The Belgian Grand Prix is one of the Formula 1 races. It’s run at Spa, and weather and track conditions can change a lot, so teams pay close attention during practice.
“Practice two” is the second practice session in an F1 weekend. Teams use it to try changes to the car and learn how the tires and track feel before qualifying.
“Super clipping” is a way of describing very aggressive cornering—hitting the apex as tightly as possible while staying in control. It’s about driving right at the edge of grip.
In F1, “upgrades” are improvements teams add to the car. They’re meant to make the car faster or easier to drive, especially for the track they’re racing on.
Person
Charlotte Clair
This sounds like a reference to an F1 driver (likely Charles Leclerc). The host is joking about a dream where that driver wins easily.
The rear wing helps the car stick to the track at speed. “Lower drag” means the wing is designed to push the air out of the way more efficiently, so the car loses less speed on straights.
Winglets are little fins that change how air flows around the car. If they’re near the rear brakes, they’re likely there to make the airflow cleaner so the car handles better and/or goes faster.
The rear wing is held up by supports (the pylons). If the team changes the pylon shape, it can smooth the airflow around the wing so the car stays more stable at speed.
“Macarena wing” is a fan/nickname for a particular rear-wing shape. They’re saying they’ve stopped using that exact wing design and gone back to an older-style one with some changes.
Term
sealed engine document
In F1, some engine parts get “locked in” for a race weekend. That means teams can’t keep tweaking the engine whenever they want, because the rules limit changes.
Term
sealed cost cap document
F1 has rules that limit how much teams can spend. A “sealed cost cap” is basically the official, locked-in way the sport checks and enforces that spending limit.
FP1 is the first practice session on race weekend. Teams use it to try things and learn how the car behaves, so it’s not the final answer for race speed.
“Second fastest car” just means the team that looks like it’s quickest after the top team. They’re debating whether Red Bull will be that runner-up this weekend.
FP1 is short for the first practice session. The hosts are saying early practice results can be confusing because teams may not be showing their true pace yet.
In F1, wings aren’t just for looks—they help the car stick to the track by pushing it downward. “Old wing” means they stopped using the newest wing update and went back to an earlier version.
ICE means the car’s regular gasoline engine part. In F1, the hybrid system can store and use extra energy, but at some tracks the ICE ends up mattering more.
An “energy-starved circuit” is a track where you can’t use your stored hybrid power as much as usual. So the team leans more on the engine’s normal power to get through the laps.
“Deployment” is how drivers use the extra power from the hybrid system when they need it. If it’s not working right, the car can feel inconsistent when you try to accelerate.
Free Practice 2 is one of the practice sessions before qualifying. Teams use it to try different setups and see how fast they can be, but it doesn’t guarantee race results.
The internal combustion engine is the fuel-burning engine that makes the car go. In F1, teams can only use a limited number of these parts before they get penalties.
A turbo is a device that helps the engine make more power by pushing extra air into it. In F1, you can’t replace it too many times without getting penalized.
The exhaust is the system that carries the engine’s gases out of the car. In F1, teams can’t keep swapping exhaust parts indefinitely without consequences.
The control electronics unit is the car’s main computer hardware that helps run and manage the engine systems. In F1, there are limits on how many times you can use it, and exceeding those limits can push you back on the grid.
Car
Aston Martin
Aston Martin is the F1 team they’re talking about. They’re saying Aston Martin was much slower than the front of the field in practice sessions.
Downshifting means switching to a lower gear. That makes the engine spin faster so the car can pull harder when you need it, especially when setting up for a corner.
Blanchimont is a well-known fast corner at Spa-Francorchamps. Drivers have to brake and turn in carefully there because it’s easy to lose grip at speed.
They’re talking about the F1 rules and how those rules change what the cars can do. They think the current rules are making the racing less exciting in practice.
In today’s F1 cars, there’s a battery that stores energy. The team decides when to use that stored energy to help the car go faster, but it can’t be used all the time.
FP2 is the second practice session before qualifying. Teams use it to try settings and learn how the car behaves so they can be ready for the faster sessions.
