James Allen On F1

F1’s surge in popularity in the last five years is not because the sport itself has notably changed or improved. It is because people have discovered it, a sleeping giant. The sport lends itself so well to social media - being such a visually rich spectacle. With its extreme personalities and electrifying speed, it is also a wonderful platform for storytelling.  This week we are going to explore this side of the sport with one of the great photographers of the modern era of F1, Darren Heath. Darren works with speed, spectacle and personality. He freezes it, capturing a moment that would otherwise be lost forever, memorializing it for people around the world to enjoy. So what goes through his mind when he looks through the viewfinder and presses the shutter? How does he weave rich storytelling into an image? Which drivers’ faces are the most interesting? How do today’s compare to the greats like Senna, Prost and Schumacher? When he is trackside, the cars moving at 180mph a few feet away, what aspects of F1 does he see that don’t come across for fans on other media like TV or the written word? And how much can someone achieve trackside with an iPhone? This revealing interview takes the audience behind the veil of F1 and offers a fresh, close-up take of the people that make our sport. Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

We have a new F1 World Champion, Lando Norris. He held his nerve in Abu Dhabi to finish on the podium, which is all he needed to do to become one of only 35 drivers in history to win the F1 World Championship.  It’s a proud moment for Autosport too, because in 2016 Lando won the prestigious Autosport BRDC Young Driver Award. The prize was his first test in an F1 car – a McLaren - the following year, his first step on the F1 ladder. Norris follows Jenson Button as the second Young Driver Award winner to become F1 World Champion.  James Allen wraps up Abu Dhabi and closes the cycle on our Season in Numbers series. At each quarter stage of the season we have looked at the underlying numbers to spot trends and learn more about what’s really been going on.  Joining James in the studios are Autosport F1 writers Jake Boxhall Legge and Ronald Vording.  Fan Voting for the 38th Autosport Awards is open. To vote for the Driver, Team, Rookie and Moment of the Year go to https://www.autosport.com/awards-voting/  Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. PA Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

It’s crunch time in Abu Dhabi, with a three-way fight for the F1 World Drivers Championship. From McLaren’s point of view it didn’t have to be this way. If they had avoided the disqualifications in Vegas, or made a better strategy call in Qatar, they would now be guaranteed their first World Champion since Lewis Hamilton in 2008. As it is Lando Norris will be champion if he finishes third or higher, while Max Verstappen is only 12 points behind him and has chances. Oscar Piastri needs luck to go his way after the crushing disappointment of losing a certain race win in Qatar.  James Allen explores all of this and what it’s like to be in the middle of a title showdown, with someone who was in the thick of it in 2007, when McLaren lost the championship from a position not unlike today’s - former McLaren mechanic now journalist and broadcaster Marc Priestley. And our F1 writer with his ear to the ground, Ronald Vording, joins us from Abu Dhabi. Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.  -- A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

This week we go inside the minds of the competitors for the F1 World Championship.  We explain some of the things that happened during an intense Las Vegas GP weekend – including the dramatic double disqualification of the McLaren cars that sets up an incredibly tense final two rounds for the World Championship And we look ahead in depth to what happens next. We focus particularly on two areas: which teams will have the best car for the Qatar and Abu Dhabi circuits? And with so much pressure riding on it, what is the mental game here? How do the drivers and their trainers cope with the 11 hour time difference from Vegas to Qatar so they can maintain peak performance? How do they cope with the stress and the pressure? And with McLaren making such a costly mistake in Vegas, how do the leaders make sure the team doesn’t lose confidence? With James Allen in the studio to discuss this we have two real subject matter experts. Nick Harris, who trained and mentored many great drivers in the past 20 years from Mark Webber, David Coulthard and Eddie Irvine to Fernando Alonso and Nico Hulkenberg.  And Autosport’s F1 writer who can demystify the technical side, Jake Boxhall Legge.  Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

This week, we have the latest in our series of F1 team principal interviews as we meet Ayao Komatsu at the HQ of Haas, F1’s smallest team. What Haas may lack in headcount, they more than make up for in team spirit, as this engaging interview reveals. Ayao has been at Haas since the team debuted in 2016. Last season Gene Haas picked him to succeed the charismatic, but sweary Guenther Steiner as team principal. Ayao was born in Japan and moved to England as a teenager to study English and pursue his dream of working in F1. He rose through the ranks as an engineer with Lotus and Renault, where he worked closely with Romain Grosjean. As a highly competitive F1 season comes to a close, Haas is fighting Aston Martin and Racing Bulls for 6th in the Constructors’ Championship. Ayao reflects on some key decisions taken earlier this season, which have boosted Haas’ recent competitiveness. Ollie Bearman equalled the team’s best ever result with P4 in Mexico and then backed that up with another strong points haul in Brazil. Joining James Allen in the studio for a wraparound chat is former Red Bull and Aston Martin F1 technical leader Dan Fallows. Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com . Producer: Ben Holmes, Andrea Sidler A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

This week we discuss some of the significant developments that took place during the Brazil GP weekend, which saw Lando Norris take command of the F1 Drivers Championship and look ahead to the Las Vegas Grand Prix. In particular we delve into the role influencers are playing on helping F1 to reach new audiences in the United States, enlarging the fan base well beyond the traditional motorsport audiences.  We hear all the time about the growing role of influencers in the coverage of the sport. F1, the teams and brands all now regularly invite them to attend races and interact with the stars. This is especially true of influencers in the US, some of whom have followings as large as mainstream media platforms, among demographics that F1 has not previously reached. How much more growth is there in F1? To find out more about their role and what the life of an influencer is about, James went to meet Brian Muller and Matt Elisofon, who host the popular Red Flags podcast, featuring former F1 team boss Guenther Steiner, to get their take on it.  We also welcome back our F1 writer from the Netherlands Ronald Vording,  For details on how to be part of the prize draw to win the replica Jackie Stewart helmet signed by all 20 living world champions go to https://win.raceagainstdementia.com/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. = A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

This week we meet one of the small group of broadcasters who can call themselves an F1 TV commentator. Alex Jacques is the voice of Channel 4’s F1 coverage in the UK and his commentary is carried on F1 TV in the US and around the world. He works alongside former F1 drivers David Coulthard and Jolyon Palmer.  Alex worked his way up through F2 and the W Series and by 2018 he was a full time F1 commentator.  He was voted Commentator of the Year in the 2022 Broadcast Sports Awards and his voice has appeared in Drive to Survive and F1 video games. Alex’s new book Grid to Glory, highlights 75 key moments from F1’s 75 year history.  But it’s not one anecdote per year, it’s much more interesting than that. He describes the kidnapping of the F1 World Champion driver, the day the F1 drivers went on strike, the Grand Prix that featured just six cars and many other great tales.  Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

In this special edition of the James Allen on F1 podcast we hear from Aston Martin Chief Technical officer Adrian Newey, who shares some insights into his process and defines what has made him so successful.  He reveals fascinating detail on what he learned from failure.  He also names out the greatest driver he has ever worked with.  We also hear about a unique new initiative from Sir Jackie Stewart to raise funds for his charity Race Against Dementia.  Jackie and his son Mark have managed to collect the signatures of all 20 living F1 World Champions – including Michael Schumacher - on one of Jackie’s race helmets. This unique piece of F1 memorabilia will tour the world next year in the F1 Exhibition, but not before a one-off replica has been created which fans can win in a prize draw.  The competition is live now and closes on 23 November 2025. The winner will get an all expenses paid VIP trip to the season finale Abu Dhabi GP in December to collect it and witness the final signatures of Sir Jackie and the 2025 F1 World Champion – likely to be either Oscar Piastri or Lando Norris… or could it be Number 5 for Max Vertstappen? For details on how to be part of the prize draw go to https://win.raceagainstdementia.com/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport =

This week we have a special edition featuring interviews with Toto Wolff and Eddy Cue from the Autosport Business Exchange event we hosted recently in New York. It was a gathering of leaders from across motorsport, exploring the intersection of sports, entertainment and culture with the theme of the “Rise of Racing in America.” Mercedes F1 team principal and CEO Wolff gives his take on how F1 has exploded in the US, the potential for further growth and why he’s keeping the same drivers next season. As a one third shareholder in the team he receives a dividend every year of around £50 million and he has seen his team’s valuation soar to the point where his holding is worth over a billion dollars.  Eddy Cue is the senior Apple executive who signed the Brad Pitt F1 movie deal and followed up by clinching the five-year exclusive US TV rights deal.  The interview on stage at ABX was 36 hours before that deal announced, but Eddy was happy to share plenty of detail about how Apple sees F1’s potential and what the movie has done for the company for F1.  Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

This week we have the latest in our series of F1 team principal interviews as we sit down with Sauber boss Jonathan Wheatley.  He has been in F1 since 1991 and contributed to eight Constructors’ World Championships and 153 Grands Prix victories in various roles with Benetton, Renault and Red Bull Racing, where he won six of those titles. He started life as Team Principal with Sauber in April this year, shortly after the Japanese GP, arriving at work on his first day in a classic Audi Quattro. Since May, the team has seen a significant uptick in form. From 2026 the team will be rebadged as Audi, with a bespoke engine and, along with Chief Technical Office Mattia Binotto, Wheatley will carry the hopes of one of the world’s leading manufacturers in their first foray into F1 racing. What skills has he had to learn? What are the advantages and disadvantages of having such a long drawn-out transition from Sauber to Audi? And how high does he feel Gabriel Bortoleto’s ceiling is as a driver? Joining James Allen in the studio to discuss the interview are Autosport F1 writers Ronald Vording and Jake Boxhall-Legge.  Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport