
stalls right off the line. It just basically goes off into the sun. He was out before the first
corner because the Ford is unreliable. That's sad. Surprise, surprise. I just hope that they're not
using that motor as their test motor for their entry into Le Mans next year. They're using
the same electronics as the Focus. That makes a lot more sense. But this was another race where
half a dozen people DNF'd. All these false starts like Russell had a false start and then presence
up with a stop and go penalty. And then you compound that with all of the pit speed limit
penalties that everybody was receiving. I was like, after like the second one, I think I would have
gotten a little like suspicious. But after like the eighth one, it's like, come on guys. Like,
I think we have a problem here. Lando was eighth for the longest time. Then he reports a bunch of
misfires and then he's out on like lap 45. That was like, unimpressive. McLaren out another race.
They were out in Canada. They're out here. I did think it was cool that Audi changed their
livery to yellow instead of red. So they stood out a little bit more. I think they should have
stayed with that because they went back to the red once we went to Spain. So that was kind of cool.
And one thing I love to comment on as we were watching the Monaco race, Russell had come over
the radio and he was talking about how he could see Hadjars tires. He's like freaking Superman.
He's got like X-ray vision. I don't know how you can see anything when you're two car links behind
him. What are you talking about? I can see his front tires. He's like, Hadjars front tires are
degrading. Blah, blah, blah, blah. I'm like, he wasn't wrong. He wasn't. But you know what?
Mad props to Hadjar because he toughed it out for as long as he could. And he was doing everything
he could to stay in front of Russell and keep him there as much as possible with those quote,
unquote degrading tires. What happened to Russell in this race? There was a drama with that too.
He had a double penalty. He was issued a penalty. He didn't serve it. And then he said that he served
it because he red flagged the race. And then he was like crawling into the pits and he's like,
see how much time I wasted because Kimmy was in the box. I served my penalty. These are not the
Jedi that you're looking for. No. That's not how they work, bro. So then they slammed him with
another penalty. So at that point he was done. I was like, bro, I would have parked it. I would
have been like, I'm out. Like who cares? I'm not getting points for this race anyway. I'm double
penalized. Just parked the car and saved the motor. So then I got Botas. Monica was like a
test and tune day for Cadillac. I think every race is a test and tune day for Cadillac. I think
you're right. It perused with all his stop and go penalties. It was insane. And then Botas over the
radio, we need to cool the car and box. I'm out. I'm done. And like the next scene, they're out
there, you know, racing around and Botas is like up in the stands like, what's up guys? Do it is
Botas thinking. I'm like, oh my God. So then beerman's out. Hamilton gets a five second speeding
in the pit penalty. Russell gets his first speeding in the pit penalty. And then like I said, like
68 other people end up with speeding in the pit penalties. And apparently this had to do
with the way they measure the length of the pit lane from one end to the other. And because Cadillac
had the extra box, it changed the dimensions. But then people were like cutting off the corner or
they were cutting off the entry because of the extra box. The way they explained it didn't make a
ton of sense. But apparently that discrepancy of the length of the pit stalls or whatever was
making everybody get these penalties. And I'm like, whatever. I don't know. But then it was said
that that was happening in the qualifying two. So they should have known that already. But they
should have already adjusted for it by the time they got to the race, right? Come on. Come on,
Formula one, you can do better than this. So Hajar has issues with the Red Bull outside of the tires.
And I think the best part of this race, other than Lance Stroll wrecking on lap 60, which then
caused Leclerc to wreck after that because then the track was falling apart and they red flagged it,
is amidst all of this. And this is why I say Russell should have parked the car. Kimmy laps him at
Monaco, a track that is famous for not being able to pass people. Kimmy ends up lapping him.
It's like, I was like, the man, the man, lap of the gods right there. Passing Russell. So again,
Russell, his whole penalty, shenanigans, Leclerc wrecks on the restart right in the same exact spot
where Stroll wrecked. What a horrible patch job they did in that corner. I mean, it's like,
did they just go like to Home Depot, get like a bucket and pour it on the track and like sweep it
in and say, I got some sealer on here. It's good. It looks black to me. It's literally falling apart.
The race was red flagged on lap 68. And they had 10 laps to go at the end. So it was like,
so it was sort of like Monaco had a sprint at the end, which was kind of cool. So standing start
on lap 70. And in the end, Kimmy dropped the clutch and dumped it and went and he ends up
winning the Monaco Grand Prix. So there's another win for Kimmy. Awesome. It was stressful knowing
that there was a restart. Yeah, I did not. I wanted a rolling from a stop. From a standing start.
