How worried should F1 rivals be over McLaren’s Melbourne dominance?
For the first time in the hybrid era, McLaren travelled to Formula 1’s curtain raiser as the undisputed pre-season favourite. It came out of the Bahrain test leading our long-run calculations quite handsomely and, after Friday practice in Melbourne, rivals were also putting the papaya squad at least three tenths ahead. Simulations and calculations are […]
Sainz was crucial to Albon’s P5 at the Australian GP despite lap one crash
Carlos Sainz might have only completed less than a lap of the Australian Grand Prix under green-flag conditions, but he helped Williams team-mate Alex Albon beat both Ferraris to the finish. Sainz started from 10th but spun off at the final corner after the safety car was deployed in response to Jack Doohan spinning his […]
Norris declares McLaren the F1 title favourite with Piastri pushing him to be better
It is rare for Lando Norris to speak with an air of confidence over his 2025 Formula 1 title chances but, after holding off reigning champion Max Verstappen to take victory at the Australian Grand Prix, he concluded McLaren is indeed leading the pack. After McLaren locked out the front row in qualifying, Norris converted […]
Tears, tribulations and impressing Toto – F1 rookies round-up
Despite the majority having previous Formula 1 experience, history will reflect that six rookies started the 2025 season at the Australian Grand Prix – and it was a chastening experience for all but one of them. While the changeable conditions saw four crash out, plus one endured a tough weekend and finished last, Andrea Kimi […]
How resurgent Williams aims to avoid repeat of Brazil F1 wet-race fiasco
As Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz celebrated qualifying sixth and 10th at Albert Park in the 2025 Formula 1 opener, the joy at more evidence of the Williams team’s revival was tempered by the forecast of rain for race day. Williams may be a quintessentially British team but this wasn’t a case of it indulging […]
Will Red Bull regret taking Lawson instead of Tsunoda for F1 2025?
Red Bull ‘rookie’ Liam Lawson will begin the 2025 Australian Grand Prix from 18th on the grid after being eliminated in the first segment of qualifying. Yuki Tsunoda – the man now parked in the Racing Bulls sister squad after being passed over for promotion in favour of Lawson – made it all the way […]
Piastri quickest from Russell in FP3 as Bearman crashes again
McLaren’s Oscar Piastri topped a convoluted final practice for Formula 1’s Australian Grand Prix ahead of George Russell and Max Verstappen, where Oliver Bearman crashed out again for Haas. Under overcast skies at Albert Park, several frontrunners had headed out on the hard tyres before Bearman’s immediate incident, but when the one-hour session resumed with […]
How Leigh Diffey became the voice of American motorsport
You know his voice, even if you’ve never seen his face. It’s warm yet urgent, authoritative yet inviting with an unmistakable timbre like the hum of a V8 engine before it roars to life. When the race is calm, his voice is steady and measured, but as the action reaches a fever pitch, he crackles […]
Former F1 team boss Colin Crabbe, the man who gave Ronnie Peterson his chance
As the head of his small Formula 1 team, Colin Crabbe, who has died aged 82, was the man who gave Ronnie Peterson his big break. It was just before Crabbe’s 27th birthday when his Antique Automobiles team made its F1 debut in 1969, in the non-championship Madrid Grand Prix at the brand-new Jarama circuit, with […]