Aston Martin's start to the season has been dogged by reliability problems, with serious vibrations from Honda's power unit damaging batteries beyond repair and leaving its drivers in pain. But who is to blame for these issues, and why is implementing a fix so difficult? Host Edd Straw and former F1 technical director Gary Anderson dig into those questions on the latest episode of The Race F1 Tech Show. Gary also gives his views on the news that Aston Martin are set to bring in a new team princi...
Mar 26, 2026•49 min
When we put out Part 2 of our season preview earlier this month, in which Edd Straw, Ben Anderson and Glenn Freeman voiced their concerns about the impact the 2026 rules would have on many aspects of the sport, we were flooded with feedback. Some praised their candidness and honesty, other called them doom-mongers who needed to give the rules a chance. So, two races (and one sprint) into the season, how do Edd, Ben and Glenn feel about what they've seen so far? Have they been won over by F1 2026...
Mar 25, 2026•1 hr 7 min
Is Lewis Hamilton back to his best? That’s the question we ask in the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast. Nelson Valkenburg and Mark Hughes join Edd Straw to look at Hamilton’s start to the season, and decide what conclusions can be drawn about his strong start. We tackle listener questions on the reasons for Hamilton’s past struggles, why he’s better suited to the current cars and his general demeanour. The progress of team-mate Charles Leclerc and Ferrari heir apparent Ollie Bearman are als...
Mar 23, 2026•54 min
Damon Hill and Johnny Herbert return to discuss a polarising pair of races to kick-start the 2026 season. Some have controversially compared the racing to Mario Kart - but is that a fair comparison, and is it actually a good thing? Our grand prix winners discuss what they've liked and disliked about the new rules, debate whether F1 should exist more to thrill the drivers or entertain fans, and share their stand-out drivers of the season so far. Get bonus F1 podcasts, extra content and ad-free li...
Mar 22, 2026•1 hr 2 min
Adrian Newey’s tenure as Aston Martin team principal is set to be a short one, with Jonathan Wheatley, who has walked away from his similar role at Audi for what the team calls personal reasons, expected to join his former Red Bull colleague at the Silverstone team. So what’s behind these latest machinations, and what does it tell us about the ambitions of both teams? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm to me to tackle those questions... Get bonus F1 podcasts, extra content and ad-free li...
Mar 20, 2026•45 min
Bring Back V10s returns! And we're kicking off Season 13 with something a bit different, as we revisit the major flashpoints in the short-lived Ayrton Senna/Michael Schumacher F1 rivalry. Glenn Freeman, Ben Anderson and Edd Straw dig into the times Senna and Schumacher fell out during their brief spell together on the F1 grid - and yes, that includes Senna's iconic public telling off that he gave Schumacher at the 1992 French Grand Prix while wearing a pastel jumper! We also explore how their re...
Mar 19, 2026•1 hr 20 min
While Mercedes has dominated the early stages of the 2026 F1 season, Ferrari has been a consistent thorn in its side. So what chances are there of the Prancing Horse being able to close the gap in time to get into title contention, and what tracks might it have a chance of being able to beat the Silver Arrows? On the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast, Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm and Josh Suttill to answer those questions and many more submitted by The Race Members' Club. If yo...
Mar 18, 2026•1 hr 2 min
In Shanghai, Edd Straw is joined by Jon Noble to dissect the Chinese Grand Prix, and another event dominated by Mercedes - albeit with each of its drivers taking a victory in the sprint/GP double header. Edd and Jon discuss Kimi Antonelli's impressive maiden victory, and whether he should really be considered a title contender this season. They also answer the question as to whether Ferrari could have taken second from George Russell, had Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc spent less time battli...
Mar 15, 2026•1 hr 20 min
As F1 heads to a very different circuit for the second race of this new era, might that allow Ferrari to challenge Mercedes for top spot this weekend? And could the Italian team really emerge as a title contender this season after a promising performance in Australia, despite coming off second best? Ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, Edd Straw joins up with Jon Noble in Shanghai to answer those questions and to tackle a whole heap more that were sent in by The Race Members' Club, including: How go...
Mar 11, 2026•57 min
With one round down, opinions are still split on F1's new rules and the way they've altered the on-track spectacle. On this episode of The Race F1 Tech Show, Edd Straw and former F1 technical director Gary Anderson discuss the positives and negatives of what we saw in Australia, discuss how the teams' growing tech understanding will impact racing, and debate the tweaks F1 can make to the rules to improve what many see at the immediate problem areas. Gary also answers questions from listeners on ...
Mar 10, 2026•1 hr 3 min
Edd Straw is joined by Jon Noble, in Melbourne, and Scott Mitchell-Malm to unpick the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. The big talking point heading into the race was the nature of the racing under the new regulations - so what did the guys make of what they saw on Sunday? And would Charles Leclerc and Ferrari have been able to stop George Russell leading home a Mercedes one-two had different strategic decisions been made? We tackle those topics and more, plus answer the first batch of your...
Mar 08, 2026•1 hr 16 min
F1 heads into its season-opener in Australia with the usual excitement tempered by trepidation about what impact the new regulations - and in particular the energy-starved power units - might have on the racing. So how will the on-track action play out this year, and will we really see chaos during qualifying and at race starts? And if the racing does fall flat, will panic set in? In our second and final pre-season episode, Edd Straw is joined by Ben Anderson and Glenn Freeman to debate those qu...
Mar 04, 2026•1 hr 7 min
George Russell heads into the season-opening Australian Grand Prix as world championship favourite. But are he and Mercedes really up to the challenge, and will it be Lando Norris, Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc or someone else who emerges as his main rival? In the first episode of our two-part F1 2026 season preview, Edd Straw is joined by Ben Anderson and Glenn Freeman to look at the drivers who should be vying for race wins, the dark horses who could surprise, those with something to prove, ...
Mar 02, 2026•56 min
Max Verstappen has been incredibly critical of the direction F1 has taken with its 2026 rules - but does he have a point? Is F1 still F1? That's the key topic of conversation in the latest episode of Stay On Track, in which 1996 world champion Damon Hill and three-time grand prix winner Johnny Herbert look ahead to the season-opening race in Australia and contemplate what we can expect from the racing in this new era of F1. They also discuss whether they'd have liked to have driven these cars, s...
Mar 01, 2026•57 min
The Race F1 Tech Show returns, with Edd Straw and legendary former F1 technical director Gary Anderson discussing all the big tech talking points heading into 2026. Gary gives his assessment of each team heading into the new season, plus shares his thoughts on the new power units, deployment regimes, energy harvesting, the start sequence and more. He also answers questions from listeners on bargeboards (or should that be floorboards?), the loss of the MGU-H, the weight limit, and lift wings vs d...
Feb 26, 2026•1 hr 1 min
The combination of Fernando Alonso, Adrian Newey and works Honda engines was meant to be the stuff of dreams for Aston Martin, but in testing the combination looked in big trouble and facing an extremely tough start to 2026 at the very least. So has Alonso's last chance to win again in F1 already slipped away, and if so what does that mean for the 44-year-old's future? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm and Jon Noble to discuss the prospects of the Spaniard and his Aston Martin team, inc...
Feb 25, 2026•52 min
Ferrari ended testing on top courtesy of a Charles Leclerc flyer at the end of the final day of running in Bahrain. But who is really the pace-setter heading to Melbourne, and how did Aston Martin somehow manage to have its worst day yet of a nightmare pre-season? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm and Samarth Kanal to answer those questions and sum up each team's start to 2026. Get your 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club on Patreon today and enjoy bonus F1 podcasts and ad-free l...
Feb 20, 2026•50 min
Ferrari was talk of the paddock on the penultimate day of pre-season testing in Bahrain with its 'upside-down' rear wing. So what’s that design about and is it legal? And just how strong is the Prancing Horse looking in terms of performance? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm, with special contributions from technical expert Gary Anderson, to answer those questions, and get into the other big talking points from Thursday, which included the teams partaking in lower power trials. Get your...
Feb 19, 2026•33 min
It was George Russell in the upgraded Mercedes on top on the first day of the final Bahrain pre-season test as the lap times continued to drop. But what impact could the looming compression ratio saga resolution have on it, and how did the experimental start procedure trialled at the end of the day play out? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm to review another gripping day of running, and run the rule over every team on track. Get your 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club on Patreo...
Feb 18, 2026•34 min
We reveal every team’s top priority for the final three days of pre-season testing in Bahrain in the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast. Scott Mitchell-Malm and Samarth Kanal join Edd Straw to work through the 11 teams and what we need to see from them to be sure they are in the best possible place for the start of the season. We discuss the off-track challenge for Mercedes, McLaren’s game of catch-up and Ferrari’s need to build on promising signs. The impressive start made by the Red Bull Po...
Feb 16, 2026•46 min
People in F1 have long talked about finding ‘the unfair advantage’, but sometimes the line between clever thinking and outright cheating is not easy to see - as Damon Hill and Mark Hughes discuss on the latest episode of The Undercut. The engine compression saga that’s engulfed F1 ahead of the 2026 season is the latest scenario where a team looks to have found a loophole in the F1 regulations - but should Mercedes be congratulated for what is undoubtedly clever engineering or should the FIA alwa...
Feb 15, 2026•50 min
The Mercedes pair of Kimi Antonelli and George Russell ended up with a one-two on the timesheets at the end of the Bahrain test. But with the top teams falling over themselves to declare each other the frontrunner, who is really on top at the conclusion of three days of running? And how seriously should F1 take Andrea Stella’s safety warnings? Edd Straw is joined by Scott Mitchell-Malm and Jon Noble to discuss both of those questions, and reflect on three days of running that left us with as man...
Feb 13, 2026•1 hr 9 min
Day 2 of F1 testing in Bahrain was dominated by Max Verstappen’s comments about the 2026 regulations - but what’s prompted him to call them “not very Formula 1-like", "anti-racing" and more like "Formula E on steroids”? Dutch F1 commentator Nelson Valkenburg, of Viaplay Netherlands, joins Edd Straw to give his verdict on Max’s comments, and talk through all the rest of the big stories from the day, including Ferrari’s pace and Mercedes’ struggles. Also in this episode, Scott Mitchell-Malm report...
Feb 12, 2026•41 min
Join Edd Straw and Jon Noble as they discuss all of the big stories from Day 1 of F1 testing in Bahrain, including Mercedes boss Toto Wolff’s assertion that the Red Bull is the benchmark car. Edd and Jon also provide some trackside observations of watching the new cars in action, and reflect on Lewis Hamilton’s comments about the new regulations. They also provide an update on every team’s progress on the first day of running. Get your 7-day free trial to The Race Members' Club on Patreon today ...
Feb 11, 2026•41 min
It’s day 1 of the Bahrain test, and as a special bonus, we’re making our first In-Car Insights podcast of the week - a podcast series usually only available to The Race Members' Club - free for everyone to listen to. Our In-Car Insights series is a hugely popular staple of our grand prix weekend output for members, and features the likes of Edd Straw, Scott Mitchell-Malm and Jon Noble discussing the day's news and events as they travel from the circuit back to their hotel. In this episode, join ...
Feb 11, 2026•28 min
F1 launch season has reached its conclusion with Aston Martin and McLaren holding online launches and Cadillac revealing its livery in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl. Jon Noble was in Saudi Arabia for the Aston launch, and he tells Edd Straw what he learned and why some of the language coming from the likes of Adrian Newey and Fernando Alonso suggests the team won't be at the sharp end of the grid in 2026 - at least to begin with. There's also chat about McLaren's launch, the latest on the...
Feb 09, 2026•35 min
With F1 pre-season in full swing, Damon and Johnny return with another episode of Stay On Track, and this time they’re discussing car launches and testing from a driver’s perspective. They share some weird and wacky stories from their own careers, including the time Damon was almost sacked during a car launch and the time Johnny inadvertently found himself part of a space opera! They also discuss how testing has changed over the years, and debate whether the current restrictions on testing have ...
Feb 07, 2026•54 min
F1 has all-new cars in 2026, but how will they change the racing we see on track? That's the big question tackled in this episode of The Race F1 Podcast, as Edd Straw, Scott-Mitchell-Malm and Dutch F1 commentator Nelson Valkenburg, of Viaplay Netherlands, attempt to unpick what we've learned from the limited driver and team feedback we've heard so far. How big is the driving challenge, and has it gone too far in the direction of energy management over pure driving? And will one type of driver ex...
Feb 05, 2026•1 hr
Now that almost all of the 2026 cars have broken cover, we take an in-depth look at the technical and design trends that have stood out so far in the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast. Ex-F1 technical director Gary Anderson and Mark Hughes join Edd Straw to work through the key areas and explain the various design choices taken by teams. We take a close look at the approach to active aero, in particular the choices made by teams like Mercedes only to adjust one element of the front wing. The...
Feb 02, 2026•55 min
Aston Martin dominated the headlines in the final part of the Barcelona shakedown test when its aggressive Adrian Newey creation broke cover, while Lewis Hamilton ended the five days of running with the fastest time for Ferrari. But does the Aston Martin’s speed match its looks, and is Mercedes really the team in front? On this episode of The Race F1 Podcast, Edd Straw is joined by Jon Noble and Scott Mitchell-Malm to mull over these questions, and cast an eye over the progress of each of the te...
Jan 30, 2026•42 min