I want a rolling restart. Standing start is like Kimmy's Achilles heel, right? I mean, terrible.
Surprised Perez didn't get another stop and go penalty. I will say, most exciting Monaco race
in a very long time, like most exciting Canadian GP in history, as far as I'm concerned. So super
cool. And then we talked about this on the other episode, talking about how La Ma weekend was a
little men and this and that. And it was, you know, not it's traditionally on Father's Day,
but it was the same weekend as the Spanish Grand Prix.
Then I thought to myself, I put on my tin foil hat yet again, Brad. And I said,
I wonder if they scheduled the Spanish GP same weekend as La Ma. That way, Formula One drivers
can't ever schedule to go race La Ma. I think you might be reading a little too much into the tea
leaves. I mean, it's not usually, they don't usually have a race on the same weekends.
Correct. It's to stop Max from going to do La Ma. They put him on the same weekend, right?
Because then he would lose the points. It wouldn't matter right now.
No, it wouldn't. And that brings up a very good point because I read somewhere that his contract
is also subject to how good the car is for the year. So there's rumors going around that the car
is so bad that he may be able to get out of his contract going into next year. So where does he go
then? Yeah, he goes to endurance racing, which is what he really wants to do. I think he's done
with Formula One, honestly. I don't know that he's done yet, but he does want to do endurance
racing. So does he sign with Ferrari and help Ferrari's endurance racing team?
Didn't Leclerc just re-sign his contract for like the next 50 years or something like that?
Like he's not even... I don't mean Ferrari F1. I mean Ferrari WEC.
No, no. He'll run on... Probably Mercedes.
Yeah, he's been running that in Mercedes. So...
Maybe they'll have him drive the Ford in La Ma.
Hey now, hey now. That'd be good. That'd be really good, actually. But speaking of contracts,
there was a lot of hype going into these couple races where it was like Alonzo goes to every track
as if it's his last time at the track. It's like all this whole sob story. It's like, come on guys,
like, we know Alonzo needs to retire and he's there for the paycheck. But this year is worse
than any year previous. At least in years prior, Stroll would be doing lead follow with Alonzo.
Alonzo's now he's just out there. He's lost in the car's garbage and everything we already know.
But then I hear the Breatori's coming back
and he's trying to get Alonzo to go to Alpine and I'm like,
is there blood to squeeze out of this turnip? I don't know that Alonzo going to Alpine is better
than keeping Gasly and Colopinto because Colopinto's the one that's on the chopping block.
I don't know. I couldn't tell you. So I've got a question for you. I know we're not done talking
about the Spanish Grand Prix, but what is more likely for Stappen winning another Formula One
championship or Hamilton winning another Formula One championship? Let's just keep things at sort
of a static pace. Let's just assume not that Kimmy wins every race because we've broken that streak
as a result of the Spanish GP. But let's just say he's able to maintain a substantial lead,
always podium him every race with the majority wins in his back pocket. There's a very, very
high probability Kimmy's going to win this season. That's not to say that Hamilton won't podium the
championship this year, but I don't think he's going to win it unless something catastrophic
happens to the Mercedes or something happens to Kimmy or just I don't think he's going to have a
repeat of last year, meaning Kimmy kind of being in the middle of the pack and sort of finding his
way and learning the tracks. And I think he was sandbagging. I've said that before. I have a strong
suspicion Hamilton's going to have a good year, but he's not going to have a winning year. He's
not going to get his eighth, right? It's just not going to happen. I don't think anybody else is even
close. Tanya, do you think there's even anybody in contention after that? Well, technically Russell's
not even, I think, nine points behind him. Behind Hamilton. Yeah. But he's like two temper tantrums
and a flat tire away from like losing that too. So that doesn't matter, right? A problem is it's
not looking good for Mercedes right now because they're having too many reliability issues.
Like two is too many. Yes. For them for sure. And was it more than two?
Did Russell have it twice this year? Maybe it was just one each, but like that's too, too many. So
if they keep having troubles like that, then I don't know what to say. Well, and they need to
chill out too, because what's funny is Antonelli is doing this Senna thing where they tell him to
slow down and then he puts like the personal best down, like the fastest lap of the race and he just
continues to truck until the end. He's like, he's just ignoring them. Or it becomes this Senna versus
Prost thing between him and Russell where they're trying to kill each other on track. And it's like,
guys, you got to get it together. But I think the bigger problem is Kimmy's the faster driver
of the two of them, but he's not the lead driver on the team. And I hate to say, Russell's got to
eat some crow. Oh, because one of those races, whichever was that BS was going on, where he was
being held up. Yeah, that was the it was the Spanish GP, because he was being held up, being
held up. He finally got around him. Yep. Then it was like two laps later, the car churnovaled.
Yeah, for Kimmy. Yes. Yeah. God, that was like heartbreaking. Yeah, it failed on lap 63 is what
I have on my, my note. And then Leclerc ended up with like power steering issues at the same time.
So I don't know, they need to figure that out. And Russell just needs to get it. Like,
it's taken him 10 years to get to this point. And I deserve my championship. And blah, blah, blah,
blah, blah. Okay, great. But Kimmy's the faster driver at the end of the day.
So they need to figure out their team orders or whatever. Yeah. If you're so fast, then when
you let Kimmy go around, you breathe down his neck and don't let him get 20 seconds ahead of you.
Right. Exactly. Or your job is to fend off Hamilton, because then it becomes a manufacturers game.
And you don't want to give it to Ferrari either. So I don't know. It's a very strange sport to think
that the politics have to get involved. But they really do if you want to lock it in. And
as Russell even ever come in second in the championship, I take a silver. Just to say I
got a silver, I'd be happy with it. But he deserves the gold. I got it. Yeah. Stuff a lot, I guess.
Deserves it. So anyway, I have the starting grid for the Spanish GP, Russell, Hammy, Kimmy,
Lando and Verstappen. That was the top five. That's where they qualified. So lap six,
stroll was out, gearbox exploded. Charles got his brake swap. So no more complaints about how
terrible the Brembo's were. What did they end up putting on their carbotecs or something like that?
Is that what they're using now? Duralast. Duralast from Trash Auto. I have to report on this.
Alonso's Aston Martin made it to lap 40. That was impressive. That was pretty good. I mean,
he beat that 25 number that they seem to be hitting every time. Then there was a virtual safety car.
And then the Hulkenberg thing. Talk about a free accident. Did you guys know that?
Oh, yeah. So we didn't know what happened until after the race because it was like,
suddenly it was down. He was again, solidly in the middle. Yeah. I think he was going to get
points actually. The two-liter turbo exploded, right? And then suddenly it was like, he's in the
pits and he doesn't come out of the pits. And it's like, what just happened? And a rock hit the
emergency shut off, ricocheted up from Liam Lawson, knocked off the emergency shut off kill
switch and killed the car. What a fluke. Like, you have a higher chance of getting hit by lightning
and winning the lottery than that happening. A projectile hitting the kill switch and turning
the car off. I feel like they should have better engineered it so that's impossible to happen.
Right? They should have foreseen that happening. Well, its placement is a little strange too. And
I get it because it's designed for somebody to reach it from outside the car. Well, somebody did
reach it from outside the car. It worked then in that case. It's like somebody with a slingshot.
Yeah, as intended. Bart Simpson hit it. That was Mario Mouff. That was bizarre. That was the blue
shell right there, right? It's like, boom, gone. You're out. So, Hulkenberg's out. And then McLaren
was all sorts of tattle tailing on Kimmy. There was all sorts of just nonsense over the radio.
Oh, yes. This is the race he was riding the track limits. Yes.
And every time Kimmy went through that complex and then Lando's like, he did it again. He went
over the line. And then they would show the shots from like above from the cameras. They're like,
nah, he's still in there. I mean, barely. You don't have the superhuman vision like Russell
does where he can analyze AdJar's tires at 170 miles an hour. I'm sorry, Lando. Put your glasses on.
But Kimmy was fine. There were a couple of times he pushed the limit. Oh, man, it was like every
other lap. I did it again. Did it again. McLaren is protesting. Did it again. It's like, stop. Shut up.
So then it doesn't matter because Kimmy's pushing, pushing, pushing. And then he ends up out on lap
three. Like I said, McLaren with the power steering issue. We thought the race was going to end
under a virtual safety car. Remember? It was like a male biter. Even this one was just like, come on,
guys. And then they went green on lap 65. And there was some real confusion about the tail end.
Because this was also the race where there were a ton of cars that didn't finish. Like a huge amount
of cars like just retired in this race too. Like almost every race. And it said, I remember reading
we were talking about the results, Tanya. Remember, it was like Alvin was like six laps ahead, but he
ended three positions behind people to DNF. But there were a total of eight DNFs. So I wrote that
down. I was like, God, that's a lot of cars out. Yeah, he ended up DNF as well. So in the end,
Hamilton, Russell and Lando up on the podium. And I will say, and I'm Brad, I know you've been
biting your tongue because you want to talk about this. Hamilton for once was given the decency,
the dignity, the grace, whatever words you want to use to describe it, that Ferrari didn't screw up
his pit strategy. And that's what allowed him to win the race. Had it not been for that, had Ferrari,
Ferrari, as Tanya likes to say, Hamilton would not have won that race. But because he pit, it's
such a weird time. It would have been really interesting to see. It would have been closer.
