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Chapter 1: What were the biggest surprises from the Barcelona-Catalunya GP?
Hello everybody and welcome back to the P1 Podcast with Matt and Tommy. Today is a very special day as we all know in the world of Formula 1. Ferrari back on top and mixed emotions, you know, for this guy right here. Insanely happy for Hamilton. So depressed for Charles Leclerc. But lots of other things to talk about as well in this Barcelona-Catalonia Grand Prix roundup.
Tommy, you are in your little Max Verstappen World Cup football shirt. I think I saw him for three seconds in this race. He was barely...
non-existent but you know I love Max Verstappen but it's not the story the story is Hamilton and that amazing victory and it was just epic like that we saw a kind of a weirdly like a reverse of Canada where all the action came at the start and then nothing happened and then in this race we were going oh no it's a Barcelona stink and nothing's happening and then as soon as Hamilton went on that different strategy it all came alive and just what a thrilling end to the race and what an amazing story for F1 as well
Absolutely. Now, before we get into everything, a quick shout out to our wonderful P1 Patreons who'll be getting extra chat at the end of every single race review this year, as well as lots of other things, ad-free listening, access to our Discord and so on and so forth. Lots of benefits. Come and join the P1 Patreon if you haven't already.
A lot to talk about, a lot to cover as well in the Patreon segment. But right here, right now, we're going to go straight to my most memorable moment, which is... Alpine double points. I'm kidding. Hamilton winning for Ferrari. It does not feel real what I've just watched. I don't know if it's because like so many things have gone on.
We all know who my favorite driver is and he couldn't have had a worse Grand Prix weekend if he tried. But when you isolate that and look at Hamilton winning for Ferrari, it is such an unbelievably special moment. It was always going to be. We felt as though, especially with how Hamilton has been this year, that it might well come at some point this season.
And goodness gracious me, I am utterly... just bamboozled that it's happened in Catalonia, of all places. I firmly believed, coming into this, that Mercedes were going to be clear. I thought they were going to be so unbelievably strong. And instead, of course, Ferrari brought a whole host of upgrades into this weekend, and they actually worked.
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Chapter 2: How did Lewis Hamilton achieve his remarkable victory?
That, combining with a Lewis Hamilton 10 out of 10, Unk is back. You know, he was just... On it the entire weekend. Sensational. Combine the two, and it was an unstoppable force. That last stint from Hamilton. I'm sat there going, all right, maybe Oli Behrman's going to take Charles Leclerc's seat. Maybe this is it. Maybe my Formula One fandom of Charles Leclerc is over.
I don't think it's like that. I'm only joking. But Hamilton... Simply amazing. I could not believe what I was watching. The lap times he put in at the end, just peak Lewis Hamilton. He's not going anywhere. Absolutely not. It was unbelievable.
I mean, we'll talk about the penalties and things later, but there was, of course, the worry that he might have got a penalty, but he easily pulled away and made sure that that wasn't even an issue, even if it had been in the end. It was an incredible final stint from Hamilton. Just an amazing race from him to do a complete different strategy.
And just in terms of like the victory, it was so, so special and you could see what it meant to him. And the thing I loved the most was how emotional he got during the Italian national anthem. And it makes you wonder how different it hits from,
when you're hearing the italian national anthem for you driving for ferrari obviously he's heard he's won this is 106th win he's had the british national anthem so many times up on the podium being on the top step i think why he got emotional was hearing that italian anthem probably thinking that maybe he'd never win for ferrari based on what happened last year looking down at the italian flags everyone's saying you know he's made the worst move ever to go to ferrari why have you done it he wanted to go there
win the championship we'll see but even just getting a win is incredible and kind of we questioned whether we'd see it and it was just so great to watch him get that win also saw a lot of people mentioning and doing the rounds on Twitter that Michael Schumacher got his first Ferrari win in Spain 30 years ago so a really cool like bit of symmetry there very nice and just what an amazing story for Formula 1
Really is. Yeah, the emotion that he showed on the podium was really special. You could see the Ferrari sort of crew. They had the flags out. They were proper. The energy was unmatched. And you could see that Hamilton, going through those trials and tribulations, having the struggles makes the victories taste even sweeter. We were saying on our live stream, weren't we, Tommy, that
someone asked about what's been your favourite moment in terms of when you go to a Formula One race, like can you tell us a memory and the one that always stood out to me or stood out to me the quickest was the Hamilton win in 2024 when he finally won again at Silverstone and for Mercedes and again he'd had those struggles and it was an incredible race and he came through to win that one, that was like such a core memory for me and then you look at this one as well and
Formula One is built around stories and narratives and arcs and journeys and things like that and this one for Hamilton yeah it is kind of solidifying his move once again people have questioned his moves throughout his career when he went from McLaren to Mercedes people questioned it and look what happened there he then has now gone to Ferrari and I think
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Chapter 3: What impact did Ferrari's strategy have on the race outcome?
And he is showing that he can...
push a team in the right direction with his feedback and with working with one of the greatest we've ever seen so yeah it's unbelievable I can't believe just utterly unfathomable that I've just seen Hamilton win by 20 seconds in a Ferrari this year around Barcelona like what the hell is going on against a Mercedes that has completely dominated the season and a track that normally the team that dominates wins by a mile
Exactly. And maybe it's Ferrari. Next question. Or first question, in fact. P1 pitch, remember F1 sushi. Would Hamilton's three pit stops work if the safety car hadn't happened? It would have been absolutely fascinating to watch. Don't get me wrong. Of course, I'm just glad we saw Lewis Hamilton winning because it's an amazing story.
But there is part of me that would have loved to have seen him come through the pack because I joked yesterday with this whole talk about the tyres. Are we going to see like a
2012 Pirelli race where people are on different strategies and they've got such a big tyre advantage and they're flying through the pack and that's exactly what Hamilton would have had to have done where he'd have been on much fresher tyres at the end but he'd have had to have got past probably Lando and both Mercedes drivers And I think he would have done it.
How much he pulled away at the end, how much you saw people struggling on the tires. We saw, I know it was against his own teammate who were similar battles, but how much kind of like George was struggling around that final sector. And even like looking down the pack, like some people that had tried to stay out longer, I think it was like Ollie Berman at one point and things like
You just, you can't do anything through those like corners where people were just passing into corners because of the tyre difference was so massive. So I think Hamilton would have had a massive advantage. It would have been amazing to see, but I do genuinely think he would have won anyway because his pace was just absolutely phenomenal this race.
Yeah, we can't be too picky with how it all unfolded, but I'm going to be because I would have loved to have seen Hamilton come through because he would have had to pass at the time Norris, Antonelli and Russell to win. And...
I do believe he definitely could have won, and it's just an unknown, isn't it, of yes, he would have rocked up to the back of them, but how would he have negotiated three cars in the space of a handful of laps to win the race? We saw probably more of a discrepancy between newer and older tyres, but two and a half, three seconds a lap difference
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Chapter 4: Why was Charles Leclerc considered the biggest loser of the race?
No, no, no. Because they didn't do that in, obviously, before. Yeah, but slightly different circumstances. I think it was a very obvious thing to... Yeah, that's what I thought this question was about. No, no, but I think it's just generally, right? Ferrari get memed for their strategies and things like that.
And especially, you know, there have been some very questionable moments over the years when fighting for the win of decisions they've made. But this one, the three-stop strategy, I genuinely think bamboozled Mercedes a little bit. They were...
you know pit it they basically the the aggressive strategy from Ferrari and Hamilton the first pit stop as Russell was said after the race as well forced him into an early pit stop so Mercedes instead of just continuing on their own strategy and their own plan used Russell to well they basically pit Russell to stop Hamilton from from getting track position Russell is then of course a little bit angry about the fact that he's then vulnerable to Kimi Antonelli nothing came of that of course but
that immediate sort of pressure from Ferrari forced Mercedes into a bit of a mistake there because Russell was then saying, well, I was actually managing the tyres quite a bit in that first stint, and then you pit me to keep the track in position, but I didn't really want that. So... I'm genuinely so impressed with Ferrari because that is exactly the strategy that allowed them to win this race.
