The Italian Grand Prix Was Fun & Lewis Hamilton’s Contract Extension | Grid Walk September 7, 2023

Grid Walk is in a GREAT mood this week because the Italian Grand Prix was better than the Dutch Grand Prix AND the NFL season has officially begun! (GO BIRDS.) Grid Walk has some special F1 thank yous to distribute for their good moods! You know that Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team, Scuderia Ferrari, and Williams Racing all get a shoutout.

Every F1 race weekend Grid Walk has fun F1 polls on all Grid Walk social media accounts (@gridwalkshow - you should follow)! Briana shares the results of the poll results for the Italian Grand Prix! What did Grid Walk listeners think about Carlos Sainz racing against Max Verstappen? Are people no longer surprised when Alex Albon scores points for Williams Racing? Is Monza the only circuit that Scuderia Ferrari really cares about? We need to know who believes that Sergio Perez was never/is not at risk of losing his seat at Oracle Red Bull Racing?

IT’S ABOUT TIME!!! Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team FINALLY announced a contract extension until 2025!! Apparently, Lewis Hamilton had signed this contract back in MAY! First off, HOW DARE YOU TOTO WOLFF! Why did Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team hold out on the news and does it have to do with George Russell (who also had his contract extended until 2025)?

Briana and Nicole definitely enjoyed the Italian Grand Prix much more than the Dutch Grand Prix! What moments at Monza made it Grid Walk’s Italian Grand Prix Podiums? Nicole delivers two opposing podiums - Surprising Things from Italian Grand Prix and NON Surprising Things from Italian Grand Prix! SPOILER ALERT: A lot of the Italian Grand Prix surprises were thanks to Scuderia Ferrari! Tifos was given an exciting home race at Monza. During the Italian Grand Prix, Briana came up with some games to make the race extra-entertaining! Do you think Max Verstappen was ever driving at full speed during the Italian Grand Prix? When did you notice that BWT Alpine F1 Team’s driver Esteban Ocon DNFed at Monza?

It is not “New News” that the dominance of Oracle Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen is unprecedented in Formula 1. Since the 2022 F1 season there has been a new set of regulations. There is also currently an engine freeze..when Honda has developed an incredibly strong power unit. AND don’t forget about the F1 cost cap! During Free Practice of the Italian Grand Prix a lightbulb went off in Briana’s head about how all of these elements together has F1 stuck until 2026!

There has been a noticeable increase in sponsored social media content being posted by F1 drivers! Briana and Nicole both work in marketing and so “sponcon” is one of their favorite things to talk about! Alex Albon is one of the most marketable F1 drivers! What is the key to Alex Albon’s marketability? What do all the new business endeavors that Valtteri Bottas is pursuing potentially reveal about the Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake driver?

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

00:00 Formation Lap

03:50 Italian Grand Prix Poll Recap

08:38 Lewis Hamilton’s Contract Extension Reaction

18:16 F1 GP Podium: Shocking Moments from the Italian Grand Prix

23:24 Formula One Engine Freeze Rant

30:52 F1 GP Podium: Games I Played While Watching the Italian Grand Prix

33:29 Formula 1 Drivers Sponsored Content

51:57 F1 GP Podium: Least Shocking Moments from the Italian Grand Prix

55:18 Yellow Sector Notes

# Gridwalk: Italian Grand Prix Review and F1 Insights

## Introduction

* Briana Klein and Nicole Katz express their excitement about the start of the NFL season and their positive mood following the Italian Grand Prix.
* They acknowledge the contributions of several individuals and teams that made the race weekend enjoyable, including Carlos Sainz, Ferrari, Mercedes, and Williams.

## Race Weekend Polls

* The hosts discuss the results of their post-race weekend polls conducted on Instagram.
* The polls covered topics such as the effectiveness of Lewis Hamilton's alternate strategy, the need to stop being surprised by Alex Albon's points finishes, the impact of the engine freeze on the sport, and Ferrari's focus on the Italian GP.

## Lewis Hamilton's Contract Extension

* The hosts discuss the recent announcement of Lewis Hamilton's contract extension with Mercedes until 2025.
* They speculate that the delay in the announcement may have been due to negotiations with George Russell's team to extend his contract as well, ensuring that he would not feel undervalued.

## Ferrari's Performance at Monza

* The hosts praise Ferrari for allowing their drivers, Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, to race freely and aggressively during the Italian GP.
* They express surprise that Ferrari did not experience any major incidents between its drivers, considering their history of intra-team clashes.
* They also highlight the significance of Ferrari having a driver on the podium, especially considering the team's struggles this season.

## Red Bull's Dominance and the Engine Freeze

* Briana expresses her frustration with Red Bull's unprecedented dominance in Formula One and the impact of the engine freeze on the sport.
* She argues that the combination of favorable regulations, a strong power unit, and a cost cap has created an insurmountable advantage for Red Bull.
* She criticizes the regulatory bodies for allowing this situation to occur and calls for a reevaluation of engine freezes in the future.

**P3: Guessing Max Verstappen's Time Savings**

* Klein explains how she kept herself entertained by estimating how much time Max Verstappen was saving during the race.
* She found it exciting to watch the gap between Verstappen and the other drivers grow throughout the race.

**P2: Lewis Hamilton's Impressive Lead**

* Katz highlights Lewis Hamilton's remarkable performance in increasing his lead to five seconds towards the end of the race.
* She describes the tension and excitement of watching the gap grow, especially when it briefly dropped to 4.9 seconds.

**P1: Spotting Esteban Ocon's DNF**

* Klein shares her amusement at how long it took for her mother to notice that Esteban Ocon had retired from the race.
* She discovered that her mother only realized Ocon's DNF the following morning while scrolling through social media.

**The Rise of Alex Albon as a Sponsored Content King**

* The hosts discuss the recent surge in sponsored content partnerships among Formula One drivers.
* They focus on Alex Albon's exceptional ability to create engaging and entertaining sponsored content.
* They attribute Albon's success to his wholesome and relatable persona, which makes him an attractive choice for brands.

**Analyzing Valtteri Bottas's Influx of Sponsorships**

* Klein and Katz examine Valtteri Bottas's recent increase in sponsored content deals.
* They speculate that Bottas's retirement from Formula One might be a factor in his pursuit of these partnerships.

**The Future Evolution of Sponsored Content in Formula One**

* The hosts speculate on the potential directions that sponsored content might take in the future.
* They discuss the possibility of drivers becoming more mainstream celebrities and exploring non-traditional routes like YouTube channels and podcasts.

**Least Surprising Moments of the Italian Grand Prix**

* Klein presents her list of the least surprising moments from the Italian Grand Prix.
* She includes Ferrari's unappealing race suits for Carlos Sainz, Alpine's performance struggles, Max Verstappen's record-breaking consecutive race wins, and Daniel Ricciardo's continued absence due to injury.

**News and Updates from the Formula One World**

* The hosts provide a brief overview of recent news and developments in Formula One.
* They cover topics such as the cost cap compliance of all teams, Carlos Sainz's wet tire test, McLaren's upcoming upgrades, Andretti Autosport's rebranding, Esteban Ocon's SD Bestie merch, Mercedes' special Singapore GP t-shirt, Daniel Ricciardo's absence from upcoming races, Aston Martin's drop to fourth in the Constructors' Championship, Lena Buehler's experience in the Alfa Romeo garage, and Duracell's sweepstakes for tickets to the Las Vegas GP.

**Conclusion**

* The hosts wrap up the podcast by thanking their listeners and encouraging them to follow, rate, and review the show.
* They invite listeners to share their thoughts on the Italian Grand Prix and Formula One in general through social media and comments.
* Klein and Katz express their gratitude for the support of their audience and look forward to continuing their weekly grid walks in the future.