Formula One is the highest level of open-wheel race car racing. The rules are very strict, but teams still find ways to get an advantage within (or around) those rules.
A “loophole” here means a gap in the rules that a team can use to get an advantage. The host is saying Mercedes found a way to follow the rules while still making the car act in a way that shouldn’t be possible.
The accelerator is the pedal you press to tell the engine to make more power. The host is saying Mercedes apparently got faster by letting off that pedal before the line, which they think is wrong or at least against what you’d expect.
“Lifting off” just means taking your foot off the gas. In F1, that can be used to save energy or follow the rules about how much power the car is allowed to use.
In F1, the car has a limited amount of stored energy it can use, measured in kilojoules. The point is that teams decide when to spend that energy—early for acceleration, and later more carefully.
Term
power at the start of the coming out the corner
It’s about using more power right after you leave a turn. That’s when the car can accelerate well, so spending energy there can make you faster.
This is basically how much power the driver is asking the car for at that moment. The key idea here is that the rules treat it differently if it goes into a “negative” state, which affects energy usage.
Term
the stewards
The stewards are the officials who make sure everyone follows the rules in F1. If something breaks the regulations, they can investigate and hand out penalties.
The overtake button is a switch the driver presses to get extra power for a short time. It’s meant to help you make a pass when you need a burst of speed.
Slipstream is when one car gets a speed advantage by driving close behind another car. The air behind the lead car is “cleaner” and creates less drag, so the follower can go faster and have an easier chance to pass.
Monza is a famous race track in Italy. It’s known for fast racing, and the hosts are saying similar “everyone’s messing up” situations can happen there too.
Pierre Gasly is a professional Formula 1 driver. In this segment, they mention him because he previously crashed at the same location they’re talking about now.
The rear tyre is the tire at the back of the car. If it gets hit or loses grip, the car can suddenly spin or become unstable—exactly what they’re describing here.
Gravel is used as a safety zone at the side of the track. If a car goes off, the loose stones slow it down, but if the wall is close, the car can still hit hard.
Runoff is the safety space next to the racing surface. More runoff gives a car a chance to slow down if it goes wide; less runoff means it’s more likely to hit a wall.
“Run wide” is when a driver misses the corner and ends up going farther out than planned. It usually slows you down and can cause damage if you hit curbs or barriers.
“Reliability issues” means the car had a problem that made it not work as it should. In racing, that can force the driver to stop or lose a lot of time.
The Oldsmobile Intrigue is a mid-size four-door car (a sedan) that was made for comfortable everyday driving. It was meant to feel more refined than basic commuter cars. People might mention it when discussing older cars and what they were like to own and drive.
LIVE
Hello, everybody, and welcome back to the P1 podcast with Matt and Tommy. Belgian Grand Prix.
We're here. Practice two of the three, done. Friday running, done. No rain at all on the
day where it was supposed to rain. So, Tommy's done that. Told you so. Look, for, you know,
broken clocks right twice a day and all that. But look, so excited to be back once again for
another Formula One weekend. Of course, we've got another one next weekend as well. So,
it's coming in thick and fast. And Tommy, how are you, sir?
I'm good. Yeah, indeed. Looking forward to the race at Spa, as always. And then another one straight
after Hungry. Two very different tracks, of course, to end before we go on a little break.
But yeah, it's been probably the kind of qualifying where, sorry, the kind of practice
where we have not a huge amount if you kind of watched the, maybe the highlights, if you like,
on YouTube. But there's actually quite a lot to break down and upgrades. And I'm sure we'll
dive into certain things that we love to talk about, like super clipping and things as well.
Oh, no, not immediately, Tommy. No, don't worry. We'll save that for the end.
It's a funny story, really, actually, before we get into all the F1 weekend stuff that,
especially today, and what we could expect for the rest of the weekend. I feel like I've
already had the Belgian Grand Prix because I've been so horrendously ill that when you go to
bed, you know, yeah, the adrenaline is pumping through you so much. I don't know if your
brain just goes into some madness. I've had about seven different renditions of the Belgian
Grand Prix when I've been trying to get to sleep and all kinds of stuff.
Charlotte Clair won the ball.
Charlotte won absolutely all of them by at least three laps.
Wow.
Aston Martin still finished last, so even in the dreams, they can't do it.
They're still slow. But yes, so I'm just trying to figure out what's reality and what I've seen
in my dream, but I think I'm fully locked in. And the first thing we're going to do is talk
about the upgrades because there's been quite a few upgrades for some of the teams this weekend,
most notably, Racing Bulls. I think they're the team that has been spoke about the most about
bringing some of the upgrades.
Or our prediction and went, no, mate.
That is well, you know, upgrades don't necessarily mean performance. They could go in the wrong
direction. But of course, they have three practice sessions this weekend to figure that out. But
they've brought, yeah, a whole host of upgrades for, as I say, Hass have also brought four.
So they've seen your good surprise, Ollie Bearman, and they've gone, all right, there you go,
mate, crack on. And then more, again, most importantly, the four teams at the front of the
field. Mercedes have brought three, which includes a lower drag rear wing, revised rear brake drum
winglets and revised front wing end plates. And Mercedes bringing some stuff, which we don't
like to see because we don't want them to be nine years ahead of everyone else.
And then, I guess, McLaren, they've brought a couple. We've got Ferrari and Aston with zero.
Ferrari have brought nothing. We've won the British Grand Prix. We don't need to bring any
more. But then, you know, as much as I'll be like, oh, my God, why have they brought none?
They have brought a lot so far over this season. So I can't really complain. And of course,
Red Bull Tommy, you'll be very keen to know that they've brought one upgrade,
which is called the revised rear wing pylon profiles. Is that what the category is for
we're not using the Macarena wing anymore? So here's our new rear wing.
So I guess it is different because it's surely like because it's a spa style one. I don't know.
But yeah, they've obviously reverted to the old one, but there's something maybe slightly new
in it, I guess, that's changed it. But they aren't using the Macarena wing, like you say.
And as for Ferrari and Aston Martin, obviously, we know Aston Martin are,
you know, planning just going all in after the summer break,
completely different car, get all your upgrades done in one go.
That before for Aston, mate. Aston's next week.
I heard it was after. Is that confirmed?
No, no, it's 100.
Have they confirmed it now?
Yeah. Don't hold your breath, it is Aston Martin. And Ferrari maybe no surprise that
they haven't brought any upgrades because of course, all the teams have sort of
made jokes that Ferrari just bringing upgrades every single week and going kind of ham,
so they're going to run out soon.
So you know how back in 2019, we had a sealed engine document,
we're going to have a sealed cost cap document at the end of this year.
Let's not let's not question how much money Ferrari is spending this year and just let them win it all.
Right, let's get into some running shall we and begin with free practice one
where the top three were Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc.
Question from Lydia Joyce Acolle.
Do you think Red Bull will be the second fastest car this weekend?
It's very hard to say. I mean, we're already talking about the second fastest car,
which maybe suggests that the Sadies are going to be very strong again.
Hey, no spoilers. We're still in FP1 right now, Tommy.
We are.
We're still.
Yeah, they're sixth and eighth from free practice one, so fully washed, right?
Exactly. So at this stage, they're terrible until we get into the next part of the podcast.
But as for Red Bull, of course, they started strong. Max is a driver that has always gone
strong around here. I'm sure he's not particularly loving driving a car around here like he used to.
Probably doesn't enjoy the same thrill of it being the biggest
hater of the regulations that he is.
But he was looking quick and they look more along the lines of what we maybe saw in Austria so far,
which is positive for them. Hadja was up there as well, of course.
You know, he'll have issues. He's got issues with a penalty.
But yeah, for Red Bull, it is looking more promising at the moment.
And fingers crossed that continues, particularly with the fact that they've now reverted to the
old wing. So maybe it wasn't as extremely good as maybe we thought and wasn't the beal
and end all of their upgrades.
Yeah, I think, obviously, they've got all the data and it would suggest that
the Macarena wing would have given them some advantage. And I'm sure that is a
hit they've had to take this weekend. Interestingly, of course, they supposedly,
by the FIA, have the best ICE. And Spa is very much a energy-starved circuit.
So there's going to be more impetus from the internal combustion engine.
So you would then assume that Red Bull may well be a little bit quicker
because they're not relying so much on the deployment.
Although it seems like some drivers are having lots of trouble with their deployment
because the gaps are just ridiculous between teammates as well.
That's something I noticed once again. I think Silverstone, we also noted this,
didn't we? But in Free Practice 2 in particular, there's a few to highlight.
As for Red Bull, I think Max 1st in FP1 and 3rd in FP2 is a good start. It's definitely a
much more solid start than some of the weekends we've seen from Red Bull this year.
So they've got a really good chance. I did put Max 1st up and it was my good surprise,
and I think P3 in the race. You and Grace have locked him in.
Yeah. Grace, to be fair, went for Max P1 and good surprise, didn't she? So she's gone fully in.
I could see a Max podium this weekend from what we've seen so far, but so much can change
because it does seem just like we saw Silverstone Sprint where they're learning about the deployment.
It seems that that is very much the case of what happens, especially in Free Practice 1.
So yeah, that's kind of that wrapped up. I guess something to mention,
which we haven't done yet, is that some drivers have penalties.
So three of which, as of recording, one being Fajar, who has a 30-place penalty. So we'll be
starting at the back of the grid, unsurprisingly, with a fifth internal combustion engine,
a fifth turbo, and a fifth exhaust. Lando Norris, I know, sorry, Lando McLaren fans,
close your ears. He has a 10-place grid penalty as well with a fourth control electronics unit.
I'm surprised it's been this long before he gets a penalty because it felt like everything was
breaking. We did say it would be this one there, didn't we? We did predict this.
Overtaking is possible around here, and this is why they try to, if they need to,
make their changes here. And then finally, the biggest one of all, I hope you're all seated,
Lance Threl. He will be getting a 10-place penalty from 22nd on the grid. It's going to be,
I mean, to be fair, no. The swimmer pouring water on his face screams that.
Memes always hit when you have to describe it, doesn't it?
But to be fair, I did just slander Lance Threl. I did just slander Lance Threl for
starting 22nd to get a 10-place penalty. He did, in fact, outqualify Fernando Alonso last time
out. So maybe 21st it would have been from. He's been 21st in both sessions, so late he's cooking.
He is. Although, to be fair, Fernando Alonso was not taking part in free practice one.
Jack Crawford was. And they are absolutely miles off, by the way. Can we just talk about?
Aston Martin in free practice one, 5.7 and 6.1 seconds behind. In free practice two,
you think, okay, they'll ramp up a little bit. 5.1 and 5.4 seconds. And I should then say,
respectively, even though there's not much respect to be putting on those times, because my goodness,
they are miles off again. They're horrific. But it's no surprise, because that's just
what we've seen. I guess maybe it's a little bit of a surprise just how bad it is, because,
yeah, like 5 seconds is insane. Absolutely horrendous for Aston Martin. Again, we spoke
about the upgrades and how they'll be hoping that it is Hungary. And maybe that's a circuit that we
get to Hungary, and it's not as bad for them. They bring a new car, and it's not anywhere near
even like Cadillac there. Yeah, exactly. And Hungary as well, where it's not all about power,
because they love to blame Honda on everything. And yeah, they're absolutely useless. I mean,
yeah, the fact that they're doing one minute, they're in like the 150s is absolutely nuts.
151s, actually. They'd take a 150 right now. I don't think they've actually got into that.
That far off Cadillac as well is madness. Although, to be fair, to be expected with
zero upgrades, and also it's the longest circuit on the calendar. So even more pain for the fact
that they have no power and no nothing, really. Let's get into free practice two with the top three,
well, Antonelli, Norris, and Verstappen. Question, because of course Antonelli showed some very
good speed in free practice two, topping the timesheets, but George Russell all the way down
in eighth, almost 1.3 seconds behind. There's a question from P1Patreon member Dray.
What is going on with Russell? So this is what I kind of said at the start of the podcast as well
of noticing some big team-mate gaps again. Antonelli to Russell, 1.3 seconds. Norris to
Piastri is eight tenths. Verstappen to Hajai, only three tenths. Hamilton to Leclerc is eight tenths.
I mean, Charlotte Leclerc is down to 11th. Anyway, the question was about George Russell.
There was a bit of insight that I saw during free practice two. There's a bit of a conversation
between George and his engineer, basically around his battery and the fact that he didn't have a full
charge of battery by turn 14, I think it was. And then he basically questioned,
or am I doing anything wrong? And they said no. So then clearly there are things going on in the
car that's not working. And for me, I'm seeing these team-mate comparisons. I'm just quite
frustrated really because there is no way in hell George Russell is 1.3 seconds slower than
Kimi Antonelli around a lap-round spa. There is not. Same with Piastri to Norris. He is not eight
tenths slower than Norris. So then it comes down to the cars and the battery and everything else
in between and the complex systems behind it. And I also found it really interesting of something
we're going to have to keep an eye on tomorrow in qualifying is the fact that they have to charge
their battery at the exact right point. Otherwise, they'll hit the top of their battery. So basically,
if they charge their battery too early before they start a lap, maybe someone in front of them is
weaving around and causing them to charge their battery in a place they don't want to,
it means that they would then use a little bit of their battery without being able to recharge it
again before starting their lap. So they have to be at an exact point on the track, even before I
think the back straight. And I think this is what we'll be seeing in qualifying tomorrow is massive,
massive gaps where people are essentially needing almost the last sector to themselves in order to
do this, you know, energy efficient energy, whatever you want to call it strategy, which I'm
just sat there like how on earth is that that going to work? Surely it's not because you're
going to have people on fast laps. You're going to have people that want to jump the queue and the
gentleman's agreement. I was just kind of like my God. And whilst we're on the subject, of course,
we'll talk about that and I'll get your thoughts on that, Tommy, but also downshifting through
Blanche Mon. I wanted to claw my own eyes out. I'll be so real. The fact that I saw, I think
Antonelli do, I think Verstappen did it as well. And the run down towards the bus stop chicane,
I was like, what have they done to my beautiful sport? I'll talk about Russell first. So it's
not a 5 minute forecast. Yeah, three things there. Sorry, Tommy. I got so good. I know you want to
run about the regulations and so do I. We'll get onto it for sure. In terms of Russell,
yeah, there's absolutely no way he's that far off Antonelli. I think he is certainly so far what
we've seen is he doesn't look as comfortable as Antonelli so far. It's definitely not that margin,
but we've gone into another race now, even though as the final result doesn't tell the whole story.
I think even if he had not had these issues and got a lap together, I still don't feel like George
is quite there. There's a very interesting, maybe slightly bizarre quote from him. I don't
know if you saw this about the Mona Lisa and his explaining how he's struggling and the exact
quote was. It's like if someone asked you to draw the Mona Lisa and you've got the Mona Lisa next
to you, do you think you could achieve it straight away? Maybe with practice you will. And I'm going,
well, I know Antonelli's Italian like Da Vinci was, but he's doing an all right job at the moment.
That was around why he can't adapt to the new cars, which I was like, I still don't really see the
link. But yeah, I mean, look, he's trying to say he's struggling. Yeah, as other than the
Grass Court, this is the new one, the Mona Lisa is the new thing, as opposed to the
tennis art. So yeah, he's still not there. And in normal race circumstances, despite
the fact that yeah, I don't think he'll be this far off, it still does feel that Antonelli's
more up to speed. And we kind of saw that in FB2, just how much more comfortable he was and how
quick he was. And then the second point, Tommy, because I went on a big old rant. So we have the
second one of downshifting through Blanchimont. Oh, yeah. Okay. Shall we just go dive into the
regulation chat? Yeah. I mean, it was all kind of battery related. I just segued to another
segue to another segue, you know. So how do you feel about that? Tell me. It's depressing. It's
a travesty. It's disgusting how bad it is, that final sector. I've been one of these people actually
that have enjoyed the racing a decent amount. And almost sometimes I understand people's
frustrations of being like, I just enjoy it. Like, do we have to be talking about the
regulations all the time? Because sometimes you just need to enjoy F1 for what it is.
Which you can do around certain tracks. You can do around certain tracks. But this one
really effed me off. And it was so annoying watching them into that final.
It didn't look like Formula One. It was ridiculous. They look really slow in general.
They look really slow. I can't see around the corners on the straights. I'm like,
where are they gaining the time here? It's way worse than Silverstone. It's way worse. We had
quite a few on boards actually about from the final. Now, props to F1. Props to F1. They're
not lying to us. I kind of wish they were. Now, Jake, get back to the off boards. They showed
quite a few on boards towards the start of FP2. And my word, it was like someone had run out of fuel.
And like you're running out of fuel going into that final sector. You're going so slow.
The car and these are these are epic corners in Formula One. You know, this is a corner that
I remember Max Verstappen going around the outside of Felipe Nassau when he was at Torrosse.
And it was like an epic move. And same same with like all these overtakes that you've seen
into the bus stop and people going flat out through those corners and the bravery and watching
cars gone by like the 2020 Mercedes and how epic that was to watch a lap of Spart and see them
absolutely flying around. And now we've got a situation where, yeah, they're just backing off.
And it's just absolutely awful. It's an awful, awful watch to see Formula One cars doing that.
And I can't believe we're in this situation because this should never have happened. I know
it sounds like a broken record because we said this right at the very start of the season, but
I just can't believe these regulations have actually allowed this to happen.
And we knew it was going to happen, but it still doesn't make it any easier watching it because
it's horrendous. Yeah, it is. It is really tough to watch. And I think it's because
it's a really long lap. We have a lot of time to just be sat on board. It's very slowly hearing
them decelerate at many points on the track. So yeah, it is tough to watch. And then, of course,
sorry, I was going to say an even worse now, like, I love a loophole, Formula One's about
loop holes, but there's a new loophole that Mercedes have found where they can basically
not accelerate going across the line, easing off before the line, taking their foot off the
accelerator, and it's quicker than if they were to be accelerating. That is ridiculous.
So I think there needs a little bit more context. I can explain the context. Yeah,
but it's true. But on the face of it, you are taking your foot off the accelerator and there's
no way a Formula One car should be quicker in any context, and I'll add this context in a minute,
but in any context, you're taking your foot off the accelerator before the finish line
should not be faster. A Formula One car should not be designed to do that. And I think it's
absolutely disgusting that that is the case. But yeah, Mercedes have found a loophole,
basically, if you have not seen it, which I'm surprised there's not been more chatter about
it because I heard in the commentary actually during the session that they were kind of
alluding to the fact that Mercedes were lifting off and going, oh,
maybe they're sandbagging a little bit or don't want to share their full hand. But
they did this at Silverstone, of course, as well. And what it actually is, is you're using your power
and there's a great explanation. I will shout out the user from YeeListener on YouTube,
who's done a really good explanation and explaining it. And the reason they're doing it at tracks
like this is because there's such a short run to the line. And it allows you to basically use
more power at the start of the coming out the corner, and then use non at the end. So the
explanation it gives here, which is a really good way of explaining it, is if you've got
three seconds to get to the finish line, and you're using 300 kilojoules of energy,
if you use 150 straight away in that first second, 100 in the second second and 50 in the third
second, that equals to 300, right? And that would be how to do it. Even maths, even I can do this.
But the method Mercedes are doing is going 175, 125, and then zero. So they're getting so much
more speed out the corner and having a higher top speed. And that's quicker. But the problem
where this is a loophole is that that method is actually illegal to do that. You can't basically
have zero kilojoules of energy unless, which is this is the loophole, and this is in the
regulations, the driver power demand is negative. So that's why they're lifting off.
