F1 Saudi Arabian GP Predictions | Frenzy at Ferrari & Mercedes? | Grid Walk March 16, 2023

On this week’s episode of Grid Walk, Briana and Nicole are gearing up for another Formula 1 race week! Before diving into thoughts about the upcoming Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, there was a lot of excitement for Formula 1 and Motorsports panels at 2023 South by Southwest (SXSW).

There have been a lot of conflicting quotes from Team Principal Toto Wolff and drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russel when it comes to Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team’s disappointing season start in Bahrain. Briana and Nicole discuss the PR recovery strategy Mercedes is pursuing after dedicating a heartfelt and honest letter to fans.

Another day, another drama at Scuderia Ferrari. Is the Italian media just generating good headlines or are team members looking at other teams for employment? Is new team principal Frédéric Vasseur the problem? What does it mean that Charles Leclerc is meeting with Ferrari’s CEO Benedetto Vigna?

As of right now it seems like the Mclaren F1 Team has gotten their 2023 car totally wrong. What areas did Mclaren completely miss the mark? How will this affect their drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris?

The hottest trend hitting the runway at New York Fashion Week and Parish Fashion week is Motorcore. On this week’s Gossip Grid, Nicole shares how leather, logos, and layers are taking over. Designers like Diesel or Givenchy and celebrities like Rosalia and Dua Lipa have Formula 1 to thank for their outfit inspiration.

Ahead of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Briana and Nicole have a frank discussion about the issue of sportwashing in Formula 1. How has Formula 1’s CEO Stefano Domenicali defended the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix amidst the nation’s history of human rights violations? Does it have anything to do with Formula 1’s $650 million contract?

As part of their season-long competition, Briana and Nicole make predictions for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Was Max Verstappened picked to win? Between BWT Alpine F1 Team, Williams Racing, Mclaren F1 Team, Scuderia Alpha Tauri, and MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, which team will score the most points? Will either Scuderia Ferrari driver, Charles Leclerc or Carlos Sainz Jr. make the podium?

Grid Walk is a weekly Formula 1 show that releases every Thursday. For daily F1 content follow @gridwalkshow on all social media platforms.

**Grid Block:**

* Brianna and Nicole discuss the excitement surrounding South by Southwest (SXSW) and the four F1-themed panels scheduled to take place during the event.
* They express their enthusiasm for the panels, particularly those focusing on the intersection of F1 and technology, culture, and diversity.

**Mercedes PR Crisis and Recovery:**

* Mercedes' recent PR crisis, triggered by Toto Wolff's comments about the team's struggles, is analyzed.
* Brianna and Nicole discuss the coordinated effort by Mercedes to downplay their issues and the subsequent backlash from fans and media.
* The release of a letter from Mercedes to its fans, acknowledging the team's shortcomings and expressing a commitment to improvement, is examined.
* They emphasize the significance of Mercedes identifying the need to appease their fan base and highlight the importance of fan engagement in modern sports marketing.

**Aston Martin's Performance and Mercedes' Potential:**

* The impressive performance of Aston Martin in the early stages of the season is discussed, with Brianna and Nicole acknowledging that it has raised expectations for Mercedes.
* They express optimism that Mercedes, with its superior resources and engineering capabilities, can make a significant leap forward once they identify the correct direction for development.
* The possibility of Mercedes introducing a B-spec car at the Imola Grand Prix is mentioned, fueling speculation about a potential resurgence in the team's performance.

**McLaren's Struggles:**

* McLaren's ongoing struggles are attributed to their misinterpretation of the floor edge regulation changes, resulting in a flawed floor design.
* Brianna and Nicole discuss the team's decision to abandon their current design and start over, leading to delays in the introduction of upgrades.
* They highlight the systemic issues within McLaren, extending beyond the floor design, and express concern about the team's overall operations and communication.

**Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Preview:**

* The upcoming Saudi Arabian Grand Prix is briefly mentioned, with Brianna and Nicole expressing anticipation for the race. **Episode Summary: Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Preview and Predictions**

1. **Sportswashing Allegations:**
- Saudi Arabia's involvement in Formula One is often criticized as an attempt to improve the country's reputation and distract from its human rights issues.
- F1 claims that its presence in Saudi Arabia is intended to spotlight and address these issues, but critics argue that the efforts are insufficient.
- The hosts discuss the ethical implications of racing in Saudi Arabia and emphasize the importance of being informed about the country's human rights record.

2. **Race Predictions:**
- The hosts make predictions for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, assigning points for various categories such as P1, P4, P7, P10, and the team scoring the most points from the back half of the standings.
- Both hosts predict Max Verstappen to win the race, while they have different picks for other positions, leading to an intriguing head-to-head competition.

3. **Track Characteristics and Team Performance:**
- The hosts analyze the unique features of the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, highlighting its length, fast straights, and the changes made to improve safety.
- They discuss how the track's characteristics might impact the performance of different teams and drivers.
- The hosts speculate on the potential performance of teams like Ferrari, Haas, and Williams based on their strengths and weaknesses.

4. **Fashion Trends in Formula One:**
- The hosts discuss the growing influence of Formula One on fashion, particularly the trend known as "Motorcore."
- They describe the key elements of Motorcore, including leather, logos, and unconventional cuts, and mention celebrities who have embraced this style.
- The hosts attribute the rise of Motorcore to the increased popularity of Formula One and its association with glamour and luxury.

5. **Upcoming Segments and Fan Engagement:**
- The hosts remind listeners about their live tweeting during qualifying and the race, encouraging fans to follow them for real-time updates and commentary.
- They briefly mention upcoming segments and content on their show, including a visit to the Red Bull Racing factory and an interview with a Formula One driver. **Gridwalk: The Formula One Podcast - Episode 174**

Mercedes released a behind-the-scenes video featuring Lewis Hamilton playing Monopoly with his family during a media shoot. The hosts express amusement and speculate about the competitive nature of Monopoly games within Hamilton's household.

Alpine's sponsor, Castrol, releases an ice driving video showcasing Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly's winter break activities. Oscar Piastri and Nick de Vries participate in a karting event organized by Sky Sports, leaving fans wondering about Logan Sargeant's absence.

Valtteri Bottas shares a romantic photo with his dog, Louis, sparking envy among the hosts. Aston Martin captures a unique group photo of their entire factory team in the shape of their logo, demonstrating impressive coordination and team spirit.

The hosts discuss a recent investigation involving Haas, the manufacturing company that funds the Haas F1 Team. Haas is under investigation for allegedly continuing to sell weapons manufacturing machinery to Russia despite US sanctions imposed after the Ukraine invasion. This news comes as a surprise, considering it involves the team's primary sponsor rather than a traditional sponsor.

The podcast concludes with the hosts expressing their gratitude to their listeners, Voice Over Man, Unlimited Drink Packages Royal Caribbean, and their four-legged executive producers. They encourage listeners to leave ratings and reviews, share their feedback, and follow the show on various social media platforms. The hosts promise to return every Thursday with more Formula One discussions and insights.

