Inside Line F1 Podcast

We get it. Lando Norris is probably bitter at how his Drivers' Championship challenge is turning out to be. But how could he not identify what a great drive Max Verstappen put in, in the wet weather, to go from P17 at the start to P1 at the finish. Even Verstappen's arch-rival, Lewis Hamilton, doffed his hats off to Max for a mega race. Let's add Fernando Alonso, Charles Leclerc and even Nico Hulkenberg to that list, and mind you, these are stand-out "wet weather" racers in their own right.

"It's not talent, just luck" will continue to haunt Norris, we guess, but that's already the quote of the season for us. In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah dissect Norris' luck in Interlagos, thanks to the various inconsistencies of the FIA. In fact, Norris must consider himself lucky to not get a "sporting penalty" for not following the Race Director's instructions on the "aborted start". Were the FIA too lenient on the McLaren driver?

Elsewhere, Ferrari's lack of fight, Haas' no points score, and of course, Alpine's double podium - that's discussed in this hour-long episode, including the multiple crashes seen through the weekend. Btw, what did you think of Lance Stroll's strange "got caught" in the gravel trap moment on the formation lap of the 2024 São Paulo GP? It was the most Lance Stroll thing to do, reckons @f1statsguru.

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(Season 2024, Episode 56)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Red Bull Content Pool

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Ferrari has won 3 races in a row only two times in the last 2 decades - in 2008 and then in 2019. Could they do the unthinkable and win again at Interlagos? The final race of the ongoing triple header, the 2024 São Paulo GP, is upon us, and of course, it's also a Sprint weekend format.

Lando Norris needs to out-score Max Verstappen by 12 or more points every race weekend to clinch the Drivers' Championship in Abu Dhabi. While it's a tall order already, could Verstappen's driving antics lead him to score a self-goal aka a DNF? While we hope that there are no unnatural ways to decide this year's championship, a DNF will certainly make things even tighter for Norris-Verstappen and Formula 1.

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah look forward to this weekend's 2024 São Paulo GP. Will Haas continue to shine? Btw, they're the only team on the grid to have both drivers as previous pole sitters at Interlagos. The circuit and its history is unmatched, and of course, it's known for the overtaking possibilities it offers. But how aggressive will Verstappen's defence be?

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(Season 2024, Episode 55)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Mercedes

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The 2024 Formula 1 season is turning on its head, and how. It's almost as though we don't want this season to end. Red Bull Racing was the fastest in the first third of the season, McLaren followed in the second third. Could Ferrari be the fastest in the last third of the season? It might just be so, and if it is so, how high can Ferrari and their drivers finish in the World Championship? Ferrari has overtaken Red Bull Racing for second place in the Constructors' Championship. Can Ferrari catch McLaren?

Carlos Sainz dominated in Mexico, maybe literally for the first time in his Formula 1 career. He was untouchable in Qualifying, and then in the Race. But did Max Verstappen cost Lando Norris a fair shot at victory by messing it up early race? Were Verstappen's time penalties justified? We hope the penalties in Mexico weren't a hangover of the penalties Verstappen didn't get in the previous races! And of course, Charles Leclerc honestly admitted why he couldn't match Sainz throughout the weekend in Mexico City. Btw, a great "catch" by Leclerc while Norris chased him down for second place on the podium.

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah review the 2024 Mexico City Grand Prix. Haas' double points score, the time penalties for Red Bull Racing drivers, Liam Lawson vs. Sergio Perez + Lawson's "finger" salute, Pato O'ward's random IndyCar vs. F1 reference and more. Absolutely love how Zak Brown photobombed Ferrari's post-race celebrations photo, and Sainz returned the favour.

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(Season 2024, Episode 54)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Ferrari

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"Monaco levels of downforce, Monza levels of top speed" - this phrase will be overused for the weekend of the 2024 Mexico City GP!

Will the "high altitude" impact the pecking order? Long straights followed by low speed corners, will McLaren bounce back? Or will Ferrari continue to be the class of the field? Will these two teams and their drivers take points away from Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen?

Also, could this race be Sergio Perez's final race in Formula 1? Will Red Bull Racing be forced to drop the Mexican should they lose P2 to Ferrari in the Constructors' Championship?

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah preview the 2024 Mexico City GP. Outside bets for this weekend's race - Haas, and maybe, Williams also?

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(Season 2024, Episode 53)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

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Ferrari's 1-2 finish in the 2024 United States Grand Prix needs to be celebrated, for the result itself, and how Ferrari set themselves up for victory. After mid-season struggles with bouncing, Ferrari backed their "Monza" upgrade to deliver in Austin, and it did. Ferrari was the quickest car around the Circuit of the Americas.

Charles Leclerc shot off into the lead after Max Verstappen ran Lando Norris wide on Turn 1 of the opening lap. LEC was not to be caught after this race winning move. As for Carlos Sainz, he used Ferrari's superior tyre degradation to undercut Verstappen and end his 7 race streak of no-podium finishes! In fact, Verstappen-Red Bull Racing's handling of Sainz's potential undercut threat was a clear indication of who their target was - Lando Norris, their title rival.

The resurfaced COTA offered lesser tyre degradation and turned the race into a single-stopper; and after their round of stops, Norris was, once again, required to chase Verstappen on-track and overtake him. Verstappen put up a mega defence, as he always does, and again, as he always does, stretched the rule book to ensure Norris was put in a difficult spot - yield and back off, or overtake off-track. Norris took the bait, and pulled off the overtake off-track. McLaren left the ruling to the FIA Stewards, who penalised Norris (5 seconds time penalty), but let Verstappen, who was also off-track during their skirmish, escape scot-free! Of course, all hell has broken loose on social media, with fans highlighting the FIA's inconsistencies over the years, and also, judgments favouring Verstappen.

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah discuss the 2024 USA Grand Prix, Verstappen-Norris and why the FIA ruled the way they did, Verstappen's knowledge of the "rules of on-track engagement", Liam Lawson & Franco Colapinto's mega drives to out-score their experienced team-mates, and of course, Haas' super successful home race at COTA.

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(Season 2024, Episode 52)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Ferrari

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Formula 1 is back again! And of course, to make up for the weeks of no racing, we're straight into a triple header of races in the Americas.

It is expected that all teams will bring upgrades to Austin, after all, they've been working through the autumn break. Will the upgrades change the pecking order? Can Red Bull Racing's upgrades bring it back in the fight with McLaren? In fact, will McLaren's upgrades face the same fate as their rivals? Basically, not deliver performance, for a change!

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah preview the 2024 United States Grand Prix. After a series of outlier circuits, Formula 1 will race at a traditional racing venue, the Circuit of the Americas. The elevation into Turn 1, the twisty Sector 1, the high downforce Sector 3 - the COTA has taken inspiration from several iconic corners and connected them to make their own layout.

How will Liam Lawson fare against Yuki Tsunoda? Also, it's an "F1 Sprint" weekend, which means Lando Norris can take more points off Max Verstappen, but can he, will he? The last time he scored back-to-back race wins in his Motorsport career was in 2017! Will Ferrari continue to be in the reckoning? Will Mercedes' upgrades give them the performance boost to join the fight at the sharp end?

Tune in!

(Season 2024, Episode 51)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Red Bull Content Pool

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Is Formula 1 playing "reverse psychology"? After years of complaining that "24 races are too much", we're in another break period where one might feel that Formula 1 could've well slotted in a Grand Prix between Singapore and Austin - the 25th Grand Prix of the season.

Also, the much-anticipated 10-car "rookie" race post-season was given a no-go by the FIA. After the Andretti-fiasco, that would've seen Formula 1 teams lose money to the 11th team, the FIA has taken yet another decision that would've cost the teams extra revenue...in the off-season. Make no mistake, the "rookie race" is to give rookies a chance, yes, but above all else, it is about making more money...that too in the off-season. Either way, a 10-car race seems just very odd!

