In F1, each team has a garage area where they work on the car. When they say “Audi garage,” they mean they watched from an Audi-related team area during the race weekend.
“Free practice one” is the first practice session of the F1 weekend. Teams use it to try things and learn about the car and track—this is also where the big crash happened.
A “right-left chicane” is a tight section where the track turns right and then immediately turns left. At Monaco it’s especially risky because the walls are very close, so mistakes can send you into the barrier.
“Free practice two” is the second practice session in the F1 weekend schedule. It’s where drivers can try again—here, Hadjar was back running after his earlier crash.
“Hard tyres” are a tougher tire choice in F1. They usually last longer, but they don’t grip as well—so the car can feel less stable, especially if the track isn’t cooperating.
“Rear stepped out” means the back of the car lost traction and slid outward. When that happens at Monaco, it can be very hard to save before you hit the wall.
Charlotte Leclerc is mentioned as another person who’s experienced a similar crash pattern. The takeaway is that Monaco is so tight that mistakes happen even to very skilled people.
Red Bull is an F1 racing team. The hosts are saying that if something goes wrong in practice, the team gets nervous because it can hurt their chances in qualifying.
Monaco pit lane is the pit area at the Monaco Grand Prix track. It’s famous for being very tight and intense, so watching cars in and out is especially dramatic.
“Lockups” means the brakes are so strong that the wheels stop turning for a moment. When that happens, the tires lose grip, and the car can become harder to control.
They’re talking about Ferrari’s F1 car with the number 12. In Formula 1, each driver’s car has a number, so it’s an easy way to say “the car Leclerc is driving.”
Term
P3
“P3” just means third place. It’s where the car ranked in speed for that session—third-fastest overall.
“Hungaro ring” is a race track in Hungary where F1 cars go. The hosts are using it as an example of a circuit where Hamilton tends to do especially well compared with Monaco.
Person
Charles Pace
This sounds like a mis-heard name for Charles Leclerc. They’re saying Leclerc is usually very good at Monaco, so it’s surprising Hamilton is challenging him.
Charles Leclerc is one of Ferrari’s top Formula 1 drivers. The hosts are talking about how well he usually qualifies, and how Monaco can be tricky—so his results can depend on avoiding mistakes.
“Super clipping” refers to an extreme aerodynamic behavior where a car’s setup or conditions cause the car to become overly unstable or to lose efficiency in certain speed ranges. The hosts mention it as a problem they expect not to appear here, implying the cars should remain more predictable.
“Straight mode” is a race setting that’s meant to help the car go faster on straight sections. The hosts are implying the cars don’t need to rely on that special setup here.
Hamilton is a famous Formula 1 driver who’s won multiple championships. In this part, the hosts think he looks confident and could realistically win the race at Monaco.
Pole position means starting first on the grid. At Monaco, that’s a big deal because it’s hard to pass once the race starts.
Term
Q3
Q3 is the last and most important part of F1 qualifying. If a driver has an accident in Q3, they can miss out on setting a fast lap and end up starting much farther back.
The “Monaco curse” is a nickname for a driver having bad luck or making mistakes at Monaco again and again. The hosts say Leclerc used to struggle there, but winning in 2024 is seen as ending that streak.
A “1-2” means the same team takes the top two spots—first and second. It’s a great result, but turning it into a race finish can be tricky, especially at Monaco.
An undercut is when one driver pits earlier than another to get fresh tires and run faster. The goal is to come out ahead after the stops, even if you couldn’t pass easily on the track.
“Track position” just means who is ahead on the track. In racing, being ahead can be a big deal because it’s harder to pass and easier to manage your tires and speed.
“Turn one” is the first major corner right after the race begins. It’s often where drivers fight for position, so it can be the most chaotic part of the race.
A “dive bomb” in Formula 1 is an ultra-aggressive braking move where a driver brakes very late to force the car into the corner. It’s risky because it can cause contact, especially on narrow tracks like Monaco where there’s little room for error.
Max Verstappen is a very aggressive Formula 1 driver. In this discussion, they’re using him as an example of someone who might try a very daring move instead of playing it safe.
A pit stop is when the race car comes into the pits to change tires (and sometimes do quick service). Teams time it carefully because when you stop can affect who is in front on the track afterward.
McLaren is another Formula 1 team. The hosts are saying McLaren has tried this kind of strategy before, but it can cause problems depending on the race situation.
“Relinquish the position” means giving back a place you just gained. In racing, that can happen if the tires or timing aren’t good enough to keep the lead after a pass.
“How the strategy unfolds” means the plan the teams execute during the race—when they pit and how they react to other cars. It’s basically the race chess game that decides who ends up winning.
“Hold position” is when the team tells a driver to stay where they are instead of trying to gain places. It’s often to protect their advantage or avoid making things worse after a pit stop.
Mercedes is a Formula 1 team. The host is basically saying Hamilton likely won’t return to Mercedes, and that this race could be his best shot at a win with Ferrari.
A reliability issue is when the race car has a problem that keeps it from working properly. If it happens often, the driver loses practice time and can’t race as strongly as the car’s speed might suggest.
FP3 is the third practice session on an F1 weekend. It’s when teams test and adjust their cars before the important sessions like qualifying and the race.
Compression ratio is how much an engine squeezes the air-fuel mixture inside the cylinder. Higher or lower squeezing can change how much power the engine makes. The hosts are saying that, for this race, that rule talk probably won’t explain what we’re seeing.
“Track dependent” means the car’s results depend on the specific race track. Some tracks favor certain strengths, like acceleration or grip, while others don’t. The hosts are saying Mercedes’ performance here doesn’t necessarily predict the next races.
George Russell is a Formula 1 driver who races for Mercedes. The hosts are referencing what he said after the session to explain why Mercedes struggled in practice. It’s basically an insider “we expected this” moment.
Place
Strait of China
They’re talking about a particular part of the circuit where the cars run fast. The point is that Mercedes was very strong in that kind of section, so the hosts think the car’s strengths show up differently depending on where you are on the track.
“Pecking order” just means which teams are usually faster than others. If it’s “flipped,” it means the usual favorites aren’t looking as dominant this time.
It means the team qualifies both of its cars in the same starting row near the front. That’s a big deal because it usually gives them an easier path at the start.
An “anomaly” means something that seems out of the ordinary. They’re basically saying this might be a weird weekend rather than a permanent change in who’s best.
Hülkenberg is a Formula 1 race driver. The hosts are talking about him as a good pick for fantasy because they think he might finally score points in Monaco.
A speed trap is a measured section on the circuit where cars’ top speed is recorded. It’s often used to gauge straight-line performance and aerodynamic efficiency, which can hint at how well a car might do on tracks with long straights.
Monza is a fast Formula 1 track with long straights. The hosts mention it to compare how a car that’s good at top speed might do on a different kind of circuit than Monaco.
“Midfield” means the teams that are not battling for the win every race, but are still competitive. The hosts are saying Audi looks like the strongest of that group in practice.
Bortoletto is a Formula 1 driver the hosts are talking about. They’re also saying they’ll interview Gaby Bortoletto later, and they discuss his role in the Monaco practice situation.
LIVE
Hello everybody and welcome back to the B1 podcast live from Monaco.
You might be able to tell that either visually or maybe even on audio as well.
We are here in Monaco.
We're going to talk all about practice.
We're going to give you a bit of an insight into what we've been up to as well
over the last sort of 12 hours, even 24 to be fair.
Yesterday was pretty chaotic as well.
Tommy, you're in your favorite place, Monaco.
How are you feeling?
Of course, I am absolutely amazing.
I can't believe the view we have.
I can't believe we're on this super yacht.
I can't believe I'm telling people we're on a super yacht, but we're on a super yacht
with a Formula 1 car on a super yacht.
Yeah, as you may well be able to tell with the livery,
even though it's not the same livery as what they're running this weekend at Monaco,
that's the Audi Formula 1 car.
And big thanks to Libertex right there.
They got us on this super yacht for the whole weekend to basically watch the action
and have an unbelievable weekend and a big shout out to Marios as well.
What a legend to give us a core memory.
I don't think I'll ever, I mean, don't get me wrong.
I feel entirely out of place the whole way through.
It took me an hour to get a water because I was scared to ask someone.
That's the kind of levels that we are, Tommy.
We're not super yacht born.
We're not born for a super yacht, but we're having a great time nonetheless.
And obviously being in Monaco is such an awesome place.
Being able to watch from the yacht as well.
