Taming the insane speed of an F1 car takes extraordinary skill and incredible technology. The brakes glow red hot. The drivers feel extreme G-forces. How do F1 braking systems work, and how do drivers cope every time they slam their left foot into the pedal?

Katie Osborne and Christian Hewgill break down F1 brakes with:

Send us your F1 question and we'll find the expert to answer it
Write an email or record a voice note and send it to [email protected]

Learn more about F1 with our previous episodes:

How F1 video games are so realistic - with EA SPORTS F124

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner + F1 Explains listeners

F1 race suits, boots, gloves + underwear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

Formula 1 Team Principals have a lot to do. They have to manage the drivers, engineers, mechanics, designers and hundreds of other employees at the racetrack and in the factory. Team Principals lead them all through wins, podiums and retirements. If things don't go well, they sometimes pay with their jobs.

Aston Martin's Team Principal Mike Krack tells Katie and Christian about his job and how it differs from his fellow bosses. Plus, how he manages drivers, keeps on top of the rulebook and why he chooses to watch races from the pit wall, not the garage.

Got a question? We can answer it!
We love answering your F1 questions. Write them in an email or record them as a voice note and send them to [email protected]

Catch up with our other episodes

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

In Formula 1, a driver's teammate is their biggest rival. Each wants to beat the other, but they also need to score maximum points for their teams. When teammates work together, big rewards can follow. When they clash, it can get messy.

Kick Sauber F1 Team duo Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu have been teammates since 2022. They tell Christian Hewgill and Katie Osborne the secrets of their relationship, how they help each other, how they race each other on track, how they balance teamwork and rivalry and how they decide who gets which side of the garage...

Get in touch
We love answering your F1 questions. Write an email or record a voice note and send it to [email protected]

Catch up with our other episodes

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

'Please can you summarise how F1 rules have changed since Fernando Alonso's F1 debut?', asks Richard in Dallas, Texas. 23 years of engines, tyres and points systems? No problem for Christian Hewgill and Katie Osborne!

That's just one of the questions tackled in this episode, featuring F1TV commentator Alex Jacques and former Renault F1 racer Jolyon Palmer. Also answered: 

Ask us a question!
Want to be on the next episode of F1 Explains? If you've got an F1 question, send it to us and we'll find an expert to answer it. Send your email or voice note to [email protected]

Check out our other episodes

F1 car setup - with Fernando Alonso + Aston Martin

Race suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

F1 brakes - technology + technique - with Brembo + Jack Doohan

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

F1 stars of the future show their speed in Formula 2 and Formula 3. The categories immediately below Formula 1 in the motorsport ladder are the perfect place for a driver to sharpen their skills and prove they're ready to move up. 

How do F2 and F3 work? How are the cars different? How do they prepare drivers for Formula 1? To answer those questions and many more, Christian Hewgill and Katie Osborne speak to:

For the latest on F2 and F3 visit
The official F2 website
The online home of F3

Curious about cars? Quizzical about qualifying? Wondering about wheelspin?
If you've got an F1 question, send it to us and we'll find an expert to answer it. Send your email or voice note to [email protected]

Catch up with our other episodes

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

Why is finishing outside the points still important? How do you really say 'Charles Leclerc?' How did the pit lane get its name? Christian and Katie put these listener questions and more to F1TV commentator Alex Jacques and former F1 driver Jolyon Palmer.

Ask us a question!
We love answering your F1 Qs. Write them in an email or record them as a voice note and send them to [email protected]

Catch up with our other episodes

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

The game-changing, trailblazing, all-female racing series is back for 2024 with new drivers, top teams and wheel-to-wheel action. The second season of F1 ACADEMY starts this weekend at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Katie Osborne and Christian Hewgill find out everything there is to know ahead of the first race.

Susie Wolff, who's driving the series forwards as Managing Director, tells Katie and Christian about the series' mission in 2024 and how it will inspire young women to pursue careers in motorsport.

Driver Lia Block is fully focused on making her F1 ACADEMY debut. She tells Christian and Katie why racing with ART Grand Prix and Williams is such a huge opportunity. How will Lia make the switch from winning on rally circuits to racing on Grand Prix tracks, and how will the series change her career?

Here's how to follow F1 Academy in 2024

2024

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

F1 Explains episodes for International Womens' Day

Pit stops - with performance expert, Gemma Fisher

DRS - with F1 strategist Ruth Buscombe + aerodynamicist Emel Cankaya

The incredible logistics of F1 - with Giorgia Tirabassi from DHL

The 2024 F1 calendar - with Ellen Jones, F1 Head of Sustainability

Simulators with Dr Diandra Leslie Pelecky

Street circuits with F1 strategist Bernie Collins

F1 driver fitness with Dr Diandra Leslie Pelecky + Sebastian Vettel's former trainer

For in-depth interviews with F1's biggest names, listen to F1 Beyond The Grid. For race previews and reviews, head over to F1 Nation.

20 F1 cars. 5 red lights. 0.2 seconds to react. 5 seconds to 120 mph. The start of a Formula 1 Grand Prix demands extraordinary skill from the drivers and quick decisions from the team strategists.

Katie and Christian explore the start of a race with Mercedes reserve driver and former Haas racer Mick Schumacher, who explains what happens in the cockpit in the moments before the start, and the intense run to turn 1. Former Aston Martin Head of Race Strategy Bernie Collins tells us how the race start affects the team's plan for tyres and pit stops.