Yes, there was luck with the VSC, but it opened up there potentially being some kind of luck with the VSC. They're not just following suit with Mercedes. They're not trying to beat them on track with the same tire life. They're doing something different. And with that, It worked out an absolute tree. It did. Yeah.
I love when teams do this strategy of just because I think the problem was at the start of the race and why we were worried it was going to be so boring was it was tire conservation mode and it was just, yeah, they were all kind of locked into a run program and it was kind of like, oh, okay, the gaps are opening up. Everyone's just thinking about their tires.
But as soon as Hamilton went on this aggressive strategy and could just absolutely go for it, it gave Mercedes this huge headache and it put Mercedes under pressure. And what was so fascinating as well is the fact that Antonelli and Russell were kind of together on track. So they were fighting whilst also having to think about others as well. And that's what made it so great.
Yeah, the initial question I thought was about the whole pitting under the VSC, which obviously they didn't do in Australia. This was such an obvious choice. It was an absolute no-brainer. It was the easiest thing in the world to do. But I will applaud them for going on that three-stop strategy because it gave them an opportunity, I think,
It would have been interesting to see how the race would have gone had Hamilton got into the lead because that was obviously a little bit of thinking behind that was going on the soft tyre, maybe seeing if they could get into the lead at the start and seeing where it went from there. So the fact that they've managed to win by doing a different strategy, well done Ferrari.
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Chapter 5: What role did tire management play in the race dynamics?
It's a big points difference. It's not absolutely enormous, and it's still very early in the season. But I do think that if it was a Christian Horner at Red Bull or something, they'd be thinking about doing this. And it's tough for Leclerc, obviously. I will just say at the start, I don't think they're going to do this. I think it is too early and the points gap isn't too much. But
I could see why some people would think, and I do believe that their best opportunity, because Mercedes are going to be incredibly hard to beat, is to back Hamilton with every point you can, because Mercedes have the... How many times have we mentioned before that the big advantage Red Bull had was it was just one driver scoring the most points every week, and that's how Max was able to close in on the two McLarens while they were almost going for the battle together, and they almost lost it.
So for Ferrari, Hamilton, they need to go down the route of upgrading the car to suit Lewis Hamilton and give Hamilton everything he wants upgrade-wise because Hamilton's the lead driver now and showing that he's on an amazing run of form. Charles Leclerc, sorry to say, Matt, but he's on the complete opposite run of form right now where his form is horrendous and he keeps crashing.
So, and also like doesn't have the pace of Hamilton. So, you know, if they think too much about giving Leclerc an opportunity to go for the world title, it's tough because it could in theory cost them. And Scholl hasn't exactly kind of shown that he's ready to fight for that world title, whereas Lewis Hamilton has already proved he can win in that situation. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cool, cool, cool, cool, cool, cool. Hard to swally pills right now. Right, this question. If you are playing like an F1 manager game with no egos to have to deal with and things like that, yeah, of course, you're going to be putting Hamilton forward for this. But this is real life Formula One. And Leclerc's argument will be, I don't think Ferrari are even going to ask this question to him.
I really don't. Not at this stage of the season. We've had, what, seven rounds? We have another 15 to go. It's the third of the way through the season. Anything can happen as we know. Ferrari have the fastest car, then my God, sign me up to the rest of the season. But we will talk about that shortly. With Hamilton and Leclerc, Leclerc's argument will be, If there ever is one.
I'm 40 points behind Lewis Hamilton and Hamilton's 41 points behind Kimi Antonelli. So you're telling me I'm actually closer to Lewis than Lewis is to Kimi. Charles is closer to Gasly than he is to Hamilton. There's a thought. Sorry. It's true. That's not even like... It's just factual information. Just factual information.
There will also be factual information as I come steaming through your front door. But yeah, it's too early in the season to prioritise Hamilton, albeit I think if we get halfway through the season and Hamilton is within a race win of the top of the championship, of course we imagine that would be Antonelli, then yes, I think that Leclerc would have to play second fiddle.
But right now we have 15 races to go. Leclerc wins Austria. Hamilton has a DNF. It swings straight back towards it being a lot closer between the two Ferrari drivers. That's me saying Leclerc wins. Which we can't get a break at the moment. But I do agree on the point that you said of...
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Chapter 6: How did the safety car influence race strategies?
But it's not as easy as that. It really isn't. But I would like to think Leclerc would help Hamilton when the time comes. But I'd also like to think Charles Leclerc wins the rest of the races and then wins the world title. What's the theoretical scenario then, just... Say we get to Austria. I know what I think.
If we get to Austria and Leclerc's leading and Hamilton's second, I think it would be a case where they wouldn't do anything. I said they probably should, but they won't. However, I think if it was a case where Leclerc was leading, Hamilton was behind him, and there was potentially risk of losing the race or something, then maybe that's where they step in and do something like that.
But in terms of just a straight fight, we're not seeing Charles Leclerc becoming Rubens Barrichello just yet. The just yet's crazy. I think Leclerc has hearing problems if he gets asked to move out the way for Hamilton when Leclerc has not won since the US 2024 race. So there's no chance he gives up a victory at this stage of the season.
I think Ferrari would even struggle to do it with three races to go, to be honest with you. So lots of hypotheticals, of course. But I don't think Ferrari can prioritise Hamilton at the moment, but I also think they might not even need to because Lewis is on such an incredible run of form that he might well be able to challenge moving forward if Ferrari can deliver a good car.
Next question, trying trading one. Does this mean Ferrari is faster on traditional circuits? Traditional circuits. As we've been talking about this weekend, this is the circuit that no car can hide. It's the true baseline. It's the true benchmark. It's the test of all tests. And yet, somehow Ferrari seemingly look fastest. I... I...
Ferrari are not 20 seconds clear come the end of the race fastest. You know, this is Hamilton had slightly fresher tyres. He had a stint of a lifetime at the end. Russell was really struggling. Mercedes were right there. Let's not beat around the bush here. Antonelli retired. He was going to be clear of Russell, I think, come the end of the race.
So Ferrari are right in it, clearly, at least from this race. But I'm not going to get ahead of myself purely because Ferrari are slightly out of sync when it comes to bringing upgrades to the car. They've brought a lot of upgrades. Other teams, very minimal. Mercedes, McLaren, I think they were very small amounts of upgrades, if any, for this race. So it might well sort of shift things.
One way and then the other, depending on, firstly, if you can bring upgrades, but secondly, if the upgrades actually work. If you remember in Canada, Ferrari bought a whole heap of upgrades and they were still rubbish. So, well, Hamilton was great, but Charles Leclerc was struggling with the brakes. We won't get onto that. So...
Yeah, I don't know how many traditional circuits there really are in Formula 1, but it's definitely a good sign. I did not expect this. I don't think many people did. No, definitely not. I can't believe that Ferrari have come out with a victory.
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Chapter 7: What were the implications of the penalties during the race?
I do think there's, you know, you run the race a hundred times. I don't think it's a case where Ferrari are always winning that race. There's other scenarios where Mercedes...
would be winning that race they looked good so it's not a case where i'm not saying that um you know ferrari weren't amazingly quick which which they were but there was lots of scenarios there that allowed ferrari to win that race and also by a huge margin as well But it's very, very positive from Ferrari.
I'd love to know, and we'll wait to see how much this goes on longer, if Ferrari do mount a charge. The conversation that we had a while back of how Ferrari have potentially been shafted a little bit by the rules and them changing it, and they've built their whole car to have these amazing starts.
And I think we kind of dismissed that at the start of the season, going, oh, well, you know, they're not going to win the championship. It's between the two Mercedes. Can you imagine?
And, you know, who knows to think that maybe, you know, they did have an opportunity to kind of be challenging for this championship win those first races because Hamilton is well in it now, mainly thanks to some reliability from Mercedes. Why don't we go over to your most memorable moment, Tommy? Well, it has to be Kimi Antonelli with his DNF, another Mercedes conking out.
It's shocking to see again, obviously, mixed emotions for George Russell, I'm sure, because he looked like he could... Oh, no, I think there's a big old emotion of happiness for Russell. I don't know... Well, we'll talk about that now. I don't know. Relief, maybe.
Maybe relief, but it must be still a weird feeling for George that in a race where Kimi Antonelli's DNF'd, he's not won for a start and got the big points. Equally, the fact that in a race that I think George was looking very dominant and Kimi looked off the boil, Kimi Antonelli was going to beat him again. is a big thing for George.
But we mentioned about Ferrari and whether Hamilton can go after the World Championship. The thing that could decide the World Championship and bring Hamilton into it is that reliability from Mercedes. We mentioned they're supplying other cars up and down the grid who are having all sorts of problems. McLaren, which we mention all the time, And it's also hitting the main team at Mercedes.
George Russell, not just Canada, had the problem in China as well. We joked before, I want to say qualifying, where Kimi Antone was the only one not to have a problem. Well, now he has, and it's knocked him out of a second place, not extending his lead, but obviously extending it on George Russell, of course, as well.
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Chapter 8: How do the results of this race affect the championship standings?
Mercedes have been the fastest car or equal fastest car at every single race weekend so far. Ferrari haven't. So they've yet to prove to me that they can do it at loads of different tracks as we head through this season.
So for Antonelli, this is a really painful DNF because he did not deserve that in the sense of he's put down another very solid weekend and it's not got him any points whatsoever. As for George, yeah, it is a bit mystifying what he's really struggling with in the races in particular. It's not like he was miles off, but he definitely struggled towards the end of the stints in this race.
And maybe that's due to the fact that He was forced onto that early pit stop and therefore had to manage the tyres a little bit better. Of course, Kimi did have slightly fresher tyres than George to be able to go on the attack. And even sort of two, three laps difference was actually pretty big around here because of how much the circuit munched the tyres, for want of a better analysis.
OK, let's go on to another question. P1Pitch, remember Emma underscore VK. Should George be concerned about Kimi overtaking him on pace on a weekend where he looked faster? Yeah, I think he should, because at the end of the day, Kimi was going to beat him on track again. And I think he looked off the boil, particularly in qualifying. He didn't have the best preparation.
He was nowhere near George in qualifying. And yet, in a race where the tyre deg was massive, maybe you think that the more experienced driver in George Russell would be better. And also the fact that Kimi was fighting all over the back of him.
I know Dirty Air is nowhere near as bad as it was, but the fact that Kimi was able to fight George and then overtake him and stick behind him for so long and get past...
shows that yeah george struggled uh towards the end and you also look at the fact that george that's with george obviously getting preferential which is deserved of course uh pit pit stops because he was the driver ahead and still didn't meant wasn't going to beat kimmy on the road so That is a worry for George.
He can go away knowing that maybe the luck has been reversed a little bit and gone to the other side of the garage. And he's kind of looking a bit better in the championship. And it's not a disaster of a weekend, certainly. But he's still not quite there. And it's still looking like Kimi Antonelli is the superior Mercedes driver at the moment. Indeed, yeah.
I thought this would be the race that George would potentially bounce back. Qualifying was brilliant from him. Nico Rosberg was saying in the Sky broadcast that he has some question marks over George Russell's race pace this year. And I think that's something that we've seen
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