We were lucky enough to watch a bit of practice as well from the Audi garage,
which was amazing, like a viewing platform.
So we are just feeling like the luckiest Formula 1 fans in the world right now.
So let's begin with free practice one.
I'm really happy to talk about Friday running at Monaco
because Ferrari are turning up like we kind of thought they would.
Leclerc was fastest ahead of Hamilton and Verstappen.
The big story is, I suppose, from free practice one was a crash for Isaac Hadjar
who went into the wall in the final sector,
the notorious famous right-left chicane where you have the slow-mo's of the one millimeter away from the wall,
the brushings of the wall.
But for Hadjar, firstly, obviously not ideal to be crashing.
I know he was very happy in free practice two to be back up and running.
But another mistake for Hadjar this year,
but it was such a unique and bizarre way to have gone into the wall.
That's the thing that I took from it is usually it's you clip the inside,
you break the suspension and then you go straight over the curb and into the wall.
But this felt like a little bit too much pace.
We'd heard from Max Verstappen earlier in the session that his tyres were dead.
This was, of course, on the hard tyres, struggling with just general grip.
It felt like the rear just stepped out for Hadjar and into the wall he went.
He did. I remember saying to you when we saw Hadjar in the wall,
I know exactly what's going to happen.
He's going to clip the inside wall and go straight into the barrier,
which is what we've seen from Max Verstappen and Charlotte Leclerc.
You did. You had to say it, didn't you?
It's true.
Thanks for reminding me.
All the best have done it.
It's happened to the best drivers on the grid.
It's happened to a lot of them.
But Hadjar flew around the corner, got wide and spun into the corner,
which we rarely see.
It was unfortunate for him.
Thankfully, it's only practice because had that been FP3,
I think Red Bull would be sweating a little bit because of how much
we've seen people miss qualifying before for an FP3 crash.
Indeed.
So the biggest takeaway I think for us that you sort of touched upon,
Tommy, at the start was the fact that one of the experiences,
I hope that you guys will understand just how lucky we feel to be here
and the experiences we're going to get over this weekend
and something we were able to do today was basically go to the Audi pit garage.
We were above where the team were.
Basically, it's kind of like a viewing experience for Audi guests
and we were able to have the headphones on and listen to the team radio.
It's basically completely unfiltered, just constant information.
And I have to say, it's just such an awesome thing.
We've been doing this for nearly nine years now, but it never gets old.
When I peer over and see the cars ready to go out for the session
or have the headphones and just listen to the team radio constantly,
it's things like that that I'm just like,
Ah, yeah, I think I am in the right job because I love this sport so insanely deeply.
And yet what an experience it was.
I found it fascinating to listen to the team radios of Hülkenberg and Portoletto.
And it was just constant talking about who was on a hot lap, who was on a cool lap,
what's basically going on out on track.
Of course, this is when they're on slow laps themselves,
but I would be overloaded with information if I was driving around Monaco,
preparing for a lap and hearing all of this stuff about other drivers
that are closing at a right rate of knots.
Exactly. That was my biggest takeaway from listening as well,
that I'm a guy that I will firmly admit I cannot multitask for the life of me.
And if someone was feeding me that much information, my brain would explode
because the amount of just constant,
you think that the push laps would be the ones that were stressful.
Is the in-laps and out-laps where they're just constantly being told,
gap to this person.
And of course, Monaco of all places is even more extreme.
And Monaco pit lane is something quite incredible to witness
because it is crazy.
I remember thinking like it's small enough anyway.
Now they've got an extra team involved as well.
But it's actually so kind of tight.
Normally you have like the big paddock.
You have these kind of the pick garages that they walk back into and have lots of space.
But we actually had, you know,
Gavi Bortoletto and Nico Holkenberg kind of like walking in from the session,
walking passes down this really tight staircase
because all the teams are crammed into this tiny pick garage.
And of course, that is a new pick garage from like not what we saw long ago.
But it's the best they can do at Monaco
because it is just an insane circuit.
And it's still insane that they're racing here full stop.
Yeah, it's mad to think that they now have an additional team to cater for as well around Monaco.
It's a tight squeeze.
Let's put it that way.
But it is still unbelievable just to see it all unfolding around a place like this.
Something I will also say, you know, back to the session itself.
Free practice one.
Yes, Leclerc was fastest in it.
Yes, I was very happy.
But it wasn't like a completely faultless session for Charles.
There were lockups.
There were things where in those initial moments, I was thinking,
Oh God, has he got the same problems as he had with Canada
where he was struggling on the brakes.
He couldn't really get the confidence in the car to be able to extract the most out of it.
But thankfully he was able to find some speed and I just I loved as well
because Monaco, of course, is such a technical, difficult, scary circuit in if we're being honest
to see the difference in ramp up between some of the drivers.
Max, every time we start a free practice session within the first 510 minutes,
he's going purple.
He's going fastest in a car that is definitely not the quickest around here.
And yet he's always the one to send it the earliest.
Whereas Leclerc felt like he was ramping up a lot slower.
Hamilton was quite quick out the blocks as well today.
But that was another takeaway for me is just like how the drivers prepare and build
to their 99% that they tend to go around it.
Definitely because you see like it's going to be a completely different ball game in FP3
where you can push the limits, you know, the corner where had your spun.
We see people going so close to the wall, but even on some of the people out there,
their quickest laps, you know, they're giving a wide berth to a lot of the corners.
They're not really pushing even still, though.
You're watching some of the on boards, how they thread these cars throughout.
I know they're a bit smaller.
They do look fantastic.
I must say they look a lot more nimble around a place like Monaco,
a bit more old school, kind of like they look like a car from like 2005.
And they certainly feel like it when they're kind of zipping around the streets of Monaco.
So, yeah, definitely like a few mistakes out there, but obviously had job being being the big one.
Indeed, let's head to free practice to where the top three were Hamilton Leclerc and Verstappen.
It is in fact a Ferrari 12 for both of the sessions today.
Just take a screenshot of my very happy face.
I hope it will be the same come tomorrow and Sunday.
But, yeah, Ferrari still looking very quick when we went to the more representative session,
but Max Verstappen coming out of nowhere for P3 and giving you a little bit of hope as well.
Definitely, yeah.
We knew that Ferrari would be quick and they've certainly lived up to the hype big time, actually.
Like really done a great job of how like there was so much expectation on Ferrari, all the drivers.
I think Lando said it of like, oh, like Ferrari are going to be quickest.
Mercedes said it as well.
And they've certainly like lived up to that.
Their car looks brilliant around it.
You know, Lewis Hamilton, wrongfully said in the podcast, but like his form around Monaco.
It's never been one of his specialist circuits, not like a Canada, China, Hungaro ring,
where he's absolutely brilliant around.
He's obviously won here, but he looks brilliant this weekend so far.
Like he is on Charles Pace and that's been a big surprise because we know that Charles is a specialist around Monaco
and Hamilton's really taking the fight to him.
Well, beautiful segue, Tommy.
This is a question from Velox97691723 who asks,
can Lewis really beat Charles at Monaco either in Quali or the race?
Of course he can.
He definitely can.
Charles isn't unbeatable.
I think, look, at the end of the day, Charles has always been fantastic at qualifying.
That's been his big strong point.
But we know that it's not always as the case now and they're very different cars to drive.
Thankfully, we're seeing them push here.
We're not going to have the problems with super clipping.
You know, we're not seeing any of the drag, the straight mode or anything like that.
So we're going to see them going flat out.
But Hamilton does look confident and I think he absolutely can do it.
It's going to be fascinating to watch and it's really good if Ferrari are in fact clear and fastest.
It's going to be fascinating if we have the two of them fighting.
Probably not for you and generally for Ferrari fans because it'll be heart and mouth stuff.
But yeah, Hamilton's been really strong and he absolutely can win the race now.
I feel like it's definitely not out of the question.
Yeah, it's closer than I thought it was going to be.
Hamilton, I'm going to say that.
Of course, I went for Hamilton pole position in predictions because you blocked Charles
and I was like, rather than going for a Norris, I think Hamilton especially after Canada
and at points in season has looked really quick and on Charles' pace.
So in my heart of hearts, I think Charles Leclerc should, in theory, have it covered.
I do think he will unlock an extra percent or two when it comes to Saturday,
the risks he's willing to take and yeah, maybe that's a little bit of hope in there.
But it will either be P1 or he will start 10th because he'll crash in Q3.
I think it's as simple as that because we've seen it before, right?
We've literally seen Charles Leclerc mistakes around his alley
and that's where the Monaco curse came from until he, of course, won in 2024 and lifted that.
But yeah, it's going to be really close.
Now, the question says either in quality or race.
I firmly believe whoever starts on pole will beat the other one in the race as well.
Like, unless one of them gets a terrible start, it's just very unlikely at Monaco.
So I'm going to back my boy Charles Leclerc, but I'm not as confident as perhaps
I thought I might have been especially after FB1 where there was that quarter of a second gap.
Okay, next question from Fire Breath.
Surely even Ferrari can't mess this up, right?
And if it's a 1-2 in quality, do you guys think Fred will tell them to hold position and secure the 1-2?
So if Ferrari lock out the 1-2 in qualifying, they've got a really difficult job on their hands
into translating that into a 1-2 in the race because if you look back at Monaco in the past,
whoever's leading manages the pace.
We have a train, we get baited into the fact we're going to get any kind of action, we don't.
But the thing is, they're going to have to potentially, depending on the strategy, of course,
one of them is going to be open to an undercut at the very least.
And that will most likely be Hamilton, right?
It's always track position. Charles Leclerc will come into the pits first if he is the one on pole
and leading into turn one, same with Lewis, right?
Whoever's leading the race will get preferential treatment and it is always track position.
So that I wonder if that opens up the possibility for whoever's in third, Alando, or whoever it might be, Max,
they could pit on the same lap as Leclerc, go for some kind of undercut.
And that could, well, it would be, as we know with Monaco, it's the biggest moment in the race
when it comes to changes of position.
So I think that will be very interesting because if there is that train,
if Leclerc or Hamilton or whoever it might be is managing the pace out in front,
it will cause second place to be slightly vulnerable.
Definitely. I mean, I think it'll be fascinating to watch, you mentioned about the person on pole,
probably going to win the race.
I do think it'll be a fascinating run down to turn one if it is the two Ferrari side by side
because they will both know that that is the opportunity.
But I think they are two experienced and sensible enough drivers to know
that, you know, like Lewis Hamilton, you know, one of the best of all time, you know, statistical go,
like he's not the kind of driver that would put a stupid dive bomb on his own teammate at Monaco.
Clip this, clip this when they go into the wall at turn one.
But it's so true and we've said that they're like, you know, they're clean racers.
Lewis Hamilton, his like strongest asset is he's not really been an all or nothing driver.
He's had amazing consistency and that's why he's won so many races and so many championships.
And he's not going to do anything crazy like we may be see from a certain guy called Max Verstappen
who's got who if he's in that situation, he's probably thinking,
this might be the only race I'm going to win at Red Bull this year.
I'm going for it. a dive bomb.
I can't see the 4R drivers doing that to each other.
Famous last words.
But yeah, we'll certainly see.
But I don't think 4R would even need to tell them to hold position.
I think that is quite sensible that as you mentioned the the undercut.
That is such a key moment of the race that when you see when you you could end up in a situation,
I'm sorry to bring up past Charlotte Claire incidents again.
But I remember Singapore when Sebastian Vettel,
even though he was you know, he got the pit stop because they're worried about someone else.
He pitted, got into the lead and Charles lost the victory and he was fuming about it.
I think even if they are 1-2, whoever's in second is going to be fighting for everything
because to get the first pit stop even if they risk it all and go incredibly early
is whether Ferrari will allow them to do it and they probably won't.
No, I don't think they will.
I think McLaren did it last year, you know, in certain moments that we were questioning,
but it would just cause so many issues if, you know,
whoever was in second place gets the pit stop, passes the person in the lead.
Are they then going to just relinquish the position?
I don't think so, right?
That is a horrible situation that Ferrari would put themselves in,
not that they haven't done in the past, but like, I just can't see that being the case.
So, let's see, right?
That's one of the big talking points and question marks around Sunday at Monaco
is how does the strategy unfold?
So, I don't think that Fred will tell them to hold position
and you brought up an interesting point which I think is going to be so fascinating to see how it unfolds.
Is the, you know, Hamilton is not known for that kind of driving,
but this might well be one of his only chances in his career to get another win.
Like, if we're talking about, yeah, well, yeah, unless you go somewhere else,
I don't think he's going to go back to Mercedes.
No, I meant like, to get that Ferrari win, though.
Well, yeah, to get that Ferrari win, right?
To get that final, or maybe a final win, we don't know, right?
But to get a win on the board for Ferrari, this might well be his only opportunity
because we don't know, like, Hamilton hasn't got an unlimited amount of years left in his career
and it looks like Ferrari can't catch up at the moment.
So, how long is he going to wait for this moment?
And I really don't see Ferrari being anywhere near as competitive as this
at any other point during the season.
So, that could change Hamilton's dynamic a little bit into term one, but we will see.
OK, let's go to another question.
People on pitch remember Matthew Cole 04.
How unlucky has Lando been this season?
Seems like he has a reliability issue every weekend.
It's so true because he basically does.
You know, we've said that Lando's been fantastic this year when his cars worked
and the reason we've said that is because his car hasn't worked very often.
He got, obviously, Miami, where he had finally a whole problem free weekend.
He won the sprint and almost won the main race
and probably should have without the McLaren bad strategy.
So, you just think, you kind of were hoping the McLaren were finally over this
and it's another reliability issue for McLaren.
It's going to cost Lando some track running.
But my biggest takeaway about McLaren this weekend is their pace has just been surprisingly bad.
Really surprisingly bad.
I was convinced they were going to be probably the second best team behind Ferrari
thinking it would suit them and they've looked really slow.
They don't look on it at all.
Obviously, we still yet to see them going for it in FP3
but it's been a big surprise just how disappointing McLaren have been so far.
Yeah, I completely agree with that one.
I firmly believe that they were going to be quicker out the blocks
and similarly to you, challenging for Ferrari and almost where they are
is where I thought Mercedes could easily have been.
But instead, Mercedes have looked relatively competitive
and McLaren absolutely nowhere at the moment.
So, things can change going into tomorrow.
We know that this is just practice
but that was definitely a big takeaway is the lack of McLaren pace
and then of course for Lando's reliability as well.
Yeah, at any time he does actually have a faultless weekend
which has like been one I think this year.
He's been phenomenal.
So, I think he needs a few more because he really has not had any luck this year.
Let's get a question from Chucklesum.
Can Max Verstappen contest for pole position?
I don't know.
I really did not expect Max and Red Bull to be a tenth and a half
or whatever he was at the end of FP2 behind the Ferraris.
I don't think so.
I'm going to just say it right now.
I don't think Max Verstappen is getting pole position.
But that being said, he could easily meet McLaren's.
He could easily get in the mix with the Mercedes.
So, for me, I think Max probably sits where he has put himself in free practice too
which I think is a brilliant performance.
Hadja on the other side of the garage, struggling with the car, having a crash
and Max just showing why he's Max Verstappen and one of the best we've ever seen.
Definitely.
I should be as a Max fan being the one that's like,
yeah, Max can definitely do it.
Ferrari, one of the previous questions was surely Ferrari can't mess it up.
As long as nothing goes wrong for Ferrari, Ferrari are clear, it seems, this weekend.
They just do see it.
We knew that car would be good and they're living up to the hype.
Both the drivers look incredibly quick.
They look incredibly strong.
I'm surprised that Red Bull are this good around here.
Well, Max, of course.
And yeah, I mean, he's got a great opportunity to get a good position on the grid.
Maybe a P3 because Mercedes obviously aren't looking great.
McLaren look really poor.
And if Max can get P3, maybe, you know, he can put some pressure on the two Ferraris
because that's another dynamic that we talk about the two Ferraris will be.
And I was one that said they're going to be quite sensible.
If either of them are backing up the pack and Max Verstappen's behind them,
Max Verstappen isn't going to be sensible and he's going to want to go for a move.
And that could put pressure on the two Ferraris to make them, you know, question things.
So I don't think Max is going to get pole position.
I think that's a huge stretch.
But they are looking a lot more competitive than I thought they'd be.
Absolutely.
A question from Rio196.
What has happened to Mercedes?
Should they be worried?
Definitely not.
I know there's the talk of like the loophole closing about the compression ratio and stuff,
which, let's be honest, doesn't really matter here.
We're not going to know that until we get to Barcelona.
But this is track dependent.
You know, they spoke to George Russell after the session and he was like,
we knew this was going to happen.
And I think, you know, deep down we knew it as well.
It's why we both wanted to put Mercedes as big flop because they've won every race.
They've been clear.
But their gap and how well they do has come from the fact that they can just unleash their power.
And that's why, you know, George Russell was like a second clear down the Strait of China
and things like that.
And they were so strong there.
And that's what we've seen is the kind of trend.
So we knew they'd struggle here.
I think it's damaged limitation for Mercedes, even though you could argue that maybe it's
a two horse race anyway between them and they don't need to worry too much.
But it's damaged limitation if they are kind of get one of them on the podium,
or, you know, they are just the best behind Ferrari and they can actually pick up the pieces from McLaren not being good.
So I don't think they should be worried at all because it's such a unique and different circuit.
That's the reason why Ferrari are quickest.
It's not just suddenly because the pecking order is like flipped on its head.
Honestly, you know, I don't think they should be worried either.
In fact, maybe it's a tiny bit of celebration because they're not miles behind.
You know, they could easily lock out the second row of the grid if they have a decent qualifying.
Russell looked pretty poor for most of the practice up until the end of FB2
when he actually was faster than Antonelli, who I think had a few struggles of his own.
But for them to be, you know, behind Max Verstappen, they'll absolutely take that.
Fourth and fifth, Antonelli is going to be like fully just focused on beating George Russell.
I don't think anybody in their right mind is bringing any other team at this stage into the championship picture.
So this is very much Antonelli versus Russell.
If they finish fourth and fifth, even if George beats Kimmy, that's a two-point swing.
Whoop-de-doo is 43 ahead.
Like, I think this is very much just an anomaly.
Don't hit the wall.
Don't just write your car off and score no points when your championship rival might score 12.
And just survive, Monaco.
I genuinely believe that's the kind of thinking here because the wind doesn't look like it's on the cards.
And as you said, we all expected Ferrari to be quick.
It's amazing that that is actually the case here.
This is one of the great things about Monaco is the fact that it does shake the pecking order somewhat,
even though I know a lot of you have your reservations about what Monaco brings on a Sunday.
There are good things about it.
I'm excited to see what tomorrow brings as well with just qualifying and finally not talking about super-glipping.
So, yeah, sign me up.
And yes, I know you're all thinking, I'm only happy because I'm one here on a super yacht,
which by the way, I still feel slightly out of place.
And two, Ferrari are quickest.
You know, that's probably the big thing, but a big shout out to Audi that are right behind me.
Question from P1P.
Do you remember Mary M.M.?
What can we expect from Audi on Sunday?
Now, this is not a paid actor.
We have not told because we're here with Libertex and, of course, Audi is right behind us.
The amazing car.
This is not a paid question, I promise.
This is actually something that is a fair question to ask because, again,
and this is not like Perez sticking at P7 in FP2 and I was going,
oh my God, where did that come from?
Audi have been quick, fast, but fragile so many times this year.
The question is about Sunday and I think that is the real one
because can they get off the line without losing six positions at the start?
You would think of all the circuits.
Monaco would be the one.
It's such a short run down towards turn one.
You can use your cars a little bit of a blockade at times.
So if they qualify seventh and eighth or eighth and ninth, which looks very, very possible,
then surely there are points on the cards.
Hülkenberg, I've put him in my F1 fantasy team because he is such a steal.
He's so cheap.
I'm like, surely there is a big result coming for him at some point and maybe it's Monaco.
Maybe.
I'm really surprised at Audi.
It was one of the biggest surprises of the practice today because I was convinced
that Audi weren't going to be very good here.
Looking at how well they've done in things like the speed trap,
I kind of thought that maybe their car is going to be suited to something like a Monza
and they could be like a bit of a specialist around power circuits and high-speed circuits.
So I didn't expect much from them from Monaco,
but actually they've been looking really quick and probably the best of the midfield so far.
It's just they have promised before and it's just a case of like,
will we see them be able to deliver because that has been their big problem.
It's dropping so low at the start.
Maybe Hülkenberg and Bortoletto need to agree to hold hands and to turn one
and just block the whole grid from their positions and just stay there because
like Hülkenberg, I think you, correct me if I'm wrong,
but I think your good surprise, sorry, your crazy prediction was Hülkenberg gets a point.
Well, she hasn't got all year, of course.
And yeah, I didn't expect it to be here, but so far, so good for them
and really hope that they continue because we're speaking to Gaby Bortoletto tomorrow,
which is going to be a lot of fun and looking forward to that.