Get in touch!
Send your question to F1 Explains. We'll find the experts to answer it! Record your question as a voice note or write it in an email and send it to [email protected]

Catch up with our other episodes

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

What we learned in 2023 - the best bits of F1 Explains in 2023

Why you need to see F1 live - trackside at a Grand Prix

LIVE at the US Grand Prix - with F1 Explains listeners + David Coulthard

The incredible logistics of F1 - with DHL + Alfa Romeo

How F1 racetracks are designed - with the masterminds behind Miami

How car liveries are created - with Alfa Romeo + McLaren

The mental pressure of F1 - with David Coulthard

Steering wheels - how they're designed + what the buttons do

DRS - how F1's overtaking aid works and why it matters

Tyres - an engineer, a driver and a designer explains why they matter

The 2024 F1 calendar - why it helps make F1 more sustainable

Wind Tunnels - the top secret tools where cars are created

Race engineers - the voices on F1 Team Radio, with Zhou Guanyu

Pit stops - how to do them perfectly

Simulators with Aston Martin's Stoffel Vandoorne

Racing in the rain with Mika Hakkinen + Haas race engineer Mark Slade

Street circuits with Mika Hakkinen + Bernie Collins

F1 driver fitness with Alexander Rossi + Sebastian Vettel's former trainer

F1 in the USA - why the US has 3 races in 2023

F1 Sprint weekends with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen

The latest season of Drive To Survive is another fascinating look inside Formula 1. How is the show planned, filmed and edited? How do the producers decide what stories to tell? What does the future hold for the series?

To find out, Christian and Katie speak to Drive to Survive's award-winning Executive Producer, James Gay-Rees of Box To Box Films.

F1 Explains is the official F1 podcast which answers your questions about how F1 works.

Send us your F1 question and we'll find the expert to answer it
Write an email or record a voice note and send it to [email protected]

Learn more about F1 with our previous episodes:

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with Mercedes, McLaren + Alpine

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

What we learned in 2023 - the best bits of series 1

LIVE at the US Grand Prix - with F1 Explains listeners + David Coulthard

The incredible logistics of F1 - with DHL + Alfa Romeo

How F1 racetracks are designed - with the masterminds behind Miami

How car liveries are created - with Alfa Romeo + McLaren

The mental pressure of F1 - with David Coulthard

Steering wheels - how they're designed + what the buttons do

DRS - how F1's overtaking aid works and why it matters

Tyres - an engineer, a driver and a designer explains why they matter

The 2024 F1 calendar - why it helps make F1 more sustainable

Wind Tunnels - the top secret tools where cars are created

Race engineers - the voices on F1 Team Radio, with Zhou Guanyu

Pit stops - how to do them perfectly

Simulators with Aston Martin's Stoffel Vandoorne

Racing in the rain with Mika Hakkinen + Haas race engineer Mark Slade

Street circuits with Mika Hakkinen + Bernie Collins

F1 driver fitness with Alexander Rossi + Sebastian Vettel's former trainer

F1 in the USA - why the US has 3 races in 2023

F1 Sprint weekends with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen

Where in the world is Christian Hewgill? He’s in Bahrain to find out why F1 pre-season testing is so important for teams, engineers and drivers.

Katie Osborne has a list of listener questions, Christian gets the answers from McLaren driver Oscar Piastri, Alpine Reserve Driver Jack Doohan, Mercedes’ Communications Director Bradley Lord and McLaren Racing Director Randy Singh.

F1 Explains is the official F1 podcast which answers your questions about how F1 works.

Record your question as a voice note or write it in an email and send it to [email protected]

Check out our previous episodes:

Catch up with our other episodes

LIVE in Miami with Guenther Steiner and F1 Explains listeners

Suits, boots + underwear: what F1 drivers wear - with PUMA

The job of an F1 Team Principal - with Aston Martin's Mike Krack

Why F1 teammates are friends + foes - with Valtteri Bottas + Zhou Guanyu

How Formula 2 + Formula 3 prepare drivers for F1 - with Oscar Piastri

F1 Academy - with Susie Wolff + Lia Block

The F1 race start - with Mick Schumacher + strategist Bernie Collins

Behind the scenes on Drive to Survive - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

How F1 teams build their new cars - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

What we learned in 2023 - the best bits of series 1

LIVE at the US Grand Prix - with F1 Explains listeners + David Coulthard

The incredible logistics of F1 - with DHL + Alfa Romeo

How F1 racetracks are designed - with the masterminds behind Miami

How car liveries are created - with Alfa Romeo + McLaren

The mental pressure of F1 - with David Coulthard

Steering wheels - how they're designed + what the buttons do

DRS - how F1's overtaking aid works and why it matters

Tyres - an engineer, a driver and a designer explains why they matter

The 2024 F1 calendar - why it helps make F1 more sustainable

Wind Tunnels - the top secret tools where cars are created

Race engineers - the voices on F1 Team Radio, with Zhou Guanyu

Pit stops - how to do them perfectly

Simulators with Aston Martin's Stoffel Vandoorne

Racing in the rain with Mika Hakkinen + Haas race engineer Mark Slade

Street circuits with Mika Hakkinen + Bernie Collins

F1 driver fitness with Alexander Rossi + Sebastian Vettel's former trainer

F1 in the USA - why the US has 3 races in 2023

F1 Sprint weekends with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen