No one saw this coming.

In the lead to the United States Grand Prix (which this podcast was recorded), Toyota shocked the F1 world by announcing its return in a technical partnership with the Haas F1 Team that begins immediately. The Japanese manufacturer had one the biggest operating budgets during its earliest stints in F1 before it left the sport.

This comes amid a flurry of breaking news, including the removal of the fastest lap point in the 2025 season. So, grab your coffee (or your preferred drink) and strap for another episode of Race Pod.

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Timestamps:

0.00: What was Toyota like back in the early days of F1?

1.10: What do F1 fans do during a break

2.15: Daniel Ricciardo leaves VCARB and is replaced immediately by Liam Lawson

12.30: Will Courtenay will leave Red Bull Racing to join McLaren as Sporting Director

17.00: Alpine will shut down their works engine programme at the end of 2025

22.50: Toyota Gazoo Racing signs a new technical partnership with Haas effective immediately

33.55: The fastest lap point will be removed in 2025

39.40: Lola Yamaha ABT completes debut driver line-up with rookie Zane Maloney joining "Mr Formula E" Lucas di Grassi

41.55: Max Verstappen gets handed a one-day community service for the explicit language used during a pre-race conference

46.30: Michael Andretti steps down as Head of Andretti Global Racing Team

50.00: Can Lando become a World Champion?

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Tune in every month on Spotify for a quick refresher on all of the off-track drama and everything in between before you get to another month of racing with F1.

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