James Allen On F1

Today Autosport broke the news of a challenge to FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem from former WRC and Paris Dakar champion Carlos Sainz Sr. In this emergency JAonF1 podcast we discuss why Sainz is taking on Ben Sulayem and what happens next. Motorsport Network’s Global Editorial Director Rebecca Clancy, who broke the story on Autosport and Motorsport earlier today, joins James Allen in the studio to discuss the bombshell news and to report what Sainz Sr has told her about his plans. Sainz is the father of Williams F1 driver Carlos Sainz and a well-known figure in rallying and motorsport circles. Will that father/son relationship be an issue? Can Sainz win? When is the election and how does it work? What does it mean for F1? How much trouble is Ben Sulayem in? Who will back Sainz? These and many more questions are answered. Don’t miss the chance to compete against our expert writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

It’s Miami GP week. We have an exciting podcast with two special guests from different parts of the F1 spectrum. Racing Bulls F1 team principal Laurent Mekies invites James up to the new factory in Milton Keynes to chat about what it takes to be a modern F1 team boss as well as the season so far with all the dramas of Hadjar, Lawson and Tsunoda. And ahead of this weekend’s Miami GP we speak to one of F1’s biggest influencers, Matt Gallagher of P1 with Matt and Tommy fame. They are hosting the Race Center Live watchalong on our Motorsport channel this weekend in Miami, so we get Matt’s irreverent take on all things F1. James is also joined in the Studio by our ace F1 reporter Ronald Vording, en route to Miami. Don’t miss the chance to compete against our expert writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Join our new Race Center Live watchalong on Motorsport for Sunday’s Miami GP where Matt and Tommy from P1 will be hosting the feed.  Please donate to Matt Gallagher’s London Marathon fundraiser for Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital here https://2025tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/matt-gallagher-5ef7e Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producers: Dre Harrison, Ben Holmes and Charlotte Griffiths Executive Producer: Jason Swales A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

The first triple header of the season is done, some tired faces have headed back from the Gulf for a short Easter break before attacking the standalone Miami GP next week, then another triple header: Imola, Monaco and Spain. We get into why Max Verstappen is heaping praise on Oscar Piastri, despite their Turn 1 incident, Piastri’s many father figures, Williams’ best start for a decade. And with Lewis Hamilton describing his Jeddah race as “horrible” and doubting his fortunes will change this year, we look in depth at what’s going on at Ferrari in the company of Motorsport editor in chief Ben Hunt and our top F1 writer from Italy, Roberto Chinchero. Don’t miss the chance to compete against our expert writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Join our new Race Center Live watchalong on Motorsport at the upcoming Miami GP where Matt and Tommy from P1 will be joining the feed. Check out the Saudi GP edition here: https://www.motorsport.com/f1/live-text/f1-saudi-arabian-gp-race-center-live-show/1124449/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

F1 has taken some very interesting turns in the last week, and we don’t mean hairpins.  As we transit from Bahrain to Saudi, we have seen three of the leading drivers - Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris - admitting they are a bit lost, leaving the super-consistent Oscar Piastri and George Russell to hoover up the big points. Verstappen’s mentor at Red Bull has suggested they may struggle to hold onto him if things don’t improve soon.  Meanwhile the FIA president made his first appearance of the season in Bahrain, after a tumultuous week of resignations and accusations. He had a chat with F1 teams and manufacturers about V10 engines, but the idea of going back to the future was thrown out.  With James in the studio to analyse the behind-the-scenes intrigues and decode why some top drivers need relationship counselling with their cars are our F1 writers Ronald Vording and Jake Boxall-Legge.  It’s your last chance to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1; what you like, what you don’t and who your favourite teams and drivers are. It closes soon. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ And don’t miss the chance to compete against our expert writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport 

This week, we take the temperature as F1 leaves Japan after its brief Asian swing and heads to the Middle East. We examine some possible consequences for F1 of President Trump’s heavy tariffs on car manufacturers and how other companies invested in F1 might be affected. And though Suzuka wasn’t the most exciting F1 race ever - the top 6 finished in grid order, which is never good - is the outline of this year’s title fight now taking shape? And we’re on “Rookie Watch” on a mixed weekend for the freshmen class of 2025. With James in the studio are Motorsport Editor-In-Chief Ben Hunt and Asia-based F1 broadcaster and sponsor broker Matthew Marsh. F1 business expert Mark Gallagher of Performance Insights and formerly Head of Cosworth, gives us his view on the likely impact of the tariffs on F1. Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ And don’t miss the chance to compete against our writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

There’s a famous saying - “In F1, you are either giving pain or taking it.” And after just two rounds of the World Championship there are plenty of examples of that. We’ll dig into what’s gone wrong for Liam Lawson and why, after just two races, he will no longer be Max Verstappen’s team-mate at Red Bull. And we’ll look ahead, based at some of the key talking points from China: We’ll get into Oscar Piastri’s complete weekend, Lando Norris’s “will they or won’t they work?” brake dramas. Where do Ferrari go from here after a sprint win and a double disqualification? Why George Russell will keep up the scoreboard pressure on the leaders.. while his rookie team-mate Antonelli proves he is no slouch either. Why four penalty points don’t make prizes for Jack Doohan. And we say goodbye to the inimitable Eddie Jordan. With James in the studio are Motorsport and Autosport F1 correspondents Jake Boxall-Legge and Ronald Vording, who was one of the team in Shanghai that broke the Lawson story. Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ And don’t miss the chance to compete against our writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

Lando Norris tamed the chaos in Melbourne to win the opening round of the F1 season. In doing so, he put down a marker for his teammate Oscar Piastri, his rival Max Verstappen, and anyone else who wants a say in this year’s world championship. Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari debut didn’t quite go to plan, while F1’s five-and-a-half rookies (Liam Lawson being a semi) had a torrid time. From Hadjar’s tears to Antonelli’s vindication, we’ll analyse the debuts of the class of ‘25. Meanwhile, as dozens of new sponsors pour into F1, Stefano Domenicali signed a new 5-year contract to remain F1 CEO. He promptly signed the teams up to the commercial part of a new Concorde Agreement. But there is no sign yet of a governance agreement from the FIA, so what does it all mean for the sport? With James to discuss these and other talking points are Global Editorial director Rebecca Clancy and fresh-ish off the plane from Melbourne, Motorsport Editor in Chief, Ben Hunt. Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ And don’t miss the chance to compete against our writers on Motorsport’s hugely popular F1 Fantasy League. https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/race-our-writers-motorsport-launches-its-first-ever-featured-league-on-f1-fantasy/10702182/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producers: Dre Harrison and Ben Holmes Executive Producer: Jason Swales A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

Rob Smedley, former race engineer at Ferrari and current data advisor in F1, joins Dr. Ian Graham, ex-head of data at Liverpool FC, to explore the intersection of motorsport and football. They discuss how F1’s advanced data analysis influences driver recruitment and strategy, comparing it to Liverpool’s innovative scouting methods. The conversation reveals how both sports are harnessing technology for tactical decision-making, emphasizing the evolving role of data in nurturing talent and improving performance under pressure.

We’ve just returned from Bahrain, where the F1 teams did their only test last week ahead of the new F1 season kick-off in Melbourne. People say testing is boring but if you know what to look for, it’s anything but. The laps are on track, and the body language of the cars needs to be analysed. But there is also the body language of the people – the teams, engineers and of course the drivers. Will Ferrari compete with McLaren? What is Max Verstappen’s state of mind? Which of the five rookie drivers will shine? And does Aston Martin need to break glass and call in Adrian Newey to sort out their 2025 car? James joins up with some of our colleagues from around the world to go under the skin of F1 testing and look at how some of the big stories of the season are shaping up. Our man in Italy Roberto Chinchero has the inside line, Ronald Vording gives a Dutch perspective and there is analysis from Jake Boxall-Legge. Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producer: Dre Harrison A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

This week as we digest the F175 launch and head off for pre-season testing, we speak to one of F1’s top race promoters to find out what goes on behind the scenes to stage an event for almost 300,000 people. This year is Miami’s fourth as an F1 host venue, part of Liberty Media’s drive to expand F1 in the US market and engage new fans. Miami does things a bit differently and they do it with a sense of humour, which is in short supply in F1, which can take itself too seriously at times. So how do they juggle the conflicting demands of NFL, the FIFA World Cup, the Miami Open Tennis and F1 events in the same season? What does it take logistically to put on a Grand Prix at this scale? And what sort of tickets give the fans the best deal? James sits down with Tyler Epp, President of the Miami Grand Prix to discuss how the race has gone from "fake" marina, to fan favourite. Global Editorial Director Rebecca Clancy and Autosport F1 Business Correspondent Mark Mann-Bryans join James in the studio. They also preview the F1 testing in Bahrain. Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1; what you like, what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/ Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com. Producers: Dre Harrison, Ben Holmes Executive Producer: Jason Swales A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport