0:00 / 0:00
Russell for champion? Are Ferrari back? Your questions answered! | 2026 F1 season preview

Russell for champion? Are Ferrari back? Your questions answered! | 2026 F1 season preview

The Fast and the Curious Feb 23, 2026 50 min
0:00
0:00

About this episode

The podcast dives into the upcoming 2026 Formula 1 season with insights on major rule changes, new team entries like Cadillac and Audi, and engine supplier shifts including Honda to Aston Martin and Ford aiding Red Bull. Betty Glover shares her fresh experiences from F1 testing, highlighting the unique paddock atmosphere and mixed driver reactions to the new cars. The hosts discuss the complexity of the new regulations but emphasize that the essence of racing remains, encouraging fans to focus on the excitement of the sport rather than technical details. Predictions and team evaluations also feature prominently.

Filter:
|
Technical Too Afraid to Ask
Concept

Formula One

"This is the Formula One podcast that speaks to the biggest names in the sport. They are fast and we are curious."

Formula One is a type of car racing where the fastest and most advanced cars race on tracks around the world to see who is the best driver and team.

Concept

F1 TV

"So I have joined the Formula One TV, well, the F1, I don't know why I called it Formula One, the F1 TV team."

F1 TV is a special service where you can watch Formula One races live on your computer or phone, with extra videos and features that make watching more fun.

Concept

Formula 1

"pop up on F1 Twitter and on threads, because I look at threads every now and then, and there are people who are like, fans of the Fast and the Queer is going, go on, Betty, go on, do the testing on F1 TV."

Formula 1 is a type of car racing with very fast cars that race on tracks all over the world. It's the top level of car racing and lots of people watch it.

Brand

Honda

""On the engine side of things, Honda have gone to Aston Martin, Ford have come in to help Red Bull...""

Honda is a Japanese car and engine maker that helps race teams by providing engines; they are now working with Aston Martin.

Brand

Pirelli

"old Pirelli's that have been wasted that are too big now. Would you like to know a little facts? A lot of Formula One tyres are melted down and genuinely a lot end up as, for things like kids play areas... Thanks to our friends at Pirelli for that."

Pirelli is a company that makes tires, including special tires used in very fast car races like Formula One.

Company

Aston Martin

"I think Aston Martin are in a world of pain. The one thing that I think everyone is also trying to stress though is that Adrian Newey will get this team into a better place."

Aston Martin is a famous British car company that makes fast and fancy cars. They also race cars in Formula One.

Concept

Adrian Newey

"Adrian Newey is this super designer who has had success wherever he's gone. He left Red Bull. He signed to Aston Martin to all this spectacular fanfare."

Adrian Newey is a famous car designer in Formula One racing. He makes the cars faster and better and has worked with some of the best teams.

Company

Red Bull Racing

"He left Red Bull. He signed to Aston Martin to all this spectacular fanfare."

Red Bull Racing is a top team in Formula One car racing. They have won many championships and made some of the best racing cars.

Brand

Ferrari

""You know, it's got such a, it's like Ferrari. It's as well thought of almost as, you know, it's Ferrari Aston Porsche.""

Ferrari is a famous car company from Italy that makes very fast and expensive sports cars. They are well known for racing and winning many competitions.

Brand

Porsche

""It's Ferrari Aston Porsche. It's that those sorts of things.""

Porsche is a car company from Germany that makes fast and sporty cars. They are famous for their racing history and cool designs.

Brand

Cadillac

"The thing is with Cadillac is they got miles in and at this stage,"

Cadillac is a car brand from America that makes fancy and comfortable cars. They also race their cars in long races.

Brand

Williams

""The issue, I think, with Williams is that they're just very overweight, so they've got to sort the weight out, basically.""

Williams is a famous racing team that builds and races very fast cars in Formula 1. They have to make their cars light and fast to win races.

Brand

Audi

"Audi are saying, we're coming in to win, right? We're not coming in to be a mid-table team."

Audi is a car company from Germany that makes fancy cars and races in big car competitions.

Concept

team principal

"They've basically got two great team principals in Jonathan Wheatley and Matteo Venotto. That role is split across the two."

A team principal is like the boss of a racing team who makes big decisions and helps the team do well in races.

Car

Buick Grand National

"...make an annoying point? You know, like people on Grand National Day where they pick a colour. I think it might be..."

The Buick Grand National is a special car from the 1980s that was really fast and looked cool because it was all black. People liked it because it was powerful but didn’t look like a typical sports car. It’s often talked about because it’s a unique and interesting car from that time.

Term

petrol head

"he's a proper, he's a proper petrol head, is Jonathan Wheatley."

A petrol head is a person who really loves cars and knows a lot about them.

Brand

Haas

"I was really impressed with Haas. Some people saying that they might be the sort of Williams role of best of the rest."

Haas is a racing team in Formula 1 that is smaller and spends less money than the biggest teams but still races well.

Brand

Alpine

"And actually credit to Alpine, who nobody seems to be putting in the bottoms. And last year, they were absolutely s***."

Alpine is a racing team in Formula 1 that is part of the Renault car company.

Part

Mercedes engines

"It really appears that they've got the s*** together a little bit. Buying Mercedes engines was controversial because, you know, Wayne should make your own engines."

Mercedes makes the engines that some Formula 1 teams use to power their cars.

Brand

McLaren

"Everyone's losing their heads over the top four. Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren."

McLaren makes very fast sports cars and has a team that races in Formula 1, the top car racing series.

Term

podium

"are going to get on the podium in Melbourne, which I don't agree with, but can you imagine?"

The podium is the place where the top three racers stand after a race to get their awards.

Term

paddock

"Toto Wolf and George Russell have been strutting around that paddock with the confidence of people that know that they're okay."

The paddock is the place at a race track where the race teams park their cars and work on them.

Concept

Lewis Hamilton

"Anyway, the Ferrari thing is interesting to me because can someone please tell Lewis Hamilton that everything's going to be okay?"

Lewis Hamilton is a very famous race car driver who has won many championships in the fastest car races in the world.

Concept

driver adaptability

"different drivers can adapt to different things, and Max is just the king of adaptability. He's just insane."

Driver adaptability means how well a race car driver can get used to new cars or rules quickly to race better.

Term

testing

"we were testing it, because that's what you do in testing. It does what it says on the tin. ... actually it is testing. So can you just try and some stuff out, please? We're just workshopping."

Testing is when race teams try out their cars and new ideas on the track before the real races to see what works best.

Term

sandbagging

"Question here from Charlie, who says, how much can team sandbag during testing, i.e. could Lance Stroll win in Melbourne?"

Sandbagging means pretending your car is slower than it really is so other teams don't know how fast you can go.

Term

constructors

"Let's do a chart show, a rundown of your 321 constructors and drivers. Okay. So who's winning the constructors and who's winning the drivers?"

Constructors are the teams that make and race the cars in Formula One. They compete to see which team is the best over the whole season.

Term

drivers

"Let's do a chart show, a rundown of your 321 constructors and drivers. Okay. So who's winning the constructors and who's winning the drivers?"

Drivers are the people who drive the cars in Formula One races. They try to win races and be the best driver of the year.

1 cars featured

Request an Explanation

Heard something you'd like explained? We'll add it to this episode.

Sign in to request explanations for terms you heard.

Want to learn more?

Browse our glossary for plain-English explanations of automotive terms, jargon, and concepts.

Explore Terms

Help improve this episode

See something that's not quite right? Our annotations are AI-generated and can sometimes miss the mark. Click the flag icon on any annotation to suggest a correction.

Report incorrect info
Suggest better explanations
Flag missing cars