He was on an absolute tear and was gaining. And if they would have kept going,
there was a lot of speculation that he might have been able to go around them without that.
You're talking about Kimmy. No, Hamilton. Kimmy was faster than Hamilton. He was flying until
the car broke. Hamilton did the pit and started catching them. No, that was where he was behind.
And he was just reeling in lap after lap. The gap was just like... Yeah, the gap was shrinking.
So it would have been interesting to see. I think towards the end, Antonelli started picking up the
pace. Right. But then his car blew up. Correct. That's what I'm saying. But it ended 20 seconds,
19 and a half seconds ahead of George Russell. He was on an absolute tear the whole time. So it
would have been really interesting to actually see how it would have played out had that virtual,
whatever not happened. Right. Exactly. So I think between that and the pit strategy with Ferrari
that pretty much locked in Hamilton, they made the right move because they put the harder tires on
and then he was just stretched them out and said, that's it. One pit strategy, let's go.
Instead of all these shenanigans or whatever. And then I think he pit under the VSC, which
locked him in anyways. Then he had fresh, like softs or something like that. If I remember how
that ended. So yeah, that was that. That was all she wrote. Now the question is, Brad, I know,
you know, you're, oh, well Hamilton, he's washed up and this and that. The question has yet to be
answered in the sense that it's taken him two years to win his first race with Ferrari. I'm not
saying he's a bad driver, whatever. But the question is, can he repeat that? Can Ferrari get out of
its own head and do more like what they did at the Spanish GP? Or is it going to be business as
usual? Especially if Leclerc is having a good weekend because he didn't have a good weekend at
the Spanish GP either. He's yet to have a good weekend. I think since like the first race. Yes.
But you know, everybody likes to pull the data sets and blah, blah, blah. So if you follow the
trends, because they pulled this one out already a while ago of their butts, is every team, which
this is only his third team being on, but he's never, he's always done shit in the first year. So
even Mercedes, he came in terrible first year and then the second year. So they're like, this is going
to be his year if that trend holds. And if it doesn't, I don't know, there's still 14 races
left, I think. So I think it's still entirely way too early to say anything. I get that. So
Brad, I'm going to ask you this question. If Hamilton gets to the end of the year and he
doesn't win, but let's just say he podiums on the championship, second or third, doesn't win the
championship. Do you think he should continue? Definitely. Why? Because he's still better than
Stroll and Stroll is still out there. He's still better than second or third in the championship
means he's better than 19 or 20 other fucking drivers. Right, right, right. So would you hang
it up if you were that close to tasting another championship? I still think after 20 years,
I would just go do something else. I would want to go win a different championship. I want to,
you know what I mean? But that's just my personality. Like I'd want to mix it up versus,
I don't know, feels like it gets boring. How many Formula One drivers have only done
their one thing, like all of them? I think it was more so in the old days that they did
different stuff than now, you know, where they did mix it up or like again, like a Graham Hill
type that era where they would go, you know, do Indy and they would go do, you know, Le Mans,
stuff like that. Graham Hill type who was not a seven time world champion. He was a Formula One
world champion though. It's all that matters. It's the only one with the triple crown. I think if
Hamilton only had one, maybe two championships and he finishes the season like fourth or fifth,
then yeah, maybe, maybe hang it up. But he's proving as long as the car and the team supports him,
he's proving that he still got it and he's still competitive. I say, yeah, he should come back
another season and go for a championship, especially if he finishes second. If he finishes second,
there's no reason he shouldn't come back and try. You can almost taste the victory at that point.
You can almost taste that eighth championship. Especially if it's close, like you're two points
away or it was a, it came down to one race difference or something. I mean, who knows how
this plays out? Suddenly the fry, I'm a turd. There's always that. So let's just flip it around then.
Let's say he doesn't. does win the championship. That's where I want to go with this.
Let's say he does win the championship. Does he continue? Yes. So either way,
Hamilton lives to race another year. That's what you're saying. I think so. Yeah.
Unless you might have to, depending on what his contract says. I mean, I think Ferrari is going
to do everything in their power to get Kimmy at some point, but unfortunately he's probably stuck at,
I mean, that's not unfortunate. He's with a good team. He's going to be stuck at Mercedes for a while.