[00:00.000 -> 00:08.320] Welcome back! I went on a cruise. I was on a big boat and it went to the Bahamas and it was so warm
[00:09.120 -> 00:16.080] and I had a lot of fun and I'm still recovering but it felt like I was gone forever.
[00:17.040 -> 00:23.280] Cole and Brianna are lined up on the grid. It's lights out and away we go. This week's grid block.
[00:23.280 -> 00:26.800] Yeah, it felt like you were gone for a week.
[00:26.800 -> 00:32.760] I wasn't able to figure out how to remove watermarks from TikTok videos.
[00:32.760 -> 00:34.600] I'm very glad you're back.
[00:34.600 -> 00:36.560] Yes, I am back.
[00:36.560 -> 00:42.360] It was a- it felt weird to be like so removed from the world, let alone F1.
[00:42.360 -> 00:48.400] Except I did see- I spotted some F1 merch on the boat. It was all Mercedes
[00:48.400 -> 00:57.200] merch in the casino. So saw one person in a white George Russell hat, and another person in the
[00:57.200 -> 01:02.480] black team kits and both made sure to be like, I like your shirt, I like your hat. So it felt like
[01:02.480 -> 01:03.640] I was with good people.
[01:04.540 -> 01:08.220] I love being an American F1 fan because seeing another F1 piece of
[01:08.220 -> 01:10.500] merchandise in the wild is like an event.
[01:11.100 -> 01:13.680] If anyone from Europe hears that, they would probably be like,
[01:14.640 -> 01:17.760] you're celebrating seeing two pieces of Mercedes merch?
[01:18.120 -> 01:19.700] No, it was out of the corner of my eye.
[01:19.700 -> 01:22.200] I saw like the black with the red lines.
[01:22.220 -> 01:25.560] And then like, I just saw Patronus and I was like GASP
[01:25.560 -> 01:31.920] Oh gosh it's still real even though I'm on a boat this is still a real thing
[01:31.920 -> 01:36.880] I am separated from reality but not that separated
[01:36.880 -> 01:37.880] Exactly
[01:37.880 -> 01:43.120] It's not a race weekend but F1 is still real and people are wearing merch on a cruise ship
[01:43.120 -> 01:49.560] Well it wasn't race weekend last weekend, it's race weekend this weekend. In the last
[01:49.560 -> 01:54.200] seven days we've had probably a normal amount of Ferrari drama which is an
[01:54.200 -> 01:59.840] abnormal amount of drama for any other race team. We've had a Mercedes PR crisis
[01:59.840 -> 02:06.640] and an attempted recovery. We've had MotorCore exploding all over Fashion Week, month, fashion
[02:06.640 -> 02:13.280] month, I don't know. This is fashion time. And of course, it's Race Week, so it's the Saudi
[02:13.280 -> 02:19.760] Arabian GP this week. They're all big stories. But I'm definitely, desperately want to start
[02:19.760 -> 02:26.440] somewhere random this morning, which is my obsession with South by Southwest and the
[02:26.440 -> 02:31.480] four to five motorsports themed panels that are there this year.
[02:31.480 -> 02:37.480] And I think specifically there are four that talk about F1 in particular.
[02:37.480 -> 02:42.360] And so I'm just, I personally am just particularly obsessed with South by Southwest.
[02:42.360 -> 02:47.000] But are you joining me in my, my overall excitement about all of this?
[02:47.000 -> 02:52.000] You mean a giant event where corporations come and people discuss on different panels how these
[02:52.000 -> 02:57.000] corporations are making a difference and there's just a bunch of really unbelievable brand
[02:57.000 -> 03:06.640] activations and events? That sounds incredibly boring. Just kidding. That sounds like an alternative Disney world. But we may be in
[03:06.640 -> 03:12.000] just a small population that feel that way. And that are just normal people that were
[03:12.000 -> 03:16.280] like dying to go to South by Southwest for these types of reasons.
[03:16.280 -> 03:22.520] Well, I also love like music and it's a whole music festival. And then we both love pop
[03:22.520 -> 03:31.460] culture things. And it's a whole pop culture event. So it's like taking our love of marketing and business, smash it together with other
[03:31.460 -> 03:36.880] things we like. And now this year, there is an obsession with motorsports and particularly
[03:36.880 -> 03:42.280] F1 smashed with all of our other interests. Like you're right, it's like, it's adult Disneyland.
[03:42.280 -> 03:48.480] No, it's fantastic. And so many people go, so I'm excited to see who we see where, who's going to what, what
[03:48.480 -> 03:50.040] news we get out of everything.
[03:50.040 -> 03:53.880] And they had started to tease a little bit of like motorsports and F1 being present in
[03:53.880 -> 03:59.080] South by Southwest last year, but this year they've expanded so much, not just F1, but
[03:59.080 -> 04:02.060] motorsports as a whole and just its effect and its growth.
[04:02.060 -> 04:03.200] So it'll be very interesting.
[04:03.200 -> 04:06.360] I'm excited to get to listen to all of the different panels
[04:06.360 -> 04:09.320] that they have for the rest of the week.
[04:09.320 -> 04:10.520] I wish we could talk about them now,
[04:10.520 -> 04:14.080] but we haven't heard them yet at this time of recording.
[04:14.080 -> 04:15.920] We have four F1 themed panels,
[04:15.920 -> 04:17.640] and I'm gonna throw to you which ones
[04:17.640 -> 04:19.080] you're the most excited about.
[04:19.080 -> 04:21.620] So there's Giving F1 Tech an Edge.
[04:21.620 -> 04:26.680] This one is with the Mercedes IT Director, along with Mandy Currie, who's
[04:26.680 -> 04:31.640] a motorsports journalist. And they're basically talking about how they're using TeamViewer,
[04:31.640 -> 04:38.000] which is a software to reduce carbon emissions, which I'm just really intrigued how they're
[04:38.000 -> 04:47.100] going to connect software uses to carbon emissions. So I'm sure they will. I'm excited. Then there's the real world impact on
[04:47.100 -> 04:52.800] transportation and culture. So this is a panel of four really amazing people and
[04:52.800 -> 04:58.480] it was started by Abby, oh I'm gonna butcher her last name, but it reads like
[04:58.480 -> 05:10.000] rackshit. So I really apologize. But she actually petitioned for this panel to join South by Southwest.
[05:10.000 -> 05:13.000] And then it was voted in, which I think is really cool.
[05:13.000 -> 05:18.000] And it's with one of the people who runs the Las Vegas GP, James Hitchcliffe,
[05:18.000 -> 05:23.000] who's an IndyCar driver and works for F1 TV, and someone from McKenzie & Company.
[05:23.000 -> 05:28.040] And they're basically looking at F1's effect on culture
[05:28.040 -> 05:30.460] and the ramifications for that in diversity
[05:30.460 -> 05:32.400] and in transportation and in business.
[05:32.400 -> 05:34.680] And it's like everything that we love to talk about,
[05:34.680 -> 05:36.120] wrapped one.
[05:36.120 -> 05:38.280] And then there's the data science
[05:38.280 -> 05:40.880] of money balling motor sports.
[05:40.880 -> 05:43.200] And then the evolution of growth in F1
[05:43.200 -> 05:46.840] as an entertainment spectacle on track and in
[05:46.840 -> 05:47.840] communities.
[05:47.840 -> 05:53.820] And I think this one's really interesting because it's with the global director of
[05:53.820 -> 05:56.560] race promotion of F1.
[05:56.560 -> 05:58.120] So that was a lot of information.
[05:58.120 -> 06:00.760] But there's four big F1 panels, what are you excited about?
[06:00.760 -> 06:02.560] It was a hard pick.
[06:02.560 -> 06:06.220] I mean, I am, the one that immediately caught my attention when
[06:06.220 -> 06:12.260] looking at all of them was the evolution of growth of F1 in entertainment, just as a spectacle,
[06:12.260 -> 06:16.260] because that's like right up my pop culture alley. And it is very interesting to see,
[06:16.260 -> 06:22.640] especially in the last season and this upcoming season, how it has become so much more of
[06:22.640 -> 06:30.320] a spectacle than just a race. And it's branching out into so many different areas and becoming such a larger entertainment piece
[06:30.320 -> 06:35.000] than just the motorsport piece of it, funny enough.
[06:35.000 -> 06:41.200] But you got a lot of tech stuff coming out of this, so I can't even imagine which one could be your favorite.
[06:41.200 -> 06:45.740] So it's actually one that's already happened and I can't wait to listen to later today,
[06:45.740 -> 06:46.880] because it's online.
[06:46.880 -> 06:49.420] By the way, if you're interested in what we're talking about,
[06:49.420 -> 06:52.240] South by Southwest does put out audio versions
[06:52.240 -> 06:57.280] online of everything, like most of their panels.
[06:57.280 -> 07:01.160] But it's the data science of moneyballing motorsports,
[07:01.160 -> 07:04.440] because the brief for it is essentially
[07:04.440 -> 07:08.680] that motorsports is this untapped area, particularly
[07:08.680 -> 07:12.380] in they're looking at this, it's what we talk about all the time about how for some reason
[07:12.380 -> 07:16.700] motorsports has decided that their hiring pool is this small when the entire world is
[07:16.700 -> 07:17.700] this big.
[07:17.700 -> 07:23.440] And in a sport where the difference is the people who create and work on your technology,
[07:23.440 -> 07:26.680] if you're the way to money ball the sport
[07:26.680 -> 07:28.120] is to have a bigger pool.
[07:29.320 -> 07:32.360] No, but they just like to pick from each other.
[07:32.360 -> 07:33.200] Right.
[07:34.040 -> 07:38.200] So it's basically supposed to be a data look
[07:38.200 -> 07:42.360] at how people can use data to make more diverse hires
[07:42.360 -> 07:44.960] and therefore win more and be better.
[07:44.960 -> 07:47.400] Like, whoa, what a concept.
[07:47.400 -> 07:50.200] So yeah, that's where I'm most timed.
[07:50.200 -> 07:52.600] Find more Hannah Schmitz, please.
[07:52.600 -> 07:56.600] So I got off the boat and it just kind of, I mean,
[07:56.600 -> 07:59.700] everything was just felt like it was on fire.
[07:59.700 -> 08:04.800] I had several messages from you of Mercedes released a letter
[08:04.800 -> 08:07.140] and I could not, I immediately
[08:07.140 -> 08:10.420] went into a panic of what, what does that mean?
[08:10.420 -> 08:11.420] They were about what?
[08:11.420 -> 08:15.200] What, what were they feel the need that they, why are we releasing a letter right now?
[08:15.200 -> 08:18.220] There was PR happening everywhere.
[08:18.220 -> 08:24.260] Yeah, it's probably our first PR safety car of the season.
[08:24.260 -> 08:29.360] So I'll break this all down.
[08:29.360 -> 08:36.600] So you got on a boat and Mercedes decided it was time to start a PR recovery.
[08:36.600 -> 08:43.960] And I think to set the stage, every single one of these teams and team personnel, especially
[08:43.960 -> 08:45.440] the people who are very public facing
[08:45.440 -> 08:47.960] with the exception of Gunther Steiner,
[08:47.960 -> 08:50.760] is heavily media trained.
[08:50.760 -> 08:53.080] And I tend to, actually, you know what?
[08:53.080 -> 08:54.840] I can throw Helmut Marko in there too,
[08:54.840 -> 08:57.600] because he just doesn't care and likes to say
[08:57.600 -> 08:58.440] awful things.
[08:58.440 -> 08:59.260] He does what he does.
[08:59.260 -> 09:00.100] Right.
[09:01.360 -> 09:02.520] Everyone else though,
[09:02.520 -> 09:04.160] if they're saying something to the press,
[09:04.160 -> 09:05.520] particularly the press
[09:05.520 -> 09:11.520] during a media weekend, it's generally a planned out, hey, we're going to go this angle,
[09:11.520 -> 09:16.560] we're going to spin this this way. And Mercedes definitely decided during the race weekend,
[09:16.560 -> 09:27.000] that the best thing to do for them is to severely underplay what is going on and talk about how everything is awful to varying extents.
[09:27.000 -> 09:32.320] Now, I would argue that I think the fan and public overreacted a little bit, even to their
[09:32.320 -> 09:37.920] quotes. Like, one of your quotes of the week last week was that Toto said he's so determined
[09:37.920 -> 09:43.840] he's going to drag Lewis to his eighth championship. Like, to me that doesn't sound like a team
[09:43.840 -> 09:46.720] that's on fire. But there was a lot of like,
[09:46.720 -> 09:52.480] we're not as close to the front, we're not where we should be, and it was a very coordinated effort
[09:52.480 -> 09:57.600] of messaging to the public. They definitely realized they went a little too hard,
[09:58.480 -> 10:06.400] because the general public, journalists, fans, observers, decided to spin that into everything in
[10:06.400 -> 10:11.280] Mercedes is on fire and everyone needs to be fired, they need to bring back old
[10:11.280 -> 10:16.920] team members, just like light the whole place up, everything is awful. And so
[10:16.920 -> 10:27.000] Mercedes released a letter to the general public and to their fans, basically telling everyone to calm down! It's okay!
[10:27.000 -> 10:34.000] Um, and all of this, everything they've been doing, every social media post they've been posting since then
[10:34.000 -> 10:39.000] has been very oriented around, oh crap, we created a PR crisis for ourselves.
[10:39.000 -> 10:45.360] Maybe the best move wasn't to like be so extreme about how everything's awful at the bar range EP.
[10:46.720 -> 10:51.440] But to pull this all together, I think an interesting thing to throw to you to talk about
[10:51.440 -> 11:01.200] is the fact that this is all a strategy and how interesting it is that the choices they're making
[11:01.200 -> 11:08.120] to recover, essentially their PR safety car, to try to rein in some of the messaging here.
[11:10.520 -> 11:11.840] Yeah, it...
[11:11.840 -> 11:13.840] First, I like to
[11:14.840 -> 11:20.240] appreciate, as a Mercedes fan, that Mercedes understood that
[11:21.080 -> 11:28.160] their fans are an important stakeholder in the success of their team. The support,
[11:28.160 -> 11:32.960] they feel the need that they need to explain themselves to this body of people, which is
[11:32.960 -> 11:38.560] basically part of their stakeholders, people that invest their time, money, and attention
[11:38.560 -> 11:50.000] into the team. Now, also that fan base happens to be really adjusted to winning and being very successful.
[11:50.000 -> 11:55.240] This is the one time where I feel like you and I are kind of lucky of having experience
[11:55.240 -> 12:01.200] rooting for sports teams that aren't necessarily the most successful, as Brianna is wearing
[12:01.200 -> 12:05.800] an Eagles shirt that has won a Super Bowl, and I have never seen a team win a single thing.
[12:07.440 -> 12:08.760] Oh, pain, pain.
[12:08.960 -> 12:13.680] But we have a little bit, maybe more experience, but when it comes to being a
[12:13.680 -> 12:16.080] Mercedes fan, it's not the norm.
[12:16.380 -> 12:20.240] And I think people were getting very frustrated after last season, obviously.
[12:20.760 -> 12:24.400] And then coming into this season, expecting lots of upgrades.
[12:24.680 -> 12:26.400] And instead of everyone talking about
[12:26.840 -> 12:33.880] Mercedes flying at the speed of light the conversation has been about Aston Martin and everyone's like if they can do why you no do
[12:34.200 -> 12:38.060] Even though very different different teams different resources whole different situation
[12:38.560 -> 12:41.040] But Mercedes fans were getting a little like
[12:42.720 -> 12:49.480] So Mercedes definitely did at least the smart PR move of bringing fans into the
[12:49.480 -> 12:53.320] conversation and showing them that they are part of the bigger
[12:53.320 -> 12:54.920] picture of all of that.
[12:55.960 -> 13:09.480] Yeah, I, F1 is notoriously not fan focused. So it is, whether or not you personally liked the letter or enjoy
[13:09.480 -> 13:14.640] or are liking the choices Mercedes making to like pull back some of the
[13:14.640 -> 13:22.880] panic, I completely agree with you that it's so crazy important that they've
[13:22.880 -> 13:26.720] identified that it's important to do this publicly for their fans.
[13:27.280 -> 13:33.440] Because I think there's a large percentage of F1 teams or F1, generally speaking, or the FIA,
[13:33.440 -> 13:38.800] where their solution is call the race promoters, call the sponsors, call their company shareholders,
[13:38.800 -> 13:46.640] and then they stop there. And they don't realize that the fans generally invested in either the team or the sport are just as important
[13:46.800 -> 13:50.760] And particularly in a social media age where well
[13:50.760 -> 13:56.700] I know that the journalists are just as responsible for stoking some of the panic. No, Mercedes is ultimately
[13:57.200 -> 14:00.160] responsible for not having the correct PR strategy in Bahrain
[14:00.840 -> 14:08.560] Shouldn't have gone so hard. Journalists stoked that, but more than all of that, fans panicked.
[14:08.560 -> 14:13.480] And so I do think this is an interesting, though it's not my favorite PR crisis to ever
[14:13.480 -> 14:21.680] happen in F1, I think it's an interesting evolution that Mercedes has identified that
[14:21.680 -> 14:30.000] and kind of set things ahead. Like how many, last year, how many just like random like image with text over it
[14:30.000 -> 14:32.720] press releases did we get from Red Bull?
[14:32.720 -> 14:35.080] Like, how many?
[14:35.080 -> 14:36.920] And that was for worse things.
[14:36.920 -> 14:42.280] The Mercedes wrote a massive letter to the fans about what's going on.
[14:42.280 -> 14:45.420] And I just, from,, we both work in marketing,
[14:45.420 -> 14:47.260] we've been exposed to PR situations,
[14:47.260 -> 14:50.820] we're in rooms making decisions like this all the time.
[14:50.820 -> 14:55.820] If that is not you, I just need you listener to know
[14:55.820 -> 14:57.420] that that letter probably went through
[14:57.420 -> 14:59.100] 20 hours of revisions.
[14:59.100 -> 15:02.580] We're probably seeing draft 68 of that letter.
[15:02.580 -> 15:07.700] The amount of time and energy that went into just releasing that and putting that up on the website
[15:08.000 -> 15:14.600] was probably so much and I always equate in the modern capitalist society we live in
[15:15.520 -> 15:18.320] time is money, energy is money.
[15:18.600 -> 15:24.920] They invested money and time and energy into writing that letter and for F1, that's a win.
[15:25.000 -> 15:26.000] Win's a win. Win's a win.
[15:26.000 -> 15:30.000] And it wasn't that they just, I think it was,
[15:30.000 -> 15:32.000] I loved at the beginning of reading, you know,
[15:32.000 -> 15:38.000] that they're not giving up and they don't want to make any rash decisions.
[15:38.000 -> 15:39.000] I know a lot of people were like,
[15:39.000 -> 15:42.000] they just need to scrap the whole thing and start over and show up with some
[15:42.000 -> 15:44.000] kind of crazy new upgrade and a totally different car.
[15:44.000 -> 15:48.220] I'm like, that's not what we want to do. That's not the smart way to do this
[15:48.220 -> 15:56.220] I understand everyone's kind of like on fire and wants to see results, but I like that they came out and said we're gonna do this
[15:57.500 -> 16:04.440] Strategically we're gonna think about this back to the drawing board. We're sorry. We've disappointed you and then I also like that even though they were
[16:04.440 -> 16:05.400] We're sorry. We've disappointed you and then I also like that even though they were
[16:11.720 -> 16:16.040] Coming out not apologizing but acknowledging, you know, they're screw-ups and they're this whole PR safety car But they also took the chance to be like hey fans. We love you
[16:16.120 -> 16:23.080] Let's also not be jerks when providing feedback and that this is a safe space and you don't need to come after anyone
[16:23.080 -> 16:28.800] and you don't need to be like yelling at anyone because if you're a real fan, like you love your team and there's
[16:28.800 -> 16:32.180] like an extent that you can be upset.
[16:32.180 -> 16:37.280] But remember that these are real people and you know, it's you screaming on a tweet saying
[16:37.280 -> 16:47.680] very not nice things to other fans, to engineers, to the admin who's looking at the account. Maybe not the most constructive way
[16:47.680 -> 16:53.440] to get things done and not the best way to be establishing a positive reputation for a fan base.
[16:54.480 -> 16:59.600] Right. And especially a fan base, at least the Lewis Hamilton side of the fan base,
[16:59.600 -> 17:08.000] I think we all are very acutely aware of how Lewis is treated and how other fans treat Lewis.
[17:08.000 -> 17:14.000] So I definitely don't want the Mercedes fan base putting that out in the world.
[17:14.000 -> 17:27.360] Particularly at people, like the people who are on Twitter and the Mercedes organization are not the people who are making ultimate decisions. Whether that's the admin, as you're saying, or it's just the engineer who works back on the factory
[17:27.360 -> 17:30.880] and has like one small part of this giant project
[17:30.880 -> 17:32.480] that they're all working on.
[17:32.480 -> 17:36.400] Like if you do want to direct some frustration somewhere,
[17:37.440 -> 17:40.320] well, one, I would say boxing, really fun sport.
[17:40.320 -> 17:42.560] Like go get some anger out, really helpful.
[17:44.080 -> 17:48.000] But also like direct it more collectively.
[17:48.000 -> 17:53.000] And there's a way to frame things in an accusatory manner versus a,
[17:53.000 -> 17:57.000] we're going to get back to like small children I statements, right?
[17:57.000 -> 18:02.000] Like I'm upset that the car is not fast and Lewis is not in a position to win.
[18:02.000 -> 18:06.960] Right. Versus how dare you put Lewis in that situation,
[18:06.960 -> 18:12.320] right? Right? Lessons learning. Um, no, I'm not trying to be like a condescending asshole with
[18:12.320 -> 18:18.640] this, but I do think collectively as a fandom, it's like good to talk about those things. And
[18:18.640 -> 18:30.200] it's really good that Mercedes is talking about those things. I'm sure they're doing lots of blocking which is great and helpful but we can be better. We as a world can be better and it's
[18:30.200 -> 18:35.320] upsetting that we're not. But I also I want to just mention briefly the other
[18:35.320 -> 18:41.320] side of this. I think F1 does not not the sport I think F1 fandoms do a ton of
[18:41.320 -> 18:45.680] policing about the right or wrong way to be a fan or how much should
[18:45.680 -> 18:52.520] you or shouldn't you care. And I just want, as someone who didn't get a world championship
[18:52.520 -> 18:59.920] as a Philadelphia Eagles fan until adult life, losing and being sad about losing is such
[18:59.920 -> 19:04.600] an important part of fandom. And you actually create so many bonds over that with people
[19:04.600 -> 19:09.480] and like, like be upset and don't let anyone tell you that you're not allowed to be upset.
[19:09.480 -> 19:14.340] Like being a sports fan is, is so emotional. And that's good. That's because we have passion
[19:14.340 -> 19:18.420] for it. And that's why it's so fun. So like, be emotional, but just make sure you're not
[19:18.420 -> 19:23.340] directing it in a way that's harmful, harmful for someone. But like, oh my gosh, start a
[19:23.340 -> 19:25.680] Mercedes group chat, come like chat
[19:25.680 -> 19:29.480] with us in our DMs. Like I would sit there and like rant with you for hours about how
[19:29.480 -> 19:34.080] sad I am that like, Lewis does can't fight for a championship this season. Like, I know
[19:34.080 -> 19:38.640] that they would, like Nicole would do the same, like, come like, at least we're here
[19:38.640 -> 19:49.000] for like a venting space. And like, this is this is gonna be a very long bonding experience. And we unfortunately have experience with that.
[19:49.000 -> 19:55.000] There's nothing that makes you appreciate when your team is having any sort of bit of success
[19:55.000 -> 20:02.000] than when you had to sit there and see the suffer through not success.
[20:02.000 -> 20:05.800] And it still hurts. It hurts every time.
[20:05.800 -> 20:06.800] Every time.
[20:06.800 -> 20:07.800] Every time.
[20:07.800 -> 20:11.960] And it always hurts more than the good feels.
[20:11.960 -> 20:17.800] There's an unbelievable not good balance there.
[20:17.800 -> 20:23.000] And they would, I mean, within this whole lengthy letter, it didn't necessarily seem
[20:23.000 -> 20:24.800] like it was overall panic.
[20:24.800 -> 20:28.040] Like Mercedes was not like, it's done. You
[20:28.040 -> 20:31.720] know, they weren't saying George's quotes of like, Red
[20:31.720 -> 20:35.560] Bulls won, we're done, we can go take a nap now, which is not
[20:35.560 -> 20:39.080] exactly what he said. I am paraphrasing, of course. I think
[20:40.840 -> 20:44.840] it was a PR safety car, it was a damage control, it was a we need
[20:44.840 -> 21:05.960] to regroup, go back to the drawing board of how we need to be communicating the current status of our car. And as it continues to perform question mark in whatever way it does. that, but it did not seem like they were waving the white flag and that every single piece
[21:05.960 -> 21:14.600] of hope has been lost, whether that's for this season or in general, either way, not
[21:14.600 -> 21:16.860] all has been lost.
[21:16.860 -> 21:24.560] So I can throw in some general hope copium to this whole thing, but let's talk about
[21:24.560 -> 21:25.760] some facts and some things that
[21:25.760 -> 21:28.560] we know are fundamentally true.
[21:28.560 -> 21:34.280] The Aston stuff hurts, but if we think about it, even though the Aston Martin team is getting
[21:34.280 -> 21:40.680] so much investment from Loren Stroll right now, they are still not the full operation
[21:40.680 -> 21:43.280] that Mercedes is.
[21:43.280 -> 21:46.580] So I think that Mercedes has now identified that
[21:46.580 -> 21:50.080] they're on the wrong track. They've identified that the goals they set for
[21:50.080 -> 21:55.920] themselves were not high enough. Those are positives and it taking the entire might
[21:55.920 -> 22:00.120] that is the Mercedes team that I believe is still there it hasn't disappeared in
[22:00.120 -> 22:04.200] two years. They are still there's a reason. Remember we're still talking
[22:04.200 -> 22:09.440] about the third or fourth best team in F1. Most teams would be dying to be in this position,
[22:09.440 -> 22:16.500] all relative. But if they put their entire might, engineering might, behind the right
[22:16.500 -> 22:22.360] direction, instead of the direction they've been going for the last year and a half, two
[22:22.360 -> 22:25.100] years in this direction, you're telling me you don't
[22:25.100 -> 22:29.080] think they could make a similar if not greater jump than Aston did? And they
[22:29.080 -> 22:33.400] weren't coming from seventh to third like Aston did, they're gonna go from
[22:33.400 -> 22:38.760] third to competing with Red Bull. So I do believe that this season will be
[22:38.760 -> 22:47.600] different. And so last season was pure panic and damage control. Like it was an entire season of a PR safety car.
[22:47.600 -> 22:51.080] Like, wow, we got this so wrong, but we don't know how.
[22:51.080 -> 22:52.760] We're now at a point where Mercedes knows
[22:52.760 -> 22:55.480] how they got it wrong multiple times.
[22:56.600 -> 22:58.980] And theoretically, what we should see
[22:58.980 -> 23:01.440] for the rest of the year is every upgrade they bring,
[23:01.440 -> 23:04.320] even if it doesn't necessarily bring them closer to Red Bull,
[23:04.320 -> 23:10.320] it's all going to be communicated to us under whatever direction they're going and how this
[23:10.320 -> 23:13.320] is informing that.
[23:13.320 -> 23:16.600] I will also point out that most tracks are not Bahrain.
[23:16.600 -> 23:22.680] I think it is so incredibly likely that we're going to get to Jeddah this weekend and Mercedes
[23:22.680 -> 23:28.800] is not going to be all doom and gloom and they're going to have a much better overall performance even if they finish the race in the same places
[23:28.800 -> 23:33.120] and then everyone's gonna stop panicking. But we are getting upgrades this weekend already.
[23:33.120 -> 23:39.040] They were pre-planned upgrades but still upgrades. So you know there's there's good there's
[23:39.040 -> 23:47.000] a good direction. Everything's good. I mean everything's awful but could be good. I mean, everything's awful, but could be good. Just do something. I say
[23:47.000 -> 23:54.400] positively, kindly, and say please, and not like everyone else, it's like, well then just do it!
[23:54.400 -> 24:02.920] I please do the thing that makes you go so fast. Thanks. And it's going to be a while, and I think
[24:02.920 -> 24:05.300] it's gonna be interesting if they bring like a big beast back
[24:05.720 -> 24:12.200] I'm also so I'm gonna throw out a wild theory here. If you wait, wait, where's the hope alarm here? I'll go I'll go
[24:13.040 -> 24:15.040] Okay
[24:17.080 -> 24:22.160] You're gonna probably click that a lot and what I'm about to say, but if you if you want to be like super hopeful
[24:23.200 -> 24:26.840] Again going back to this is all a PR strategy.
[24:26.840 -> 24:33.440] What Mercedes was doing in Bahrain, those quotes were the wrong, but still were a strategy
[24:33.440 -> 24:37.280] to set expectations lower to underplay things.
[24:37.280 -> 24:45.040] It's apparently Mercedes alleged Imola upgrade is supposed to be a relative,
[24:52.800 -> 24:53.600] um, I don't want to call it a full B-spec, but a pretty decent evolution of this car, and it's supposed to look significantly different.
[24:54.880 -> 24:56.880] So, if you want to hold on to hope
[24:57.440 -> 25:01.680] for six more weeks, or four more race weeks, whatever it is,
[25:02.240 -> 25:06.080] uh, you can hope and pretend that maybe that is a
[25:06.080 -> 25:10.520] B-spec car and that Mercedes already knew that they were in the wrong direction, like
[25:10.520 -> 25:15.800] McLaren, and that's just a completely new car where you get an immigrant.
[25:15.800 -> 25:20.520] So that's the option if you want to be delusional for a couple weeks and that sounds fun.
[25:20.520 -> 25:25.580] I might live in that space. I just want to stop having Mercedes and McLaren in the same sentence
[25:30.360 -> 25:34.520] That's it because I can't I can't and not
[25:36.060 -> 25:38.060] No, no more
[25:53.900 -> 25:54.900] Because it is such a similar, like, not sandbagging, sandbagging PR type thing that I see that we're doing.
[25:54.900 -> 25:57.320] And it was, we'd seen it coming with McLaren.
[25:57.320 -> 25:59.520] And then when we're like, is Mercedes doing the same thing?
[25:59.520 -> 26:02.640] And I'm like, please, I don't, oh, I need to do that.
[26:02.640 -> 26:06.080] But we'll live with your hope. I'll live in your hope.
[26:07.440 -> 26:13.280] So speaking of McLaren, we got a much clearer picture this last week on exactly what they got
[26:13.280 -> 26:20.400] wrong and why, well not necessarily why they're slow, but why we're waiting for this like entirely
[26:20.400 -> 26:29.680] B-spec car. And apparently it's because because so the regulations changed to combat porpoising that the floors had to be raised to 15 millimeters and
[26:30.920 -> 26:36.460] Apparently McLaren just got it so wrong like they got their floor design so wrong
[26:36.460 -> 26:40.220] They realized they were heading down a path with little to no performance
[26:40.220 -> 26:47.000] and so that's so it was the floor and this floor edge regulation change that they didn't properly adapt to.
[26:47.000 -> 26:55.000] And that is why they basically just had to hit exit on their entire design plans and completely start over.
[26:55.000 -> 26:57.000] But...
[26:57.000 -> 27:11.360] I just feel like, I feel like how, I don't know how long it takes to realize that, but I feel like they realized it so late and I'm also just want one to scream they got everything wrong but that's my
[27:11.360 -> 27:17.880] emotional Daniel Ricardo soapbox that I have to acknowledge every single week
[27:18.080 -> 27:26.480] yeah will there be a week without talking about Danny Rick. No. You'll never know. No, I'll tell you now, the world will know
[27:26.480 -> 27:28.520] because my answer is no.
[27:30.800 -> 27:35.800] But I mean, it's not super far off.
[27:36.120 -> 27:38.760] I will always find it very interesting,
[27:38.760 -> 27:41.800] speaking of PR, a team that's very good at it in McLaren,
[27:41.800 -> 27:47.160] that they keep chucking their poor
[27:47.160 -> 27:52.300] performance up to very specific things. It's, oh we don't have our new wind
[27:52.300 -> 27:58.360] tunnel yet, oh we just got the floor edge raised wrong, oh we just, it's like always
[27:58.360 -> 28:02.080] these like very specific things, but to your point like there is definitely a
[28:02.080 -> 28:08.560] more collective issue. Like they they had reliability problems, and so they couldn't do a full testing program.
[28:08.560 -> 28:12.340] They couldn't bring the car they wanted to the track.
[28:12.340 -> 28:18.840] They seem to have some general aerodynamic issues in their aerodynamic department, which
[28:18.840 -> 28:23.980] is why I do think it's interesting that they're rumored to bring on some Ferrari designers.
[28:23.980 -> 28:28.880] And then, so it just, it definitely seems bigger and more collective.
[28:28.880 -> 28:33.600] And the more and more we look back at 2020, which is I think when they finished P3, when
[28:33.600 -> 28:38.400] Carlos was in the team, that is seeming more and more like a fluke and not more and more
[28:38.400 -> 28:40.480] like a team on the upswing.
[28:40.480 -> 28:48.000] Just because, it can't just be one, like none of this is individual, to your point your point like how do you just get the floor wrong or figure out the floor?
[28:48.000 -> 28:52.800] So like it all like every part of the car works together. So you got the concept wrong
[28:52.800 -> 28:55.460] You didn't just get the floor wrong now to be fair to them
[28:55.460 -> 29:00.780] They are saying that they got the concept wrong because of the change in regulations about floor edges
[29:01.400 -> 29:03.400] but it's just
[29:03.680 -> 29:06.740] It seems like a bigger more systemic McLaren issue, and I think it's just, it seems like a bigger, more systemic McLaren issue.
[29:06.740 -> 29:09.500] And I think it's time we all acknowledge that.
[29:09.500 -> 29:15.740] I don't think the floor is their one thing. I mean, Oscar didn't DNF last week because
[29:15.740 -> 29:17.220] of the floor.
[29:17.220 -> 29:18.220] But yeah.
[29:18.220 -> 29:24.200] Atlanta didn't have five or six pit stops to repump air into something because of the
[29:24.200 -> 29:27.440] floor. Yeah. There's some general operations issues
[29:27.440 -> 29:28.000] right now.
[29:28.520 -> 29:30.880] Yeah, it kind of seems like everyone's working a little bit
[29:30.880 -> 29:34.600] all over place, all over the place from like an administrative
[29:34.600 -> 29:37.440] perspective from just like a tech perspective. It kind of
[29:37.440 -> 29:39.960] just seems like everyone's working towards like a
[29:39.960 -> 29:42.840] different mission or just all not coming together trying to
[29:42.840 -> 29:45.460] achieve the same thing. So it just kind of seems like there's
[29:45.460 -> 29:50.640] things going all over the place, which is why before we even saw
[29:50.640 -> 29:54.600] any car from them, they were like, upgrades. And we're like,
[29:54.640 -> 29:59.640] oh, cool. Okay, we didn't ask. But I'm glad that's, you know,
[30:01.560 -> 30:06.000] it's super cool that we just heard the heartbeat of the car for the first time
[30:06.000 -> 30:07.000] and you're like, upgrades.
[30:07.000 -> 30:08.000] Like.
[30:08.000 -> 30:16.080] One of my favorite things about F1 is that they insist on calling the sound of the engine
[30:16.080 -> 30:18.120] the heartbeat.
[30:18.120 -> 30:22.320] I just find it so corny in like the best way possible, like a good corny.
[30:22.320 -> 30:25.760] Yeah, I mean Ferrari two seconds before we saw the car
[30:25.760 -> 30:30.160] literally on track, they're like, here's this beautiful graphic and it's the heartbeat of the
[30:30.160 -> 30:37.120] car and it's so beautiful. Like it's so, it's so very funny. But yeah, no, McLaren needs like a
[30:37.120 -> 30:41.760] whole regroup. I feel like they need to go on like a team retreat and like everyone needs to do like
[30:41.760 -> 30:48.360] some trust falls and like some communicating something. Yeah, like there needs to do like some trust falls and like some communicating something yeah like there needs to be like a like an all-weekend
[30:48.360 -> 30:53.120] like everyone like cross step over the line if you know like type of like
[30:53.120 -> 30:56.800] bonding activities because it just does not seem like there's a coherent
[30:56.800 -> 31:04.120] anything going on with McLaren right now they keep saying so that we have the
[31:04.120 -> 31:06.720] Saudi Arabian GP then we have the Saudi Arabian GP, then we have the Australian GP, and
[31:07.760 -> 31:10.800] we don't have the Chinese GP, so the fourth GP is Baku this year.
[31:11.440 -> 31:17.280] And I'm pretty sure there are B-spec cars coming there, which is pretty quick, which just shows how
[31:17.840 -> 31:26.880] early in the off-season they identified that this is a problem. And it is always better that they've identified the problem and have a
[31:26.880 -> 31:32.000] plan to fix it that is only theoretically costing them three races and all of testing.
[31:32.720 -> 31:41.040] But I just I'm curious what the goal is and what their global plan is to fix it right now. Because
[31:41.040 -> 31:46.480] I think they've communicated publicly their more immediate plans of, you know,
[31:46.480 -> 31:51.600] we have this beast pack car coming, and we have the wind tunnel coming online. But what is the
[31:51.600 -> 31:57.120] big picture plan? Like who, because F1's a team sport, it's all about people. So I'm going to be
[31:57.120 -> 32:02.800] really intrigued if and who they bring on to the team, specifically in the aerodynamic department
[32:03.600 -> 32:05.220] over the next couple of years,
[32:05.220 -> 32:07.000] because I don't think until we start getting
[32:07.000 -> 32:09.260] some like big, more collective hires
[32:09.260 -> 32:11.700] that we're gonna see a big change in performance.
[32:12.780 -> 32:16.660] Well, we could see some change
[32:16.660 -> 32:20.860] or new people shuffling around because, surprise,
[32:20.860 -> 32:25.000] Ferrari kinda maybe going through some things.
[32:25.760 -> 32:28.000] Ferrari's being Ferrari right now.
[32:28.000 -> 32:30.600] My favorite thing about Ferrari is that even when
[32:30.600 -> 32:32.880] they're not in a state of panic, they're in a state of panic,
[32:32.880 -> 32:34.680] they live in a state of panic.
[32:34.680 -> 32:37.320] Like this is just like the normal day to day
[32:37.320 -> 32:39.420] and we need to parse out whether they're actually
[32:39.420 -> 32:42.920] in a state of panic or, and like,
[32:42.920 -> 32:49.360] so the rumors we've gotten since the Bahrain GP are like 15 people are
[32:49.360 -> 32:54.940] fired or they're just leaving because like they don't like the new team principal or
[32:54.940 -> 33:01.360] the president Elkin is too involved or Fred Vasseur is going on a firing spree or like
[33:01.360 -> 33:07.220] then then we have the crazy rumors that Charles is gonna leave Ferrari, and then that boy walks out of his house and, like,
[33:07.220 -> 33:11.880] head-to-toe Ferrari merch and drives his, like, very expensive Ferrari car, like,
[33:11.880 -> 33:14.840] he's not leaving Ferrari, right? Like, what?
[33:14.840 -> 33:17.640] It's just... I love...
[33:17.640 -> 33:21.720] I love the... how emotional Ferrari is, and that...
[33:21.720 -> 33:27.600] What this all boiled down to yesterday is that Fred Rasor coming out, I don't know
[33:27.600 -> 33:31.680] why that was hard for me to say today, coming out and saying that Ferrari has a leak and
[33:31.680 -> 33:36.960] they need to plug the leak. So, Nicole, how would you go about plugging a leak in the
[33:36.960 -> 33:43.080] Ferrari and what probability do you think the leak is directed and on the race team
[33:43.080 -> 33:48.160] itself? Because I'm not sure, I'm not sure Fred's not the leak is directed and on the race team itself because I'm not sure I'm not sure Fred's not the
[33:48.160 -> 33:55.040] leak. Right I you know I every time and I had said this to you yesterday that I just feel like every
[33:55.040 -> 33:59.760] time I'm seeing headlines of the Italian media talking about Ferrari is it's like when the
[33:59.760 -> 34:05.400] British media is like talking about the royal family in every kind of capacity and they'll come up with every
[34:05.500 -> 34:09.900] single possible story so we want to play into the Ferrari
[34:10.000 -> 34:10.480] drama.
[34:10.980 -> 34:14.680] I love the idea of that there's some people who have a loyalty
[34:14.780 -> 34:18.620] to the T and there you know being the leak outside because
[34:18.720 -> 34:22.280] I'm that drama is just so F one.
[34:22.820 -> 34:28.960] Do I really think that's happening. No because i think that's a really easy way
[34:28.960 -> 34:33.440] for someone to like lose a job or like unless they're you know feeding it somewhere else
[34:33.440 -> 34:38.560] that they're gonna get a job but it just felt very silly it felt like again ferrari trying
[34:38.560 -> 34:44.320] to find a scapegoat without labeling a scapegoat because we know ferrari loves that and it's
[34:44.320 -> 34:49.280] too early in the season for them to pick one so it's easy for them to point at a leak because it's a
[34:49.280 -> 34:55.840] scapegoat without it having to actually be someone. Right. I think that there's two things,
[34:55.840 -> 35:00.800] and the way I mentally divide it is I divide the reporting by who's doing the reporting.
[35:00.800 -> 35:07.920] There is definitely, you know, the Daily Mail equivalent in the Italian press,
[35:07.920 -> 35:13.120] and I just chuck out all of that report from my brain. Well, I read it, I consume it, I laugh,
[35:13.120 -> 35:20.720] I chuck it out. Because, to your point about the royal family, it is mostly inflammatory,
[35:20.720 -> 35:26.840] made up, not productive. But there is a decent amount, like Autosport has an
[35:26.840 -> 35:30.640] Italian branch that's pretty reputable and there are other places
[35:30.640 -> 35:36.840] like that that have been reporting things for the last week that feel less
[35:36.840 -> 35:41.600] like a reality TV show and more like F1's particular brand of reality TV show.
[35:41.600 -> 35:47.520] And with Ferrari in particular, because I think we all know
[35:47.520 -> 35:55.080] how political it is, particularly with, like, there's the new president of the Ferrari group,
[35:55.080 -> 35:58.180] and then there's the new team principal, and then to your point, I'm sure there are a bunch
[35:58.180 -> 36:08.960] of people who Bonotto hired and were part of his inner circle circle and etc. etc. So when I look at a quote, I just like to think about who benefits from this being out
[36:08.960 -> 36:09.960] there.
[36:09.960 -> 36:15.000] And the majority of the quotes this week, the people who benefit from them being out
[36:15.000 -> 36:21.120] there don't seem to be Elkin, who's the president of Ferrari.
[36:21.120 -> 36:24.520] It all seems to benefit the racing team.
[36:24.520 -> 36:26.220] So I would just like take that and
[36:26.220 -> 36:31.180] acknowledge that and then like, you know, we don't actually have to like think or
[36:31.180 -> 36:36.800] take any action. But I do think that there's some element of what always
[36:36.800 -> 36:40.440] seems to be true at Ferrari, which is that the racing team wants more autonomy
[36:40.440 -> 36:47.000] and I think they are using the press to try to galvanize for that.
[36:47.000 -> 36:54.000] I also think that they're really smart and they understand that publicly they have to say that the goal this year is world championship.
[36:54.000 -> 36:57.000] But they all know they're not winning a world championship this year.
[36:57.000 -> 37:06.540] So like something like would have to happen that's so dramatic and that so there also might be
[37:06.540 -> 37:10.400] an element of well if we make it seem like there's so much chaos going on in Ferrari
[37:10.400 -> 37:16.360] and everyone's leaving then when we don't win everyone's gonna be like ah was it their
[37:16.360 -> 37:28.720] fault they're lining up scapegoat they're lining it up you're getting prepared. It's their PR safety car. Except it's like a preventative
[37:28.720 -> 37:39.680] preparing for future statements that they have to make, especially after Bahrain and
[37:39.680 -> 37:46.000] whatever Charles has to deal with this weekend. Oh my gosh. Yeah. I, uh,
[37:46.000 -> 37:48.000] something more concrete though that we do know
[37:48.000 -> 37:50.000] is actually happening that is interesting,
[37:50.000 -> 37:52.000] Ferrari doesn't have a technical director
[37:52.000 -> 37:54.000] and even when Mattia was there, he
[37:54.000 -> 37:56.000] I think we all assumed he was the acting
[37:56.000 -> 37:58.000] technical director because he
[37:58.000 -> 38:00.000] had final say, but he technically
[38:00.000 -> 38:02.000] even himself was saying he wasn't
[38:02.000 -> 38:04.000] a technical director. Fred is, doesn't
[38:04.000 -> 38:06.960] come from the technical side,
[38:06.960 -> 38:09.680] so he is definitely not the technical director.
[38:09.680 -> 38:13.440] And Ferrari did just lose its head of vehicle concept,
[38:13.440 -> 38:14.840] who you would assume was like
[38:14.840 -> 38:17.800] kind of acting technical director.
[38:17.800 -> 38:21.360] So that is a concrete thing that did happen this week
[38:21.360 -> 38:23.440] amid all the like panic and like,
[38:23.440 -> 38:25.040] is Charles actually gonna leave Ferrari
[38:25.040 -> 38:30.240] and who's upset and who's like all that stuff in the middle of it was oh their head of vehicle
[38:30.240 -> 38:35.200] concept left we don't know where he's going yet he's rumored wherever he's going he's going to be
[38:36.240 -> 38:44.080] in the UK but that's eight of the ten teams I'm pretty sure so that's not super helpful
[38:50.080 -> 38:54.560] I'm pretty sure. So that's not super helpful. But amidst all of this, not 100% sure who's going to be developing that car all season and developing their car for next year. So
[38:55.360 -> 39:00.640] something to think about. Things are in a good place.
[39:00.640 -> 39:02.800] It's great. We love it. Go Ferrari.
[39:02.880 -> 39:07.320] place. It's great. We love it. Go Ferrari.
[39:11.640 -> 39:13.000] Hey, podcast listeners. Gossip Grid here, your guide to F1's paddock elites.
[39:13.480 -> 39:18.080] Hello, everyone. Welcome back to Gossip Grid. I'm here to give
[39:18.080 -> 39:22.080] you everything about Formula One and pop culture. And this week
[39:22.080 -> 39:26.800] we have a special fashion trending version of Gossip Grid because
[39:26.800 -> 39:33.840] we have to talk about motorcore. Motorcore is taking hold of the entire fashion industry,
[39:33.840 -> 39:40.800] not just only in the US, but all over the world. Over the last year, we've really seen Formula One
[39:40.800 -> 39:45.200] and racing spilling into fashion fashion really took off in 2022.
[39:46.080 -> 39:52.240] A lot of people point to TikTok and the Y2K rock glam as being a part of this.
[39:52.240 -> 39:57.280] We had seen a trend very recently with a biker core, which is leaning into the
[39:57.280 -> 40:00.320] ripped denim, heavy metal band tees.
[40:00.320 -> 40:07.760] But MotorCore has taken this biker core and spun it on a more conservative, sleek style.
[40:07.760 -> 40:13.640] We've seen tons of this in New York Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week, but Paris Fashion
[40:13.640 -> 40:19.600] Week is a month long, so there's been a ton of different pieces of MotorCore scenes.
[40:19.600 -> 40:22.320] So our key pieces of MotorCore, which now you're going to be like, I've been seeing
[40:22.320 -> 40:27.740] this all over the place. You'll be seeing everyone in tons of leather.
[40:27.740 -> 40:30.580] So bomber jackets, low rise pants.
[40:30.580 -> 40:32.020] Another big surprise that we see
[40:32.020 -> 40:34.040] in a lot of racing material, logos.
[40:34.040 -> 40:35.940] Logos are making a really big comeback
[40:35.940 -> 40:38.260] and you will be seeing influencers and models
[40:38.260 -> 40:40.880] and celebrities decked out in racing jackets
[40:40.880 -> 40:42.540] that have covered in logos
[40:42.540 -> 40:45.720] of every single different type of variety.
[40:45.720 -> 40:49.080] They have this piece of subversion fashion.
[40:49.080 -> 40:50.360] What does that mean?
[40:50.360 -> 40:55.320] Lots of layers, really weird cutouts in places that you seem like don't make any sense across
[40:55.320 -> 41:02.600] the body, sheer fabrics, unconventional straps, kind of like when you're seeing a race car
[41:02.600 -> 41:03.840] driver getting into their suit.
[41:03.840 -> 41:07.180] They have lots of different straps and head pieces and things that they need to put on.
[41:07.180 -> 41:10.260] This is the contemporary fashion version of that.
[41:10.260 -> 41:13.660] Usually going to see them in sneakers because it's kind of a spin on athletic wear, but
[41:13.660 -> 41:15.980] a little bit more trendy and edgy.
[41:15.980 -> 41:20.660] Sometimes we'll get some chunky boots with this and then it's a minimal type of accessories.
[41:20.660 -> 41:25.400] And when I say minimal, that means you're going to see people in gas station sunglasses.
[41:25.400 -> 41:28.200] There's no better way to phrase them than if they're sunglasses that look like they're
[41:28.200 -> 41:36.560] from a stack in a gas station and usually some type of blinged out flame print.
[41:36.560 -> 41:39.240] So again, we've seen a ton in New York Fashion Week.
[41:39.240 -> 41:46.420] Lots of leather, lots of motor style boots, racing boots seen on the actual runway. In Paris we
[41:46.420 -> 41:51.820] saw gritty layers, lots of workwear inspired boots, biker jackets, leather
[41:51.820 -> 41:57.260] coats, and we're seeing celebrities wear motorcore all the time. So celebrities
[41:57.260 -> 42:02.560] have been rocking brands like Diesel, Givenchy, and we saw Rosalia, her entire
[42:02.560 -> 42:08.200] Moto Mami, literally Moto Mami album cover,
[42:08.200 -> 42:10.560] her entire tour decked out in leather,
[42:10.560 -> 42:12.240] racing helmet, she's wearing a racing helmet
[42:12.240 -> 42:13.640] on her album cover.
[42:13.640 -> 42:15.880] And Dua Lipa was really leaning in
[42:15.880 -> 42:19.160] to all of the motorcore, tons of leather racing suits
[42:19.160 -> 42:23.000] on her entire nostalgia tour route.
[42:23.000 -> 42:24.400] So keep a lookout on this,
[42:24.400 -> 42:25.340] it's definitely not going
[42:25.340 -> 42:29.000] anywhere this is the second year in a row that we're seeing this trend booming
[42:29.000 -> 42:33.480] in fashion so we can really thank the growth of Formula One interest and it's
[42:33.480 -> 42:38.600] growing across the world and really getting into fashion. So just be on the
[42:38.600 -> 42:41.740] lookout for this I'm sure you're already seeing it everywhere if not in your own
[42:41.740 -> 42:46.960] closet but F1's reach way Netflix, way past your TV screen,
[42:46.960 -> 42:52.160] and now getting into your closets too. So that's all we got for this week on Gossip Grid, and we'll
[42:52.160 -> 43:05.760] see you next time! Well, happy race week! Happy race week! So it's the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix this week.
[43:05.760 -> 43:13.360] So we would be really remiss to not talk about, I think, the collective issue we personally
[43:13.360 -> 43:18.600] have with racing in Saudi Arabia, in this particular GP.
[43:18.600 -> 43:26.720] I want to define what sports washing is, because it's a term that hopefully you'll hear thrown
[43:26.720 -> 43:33.040] around a lot this week and it is the practice of an organization, a government,
[43:33.040 -> 43:38.720] a country, etc. supporting sports or organizing sports events as a way
[43:38.720 -> 43:43.240] to improve its reputation. So that's the official Cambridge Dictionary
[43:43.240 -> 43:51.220] definition to sports washing but at its, it's when a government or a political entity is trying to use
[43:51.220 -> 44:00.100] sports to distract us all from generally egregious human rights issues.
[44:00.100 -> 44:06.080] And Saudi Arabia is pretty notorious for this. We have this race and
[44:06.080 -> 44:12.400] they spend all this money in sports primarily so we go there and we meaning
[44:12.400 -> 44:17.040] the Western world primarily goes to Saudi Arabia we put on our big flashy
[44:17.040 -> 44:21.800] sporting events we talk about how well the sporting event went and we don't pay
[44:21.800 -> 44:27.200] attention to the awful awful awful things that are going
[44:27.200 -> 44:30.760] on in that country as it pertains primarily to human rights.
[44:30.760 -> 44:37.200] I think it's important to define first what sports watching was, what F1 has said about
[44:37.200 -> 44:42.880] this race and what they claim about it, what's actually going on in Saudi Arabia in broad
[44:42.880 -> 44:46.360] strokes, and then why this matters and what we can do.
[44:46.360 -> 44:49.920] So everyone took a giant check to do this race.
[44:49.920 -> 44:51.840] Like let's not beat around the bush.
[44:51.840 -> 44:54.160] That is exactly, this race is happening
[44:54.160 -> 44:58.280] because Saudi is paying basically a sports washing premium
[44:58.280 -> 44:59.280] for this race.
[44:59.280 -> 45:02.760] What they have publicly said is that they think
[45:02.760 -> 45:07.120] it's important for them to race in places like Saudi Arabia to bring attention to
[45:07.780 -> 45:12.640] the bad things that are happening there. So in light of what F1 is
[45:13.320 -> 45:17.080] asking for, since that is what they're saying the reason of them going there is,
[45:19.160 -> 45:25.760] definitely look into the mass murders and crimes they are committing against their own people who want
[45:25.760 -> 45:31.960] a democratic government. They are making special exceptions for F1 that men and women are allowed
[45:31.960 -> 45:38.560] to sit together in the grandstands. Their human rights record specifically against the
[45:38.560 -> 45:45.000] LGBTQIA community is absolutely awful.
[45:50.000 -> 45:55.000] So, F1, we are bringing attention to all of those things. And personally, it is uncomfortable that we are racing there.
[45:55.000 -> 46:04.000] And it's more uncomfortable for me that it's likely that the only display of recognition to everything I just mentioned,
[46:04.000 -> 46:06.520] and that's just the surface.
[46:06.520 -> 46:09.040] I was like, what can I talk about in 60 seconds
[46:09.040 -> 46:10.960] that's going on there?
[46:10.960 -> 46:12.600] The only thing we're probably going to see
[46:12.600 -> 46:14.400] is Lewis's pride helmet.
[46:14.400 -> 46:16.640] Yeah, I struggle a lot with
[46:20.000 -> 46:22.480] really understanding, not understanding,
[46:22.480 -> 46:26.240] but agreeing with all of the statements that F1
[46:26.240 -> 46:32.800] comes out and says as to why they're racing in Saudi Arabia. This is the third race that the
[46:32.800 -> 46:40.000] third Saudi Arabian GP that like from this deal, it's like a 10 million, 10 year deal. It's at
[46:40.000 -> 46:46.040] least till 2030 and it's like at least $ million dollars a year. Now, that's a lot
[46:46.040 -> 46:51.600] of money. That's a lot of profit for F1 and we know money talks and F1 is not a cheap
[46:51.600 -> 46:57.000] sport. Now, they can continue to say we are racing here to spotlight these issues, to
[46:57.000 -> 47:03.040] spotlight the good changes, spotlight the bad. They are doing nothing. And it's not
[47:03.040 -> 47:06.000] like this is the first time they're racing in Saudi Arabia.
[47:06.000 -> 47:13.000] Repeatedly, there have been issues, there have been safety issues where drivers felt like they should not be racing there.
[47:13.000 -> 47:17.000] And it's all just kind of been like, no, no, no, everything's fine, everything's fine.
[47:17.000 -> 47:27.360] It all just points to they're here for the money and it's not to bring attention to the human rights violations. So it just gives me a huge ick to have Formula One be saying,
[47:27.360 -> 47:30.120] oh, but we're bringing attention to X, Y, Z thing
[47:30.120 -> 47:33.560] when they're literally not at all.
[47:33.560 -> 47:34.400] And as your point-
[47:34.400 -> 47:35.920] Except for the existence.
[47:35.920 -> 47:37.680] Right, except for the fact that they're like,
[47:37.680 -> 47:40.680] ah, we want to bring attention to the good things
[47:40.680 -> 47:42.520] and just the issues that are going on.
[47:42.520 -> 47:44.800] But then don't explicitly say what one,
[47:44.800 -> 47:49.760] maybe some of the good things are. And you know, when the list of bad things involves
[47:49.760 -> 47:57.040] mass executions, like limiting human rights, kind of need to see more than just like, we're
[47:57.040 -> 48:01.520] going to spotlight the good things. They're not doing enough. They're not doing enough.
[48:01.520 -> 48:06.140] And everything points to this is for millions and millions of dollars. Like you said, it's an ethics tax
[48:06.640 -> 48:12.240] Right and we are not here right now to sit here and make you feel bad about being an f1 fan
[48:12.360 -> 48:18.340] Being a sports fan is always unethical and we're always faced with these kinds of decisions. We're NFL fans
[48:18.340 -> 48:21.860] I feel like I'm faced with this decision in our own country nine
[48:22.380 -> 48:26.280] million times a year like this Like this is what happens.
[48:26.280 -> 48:29.920] But I think it is crucial to one, talk about it
[48:29.920 -> 48:32.840] and to have discussions with the people in your life.
[48:34.000 -> 48:36.040] So if you have a collection of people
[48:36.040 -> 48:37.360] you watch the race with,
[48:37.360 -> 48:39.480] make sure you talk about this this week
[48:39.480 -> 48:41.320] and go to reputable sources
[48:41.320 -> 48:43.400] and read up about what's going on in Saudi Arabia
[48:43.400 -> 48:48.360] and make sure you're at least informed about the choice that you are making, inform the
[48:48.360 -> 48:54.340] people around you, and accept globally that this sucks. It sucks that we have to
[48:54.340 -> 49:00.440] always be making these decisions and a sport like F1 particularly that is a
[49:00.440 -> 49:03.960] global sport will always be political which is always so funny when they're
[49:03.960 -> 49:07.680] like gotta keep the politics out of F1. I'm like, you're going to Saudi Arabia and we'll get into
[49:07.680 -> 49:12.880] the news of Haas this morning. But like, no, the issue is like Lewis Hamilton standing up for human
[49:12.880 -> 49:18.800] rights. Like, got it. I really understand. So sports are always going to be political.
[49:19.360 -> 49:25.520] Just make sure you are an informed watcher while you're watching the Grand Prix this weekend.
[49:25.520 -> 49:27.720] But enjoy it still, because that's the reality.
[49:27.720 -> 49:29.240] Life is complicated.
[49:29.240 -> 49:30.920] Everything's gray.
[49:30.920 -> 49:36.160] Be an informed viewer, but also just still enjoy the race this weekend.
[49:36.160 -> 49:40.000] None of this conversation should make you feel guilty about being excited for this race
[49:40.000 -> 49:42.120] or wanting to watch this race.
[49:42.120 -> 49:46.720] It's just to encourage more conversation on this topic and
[49:48.000 -> 49:54.320] maybe one day we'll get to a point where F1 isn't taking the morality tax in all of this.
[49:54.960 -> 50:01.840] Watch the race. Enjoy the race. But be aware. Be aware of what everything else that's happening
[50:01.840 -> 50:11.000] behind the scenes. Just be a good person. Alright, well, transitioning away from the more serious stuff, we are going to talk about
[50:11.000 -> 50:18.000] the race this weekend. So every race week, this is a good time to say it, but if you
[50:18.000 -> 50:22.000] don't watch us on YouTube, I would highly recommend going over to YouTube. I will explain
[50:22.000 -> 50:27.920] the visual gag in a moment, but if you want to see it immediately as it happens, YouTube, good place to be.
[50:30.400 -> 50:36.640] So, every race week we do a set of predictions for the week, all for various amounts of points.
[50:36.640 -> 50:43.040] We are going to predict P1, just missed the podium, P4, theoretical, the best of the rest at P7,
[50:43.040 -> 50:46.240] the last in the points at P10, and then the team from
[50:46.240 -> 50:51.720] the back half of the standings that scores the most points this week.
[50:51.720 -> 50:56.360] Last race week for the Bahrain GP, I'm up 7-4.
[50:56.360 -> 51:03.080] Hence Nicole is wearing a funny meme on her face this week, because she lost last week.
[51:03.080 -> 51:05.760] The head-to-head loser every week, the next time we record the
[51:05.760 -> 51:12.720] predictions, will have to wear something similarly funny on their head for said segment. Our first
[51:12.720 -> 51:18.400] season of predictions, the person who is behind on total points come the summer break will have
[51:18.400 -> 51:25.600] to do the following segment from a peloton, which neither of us are excited about. Stinks. Yes.
[51:25.600 -> 51:32.540] So to recap quickly how we did at the Bahrain GP, we do put out on our social channels post-race
[51:32.540 -> 51:35.980] the results of our predictions as well, so if you're interested in holding us accountable
[51:35.980 -> 51:38.220] through the weekend and then seeing how we do.
[51:38.220 -> 51:42.500] We both were correct that Max got P1, and we were also both correct that Aston Martin
[51:42.500 -> 51:47.000] would score the most points from the bottom five of the 2022 standings.
[51:47.000 -> 51:49.280] Neither of us got P4 or P7 correct.
[51:49.280 -> 51:51.360] We both thought Alonso was going to be P7.
[51:51.360 -> 51:54.520] I really undersold that one.
[51:54.520 -> 51:58.280] But the difference, the reason I'm up 7-4, is that I got three points for picking Alex
[51:58.280 -> 51:59.880] Albarn for P10.
[51:59.880 -> 52:05.720] So while everyone else was just like, ah, Alonso, podium, and they didn't go back and
[52:05.720 -> 52:10.540] clarify that Yuki did not pass Alex for P10, I was freaking out because I wanted those
[52:10.540 -> 52:13.480] three points.
[52:13.480 -> 52:19.800] So before we get to our predictions this week, Nicole, what parts, like, we know that Saudi
[52:19.800 -> 52:21.480] is a completely different track than Bahrain.
[52:21.480 -> 52:25.400] What has informed your predictions for this week?
[52:25.400 -> 52:31.240] So everyone again, I have a great meme on my forehead. If you are not watching us, you
[52:31.240 -> 52:36.640] should and you're missing out. But I'm really in my element right here. And yeah, while
[52:36.640 -> 52:40.940] everyone was freaking out about Alonso, I was just I felt so bad to be rooting against
[52:40.940 -> 52:47.200] Alex getting points. Because I love the boy, but you know, I'm competitive.
[52:47.200 -> 52:55.440] Okay. So completely different circuit than Bahrain. I'm hyped about that intense street circuit. So
[52:55.440 -> 53:04.400] things I was considering, longest circuit on the grid besides Spa. It's going to be hella fast.
[53:08.080 -> 53:08.360] spa. We have, it's going to be hella fast. Lots of quote unquote turns.
[53:13.440 -> 53:17.720] Technically they say there's 27, but it's a lot of squiggles, a lot of wiggles. But another big thing that I was really paying attention to this
[53:17.720 -> 53:23.760] year is the changes they've made on the track. We have wider turns, so
[53:23.760 -> 53:26.080] we've got to be paying attention to that. Obviously for safety
[53:26.080 -> 53:31.680] reasons, that's very, very incredible. And I'm really just kind of hoping we don't have anything
[53:31.680 -> 53:36.720] like Mick had to go through last year. So particularly things that I'm paying attention
[53:36.720 -> 53:48.960] to is just that it's a street circuit and just the differences between Bahrain and Saudi is what I was looking at. Now, what were the things that you considered
[53:48.960 -> 53:51.960] when making your picks?
[53:51.960 -> 54:00.400] I was mostly looking at the fact that this is our second fastest track on the calendar.
[54:00.400 -> 54:06.240] I think Monza is the only faster track over, I believe it's 78%, but I know over 70%
[54:06.240 -> 54:11.760] of the Jetta circuit is full throttle, which is insane for the fact that, to your point,
[54:11.760 -> 54:17.680] it's a secret street circuit. So to the surprise of no one, I was really just looking at the top
[54:17.680 -> 54:22.080] speeds of all the cars, and the cars actually that are struggling the most with downforce
[54:22.640 -> 54:25.360] are probably going to overall do better.
[54:31.600 -> 54:38.400] So we've written our predictions down already, so this isn't gonna inform anything, but we know that both the Haas and the Williams struggle with downforce but have great top speed, so theoretically
[54:38.400 -> 54:43.680] they should perform better overall, and that's saying something. The Williams did pretty well in Bahrain.
[54:43.240 -> 54:49.680] better overall and that's saying something. Williams did pretty well in Bahrain. I also think that the track surface in Bahrain is incredibly
[54:49.680 -> 54:54.960] abrasive and Jetta is super smooth in comparison. So what we saw in Bahrain
[54:54.960 -> 55:00.560] with Ferrari's extreme tire wear I think it's gonna be less extreme. So I think
[55:00.560 -> 55:07.080] we're gonna have a more competitive race day Ferrari than we at least did last race week.
[55:07.080 -> 55:12.600] So those are my overall competitive edge here,
[55:12.600 -> 55:16.160] by the way, is that theoretically,
[55:16.160 -> 55:19.280] I look at more of the tech stuff, and I can hold some back,
[55:19.280 -> 55:21.840] and I cannot share things with Nicole leading into the week,
[55:21.840 -> 55:24.960] which admittedly, I don't do because I like talking about it.
[55:24.960 -> 55:29.400] I'm sure a little bit. She's like, oh. Last night in conversation. She said, wait, I can't be telling this.
[55:29.400 -> 55:33.880] We haven't done our pics yet. I said, don't worry. I feel like I'm just kind of leaning some of those places anyway.
[55:33.880 -> 55:39.380] And I'm also acknowledging that there is maybe like one or two, I'll say one of my pics is like,
[55:39.960 -> 55:46.300] I'm just hoping and manifesting for some kind of crazy to happen. But so anyway
[55:47.360 -> 55:52.140] Good. I was just gonna say I think it's super interesting that we now have we have Red Bull
[55:52.140 -> 55:54.440] But then we have like three competitive teams in the front
