Following the first two races of the 2026 Formula 1 season, we catch up with two of the sport's rising stars, Chinese GP winner for Mercedes, Kimi Antonelli, and Haas one-to-watch Ollie Bearman. With never-before-heard interviews from the series, we learn a little more about their lives on the road and at home.

As they embarked on their second year racing in the world’s fastest sport, how would they adjust to F1’s new era of cars at the opening races of the season?

F1: Back at Base is an IMG Production for the BBC.

Co-hosts & Executive Producers are Sarah Holt and Holly Samos

Mercedes show their strength once again, but will we have an inter-team title fight between George Russell and Kimi Antonelli after the Italian’s star show in China? Ferrari produced a battle for the ages, so is Lewis Hamilton back to his best? Plus, what is going on at McLaren? Harry Benjamin, former McLaren Formula E driver Sam Bird and the BBC’s F1 correspondent Andrew Benson review the Chinese Grand Prix, asking whether the new rules have worked or whether this is now a ‘battery world championship’.

It was an eventful day at the Chinese Grand Prix as a surprise pole sitter made history, following a dramatic sprint. Was that F1’s best sprint? Plus, is Lewis Hamilton back to his best? Harry Benjamin, former McLaren Formula E driver Sam Bird and the BBC’s F1 correspondent Andrew Benson reflect on Saturday at the Chinese Grand Prix, and look ahead to Sunday’s race.

Who would take pole for Saturday’s sprint? Would George Russell’s domination continue? Can Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari keep the pressure on Mercedes at the front of the grid? Harry Benjamin, former McLaren Formula E driver Sam Bird and the BBC’s F1 correspondent Andrew Benson reflect on sprint qualifying at the Chinese Grand Prix, and look ahead to the weekend’s action.

Izzy Hammond and Harry Benjamin digest the latest F1 trends and biggest discussion points after the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Are F1 curses real? Are the ‘burger curse’ and ‘Red Bull second seat curse’ impacting F1?

We also celebrate Izzy’s favourite Melbourne memes and discuss your hot takes, including the prediction that Aston Martin will win a race in 2026!

Are we going too early to say George Russell will be crowned the 2026 world champion? After his dominant victory in Melbourne, Harry, Jennie and Marc look back at the opening race of the new season and ask just how big Mercedes’ advantage over the rest of the field might be. They hear from Russell, his teammate Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton.

So, Mercedes are going to run away with both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles… right? After their dominant display in the first qualifying session of the season, Harry, Jennie and Marc pick through the bones of what happened. They hear from many of the drivers and discuss what it all means heading into Sunday’s race.

Will the two Aston Martin cars make Sunday's starting grid? Harry Benjamin, Jennie Gow, Marc Priestley and Andrew Benson look back on the first day of on-track action at the Australian GP. Who is the team to beat? And why are Aston Martin struggling so badly? We hear from their team principal Adrian Newey.

Are Mercedes really favourites? Can Lando make a successful defence of his title? And are things really that bad at Aston Martin? Just a few of the questions Harry Benjamin, Andrew Benson and Jennie Gow tackle ahead of this weekend’s season-opening race in Melbourne. Lando joins us on the pod to tell us whether life has changed since becoming world champion. Lewis Hamilton explains why he’s so positive going into the new season. Plus, we hear from one of the new faces on the grid, Arvind Lindblad.

Harry Benjamin and Jennie Gow are joined by ex-McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley and former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer from Mercedes’ Brackley HQ ahead of the new F1 season. With the new rules and regulations dominating the build-up to the 2026 campaign, we ask whether they are a good thing for the sport. Will we have a four-way fight for the title? Will Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari have a resurgence after a disappointing 2025? And how will defending champion Lando Norris fare? We hear from Norris, as well as British rookie Arvid Lindblad, plus motorsport content creator Izzy Hammond joins the team.