They're going to have to pay up. Toto has invested too much. Plus if Ferrari can win with another
driver, they wouldn't dump the championship driver that they just won with just to get Kimmy just
because he's Italian. That would be some Ferrari bullshit though. That would be some Ferrari shit.
So here's the thing. If Leclerc ends like trash. Well, true. Yeah. If Leclerc ends like trash,
he'll be driving it out. He'll be driving a Cadillac. He might have just renewed his contract,
but yeah, contracts were made to be broken. That's just a piece of paper. I think barring
Hamilton finishing 10th or worse. He comes back for another season at least. Probably.
And we'll be here to comment on. I'll change it. I'll change that to seventh or worst. Seventh
or worse than championship. He'll come back for another season. It'd be interesting to see how
that goes. He at least finishes his contract. I don't know how long his contract's through.
So when do they announce the drivers for next year? That happens in the fall after the last race?
When do we get to know about that? What is that? That's what they call the postseason
trading of drivers and contract renewals and all that. It's like the NFL draft. Yeah.
All right. Well, we have Austria up next. And then after that, what do we have before the next
Formula Fanatics episode? British GP over 4th of July, Winkend. Oh, so Silverstone.
Belgium followed by Hungary followed by a break. So that's when the silly season will be because
there's like a month between Hungary and the Dutch VP. Yeah, because they take August off, right?
Yeah. So it's going to be a busy July. So I have lots of Formula 1 to talk about. And then we can
talk about the silly season and everything else. All right, cool. I'll just say this. You're all for
jokingly, like Alonzo should hang it up and Hamilton's washed up and he's hanging up or whatever.
I am always going to be in the camp of go till you can't go no more.
Be 85 years old, do 110 in your Nissan Z convertible. In your Nissan Fastima convertible.
Fastima. Well, on that note, we'll pick this up next month with Austria.
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About this episode
Dive into a high-octane recap of the Canadian and Monaco Grands Prix as the hosts debate driver drama, questionable team strategies, and track limitations. From McLaren's intermediate tire gamble in a wet Montreal to the tight, "funeral procession" streets of Monaco, this discussion pulls no punches. The hosts tackle Lewis Hamilton's podium return, Max Verstappen's reliability woes, and whether legacy tracks like Monaco need a serious modern shakeup. It is a fast-paced, opinionated look at the mid-season F1 grid.
Original notes
Formula Fanatics is Break/Fix Podcast’s fast F1 news format, recapping a chaotic Canadian GP weekend with a lively sprint, shifting weather, strategy misfires (notably tires), formation-lap delays, multiple retirements and penalties, and a podium of Antonelli, Hamilton and Verstappen, plus commentary on team struggles. Monaco is framed as a “funeral procession” but delivers drama: Verstappen stalls, widespread pit-lane speeding penalties tied to pit-lane measurement/entry issues, Russell’s penalty controversy, late red flag and standing restart, and an Antonelli win. The Spanish GP features more DNFs, Stroll’s gearbox failure, Alonso reaching lap 40, Hülkenberg retiring after a rock triggers the kill switch, McLaren track-limits complaints, and Hamilton winning with a clean Ferrari strategy. The hosts debate Hamilton’s longevity, championship chances, contracts, and upcoming races leading into “silly season.”
===== (Oo---x---oO) =====
00:00 Welcome to Formula Fanatics 00:42 Canada Sprint Recap 02:04 Rainy Race Strategy Chaos 05:31 Hamilton Podium Debate, Points Gap and Upgrades 09:23 Track Talk: Potato or Croissant? 10:53 Why Monaco Still Exists 12:11 Monaco DNFs and Penalties 17:25 Red Flag Sprint Finish 18:15 Le Mans Clash with Spain Conspiracies? 20:59 Who Wins the Title 22:26 Mercedes Reliability Woes 25:28 Hulkenberg Kill Switch Fluke 26:57 Track Limits Radio Wars 28:45 Hamilton Wins in Spain! 32:03 Hamiltons next season, what does that look like? 35:36 Silly Season and Next Races 36:29 Closing Thoughts and Sponsors
====================Formula Fanatics, is the high-octane sub-series of Break/Fix Podcast’s Drive Thru Motorsports News! This is your pit stop for all things Formula 1 — from breaking headlines and race recaps to insider analysis and paddock buzz.
The Motoring Podcast Network : Years of racing, wrenching and Motorsports experience brings together a top notch collection of knowledge, stories and information. #everyonehasastory #gtmbreakfix - motoringpodcast.net
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