[55:54.440 -> 55:57.680] So it used to be like that top five top six pretty settled
[55:57.680 -> 56:02.520] We have like a top eight that could be like shuffled around pretty significantly. So
[56:03.560 -> 56:06.320] I'm gonna be there's more variety in pick options this week.
[56:07.000 -> 56:10.160] Okay, except I think we start where it's the most boring.
[56:12.840 -> 56:13.680] Yes, got it.
[56:14.520 -> 56:20.760] Who did you pick as your winner of the Saudi Arabian Grand
[56:20.760 -> 56:21.840] Prix?
[56:23.200 -> 56:24.440] Shocker, Max Verstappen.
[56:24.520 -> 56:25.000] Yeah, I did too.
[56:25.000 -> 56:27.000] Yeah, cool, great!
[56:27.000 -> 56:30.000] Lame! Not lame, but lame.
[56:30.000 -> 56:42.000] This is why we pick P4, P7, P10, and the team the way we pick, because if we had to do podiums, I think our podiums would be dramatically similar, and it would just be boring.
[56:42.000 -> 56:45.000] So we gotta, you know, we can't not pick who we think is going to win.
[56:45.000 -> 56:48.000] One of these weeks, Nicole, we're going to come here and both not say Max.
[56:50.000 -> 56:51.000] Okay.
[56:53.000 -> 56:56.000] But, uh, so who do you have just missing the podium at P4?
[56:56.000 -> 57:02.000] I have the smooth operator, Carlos Sainz, just missing podium.
[57:02.000 -> 57:03.000] Me too.
[57:03.000 -> 57:04.000] Oh no.
[57:08.600 -> 57:16.600] This is going to come down to pick. This this is gonna be who's p10 again this is all just gonna oh boy okay then our best of the rest
[57:16.600 -> 57:45.840] our p7 who do you have for p7 Lance stroll stop! I also have Lance! Oh no! No, but here's the thing. This is bad for me, of all of this, because then it just means I can't get ahead and I'm gonna still get this... meme or funny visual gag needs to be like race week head-to-head so you know
[57:45.840 -> 57:48.720] if one of us pulls ahead dramatically it's just how we did in that race week
[57:48.720 -> 57:53.920] right right yeah okay dang you really hope we have different no I think we
[57:53.920 -> 58:00.400] will have different I think we'll have different ones for p10 okay who's in
[58:00.400 -> 58:07.280] your p10 who's your last in the points I Esti Bestie in P10. Okay, okay. I have Pierre Gasly.
[58:07.840 -> 58:14.720] Oh, oh! Interesting! Okay. So we both think that the Alpine will be in 10,
[58:14.720 -> 58:18.160] but we just picked different... Will the Alpine do something?
[58:21.040 -> 58:27.160] Um, okay. And then hopefully this, this next one will be different. I don't think it is.
[58:27.160 -> 58:28.160] We had a shakeup.
[58:28.160 -> 58:31.120] So we do this based on the current constructors' standings.
[58:31.120 -> 58:38.600] So the teams we have to pick from this week for best of the bottom constructors are different.
[58:38.600 -> 58:40.740] Yes.
[58:40.740 -> 58:43.000] So I picked Williams.
[58:43.000 -> 58:45.640] Oh, wait, before you. Oh.
[58:45.640 -> 58:49.300] So we can pick between Alpine, Williams, Haas,
[58:49.300 -> 58:50.600] Alfattori, and McClure.
[58:50.600 -> 58:54.720] They're currently the bottom five in the constructors.
[58:54.720 -> 58:56.860] So, sorry, who'd you pick?
[58:56.860 -> 58:58.160] I picked Williams.
[59:02.800 -> 59:04.400] I also picked Williams.
[59:04.400 -> 59:10.680] Who did you pick, Brianna? I also picked Williams.
[59:10.680 -> 59:11.680] This is great.
[59:11.680 -> 59:12.680] Okay, so hello everyone.
[59:12.680 -> 59:19.740] Welcome to the Saudi Arabian GP picks, where it basically is battle of the French peens.
[59:19.740 -> 59:21.760] We made picks that made sense.
[59:21.760 -> 59:26.480] Like I think I just, I feel really good about my logic.
[59:26.480 -> 59:30.400] I just, like, of all the, I was sitting there like, okay, well, one of the friars is gonna
[59:30.400 -> 59:35.320] be P4, but the fact that we both picked Carlos, and then I was like, and was your thought
[59:35.320 -> 59:41.640] process that I thought Stroll was gonna beat George Russell again, and that's why? Gosh,
[59:41.640 -> 59:42.960] we spent too much time together.
[59:42.960 -> 59:46.480] Because I was like, George was pi- I was like, nah.
[59:46.480 -> 59:50.920] This is, I'm like, I, this is just, the way that this is going in this track, yeah, okay,
[59:50.920 -> 59:51.920] well.
[59:51.920 -> 59:55.960] But this is really, this was an incredibly funny set of pics, and it just becomes down
[59:55.960 -> 01:00:02.280] to the battle of Esty vs. Pierre, and I can't believe you're the one that has Pierre, and
[01:00:02.280 -> 01:00:04.240] I have Esty Bestie.
[01:00:04.240 -> 01:00:05.800] This is crazy.
[01:00:05.800 -> 01:00:13.800] Good luck! I guess that worked out well for me. I guess so. Battle of the
[01:00:13.800 -> 01:00:19.760] Alpines, we love it. Yep, follow us at Gridwalk Show and we'll keep you
[01:00:19.760 -> 01:00:26.640] up to date. We do live tweet Quali and the race and you will hear us complain and celebrate based on our
[01:00:26.640 -> 01:00:32.560] pics. Welcome back to Yellow Sector Notes, not the fastest walk around F1 but we will complete a full
[01:00:32.560 -> 01:00:37.920] lap around the paddock hitting every F1 garage a little out of order today. Red Bull is releasing
[01:00:37.920 -> 01:00:44.720] a nearly 100,000 British pound racing simulator that looks like a Red Bull show car cockpit. I
[01:00:44.720 -> 01:00:45.120] want to be very clear this is a show car cockpit. I want to be
[01:00:45.120 -> 01:00:48.600] very clear this is a show car it's not even the correct front wing even though
[01:00:48.600 -> 01:00:53.280] they are saying it's the RB18. But yes you can sit in the cockpit with the
[01:00:53.280 -> 01:00:56.680] front wing and everything while you're doing your racing simulations.
[01:00:56.680 -> 01:01:01.140] Carlos Sainz released a new episode of Don't Blink on his YouTube channel.
[01:01:01.140 -> 01:01:06.180] Williams announced its first race weekend activation and pop-up store of the season.
[01:01:06.180 -> 01:01:08.120] It's going to be in Melbourne.
[01:01:08.120 -> 01:01:11.120] So Williams is already doing the thing where they're doing
[01:01:11.120 -> 01:01:14.000] great things for fans, like they're already so great
[01:01:14.000 -> 01:01:14.800] at doing.
[01:01:14.800 -> 01:01:18.640] Other teams, can you please just pay attention and follow suit?
[01:01:18.640 -> 01:01:23.000] Give us more pop-up activations, more for fans.
[01:01:23.000 -> 01:01:25.940] If you are going to the Australian GP, I highly
[01:01:25.940 -> 01:01:30.420] recommend going to this. Their one in Austin was a ton of fun and spectacular.
[01:01:30.420 -> 01:01:34.680] You don't need to be like a hardcore Williams fan to get a lot of out of it.
[01:01:34.680 -> 01:01:39.100] Mercedes gave us a media shoot behind the scenes video which included Lewis
[01:01:39.100 -> 01:01:43.460] playing Monopoly with his family virtually in between takes. I am stunned
[01:01:43.460 -> 01:01:46.100] that Monopoly is allowed in Lewis's household.
[01:01:47.040 -> 01:01:49.520] There must be a ton of family fights over traits, right?
[01:01:49.520 -> 01:01:50.360] Right?
[01:01:50.360 -> 01:01:51.180] There is.
[01:01:51.180 -> 01:01:53.040] No way that Lewis is not an unbelievably
[01:01:53.040 -> 01:01:54.240] ruthless Monopoly player,
[01:01:54.240 -> 01:01:56.640] because Monopoly brings out the most competitive side
[01:01:56.640 -> 01:01:58.360] of every person ever.
[01:01:58.360 -> 01:02:01.560] There's no way that boy plays Monopoly nice.
[01:02:01.560 -> 01:02:02.820] He's gotta be ruthless.
[01:02:02.820 -> 01:02:04.220] I'm shocked it's not banned.
[01:02:07.000 -> 01:02:12.000] It's banned in both of our households. And I would never compare my level of competitiveness to an F1 driver,
[01:02:12.000 -> 01:02:15.000] even though I know I'm insanely competitive. I'm just, I'm stuck.
[01:02:15.000 -> 01:02:22.000] Alpine sponsor Castrol released the ice driving video that we saw Esteban and Pierre filming over winter break.
[01:02:22.000 -> 01:02:25.840] Oscar and Nick both went karting with Sky Sports.
[01:02:27.040 -> 01:02:33.200] Only Oscar and Nick? Do you think Logan was unable to make it? Just busy? Like why he didn't
[01:02:33.200 -> 01:02:38.640] catch the invite? Right, it was their rookie karting thing that they do. I don't know. I
[01:02:38.640 -> 01:02:44.160] don't know. Interesting. Valtteri showed off how Louis looks at him and yes, we are all jealous.
[01:02:44.600 -> 01:02:47.680] Valtteri showed off how Luis looks at him, and yes, we are all jealous. It was an incredibly romantic photo.
[01:02:47.680 -> 01:02:51.600] I felt like I was intruding on a very intimate moment.
[01:02:51.600 -> 01:02:57.760] Aston Martin was able to coordinate taking a group photo of their entire factory team
[01:02:57.760 -> 01:03:03.200] in the shape of their logo, which in my opinion is a feat more impressive than their on-track
[01:03:03.200 -> 01:03:05.680] games in Bond.
[01:03:05.680 -> 01:03:10.160] Lastly, I originally had a different note for Haas this week, and I typically like to
[01:03:10.160 -> 01:03:12.840] keep these notes pretty short.
[01:03:12.840 -> 01:03:20.360] But Tuesday night, so a mere about 12 hours ago for us, PBS News reported that Haas, the
[01:03:20.360 -> 01:03:25.880] manufacturing company that funds the Motorsports endeavors is under investigation for continuing
[01:03:25.880 -> 01:03:31.360] to sell weapons manufacturing machinery to Russia after the Ukraine invasion caused US
[01:03:31.360 -> 01:03:32.360] sanctions on Russia.
[01:03:32.360 -> 01:03:34.080] So let me say that again.
[01:03:34.080 -> 01:03:40.120] Haas is under investigation for selling machines that make weapons to Russia after the US government
[01:03:40.120 -> 01:03:45.680] said no no we're not selling anything to Russia anymore because they invaded Ukraine.
[01:03:47.920 -> 01:03:53.200] I'm sure this will be a story that continues for many weeks, but sheesh, I didn't have that
[01:03:53.200 -> 01:04:00.560] particular Haas sponsor scandal on my 2023 bingo card because it's not a sponsor. It's just,
[01:04:01.120 -> 01:04:07.000] just Haas. Um, so I'm sure we'll get more information about this soon.
[01:04:07.000 -> 01:04:09.000] Woo, stressful.
[01:04:09.000 -> 01:04:15.360] So on that breaking news, for us very early this morning, I can now say that that is officially
[01:04:15.360 -> 01:04:19.920] the gridwalk for March 16, 2023 completed.
[01:04:19.920 -> 01:04:22.360] How was my sector time today, Nicole?
[01:04:22.360 -> 01:04:27.680] Felt faster than Mercedes PR cleanup from this weekend.
[01:04:27.680 -> 01:04:31.160] So we want to give a big thank you, as always,
[01:04:31.160 -> 01:04:33.320] to Voice Over Man.
[01:04:33.320 -> 01:04:36.700] Shout out to Unlimited Drink Packages Royal Caribbean.
[01:04:36.700 -> 01:04:37.760] You're the bomb.
[01:04:37.760 -> 01:04:41.060] And our four-legged executive producers.
[01:04:41.060 -> 01:04:43.460] Make sure you turn on auto downloads
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[01:05:07.820 -> 01:05:13.680] We are at Gridwalk Show absolutely everywhere and we are always giving you some daily gridwalks.
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