I do wonder with that, like, you know, is there any room for them to mess this up?
Like, you know, obviously, it requires the driver to come off the throttle at the right time. That's
how I see it. So I'm thinking, you know, if Kimmy or George just forgets and goes over the
line with their foot still down, is that then deemed illegal? That's a question in my head.
What I found the most hilarious thing right is you're going, you're talking to me about this
incredible loophole that Mercedes have come up with. We're sat here admiring the genius,
and I just get a message from my dad saying that Ferrari forgot to return their tires after
free practice one. So they've been referred to the stewards. Some things never change.
They've been referred to the stewards because neither Hamilton nor Leclerc,
two sets of dry weather tires were not physically returned to the appointed tire supplier before
the start of FP2. I just wanted to keep them. So they're just going to want to give them up.
One's on the way, actually, for me right now. Coffee table. Yeah, I just found that quite
funny. That is funny. But yeah, what a ridiculous, I'm all for a loophole, like I say. We've had
loopholes in Formula One, but no way should you be quicker by taking your foot off the accelerator
before. It's clever from Mercedes, but it's terrible to watch. Because I think Corrine said it,
didn't he, in free practice one. He's like, oh, I think Kimmy just took his foot off the
throttle going over the line. Yeah, they didn't realise at all what I was saying about the
run. That's somehow what they are trying to do. They're gaming time by doing that, which is
I don't think there's anything less Formula One than that is there.
Just while we're on a regulation run, did you see Max Verstappen's comments about his overtake
of the month? No. Oh, okay. So he was on the stage and Formula One at Spa, and they give
an award to Max Verstappen, and he signs it. And I think someone that voted for him gets it.
And Max Verstappen won overtake of the month for... I can see what this is about.
Yeah, overtake of the month for passing Lewis Hamilton in Australia. And they asked him,
well, do you talk about it? How did you do it? And his exact quote was,
I pushed the overtake button and I had more horsepower than Lewis, and there we go.
Yeah, never change, Max. Brilliant. Never change. Oh, dearie, dearie me. Okay. I think there was
one other thing that I wanted your thoughts on when I went on that train of... Look,
it's a chaotic podcast, this one, because I feel terrible. My brain's not working,
so I apologise the structure's a little bit off. But Tommy, the qualifying side of things,
how do you think that's going to unfold? In terms of what, the super clipping?
The prep for the lap. Yeah, in terms of that, yeah, the fact that the prep lap is so important,
I do agree, particularly in those first sessions, could be quite a mess. And if everyone's trying
to do it, we've seen this before, it's weird, it's different, but kind of the same in terms of
messing about with these things that we saw in years gone by, didn't we, about everyone
trying to get a slipstream. And it's actually, I don't know if you've seen the F3 qualifying,
but it happens every year at Spa. They all just try, and there was a big crash today,
where they were all backing each other up, and someone just launched over the back of someone,
and they're all just trying to block each other, because no one wants to lead for the slipstream.
I don't think it'd be that extreme. Oh, I've just seen it. Yeah, that's crazy,
because they're all just like snailing around. No one wants to lead. It's a bit like the
Hockenberg situation at Monza, where he messed up at the corner, and went over, and everyone
missed the line. But yeah, it's going to be a bit of a mess. It's kind of like intriguing,
but also kind of farcical. So if you want to look out for, for sure. Yes. It adds a new
element of excitement and chaos, even if it's not for the right reason.
Indeed. Now, that Formula 3 crash you just mentioned happened in exactly the same place as
where Pierre Gasly crashed. Of course, a massive one for Pierre. Glad to see him walk away
unscathed from that. It kind of was like the the disaster, the debris everywhere,
looked worse than perhaps the actual incident was, because the way that wall just comes out a
little bit and goes, come here, Rear tyre, I want a piece of you. And then the rear wing obviously
disintegrates. And yeah, it was just, it was a very tiny area. You ride on board with him,
he hits a tiny little bit of a correction on, dips a wheel on the gravel, momentum takes him
that way. Next thing you know, half his cars in absolute pieces. This is sparse for you.
There's these, these kind of circuits where you don't have like 1000 meters of runoff to run into.
Or even, or it's not even the fact that even if there's a gravel trap, it's the fact that as you
say, the wall is very close to it. So all he's done really is dip a wheel in the gravel, he's gone
slightly wide. And then because the barrier is an exit, like a way to be able to get the cars out,
it kind of tucks in a little bit. And he's clipped the wheel on that. As you say, when, when they
cut to his car, I was like, wow, is he, is he like flown backwards into a corner? And then you
actually watch the replay and he's just run wide and, and the damage is, is done from the nature
of the circuit. But that is spar. It punishes even the smallest mistakes.
It really does other things to mention. And to be fair, I'll go back to my point about
teammate comparisons. Of course, Norris versus Piastri is not a representative one, as much as
eight tenths. Of course, Oscar had that, that issue with his car, which another McLaren issue,
grinding to a halt, but then got going again and managed to, I think get back to the pits,
if I remember correctly, but only six laps. Yes, only six laps on the board. The only one to really
suffer with reliability issues as far as, I think we had something fly off one of the,
another camera flew off and I think in FP1 of one of the cars, didn't it, as well, which
seems to be becoming a recurring issue after Alex, I think had an issue with it, didn't they?
In Spain. Yeah, Spain. Yeah.
Yes. So quite a few things to talk about in this, in this practice wrap up, but I think that is
about it. We will be live tomorrow and Sunday for the Watch Along course, as always. Can't
wait for that to be back and have you guys involved. Tommy, what are your final thoughts?
Final thoughts, despite all the ranting about what we're going to see in qualifying,
I'm really excited for it. Can't wait to see how it goes, see if any of these kind of
impressive performances that we've seen from people like Verstappen and Lando or their Lando
has their penalty, of course. See what they can do. And there's a lot of intrigue going into it.
And actually, one more shout out that I think is worth doing is Franco Colopinto was very strong
in practice too. I know we didn't get to see what Gasly could do, but
head of George Russell is pretty amazing. Another win for Argentina against England.
Yeah. And very much enjoying that Mercedes engine, I'm sure, will help you be this weekend.
And we haven't even mentioned Ferrari. They've looked worse than perhaps people were predicting,
but that's why I never even uttered their names coming into this weekend, because I
didn't truly believe that they would be right up there. I think they did a phenomenal lap at the
end of middle of Fp2. Oh, yeah, you predicted Charlotte. That's crazy. Down in the 11th,
Charlotte. Yeah, that's two number ones. They also have been, my final point is,
I don't know when they started this, but deleting track limits in free practice.
They've never, they've not done this forever, but they're doing it again today. And they're
doing a bit of practice. I like it. You know, the FIA like, let's make sure we are dialed in
ahead of qualifying to do some track limit deletions. Having a little practice, it's clearly
just there to stop Alonso doing spa short or something and doing just one minute 20.
Cuts the bus stop chicane still when you go seventh fastest.
Right, that is it. Thank you everybody for tuning in. Sorry it was a bit chaotic.
Hopefully I'll be more streamlined tomorrow. The chaos was chaosing. Tommy, final thoughts?
Again. Oh God, did you do a final thoughts? I can't even remember what I said.
Tommy, first thoughts. Okay, fine. Tommy's not going to give you another thought,
but I'm just going to go now. Bye everybody. Lots of love. Bye. Bye. Help. Bye.
See you for the watch along. We're sure that won't be chaotic.
About this episode
Practice two wraps up with “No rain at all” despite forecasts, and the hosts dig into what that means for upgrades, pace, and energy management at Spa. They compare Mercedes’ aero and alleged “loophole” behavior to Red Bull’s reverted wing and battery/ICE expectations, while noting big gaps for Aston Martin and component-related penalties. From tire-return referrals to track-limit deletions and slipstream chaos, the weekend setup feels shaped as much by regulations as by outright speed.
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