And yeah, normally we curse people.
So fingers crossed for Audi, we don't continue that trend.
Normally we do. No, that wasn't my crazy prediction.
Mine was about one of the four top teams don't make it into Q3.
It was the Patriot one.
Patriot prediction, I went for Hülkenberg gets his first points of the season,
which I think, come on, come on, it's got to happen.
We don't have a P1 curse anymore, right?
No, we don't.
That's the thing.
For those of you that don't know, we've cursed many a driver whenever we've been with them
or 18 during a formal on weekend.
We didn't tell Libertex or Audi this until they already offered us the passes.
Yeah, we waited for the passes.
Yeah, we waited for the check to clear and then we told them about the curse.
But there you go.
That is it.
Thank you everybody for tuning in.
Can't believe we're here.
This is just utterly unbelievable.
Make sure you're following us on social media as well
because we're posting some bits and bobs across the weekend.
I'm sure there are lots more exciting things to happen.
As Tommy mentioned, we're speaking to Bortoletto tomorrow.
If everything goes to plan, you know how these things won't go.
But we have some time with him.
So if you have a question, submit it because we put a thing up on Instagram
to go and collect some of your questions.
Because I know we like to include you guys in the interviews.
So Tommy, from this ridiculous, utterly bizarre experience
of sitting on a super yacht recording the podcast,
can you please give me your final thoughts?
No, I don't know how I can get my final thoughts in.
It's just so ridiculous what we're doing.
I have to pinch myself every day.
I know some people will be like, oh, you've been doing this so long now.
Of course it's normal.
It is never not normal.
I was just speaking to someone about how I was really lucky
that me and my dad saved up for like four...
Well, my dad saved up when I was a kid for years.
And we wanted to do Monaco.
And we came general admission for the first Formula One race together.
So it holds a special place in my heart.
And to be here now doing what we're doing,
I do genuinely just have to keep pinching myself every single day.
Even just what we're doing normally.
Never mind when we're sat on a blamin' super yacht
in front of a Formula One car,
talking about Formula One for all you guys.
So yeah, I will just echo what we've said a million times
and just thank you all for following us on this insane journey
and helping us live our dreams, basically.
Because this is exactly what...
I couldn't even dream of doing this, to be perfectly honest.
We just wanted to talk about Formula One.
We didn't know anything else other invites
and things would come our way.
So yeah, thank you to each and every one of you
for coming along with us for this journey.
I hope that you can kind of feel the awe
that we're just experiencing at all times.
Even though we have been to Monaco before,
it just never gets old.
None of this ever gets old.
So I just want to say as well thank you
to each and every one of you for supporting us.
We will continue this.
Hopefully the podcast don't come out too late
because internet is a bit wobbly here,
if we're being completely honest.
But we'll do our very best.
And yeah, we'll see you tomorrow
for the qualifying roundup.
Ferrari 1-2.
There we go.
That's not me jinxing.
I'm saying that that's what happened today.
All right?
Oh.
In case anyone comes to me.
That was also, yeah.
Make of it what you will.
I mean, they should be.
Yeah, the sun's really getting to me.
All right.
Bye, everyone.
Bye.
P1 is a stack production
and part of the ACAST Created Network.
About this episode
Monaco practice day gets a vivid reaction from Matt and Tommy: watching F1 action “with a Formula 1 car on a super yacht,” then breaking down the on-track chaos. Isaac Hadjar’s FP1 crash is traced to grip and the rear “stepped out,” while Monaco’s tight pit lane and cramped garages make everything feel intense. Ferrari’s pace dominates (including a “Ferrari 1-2”), Verstappen’s P3 sparks hope, and the hosts zero in on qualifying, track position, and undercut timing for Sunday.
Join us LIVE ON A SUPERYACHT IN MONACO HARBOUR as we react to the early running from the top teams and tell you a bit more about our amazing weekend.
Our brand new live show 'Super Podding' is coming to the UK and Amsterdam this autumn! Get your tickets here: http:/tix.to/p1live
Sign up to our Patreon for just $5 a month! You'll get access to every P1 episode ad-free, extended versions of every 2026 race review, early access to tickets & merch, and access to our Discord server where you can chat with us and other F1 fans! Click here to sign up now: http://patreon.com/mattp1tommy