The break also means that Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah have brought upgrades to the Inside Line F1 Podcast. We're trialing them in audio-video from this episode onward; your feedback will be helpful. YOU, our dear listener & viewer, are our best sensor! 😉

Tune in as we bid farewell to Daniel Ricciardo and the others, discuss Alpine-Mercedes, and how we will remember Renault's contribution to Formula 1, and yes, including why there's an odd "autumn break" in the 2024 Formula 1 calendar.

(Season 2024, Episode 50)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Getty Images via Google

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The 2024 Singapore Grand Prix - was this Daniel Ricciardo's last Formula 1 race? If so, it's unfair that Ricciardo and his legion of fans didn't get a chance to bid him a proper farewell at a race and on-track. Truthfully, a decision doesn't seem to be have been made; and Red Bull's driver move could be more towards retaining Liam Lawson for the long term, than dropping Daniel Ricciardo. And of course, Ricciardo's performances have been wanting, no doubt.

Also, the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix was another stand-out event, but not so much so the racing itself. McLaren's Lando Norris dominated every day of the race weekend; also, he went unchallenged, by his rivals and his team-mate, Oscar Piastri. If Ferrari hadn't bottled qualifying, maybe they could've taken the fight to the McLarens, unlike Red Bull Racing-Max Verstappen who were thrilled to qualify and finish second.

Red Bull Racing cheekily used Racing Bull's Ricciardo to take the "fastest lap" of the race away from Norris, thereby taking away a key championship point. It's all within the rules and regulations, but against the spirit of the sport?

The trio, Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah discuss the various stories from Singapore, including Max Verstappen's win against the FIA's silly punishments.

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(Season 2024, Episode 49)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Red Bull Content Pool

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Frankly, the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix is Lando Norris' best chance to make BIG inroads into Max Verstappen's 59 points lead in the Drivers' Championship.

If McLaren score 1-2 (Norris-Piastri), and they're capable of doing so, they will score their 50th 1-2 in Formula 1 history. But crucially, if Max Verstappen 7th or 8th (assuming Red Bull Racing is the fourth fastest car + all cars finish), then Norris could out-score Verstappen by nearly 20 points.

6 races remain after Singapore, and a 35-something lead will seem far more surmountable, especially since 3 rounds have the Sprint + Grand Prix format (34 points per round). Hence, the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix will either thrown the door wide open for Norris in the Drivers' Championship OR shut it a bit more firmly.

In this episode of the Inside Line F1 Podcast, Soumil Arora and Kunal Shah preview the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix. They discuss the circuit's characteristics and why this race is special for Formula 1 teams and drivers - it offers a physical, mental and mechanical challenge like no other.

Also, will McLaren use "papaya rules" even more firmly if Norris *has* the chance to score big against Verstappen, even if that means asking Piastri to give up a race win!?

Lots of stories and narratives to play out this weekend, starting with our 2024 Singapore Grand Prix preview episode.

Tune in!

(Season 2024, Episode 48)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Red Bull Content Pool

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We're 24 hours too late with our 2024 Azerbaijan GP review episode, however, we've covered more than just the racing on-track. Did you know that Naomi Campbell, the celebrity who waived the chequered flag in Baku, was once engaged to Flavio Briatore? Yes, lots of such stories in our near hour-long episode.

On a weekend when "papaya rules" could have been used against him, Oscar Piastri drove one of his best Formula 1 races to force McLaren to use the papaya rules in favour of him! Lando Norris, the championship contender, fought back from a 15th place at the start to 4th place at the finish; out-scoring his championship rival Max Verstappen by 3 points.

How did Charles Leclerc not win in Baku? Btw, only 1 out of the last 9 races have been won by the pole sitter! How did Piastri make up so much time on Leclerc on his in/out laps in the pit stop? Is Red Bull Racing back in form? Sergio Perez was battling for victory...on merit. And how is it that Max Verstappen's struggles continued?

Was the Carlos Sainz-Sergio Perez incident right to be labelled as a "racing incident" or should either one of the two drivers have picked up a penalty? And if so, who?

Tune in!

(Season 2024, Episode 47)

Follow our hosts on Twitter: Soumil Arora, @f1statsguru and Kunal Shah

Image courtesy: Aston Martin F1 Team

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