[00:00.000 -> 00:06.240] Despite the F1 season being absolutely over, I think, and our general grumpiness last week,
[00:06.240 -> 00:09.760] we're actually, I think it's safe to say we're both in a really good mood this week.
[00:11.360 -> 00:18.240] Yeah, coming off a better weekend than the Dutch GP, but that's not saying a whole lot.
[00:21.120 -> 00:28.040] But what are the better weekends of F1? So for this Formation Lab today, I thought we'd start by acknowledging a bunch of different
[00:28.040 -> 00:32.160] things that have put us in this good mood.
[00:32.160 -> 00:35.960] So for starters, we're going to attempt to contain all of our excitement about the start
[00:35.960 -> 00:37.200] of the NFL season.
[00:37.200 -> 00:41.120] The day this Gridwalk episode comes out is the first episode...
[00:41.120 -> 00:42.120] First episode...
[00:42.120 -> 00:44.440] Is the first game...
[00:44.440 -> 00:48.500] We were talking right before this about Star Wars Rebels and what episode Nicole was on,
[00:48.500 -> 00:50.500] so my brain was in a different place.
[00:50.500 -> 00:56.000] Although some people would say that the NFL is scripted and then thus it would be episodes, so...
[00:56.000 -> 00:57.000] Right?
[00:57.000 -> 01:04.500] I've been trying to explain to people that sports are just reality TV with less emotion.
[01:04.500 -> 01:05.000] Mm-hmm. are just reality TV with less emotion.
[01:05.340 -> 01:10.000] But so we're gonna attempt to contain our excitement
[01:10.000 -> 01:11.700] for the start of the NFL season.
[01:13.020 -> 01:15.360] Go birds, go birds.
[01:17.160 -> 01:19.000] Just warning from here on out,
[01:19.000 -> 01:21.560] my personal mood will be dictated
[01:21.560 -> 01:23.560] by whether or not the Eagles won this week.
[01:23.560 -> 01:26.840] So if you wanna know, is Brianna going to be really thrilled,
[01:26.840 -> 01:29.000] really disappointed coming into a gridwack episode,
[01:29.000 -> 01:31.480] just go look at how the birds did that weekend.
[01:31.480 -> 01:35.700] All right, but moving on to some F1 related thank yous
[01:35.700 -> 01:37.720] we have for this great move.
[01:37.720 -> 01:40.160] Starting out, thank you to Carlos Saenz.
[01:40.160 -> 01:42.960] Was it smart for Ferrari to fight Max
[01:42.960 -> 01:44.540] at all this week on track?
[01:44.540 -> 01:46.480] Probably not, but it was really good fun.
[01:47.920 -> 01:51.520] Also, thank you to Ferrari for letting your drivers duke it out for that final
[01:51.520 -> 01:58.880] podium position. Because again, was this smart per se? Probably not, but it was similarly really good fun.
[02:01.040 -> 02:06.160] Thank you Mercedes for at least attempting an alternate strategy. Did it work out?
[02:06.160 -> 02:09.640] No, it didn't work out probably as well as we would have hoped.
[02:09.640 -> 02:13.360] Did it provide a cheering up and down moment?
[02:13.360 -> 02:19.480] Not really, but Lewis Hamilton's penalty did and that was really fun.
[02:19.480 -> 02:24.760] Also thank you to at FIA girly, aka Denny, for somehow still live tweeting the weekend
[02:24.760 -> 02:25.200] for us
[02:25.200 -> 02:28.580] with all the Mercedes news even though she seemed to be having the most magical
[02:28.580 -> 02:32.860] incredible weekend with Mercedes it is so much fun to watch people in the f1
[02:32.860 -> 02:39.560] community get such amazing experiences and lastly thank you to Williams because
[02:39.560 -> 02:43.040] please don't let this feel good story and anytime soon it is so much fun
[02:43.040 -> 02:49.240] watching Williams not beat the slowest team. And Alex Albon is just way too marketable. We'll talk about that more
[02:49.240 -> 02:54.840] in the show. So all those thank yous aside for putting us in such a great mood. Today,
[02:54.840 -> 02:58.440] we're going to view our podiums of the race weekend. Max Verstappen may be taking all
[02:58.440 -> 03:03.800] the on track wins, but anyone can win our P1s. It's an equal opportunity competition
[03:03.800 -> 03:05.600] here. Some of the P1s you might
[03:05.600 -> 03:10.700] not want, but you can win them. We're going to take a deep dive into driver sponsored
[03:10.700 -> 03:15.500] content and why Alex Albon is definitely top 3 most marketable driver on the grid at the
[03:15.500 -> 03:21.060] moment. What he is doing is incredible. But that wraps up the Formation Lab for episode
[03:21.060 -> 03:24.580] 33 of Gridwalk, a weekly Formula 1 podcast that believes there are fascinating stories
[03:24.580 -> 03:28.080] to discuss across the entire F1 grid. Please don't forget to
[03:28.080 -> 03:31.920] like and subscribe if you're watching this on YouTube right now. Follow and turn on auto
[03:31.920 -> 03:36.360] downloads. Leave us a review if you would like if you're listening on any audio platform.
[03:36.360 -> 03:40.240] All these things really help support the show. Share Gridwalk with your friends. Helps us
[03:40.240 -> 03:42.960] keep creating all this content for you.
[03:42.960 -> 03:48.360] Cole and Brown are lined up on the grid. It's lights out, and away we go on this week's
[03:48.360 -> 03:49.360] Grid Vlog.
[03:49.360 -> 03:55.720] One of the things we do if you don't follow us over on Instagram is we put up post-race
[03:55.720 -> 03:59.000] weekend polls on our story for everyone to vote on.
[03:59.000 -> 04:01.040] At Grid Vlog Show, anywhere.
[04:01.040 -> 04:02.040] At Grid Vlog Show.
[04:02.040 -> 04:03.040] Yes, follow us.
[04:03.040 -> 04:06.480] At Grid Vlog Show on all forms of social media. Sorry, if you're not going to plug
[04:06.480 -> 04:16.080] us, I will. I meant to. Please plug us. But follow us and then know that either Sunday evening,
[04:16.080 -> 04:20.000] Monday morning, depending on your time zone, there's going to be race weekend polls up and
[04:20.000 -> 04:26.640] we want to hear from you to get your thoughts on how the weekend went. So I thought we would do a quick rundown
[04:26.640 -> 04:29.560] of our race weekend polls.
[04:29.560 -> 04:32.520] So I'm first going to state the question
[04:32.520 -> 04:33.600] and the possible answers,
[04:33.600 -> 04:34.520] and then Nicole, you have to say
[04:34.520 -> 04:35.360] what you would have voted for,
[04:35.360 -> 04:38.880] and then I'll say what the consensus was.
[04:38.880 -> 04:41.340] So for starters, was Science Fighting vs. Stappin
[04:41.340 -> 04:43.760] for about 15 laps better than you expected?
[04:43.760 -> 04:45.520] The options were yes, much better.
[04:45.520 -> 04:46.240] Yes.
[04:46.240 -> 04:47.920] What I expected.
[04:47.920 -> 04:49.520] And I thought he would do more.
[04:49.520 -> 04:51.200] Where did you vote for this?
[04:51.200 -> 04:52.320] Yes, much better.
[04:52.320 -> 04:53.440] Immediately.
[04:53.440 -> 04:54.720] I was like, yes, please.
[04:54.720 -> 04:55.280] Thank you.
[04:55.280 -> 04:56.000] Something.
[04:56.000 -> 04:59.040] I feel the exact same way.
[04:59.040 -> 05:02.320] And so did 91% of the people who participated in this poll.
[05:02.320 -> 05:05.640] The remaining 90% were just less enthusiastic
[05:05.640 -> 05:06.480] and also said yes,
[05:06.480 -> 05:10.320] not a single person expected that much time.
[05:11.560 -> 05:12.760] All right, question number two was,
[05:12.760 -> 05:14.320] should we stop acting surprised
[05:14.320 -> 05:16.120] when Albon is in the points now?
[05:16.120 -> 05:19.040] Because it is becoming more regular than not.
[05:19.040 -> 05:21.640] The options were, yeah, I was already there.
[05:21.640 -> 05:23.600] Yes, more points next week.
[05:23.600 -> 05:25.000] And lastly, I don't know.
[05:26.100 -> 05:26.700] They're not really feeling it.
[05:27.800 -> 05:28.300] Where'd you land on this?
[05:30.900 -> 05:34.200] I said, yes, I'm already there. I had him as P10 predicted the last two weeks.
[05:34.200 -> 05:39.300] So he's more there than I'm there, but I'm in points.
[05:41.500 -> 05:43.900] Well, 25% of the people agreed with you.
[05:44.800 -> 05:49.040] I feel like I just surpassed that point where I'm now just not gonna be surprised because
[05:49.040 -> 05:53.400] it was two back-to-back tracks that were completely different.
[05:53.400 -> 05:59.880] So I was with 67% of the people that said like, I'm on board now, I'm not gonna be surprised
[05:59.880 -> 06:00.880] when he's in the points.
[06:00.880 -> 06:04.320] And 8% of people are not convinced yet.
[06:04.320 -> 06:07.560] That's fair. So this one
[06:07.560 -> 06:12.480] was was an engine freeze a bad idea and the answer possible answers were yes an
[06:12.480 -> 06:17.960] alpine pink and yes an alpine blue. So Nicole was engine freeze a bad idea? Yes
[06:17.960 -> 06:28.200] an alpine pink. 73% of the people agree with you. Is the Italian GP the only race Ferrari really cares about all season?
[06:28.200 -> 06:34.840] The possible answers are duh, likely, of course not, with a voice crack.
[06:34.840 -> 06:42.960] I did vote of course not with the voice crack because my answer is yes, but that is just...
[06:42.960 -> 06:48.080] Well 18% of people agreed with you,% of people said duh and 36% say
[06:48.080 -> 06:55.300] likely I really think that the answer is duh but like maybe they should focus on
[06:55.300 -> 07:01.520] some downforce in the future did Checo save his seat for 2024 the options were
[07:01.520 -> 07:05.000] he was never losing it. Yes. No.
[07:08.100 -> 07:09.400] No, he did not. No, he did not save his seat.
[07:12.500 -> 07:15.700] Well, 33% of the people said he was never losing it. They didn't even think it was a risk. 25% of the people said
[07:15.700 -> 07:18.800] yes, he saved his seat and 42% of the people agreed with
[07:18.800 -> 07:22.000] you and me that no, that didn't save his seat.
[07:22.000 -> 07:24.300] And thank you fellow gridwalkers.
[07:24.300 -> 07:25.200] Thank you very much.
[07:26.160 -> 07:31.040] And to the 33% of you who think he was never losing it, it wasn't at risk.
[07:32.640 -> 07:36.880] Please tell us what you were thinking. I just like to talk like just like a little,
[07:37.440 -> 07:44.320] just for like a minute about all of your decisions. I just want to hear your thought process. Like I
[07:44.320 -> 07:45.520] need to understand your perspective because I feel want to hear your thought process. I need to understand your
[07:45.520 -> 07:49.760] perspective because I feel like everyone has been talking about how there's been some risk there.
[07:50.880 -> 07:56.160] All those votes are Checo. All right, and the last poll of the Italian GP,
[07:56.720 -> 08:01.040] was it a good thing that Ferraris let their drivers fight it out on track? The options were yes,
[08:01.040 -> 08:06.880] but it stressed me out. Yes, and it was awesome. No, pick a driver to favor.
[08:06.880 -> 08:08.460] Where'd you land on this?
[08:08.460 -> 08:10.620] Yes, but it did stress me out.
[08:11.520 -> 08:14.240] Well, 77% of the people who voted in this poll
[08:14.240 -> 08:15.080] agreed with you.
[08:15.080 -> 08:16.680] They found it very stressful.
[08:16.680 -> 08:20.720] I was on team yes, and it was awesome at 15%.
[08:20.720 -> 08:24.600] And 8% are pro team orders.
[08:24.600 -> 08:29.560] And I'm against those 8%.
[08:29.560 -> 08:30.560] And that's it.
[08:30.560 -> 08:32.560] Those were our Italian GP polls.
[08:32.560 -> 08:37.160] Remember, follow us at gridwalkshow on Instagram if you want to participate after the Singapore
[08:37.160 -> 08:38.160] GP.
[08:38.160 -> 08:41.560] Lewis, Hamilton, and Mercedes did not wait until Abu Dhabi.
[08:41.560 -> 08:55.840] I can't believe it's real. I mean, let's be real. We knew this was coming. We knew that there was going to be a new Lewis
[08:55.840 -> 09:01.480] Hamilton contract, but I needed them to put me out of my misery. And they did it at Ferrari's
[09:01.480 -> 09:03.840] home race of all places.
[09:03.840 -> 09:07.440] After it didn't happen at Silverstone, that's why
[09:07.440 -> 09:12.320] I was just like it it's gonna they're gonna hold out as long as possible.
[09:12.320 -> 09:18.880] Monza probably would have been the last race I would have guessed it being announced.
[09:22.720 -> 09:29.520] Yeah no I 100% agree. I also think in light of the fact that all the rumors was that Ferrari
[09:29.520 -> 09:35.840] really wanted to try to woo him over to like announce it at Monza of all places like.
[09:39.440 -> 09:49.000] Incredible. It really was. And Louis is just receiving like, unbelievable admiration all weekend from fans and such, as he does everywhere.
[09:49.000 -> 10:05.560] But it just felt extra special this weekend. Oh my goodness. It did feel like a, but like, I don't think this contract was
[10:05.560 -> 10:08.560] ever about the money in any way.
[10:08.560 -> 10:13.600] I also, I would like to point out that it was announced that Lance is still gonna be
[10:13.600 -> 10:19.480] at Aston Martin next year, and this was a joint press release that both Mercedes drivers
[10:19.480 -> 10:30.520] were gonna stay until 2025, and no one cared about George's announcement. Well, actually, it takes a lot for me to feel bad for George Russell and I felt genuinely
[10:30.520 -> 10:34.600] bad for him this weekend.
[10:34.600 -> 10:40.000] It was like the joint statement and then suddenly my entire timeline was just LOUIS!
[10:40.000 -> 10:47.000] Like it was a sea of purple and just just the amount of news articles that were then just
[10:47.000 -> 10:53.280] only about Lewis, and then in the caption it'll be like, and teammate George Russell,
[10:53.280 -> 10:58.400] boohoohoohoo, and then it's just like the history of Lewis' whole life.
[10:58.400 -> 11:03.680] So some juicy gossip on this, and some theorizing, that I know I've told you, but I'm going to
[11:03.680 -> 11:07.000] tell everyone listening to Gridwalk right now.
[11:07.000 -> 11:10.440] Toto has come out and given quotes now that this Lewis contract has been signed since
[11:10.440 -> 11:11.440] May.
[11:11.440 -> 11:15.680] So before I give you my theories and thoughts, how dare you?
[11:15.680 -> 11:20.320] I have been stressed out of my mind wondering if this was going to be a one year or two
[11:20.320 -> 11:23.280] year contract and what was going on and what the details were.
[11:23.280 -> 11:52.240] You made me wait until September when it's been done since May? Boooooooooooo um, so of course, none of this is reported,
[11:52.240 -> 11:55.040] none of this is based on anything, I've thrown out some theories at the wall here.
[11:55.040 -> 12:00.560] There's my display merch to all. Recklessly speculating here.
[12:01.760 -> 12:06.000] When George signed on with Mercedes, I'm sure he did so, thinking Lewis was
[12:06.000 -> 12:12.320] gonna retire maybe by the end of next season. I am sure George Russell is not
[12:12.320 -> 12:16.260] so happy that the earliest Lewis Hamilton is gonna retire now is at the
[12:16.260 -> 12:30.080] end of 2025, and this was supposed to be his team. George Russell already had a contract done for next year. So I think that in order to quell any
[12:30.080 -> 12:37.200] kind of bad feelings, Mercedes in good faith renegotiated George Russell's contract with
[12:37.200 -> 12:45.000] him so it went the length of Lewis's and probably gave him a raise and was just like shhh.
[12:45.480 -> 12:48.160] And I think the reason we didn't get this announcement
[12:48.160 -> 12:53.160] is because from a PR and an internal emotional state,
[12:53.720 -> 12:57.600] it was better for them to announce all of it at once.
[12:57.600 -> 13:00.280] So I think the length of time was probably negotiating
[13:00.280 -> 13:03.200] with George's team to get that all sewn up
[13:03.200 -> 13:06.080] because now instead, if they only announced Lewis's,
[13:07.360 -> 13:12.560] all the questions George would just be getting would just be like, oh, so I guess it's still
[13:12.560 -> 13:16.560] Lewis's team, he's signed on for longer than you, what does that mean for you? Versus now,
[13:16.560 -> 13:21.280] it's like, oh, the team put out a joint statement, George is definitely still getting questions that
[13:21.280 -> 13:28.000] are like, what does this mean for you? But at least he can now say, well, the team invested in me too and extended my contract as well.
[13:28.000 -> 13:30.000] We are Mercedes.
[13:30.000 -> 13:35.520] Yeah, there's some face saving there, which I think all of these F1 drivers care about.
[13:35.520 -> 13:38.720] I think there's a lot of ego involved with being a race car driver.
[13:38.720 -> 13:40.480] So that's my theory.
[13:40.480 -> 13:43.440] I think the hold up here has never been Lewis's contract.
[13:43.440 -> 13:45.160] I think the hold up here has been George's.
[13:45.160 -> 13:48.320] What are your thoughts on my wild, reckless speculation?
[13:48.320 -> 13:52.720] Well, it may be the Swifty in me, but I absolutely love this theory.
[13:52.720 -> 13:54.800] I think it makes so much sense.
[13:54.800 -> 13:59.960] It totally sounds like they were like lining it up to probably announce at Silverstone
[13:59.960 -> 14:04.760] because it would have been like a special marketing like miracle to have like both your
[14:04.760 -> 14:07.800] British drivers in the British home race, but I can also see
[14:07.800 -> 14:08.200] Mr.
[14:08.200 -> 14:12.600] Poo Poo sassy British sass, which has just become increasingly more present
[14:12.600 -> 14:14.040] on the radio is more the joke.
[14:14.040 -> 14:17.600] If you haven't seen our superlatives online, follow us at gridwalk show
[14:17.600 -> 14:19.240] on all social media platforms.
[14:19.560 -> 14:22.800] But George's British sass has been kind of upped a little, so I could
[14:22.800 -> 14:30.240] definitely see him like wanting to kind of prolong this or poking a little bit more to get a little bit more money out
[14:30.240 -> 14:31.520] or see what he can get.
[14:31.520 -> 14:34.080] And good for him, that's the way these things go.
[14:34.080 -> 14:48.960] And we've seen what F1 contracts really can mean, very little or not, or a lot at all. And so when you are in it, get what you can out of it.
[14:49.840 -> 14:56.560] So I think that I fully buy into the theory. That lines up incredibly. I can see that. I can
[14:56.560 -> 15:02.720] also see it being like, pushed through summer break and now we'll come back. And yeah.
[15:03.360 -> 15:05.840] I also think it's always important to remember that
[15:05.840 -> 15:11.680] these drivers have little to no leverage. I would say there are maybe three and a half drivers right
[15:11.680 -> 15:18.000] now that have any leverage at all in their situations and it's Max, Lewis because who he is.
[15:19.520 -> 15:26.320] I think Fernando with the people he hasn't pissed off, which is a small list of people, but you know,
[15:26.320 -> 15:32.240] I think Fernando gets a decent amount of leverage because he's good. And then I think that, yeah,
[15:32.240 -> 15:36.480] and then I think that Charles has thrown out all of his leverage by just constantly talking about
[15:36.480 -> 15:40.560] how much he loves Ferrari, so like whatever. I think Lando Norris has a little bit of leverage.
[15:41.360 -> 15:49.040] He's the half, I have. But besides that,, there are three, maybe four, depending on the
[15:49.040 -> 15:57.840] year, good seats in F1. I would say that the two Mercedes seats, Max's seat, and the lead Ferrari
[15:57.840 -> 16:08.640] seat sometimes are the good seats in F1. George has one of those. So I'm sure like as salty as I would predict, he is that he is not leading
[16:08.640 -> 16:12.980] that team and that, you know, shocker, the greatest driver of all time is
[16:12.980 -> 16:16.780] still pretty good at this and he seems a little upset about not being
[16:16.780 -> 16:18.360] the leader on that team right now.
[16:19.080 -> 16:20.620] He's not, he has no leverage.
[16:20.660 -> 16:23.160] So I, I think it's great and good for him that he got this like
[16:23.160 -> 16:25.000] renegotiated and extended already.
[16:25.000 -> 16:31.000] And shout out to the Mercedes marketing PR team that was probably super hype when they were like,
[16:31.000 -> 16:36.000] here's all this information, make your statement. Like, ah, joint together, thank goodness.
[16:36.000 -> 16:40.000] They probably had to have been working on all the other ones and this was the easiest one.
[16:40.000 -> 16:42.000] And they were like, great, it's good, go.
[16:42.000 -> 16:47.800] Before we wrap this up, I want to know what your favorite piece of Lewis-related social
[16:47.800 -> 16:52.880] media content they put out about the contract, because my favorite this weekend was when
[16:52.880 -> 16:57.720] they had him record the video that was like, I'm Lewis Hamilton and I'm still a Mercedes
[16:57.720 -> 16:59.960] F1 driver.
[16:59.960 -> 17:01.920] I squealed.
[17:01.920 -> 17:02.920] I was so excited.
[17:02.920 -> 17:06.280] What was your favorite that they did?
[17:06.280 -> 17:10.240] I mean, the just unbelievable presence of Lewis.
[17:10.240 -> 17:13.760] I felt like there was so much Lewis love across the internet.
[17:13.760 -> 17:21.600] And it's not even necessarily tied to his announcement, but the video of Mercedes surprising
[17:21.600 -> 17:29.440] the one fan they brought into the hospitality suite that I shared with you. And it was so wholesome and cute. And she's like, oh my god, Lewis! And I would've
[17:29.440 -> 17:34.560] just been like, you are Lewis Hamilton! I would've not have been as poised. It was just
[17:34.560 -> 17:40.320] so wholesome and great. So I felt like there was just a lot of extra love for Lewis and
[17:40.320 -> 17:46.240] George on the Mercedes accounts in general. So it was just a lot more fun and positive to see.
[17:46.880 -> 17:52.240] And I appreciated it all coming at the Italian GP as well, which isn't a race that has historically
[17:52.240 -> 17:59.040] been nice or kind to Lewis from a fan perspective. So to see the influx of Mercedes and Lewis
[17:59.040 -> 18:09.720] Hamilton fans and to see him get love like that, I feel like all season, like the love and appreciation he's received at almost every track has really been incredible. And that just like, makes
[18:09.720 -> 18:11.280] my heart so much happier.
[18:11.280 -> 18:12.840] As he should.
[18:12.840 -> 18:15.240] Yeah, he is the sport.
[18:15.240 -> 18:17.480] He is the sport.
[18:17.480 -> 18:25.000] The Italian Grand Prix was as equally surprising and not surprising.
[18:25.080 -> 18:30.080] So my podiums for this week are moments that surprised me
[18:30.600 -> 18:33.520] and did not surprise me, but we're going to start words,
[18:33.520 -> 18:35.460] potentially the most exciting, I think,
[18:35.460 -> 18:40.380] with most surprising moments of the Italian GP,
[18:40.380 -> 18:43.440] to me, in my personal opinion, my podium, not yours.
[18:46.200 -> 18:48.200] I'm not proud of it. public. Are there any honorable mentions?
[18:48.200 -> 18:53.200] No, there are not honorable mentions. I just thought of an honorable mention, but no, it's not-
[18:53.200 -> 18:59.200] Say it! No, you gotta share it now. Now I need to know. I won't even give the fanfare no pressure, but you have to share it now.
[18:59.200 -> 19:00.200] What's the honorable mention?
[19:00.200 -> 19:05.280] Honorable mention? Carlos Sa potentially being like part bodyguard
[19:05.280 -> 19:09.560] secret agent and like running after robbers and retrieving a stolen watch
[19:09.560 -> 19:17.080] post rates I'll give it the fanfare because it is worth discussing and I
[19:17.080 -> 19:27.640] just want to make it very known don't do that don't don't- just like in gen- like, or like, are you advising people not
[19:27.640 -> 19:32.320] to chase the thieves? Are you advising people not to steal? Well, I just think, I think
[19:32.320 -> 19:37.840] advising people not to steal is obvious, like obviously don't steal, but why do both Ferrari
[19:37.840 -> 19:45.280] drivers, when they get a watch stolen, think the best thing to do is to chase after the thief. Like, no no no!
[19:46.720 -> 19:49.840] I'm sure it's insured, I don't know. But yeah, I just said it.
[19:49.840 -> 19:55.920] Even if it's not, your life, a watch, don't, like this is one of those things where don't listen
[19:55.920 -> 20:01.040] to, like if you idolize these drivers that's great, but maybe don't listen to them in this case.
[20:01.040 -> 20:01.840] Don't do this.
[20:02.800 -> 20:16.120] Apple watch, if you get stolen I'm letting you go. Bye. Okay. Dereal aside, what's your P3? Okay. So my P3 moment that surprised me of
[20:16.120 -> 20:34.480] Italian Grand Prix, Ferrari letting their drivers race, race each other, race Max, just in general. They participated and it was not an unbelievable
[20:34.480 -> 20:40.480] nightmare. It really, wow. Did you see how happy Charles was that he got to participate?
[20:40.480 -> 20:45.040] He was like, I got to fight people. I got to go racing. And I was like,
[20:45.040 -> 20:50.400] oh, poor Charles is having a bad year. He's excited about just racing.
[20:51.120 -> 20:56.560] The bar is so low. It's so low. My T2.
[20:59.840 -> 21:03.040] Carlos and Charles not crashing into each other.
[21:05.280 -> 21:07.200] I agree. That's really surprising.
[21:07.200 -> 21:10.660] I was so sure it was going to happen.
[21:10.660 -> 21:18.180] I had in our prediction competition, I had predicted Ferrari to have the most points
[21:18.180 -> 21:20.200] of a team that is not Red Bull.
[21:20.200 -> 21:27.040] And I, as soon as it was like that last lap, and I was like, not only is Carlos or Charles
[21:27.040 -> 21:30.560] not going to make it on the podium, but they're both going to smack into each other.
[21:30.560 -> 21:34.720] And there's going to be a double Ferrari DNF after this entire thing.
[21:34.720 -> 21:36.400] I was like, I couldn't believe it.
[21:36.400 -> 21:41.280] And then finally, when it all just like settled and everyone was able to take a breath and
[21:41.840 -> 21:44.240] Charles went off track, everything was fine.
[21:44.240 -> 21:46.200] Everyone was chill and great.
[21:47.240 -> 21:49.840] And I had Mercedes, so that would have been great for me.
[21:51.760 -> 21:52.120] Yeah.
[21:52.600 -> 21:52.880] Yeah.
[21:52.920 -> 21:55.900] So you had like a lot to root for in the whole time.
[21:55.900 -> 21:59.280] And then I was just like, it's all about to just go into a dumpster fire.
[21:59.280 -> 22:00.800] So surprised it didn't.
[22:03.200 -> 22:04.400] Always shocking with Ferrari.
[22:08.720 -> 22:17.560] And my P1, surprising moment of the Italian Grand Prix weekend, a Ferrari being on the podium. It happened, it
[22:17.560 -> 22:25.120] really happened, and oh my goodness of course it happened when he was dressed like a McDonald's employee
[22:27.120 -> 22:31.080] Yeah, you're yeah, I would say equally surprising as well
[22:31.080 -> 22:35.480] And I was expecting this to be on your podium the fact that Ferrari was able to bring
[22:35.840 -> 22:43.720] To not screw one of their drivers. I think all season even if they've had a good result the other driver got completely shafted
[22:44.600 -> 22:45.160] Yeah, so I'm gonna throw in that honorable mention because not only did they have someone on the podium did they get to fight? even if they've had a good result, the other driver got completely shafted. Yeah.
[22:45.160 -> 22:47.960] So I'm going to throw in that honorable mention because not only
[22:47.960 -> 22:49.840] did they have someone on the podium, did they get to fight?
[22:49.840 -> 22:50.760] Did they get to have fun?
[22:50.880 -> 22:54.360] This felt like a magical weekend just because both drivers
[22:54.800 -> 22:56.720] didn't get totally screwed.
[22:57.320 -> 23:01.520] I had as my P2, literally them just being able to finish the race.
[23:01.720 -> 23:05.480] And I was like, I guess I really want to target the moment that Charles
[23:05.480 -> 23:07.840] almost made my heart stop completely.
[23:08.040 -> 23:09.680] So that's where I really leaned into it.
[23:09.680 -> 23:15.000] And then just, yeah, the overall magical, I don't know what was in the air at Monza,
[23:15.000 -> 23:21.080] but Ferrari definitely was, took all of their bets, all their good luck for the
[23:21.080 -> 23:23.440] weekend, the year, whatever, Monza.
[23:23.520 -> 23:24.360] They love Monza.
[23:24.380 -> 23:25.040] Great Monza. They love Monza. Great Monza.
[23:26.480 -> 23:32.400] Sometimes there are things in the production meeting that end up on our show outline to discuss
[23:32.400 -> 23:37.680] because one of us just feels very passionate about said thing.
[23:38.640 -> 23:43.680] This topic we're about to get into is one of those times where I just ask Nicole,
[23:43.680 -> 23:46.480] can we please just talk about this
[23:46.480 -> 23:52.960] so I can rant? But I need to, before I start my rant, I just need to point out that this rant
[23:52.960 -> 23:58.560] originated with me not putting pieces together that I probably should have connected and put
[23:58.560 -> 24:04.320] together. And therefore I had this epiphany moment that made me angry. But I don't need to hear in
[24:04.320 -> 24:06.860] the comments that I should have figured this out sooner.
[24:06.860 -> 24:07.860] Duh.
[24:07.860 -> 24:08.860] That's the whole point.
[24:08.860 -> 24:11.660] That's why I'm now more irate at this.
[24:11.660 -> 24:14.660] I think this was also like Friday?
[24:14.660 -> 24:15.660] Yes.
[24:15.660 -> 24:19.460] In between free practices or post FP2?
[24:19.460 -> 24:26.000] Like it was like at the end of sessions and you just were like, oh my God, proceeds all of the voice notes.
[24:26.000 -> 24:29.800] And I hear we're going to go through a spiral that you were
[24:29.800 -> 24:31.400] all about to go through as well.
[24:31.400 -> 24:32.400] Yes.
[24:32.400 -> 24:35.200] And I was just like, Nicole, I need to share my spiral.
[24:35.200 -> 24:39.300] So maybe some people can tell me that they also now have this
[24:39.300 -> 24:40.300] all clicked into place.
[24:41.400 -> 24:47.600] So goes without saying, this is unprecedented dominance out of a driver and a car that we're
[24:47.600 -> 24:53.520] going through right now. Red Bull has yet to lose a race this season. So this is not normal.
[24:53.520 -> 24:58.720] This is, we've had dominant periods in the past, this is unprecedented what we are living through.
[25:00.160 -> 25:07.080] Of course, because of Adrian Newey, my brain has always clicked into place like Red Bull
[25:07.080 -> 25:10.360] has just gotten this regulation set right.
[25:10.360 -> 25:13.320] Now I will point out that they've gotten this right also because they cheated and spent
[25:13.320 -> 25:15.840] more than everyone else, but okay.
[25:15.840 -> 25:18.040] So, but I've always known that.
[25:18.040 -> 25:20.960] I always, like Max Verstappen's a really freaking good driver.
[25:20.960 -> 25:29.760] Great, cool, moving on. What I forgot this entire time until this week when I watched Alpine flounder is that
[25:29.760 -> 25:32.480] we also have an engine freeze.
[25:32.480 -> 25:35.120] So let's slot this all into place.
[25:35.120 -> 25:40.880] They changed the regulations for the start of 2022 specifically designed to nerf a specific
[25:40.880 -> 25:46.800] team, okay, and specifically tailored to the strengths of another team,
[25:46.800 -> 25:49.400] the one that's currently dominating, okay.
[25:49.400 -> 25:55.780] They put in an engine freeze, and in F1, historically, you know, there's some regulation sets that
[25:55.780 -> 25:59.760] are more engine, more aero, whatever, but both really matter.
[25:59.760 -> 26:04.080] So they put in an engine freeze, right as Honda has the strongest power unit that, you
[26:04.080 -> 26:05.760] know, powers that same team
[26:07.440 -> 26:16.400] and then we're here and so what I realized is that through all the lobbying that Red Bull did
[26:16.400 -> 26:23.440] they got a regulation set specifically designed for their expertise they got the driving rules
[26:23.440 -> 26:26.840] changed specifically designed to allow their driver
[26:26.840 -> 26:31.320] to be a menace, and then they designed the fastest power unit, and then no one can catch
[26:31.320 -> 26:39.400] up. And then all of that is stuck until 2026, when the regulations are in place. And I'm
[26:39.400 -> 26:52.880] not bringing all of this up to just completely crap on Red Bull. Like, whatever. Like, you lobbied all of this. That's great. But no wonder this is a nightmare and unprecedented, like, dominance. Because both
[26:52.880 -> 26:58.240] of the things are stuck. We have a regulation set stuck, and once you get a lead in a regulation set,
[26:58.240 -> 27:04.000] it's really hard for everyone to catch up. And the engine is frozen. So no one, and for the first
[27:04.000 -> 27:05.440] time ever, we have a cost cap. So no one can even outspend Red Bull to try to catch frozen. So no one, and for the first time ever, we have a cost cap.
[27:05.440 -> 27:08.680] So no one can even outspend Red Bull to try to catch up.
[27:08.680 -> 27:10.240] So you put all of this together
[27:10.240 -> 27:11.640] and we're just drowning here.
[27:11.640 -> 27:14.000] And everyone's like, whoa, like this is so shocking.
[27:14.000 -> 27:15.240] And I'm like, no, it's not.
[27:15.240 -> 27:18.280] I've realized, like it's not.
[27:18.280 -> 27:22.080] And like in years past, like whether or not Ferrari
[27:22.080 -> 27:24.880] was ever able to actually complete that challenge,
[27:24.880 -> 27:26.140] but Ferrari was so able to actually complete that challenge, but Ferrari was so
[27:26.660 -> 27:30.240] close to beating Mercedes for those years by
[27:31.100 -> 27:32.940] making it a legal engine
[27:32.940 -> 27:34.940] Allegedly, allegedly a legal engine
[27:35.240 -> 27:40.700] But at least they were able to do that in those years at least Ferrari was able to throw all the money at the wall
[27:40.700 -> 27:44.620] To try to catch up to Mercedes and that's why we got at least some competition
[27:44.620 -> 27:48.800] And I won't get into the whole teammate thing we've discussed that till the end but literally
[27:48.800 -> 27:54.720] everyone has their arms tied behind their backs and we're all supposed to say oh well until 2026
[27:55.760 -> 28:09.000] so I'm there's my meltdown that I had this weekend. Unfortunately that is what we are being told to do, is to sit and wait until 2026.
[28:09.000 -> 28:11.560] That was really exactly just like the voice notes.
[28:11.560 -> 28:15.240] I felt, wow, you did a great job of the reenactment.
[28:15.240 -> 28:17.580] I just haven't calmed down.
[28:17.580 -> 28:20.680] Because the engine part is what slid into place.
[28:20.680 -> 28:27.960] Because this is year two of this engine freeze, so I've just kind of trained myself to not think about engine performance until we get to a circuit
[28:27.960 -> 28:31.920] like Monza so like I'm sitting there and I'm like wow Alpine's really sucking and
[28:31.920 -> 28:35.920] even I was actually re-listening to our podcast because you know I like to go
[28:35.920 -> 28:39.320] back and see if we did a good job you know things like that and I was like
[28:39.320 -> 28:43.640] talking about the Mercedes power unit last week and how it's not very strong
[28:43.640 -> 28:48.560] and I'm like that's crazy the Mercedes-Benz PU isn't strong and historically it's been
[28:48.560 -> 28:52.000] really good why are they fixing that? And I'm like because we're in a freaking engine freeze!
[28:52.000 -> 29:00.520] They can't! They literally can't fix it. So it's yeah no it's unbelievably
[29:00.520 -> 29:11.280] frustrating except if you're Red Bull and then it must feel pretty dang nice to feel really on top of your hill there that you built yourself.
[29:11.280 -> 29:20.520] I'm not mad at Red Bull. I'm mad at the regulatory bodies that let this happen.
[29:20.520 -> 29:26.160] What else is new? Nothing, right like
[29:29.920 -> 29:30.400] So thank you all for listening to me rant mostly Nicole who's heard
[29:33.120 -> 29:37.840] Will continue to listen to me rant over on voice notes And please just let me know if like all these pieces didn't click together for you as well
[29:37.840 -> 29:44.160] And like don't be embarrassed to do so our comment section is a safe place because I need to feel not alone right now
[29:45.000 -> 29:48.000] is a safe place because I need to feel not alone right now. And if you did not put all of this together,
[29:48.000 -> 29:52.000] and it is Gridwalk that has delivered this information to you
[29:52.000 -> 29:55.000] and you now feel that you've been personally victimized by Gridwalk,
[29:55.000 -> 29:58.000] just remember that we just provided you the information
[29:58.000 -> 30:00.000] and we're the messenger of this all.
[30:00.000 -> 30:04.000] And really, Brianna is, so if you're going to point to anyone, there you go.
[30:04.000 -> 30:05.360] Thanks for that. I'm here, bearing my soul, that if you're going to point to anyone, there you go. Thanks for that.
[30:05.360 -> 30:09.520] I'm here, bearing my soul, that I do all of these things individually,
[30:09.520 -> 30:12.640] but I didn't loop them all together until now.
[30:14.800 -> 30:16.160] Engine freezes are the worst.
[30:16.160 -> 30:17.840] They should never be allowed again.
[30:17.840 -> 30:19.360] That's also my statement here.
[30:21.680 -> 30:24.240] At least they can try to catch up to Red Bull's Arrow,
[30:24.240 -> 30:26.160] but no one can try to catch up to Red Bull's Aero, but no one can try to catch up to Honda's
[30:26.160 -> 30:28.160] power unit.
[30:28.160 -> 30:30.800] 2026.
[30:30.800 -> 30:34.240] We can't think about that, because we only have a Lewis contract with 2025.
[30:34.240 -> 30:39.960] Oh my god, if Mercedes... the reason it's still 2025 is so he can have the leverage
[30:39.960 -> 30:42.400] in case he needs it to, like...
[30:42.400 -> 30:43.400] Can't.
[30:43.400 -> 30:44.400] Can't.
[30:44.400 -> 30:47.360] We can't get this far. We can't. We can't. Because then I'm gonna spiral.
[30:47.360 -> 30:52.800] Can't do it. That's an off-season spiral. This was an in-season spiral that I went through today.
[30:54.320 -> 31:00.640] Post that fun rant, I'm gonna tell you the things that I did during this F1 race to keep myself
[31:00.640 -> 31:04.960] entertained. Because we all know watching for the lead of the race isn't normally what keeps
[31:04.960 -> 31:05.620] you entertained
[31:05.620 -> 31:06.860] through an F1 race.
[31:06.860 -> 31:08.520] So these are the games I played,
[31:08.520 -> 31:10.000] the things I was following,
[31:10.000 -> 31:13.140] that made the Italian GP so fun for me.
[31:15.140 -> 31:15.980] P3,
[31:17.600 -> 31:22.520] guessing and estimating how much time Max was just saving.
[31:23.960 -> 31:28.040] Because we know he wasn't going full pace the entire time. So by the
[31:28.040 -> 31:33.560] time he took the lead, I was having a lot of fun every lap being like, hmm, based on
[31:33.560 -> 31:37.480] speed and I was doing fun math in my head. Nothing new.
[31:37.480 -> 31:42.240] As soon as he passed Carlo, it's like, oh, there's the gap. Look at it. Look at it grow.
[31:42.240 -> 31:47.280] Oh my god. And then all you can think is, what could he really do
[31:47.280 -> 31:50.480] if he just full out, baby will never know.
[31:50.480 -> 31:54.520] P2, this wasn't a game so much I was playing,
[31:54.520 -> 31:57.320] but it was unbelievably exciting to watch Lewis
[31:57.320 -> 31:58.760] increase the gap to five seconds
[31:58.760 -> 32:00.720] at the end of the race there.
[32:00.720 -> 32:04.740] And I just had my live timing open,
[32:04.740 -> 32:08.220] watching the mini sectors go, and I was on my feet
[32:08.220 -> 32:09.220] screaming.
[32:09.220 -> 32:12.460] It was actually some of the most fun I've had this entire season, was watching that
[32:12.460 -> 32:13.940] gap grow beyond five.
[32:13.940 -> 32:17.780] And it was really, there were a couple laps there, it was at 4.9, and I was really stressed.
[32:17.780 -> 32:18.780] It was great.
[32:18.780 -> 32:25.680] And P1, games I was playing with myself to keep myself entertained during the Italian
[32:25.680 -> 32:34.400] GP, is seeing how long it would take for my mom to notice that Esma and Oka dnf'd.
[32:34.400 -> 32:40.480] And if you would like to know the answer to that, it was the next morning.
[32:40.480 -> 32:43.280] She called me the next morning.
[32:43.280 -> 32:44.880] And that's what she realized?
[32:44.880 -> 32:46.200] Uh huh. She holds me the next morning and that's what she realized
[32:51.060 -> 32:53.060] She was scrolling through social media called me and went oh my gosh, I saw no can't DNF yesterday I don't remember that at all. When did that happen?
[32:54.640 -> 33:02.540] Your mom was part of an unbelievable group of people online that were suddenly like I still don't know when and how
[33:03.160 -> 33:05.320] Esteban D left'd. Like...
[33:05.320 -> 33:08.320] And this started because I didn't notice it.
[33:08.320 -> 33:11.920] I looked down and then I texted you and I was like, wait, Esteban DNF'd?
[33:11.920 -> 33:16.400] But I think that was like five laps-ish later?
[33:16.400 -> 33:19.680] You know, and then I was like, oh, I wonder when my mom's gonna notice.
[33:19.680 -> 33:20.680] The answer was the next day.
[33:20.680 -> 33:21.680] She was scrolling through.
[33:21.680 -> 33:34.080] She saw like Alpine's post, I think, that said DNnf and she's like when did that happen incredible unbelievable were you also tricked that alex alban decided to
[33:34.080 -> 33:50.800] go bald i was not tricked but only because i saw the the filter glitch like only slight like just slightly enough but I could definitely see how it would ensue panic. It was a really good filter I was really
[33:50.800 -> 33:54.560] impressed like you had to be very intently watching to notice the glitch
[33:54.560 -> 33:58.040] you're talking about. So the reason I bring it up is because Alex Albon in my
[33:58.040 -> 34:06.920] opinion is the king of sponsored content right now. He is so funny, but then you brought up that Valtteri
[34:06.920 -> 34:14.080] has done this influx of sponsored deals, sponsored posts on his social media. So I thought it
[34:14.080 -> 34:18.920] was worth talking about on the podcast and getting into details with, because I don't
[34:18.920 -> 34:22.960] think everyone looks at this sponsored content through the same lens that you and I look
[34:22.960 -> 34:29.120] at it through. Understanding the marketing side of it, understanding how much people are paying
[34:29.120 -> 34:34.160] for them to make those posts, why the driver would care to make those posts on their social media.
[34:34.800 -> 34:40.080] So to have a basis to start this conversation and get into those questions and answers.
[34:40.840 -> 34:43.000] Nicole, what is sponsored content?
[34:43.000 -> 34:44.960] Can you explain to the class?
[34:45.000 -> 34:53.000] Nicole, what is sponsored content? Can you explain to the class? So, sponsored content, it could be a lot of different things, and that's an annoying first response to it.
[34:53.000 -> 35:00.000] But it could basically be when an influencer, a figure, an athlete, in this case a F1 driver,
[35:00.000 -> 35:05.620] works with a particular brand, and it could be a sponsor of
[35:05.620 -> 35:13.360] themselves that this brand sponsors the athlete it could be someone that sponsors the team itself and they come together for either
[35:14.580 -> 35:18.100] Instagram stories, TikToks, Reels, basically
[35:18.540 -> 35:23.020] legitimate social media content and it'll be promoting a product and the
[35:23.300 -> 35:26.240] athlete aka we'll say Alex Albon will be given
[35:26.420 -> 35:32.440] Certain things he needs to mention about the product about the service things that he needs to touch upon and if they want it to
[35:32.440 -> 35:35.700] Be some type of like bit or story or joke
[35:35.700 -> 35:40.920] They'll may work with them creatively on that but they're given a list of deliverables that they need to
[35:41.280 -> 35:44.920] Deliver and then they post it and basically it is
[35:46.600 -> 35:53.840] paid deliverables that they need to deliver and then they post it and basically it is paid, thus sponsored, content on their social media that they created. Sponsored content. So that's
[35:53.840 -> 35:57.400] your long extended answer of people paid to post things.
[35:57.400 -> 36:06.620] Yeah. And the value proposition here is the company gets exposure
[36:09.200 -> 36:09.720] Hopefully through a more organic fashion
[36:15.360 -> 36:15.560] They get a voice talking about their company or whatever. They want their company to sell that they think is a valuable voice
[36:20.760 -> 36:25.120] It's that magic like why people choose to use a spokesperson It's you know, when you're looking and you're seeing your favorite XYZ celebrity
[36:25.120 -> 36:32.240] athlete, person of interest, and they're like, I love Duracell batteries, I would also then love
[36:32.240 -> 36:38.080] Duracell batteries. Taylor Swift got me to sign up for a Capital One credit card, like, you know,
[36:38.080 -> 36:43.680] like you can, it's incredible what these people can get you to do. And that's marketing.
[36:44.000 -> 36:50.800] what these people can get you to do and that's marketing. Yeah, and a specific subset of marketing that is influencing. So like, yeah, like everyone's
[36:50.800 -> 36:55.280] like really kind of scared off of the word influencer and it has a negative connotation,
[36:55.280 -> 37:00.020] but at its core, these are people who have some kind of following for some reason, influencing
[37:00.020 -> 37:12.160] people to be interested in a product. And that's what the companies get out of it. And they pay for that exposure. That's the sponsored part of it is it's paid.
[37:12.160 -> 37:13.160] So in your...
[37:13.160 -> 37:19.320] I love when we do that. You go.
[37:19.320 -> 37:25.000] Particularly in F1, I think we've seen a growth in sponsored content
[37:25.780 -> 37:28.500] because teams and drivers were always posting.
[37:28.500 -> 37:31.400] But I think particularly with working with brands,
[37:31.400 -> 37:33.800] there's been like a lot more.
[37:33.800 -> 37:37.440] Why do you kind of see that happening
[37:37.440 -> 37:39.940] with particular drivers or just the sport overall?
[37:41.200 -> 37:43.860] I think there's the low hanging fruit answer
[37:43.860 -> 37:45.560] and then there's the more complicated answer.
[37:45.560 -> 37:47.620] So I'll start with the low-hanging fruit.
[37:47.620 -> 37:53.020] Low-hanging fruit is F1 has become more popular and trendier, specifically in America, which
[37:53.020 -> 37:56.340] is where companies really care to make a lot of money.
[37:56.340 -> 38:00.000] But then you also have drivers like Zhou Guan Yu, who's tapping into this massive market
[38:00.000 -> 38:05.260] in China that companies really care to tap into as well.
[38:05.260 -> 38:11.780] So with more brand exposure for F1 that means more companies, the CMO or the CEO of a company
[38:11.780 -> 38:15.020] is going to go to their marketing team and be like, that F1 stuff is getting talked about
[38:15.020 -> 38:19.180] a lot, maybe we should get a driver to talk about our brand, which shockingly is a reason
[38:19.180 -> 38:20.900] a lot of things happen.
[38:20.900 -> 38:30.000] And then, so there's like general popularity, therefore more opportunities for F1 drivers to make money doing sponsored content.
[38:30.000 -> 38:36.000] I personally think there's a second layer to this that is equally as important.
[38:36.000 -> 38:51.360] And it's that we now have a core group of drivers that are pretty established, that are, you you know 24 plus who have seen the model that Lewis Hamilton has set
[38:51.360 -> 38:59.280] for them and are more willing to build and create brands for themselves. And one of the ways they do
[38:59.280 -> 39:03.840] that is by building their own team and getting their own sponsorships outside of motorsport
[39:03.840 -> 39:07.200] sponsorships. Because I think it's important to note that sponsorships
[39:07.200 -> 39:11.520] aren't new in motorsports. Most of the drivers have been angling for
[39:11.520 -> 39:17.120] sponsorships since they were eight or if not younger to be able to go racing. But
[39:17.120 -> 39:23.440] those sponsors don't necessarily pay you directly, they're paying the team so you
[39:23.440 -> 39:26.320] can have a drive. This new layer of
[39:26.320 -> 39:31.600] sponsored content that we're talking about is Alex Albon building a brand for himself.
[39:31.600 -> 39:39.320] He has a team. He actually works with an agency that's here in LA that is huge for big athletes
[39:39.320 -> 39:45.540] who are going out and getting new opportunities for him. That's the new part to all of this.
[39:45.620 -> 39:46.740] So those are, that's my thoughts.
[39:46.740 -> 39:48.860] And I want to hear your thought that I think it's two layers.
[39:48.860 -> 39:52.540] I think it's, is the low hanging fruit of brand awareness, but it's also this
[39:52.740 -> 39:55.940] driver's understanding that they themselves are a brand and they are
[39:55.940 -> 39:57.760] willing to build that brand now.
[39:58.700 -> 39:59.100] Yeah.
[39:59.100 -> 40:09.000] I think it's them moving past the, and the years of that, you know, people said about Lewis is he's a race car driver, why is he
[40:09.000 -> 40:15.000] in a fashion show and the music and like no.
[40:15.000 -> 40:22.760] And now people see the profitability in the expansion of using an athlete in other areas
[40:22.760 -> 40:26.320] and I don't know if it was just because it took, you know,
[40:26.320 -> 40:28.840] Louis being so unbelievably successful at it
[40:28.840 -> 40:31.480] and the like countless athletes around the world
[40:31.480 -> 40:32.400] that are successful at it,
[40:32.400 -> 40:34.200] that it took like F1 to be convinced
[40:34.200 -> 40:37.160] that it like can really fully work there.
[40:37.160 -> 40:41.000] I think it also just presents a really interesting,
[40:41.000 -> 40:44.080] when you're looking at what drivers are selected
[40:44.080 -> 40:46.800] and how they are selected to be spokesper
[40:46.800 -> 40:50.300] like spokespeople of brands and things like that. And I think
[40:50.300 -> 40:57.500] what sparked this whole conversation of Alex Albon is how just unbelievably marketable he is.
[40:57.500 -> 41:04.500] He is, and I want to say a safe pick and like not a lame way,
[41:04.500 -> 41:08.560] but when you're a big company looking to be like selecting drivers
[41:08.560 -> 41:13.880] He's just so and I don't want to use marketable because I can't be describing someone as to why they're controversial
[41:14.400 -> 41:16.160] He's very uncontroversial
[41:16.160 -> 41:20.640] But also to the extent I want to describe him as like he's someone that you could like bring home to your mom
[41:20.800 -> 41:23.120] Like he is safe to meet your parents
[41:23.120 -> 41:26.320] He's someone that would like, you know, tell you
[41:26.320 -> 41:32.560] if you had spinach stuck in your teeth. Good guy Alex Albon would be- He does have that brand, yeah.
[41:32.560 -> 41:38.080] Like just, and like his tone, the line of like silliness is, oh he dyes his hair red sometimes.
[41:38.080 -> 41:42.480] Oh yeah, but those are also from like the children that he's worked with and like, like everything is
[41:42.480 -> 41:45.900] tied to such like a wholesome, beautiful piece of it all,
[41:45.900 -> 41:48.080] that I think a lot of brands would love
[41:48.080 -> 41:50.340] to have that association with.
[41:50.340 -> 41:55.320] And Alex also seeing like that persona of like who he is
[41:55.320 -> 41:56.400] and how he's built with that
[41:56.400 -> 41:58.840] and like the power he can use with that.
[41:58.840 -> 42:00.980] Yeah, I think there's such,
[42:02.040 -> 42:06.560] if you look at social media for 10 seconds you're going to see some kind of sponsored
[42:06.560 -> 42:11.440] content. The difference between sponsored content that's good and it works, and I think we should
[42:11.440 -> 42:18.320] have led with this, we both work in marketing so we both have experience on the brand side of this.
[42:20.720 -> 42:28.080] Sponsored content that moves the needle for brands is stuff that feels genuine, authentic,
[42:28.080 -> 42:29.720] and fun.
[42:29.720 -> 42:34.760] But I'm sure you've all seen influencers just like post a story and it's like, this is this
[42:34.760 -> 42:39.400] face wash that I use, like, cool, and you're like, I've never seen you talk about that
[42:39.400 -> 42:40.480] before in my life.
[42:40.480 -> 42:44.200] And that is the least exciting way you could tell me that.
[42:44.200 -> 42:49.000] What makes Alex Alvon so good is this persona he's built for himself that you so eloquently outlined.
[42:49.000 -> 42:53.000] And he's willing to make a fool out of himself in the best possible way.
[42:53.000 -> 42:59.000] And create content that I would watch whether or not it was sponsored content.
[42:59.000 -> 43:05.000] Like it makes you... the content that he is, his sponsored,
[43:05.320 -> 43:09.180] the Alex Albon sponsored content gives off the energy
[43:09.180 -> 43:12.500] that he's sitting down with like a friend and is like,
[43:12.500 -> 43:14.560] this is the TikTok that we're gonna make
[43:14.560 -> 43:17.920] and I'll have a bald head filter and in all actuality,
[43:17.920 -> 43:21.680] Alex Albon's probably maybe not too much
[43:21.680 -> 43:23.200] in the creative conversation at all.
[43:23.200 -> 43:24.800] And I'd like to think that maybe he is.
[43:24.800 -> 43:25.380] He could be.
[43:25.380 -> 43:28.160] Or he's smart enough to have a team around him that
[43:28.160 -> 43:29.760] is making those decisions.
[43:29.760 -> 43:30.280] Right.
[43:30.280 -> 43:34.000] So the team, but like the style of the video
[43:34.000 -> 43:37.440] seems like it should be when you and your group of friends
[43:37.440 -> 43:40.120] are making a vine or a TikTok and you're doing it for fun
[43:40.120 -> 43:41.400] and it's not an ad.
[43:41.400 -> 43:42.800] And then it is an ad.
[43:42.800 -> 43:46.700] That is what is some of my favorite sponsored content
[43:46.700 -> 43:48.980] because then it's also brands willing
[43:48.980 -> 43:51.780] to be a little bit less like cookie cutter and polish.
[43:51.780 -> 43:54.580] And I will just continue to bring up Duracell
[43:54.580 -> 43:55.580] while we're talking about this
[43:55.580 -> 43:59.260] because they have created some of the most unhinged content
[43:59.260 -> 44:01.300] that I don't know if I would have been like,
[44:01.300 -> 44:03.840] is that okay for a big brand to post?
[44:03.840 -> 44:06.240] But that also sometimes makes it like even better.
[44:06.240 -> 44:09.520] The Duracell battery TikTok account has become like half
[44:09.520 -> 44:14.640] of Williams racing F1 fan page while it's also selling batteries.
[44:16.720 -> 44:19.920] And it's somehow integrated itself so well.
[44:19.920 -> 44:23.120] Like who would have thought that being an Alex Albon fan
[44:23.120 -> 44:25.200] account would sell batteries so well?
[44:25.200 -> 44:25.680] But it does.
[44:25.680 -> 44:30.480] Double A batteries. It's right there. It's right there.
[44:31.920 -> 44:38.480] And then I think there's the other spectrum of it right now where we both have noticed
[44:38.480 -> 44:42.960] and commented on, so it's worth discussing, that I think Valtteri has about 7 million
[44:42.960 -> 44:45.640] sponsorships right now and I
[44:45.640 -> 44:50.400] don't think his posts or his sponsored content is that creative for them right
[44:50.400 -> 44:55.080] now but Valtteri is fun and creative so it's it works but why do you think
[44:55.080 -> 44:59.040] Valtteri has 7 million sponsorships and partnerships at the moment?
[44:59.040 -> 45:03.840] Like everywhere it's all over the place there was like the waffles there's the
[45:03.840 -> 45:05.900] wine there's the gin now
[45:05.900 -> 45:09.200] He's being sponsored by like an energy drink there
[45:10.120 -> 45:14.960] It smells like someone's retiring and is looking for their next endeavor
[45:15.540 -> 45:23.040] That's and I'm not saying tomorrow and I'm just saying I every time I open up a social media and I see VB
[45:23.940 -> 45:25.440] Sporting something and being like,
[45:25.440 -> 45:27.200] I'm excited about this endeavor.
[45:27.200 -> 45:31.280] I was like, yeah, you are making lots of fun investments because you realize you're going
[45:31.280 -> 45:35.120] to have some free time and you can't bike everywhere.
[45:35.120 -> 45:38.640] So even though he probably would choose to, but you're right, you're a hundred percent
[45:38.640 -> 45:39.640] spot on.
[45:39.640 -> 45:42.400] It's giving cash out before the end of my career.
[45:42.400 -> 45:43.480] Yeah.
[45:43.480 -> 45:45.080] And I, there's nothing wrong with that.
[45:45.080 -> 45:49.320] I respect that, but as a marketing brain person,
[45:49.320 -> 45:52.200] that is what I'm seeing with all of this.
[45:52.200 -> 45:53.800] Because it was suddenly like, oh, this is cool.
[45:53.800 -> 45:54.620] This is fun.
[45:54.620 -> 45:55.920] And now I'm like, this is a lot.
[45:55.920 -> 45:58.620] This is a lot of things that you are currently doing.
[46:00.720 -> 46:01.660] So I think,
[46:03.680 -> 46:05.000] what do you want to see next?
[46:06.140 -> 46:08.660] Like, not necessarily a specific partnership,
[46:08.660 -> 46:12.020] but I think we've seen F1 drivers go from,
[46:12.020 -> 46:15.940] must just shut up and drive, to, oh, look at Lewis Hamilton,
[46:15.940 -> 46:17.940] who's like done this roadmap for us,
[46:17.940 -> 46:19.120] like we can follow that.
[46:19.120 -> 46:22.780] Now I would say that most F1 drivers are firmly
[46:22.780 -> 46:27.040] in their Instagram influencer era, for lack of a better way to
[46:27.040 -> 46:28.040] describe it.
[46:28.040 -> 46:32.920] Like, what do you think the next evolution over the next two to three years is going
[46:32.920 -> 46:33.920] to be?
[46:33.920 -> 46:41.120] So my brain is trying to take that as like, well, where have we seen influencing marketing
[46:41.120 -> 46:46.120] like go to and the next stage was streaming, but there are already some drivers that are
[46:46.120 -> 46:50.800] doing that in some capacity and I can't necessarily, I'm trying to figure out how to do that on
[46:50.800 -> 46:59.440] like a larger scale in terms of sponsored content, but, ooh, where do I want this to
[46:59.440 -> 47:00.440] go?
[47:00.440 -> 47:11.200] Do you have an answer while my brain is still thinking or do we both need to sit for a second? Yeah I can give some ideas. I don't know if this is where I want this to go. I do think
[47:11.200 -> 47:17.200] we're in kind of the cash cow era where brands haven't fully figured out which F1 drivers
[47:17.200 -> 47:23.640] perfectly match the target audience. Whereas in the like fashion influencer space it's
[47:23.640 -> 47:29.000] now like brands have really learned how to pick the correct influencers.
[47:29.000 -> 47:33.080] So I think we're going to see a continued influx of partnerships, but I think
[47:33.080 -> 47:36.300] they're going to feel better and more strategic where I do think there's a
[47:36.300 -> 47:39.900] decent amount of partnerships happening right now that sometimes just don't feel
[47:39.900 -> 47:45.760] like a brand match or the posts feel awkward because the lack of brand match there.
[47:47.240 -> 47:54.200] Yeah, I think you get, it's a lot of that like, brand and spokesperson, like become
[47:54.200 -> 47:58.000] one or there's some kind of like unit, like you've seen a lot with Louis and what they've
[47:58.000 -> 48:02.080] been able to do, particularly with Tommy Hilfiger or with Monster. And then there's
[48:02.080 -> 48:08.820] like further deeper collaborations within the brands itself whether it's a limited edition run of a flavor or design of clothing.
[48:08.820 -> 48:15.320] So when it is a mutually beneficial partnership and relationship that is so genuine, thus
[48:15.320 -> 48:19.360] I think the content then just becomes so much bigger and better than anything you could
[48:19.360 -> 48:21.960] have ever imagined it could become.
[48:21.960 -> 48:26.160] So I definitely more less cash grab, even though it's fun
[48:26.160 -> 48:31.360] to see people come in, and just the eventual partnerships that will stick and what they
[48:31.360 -> 48:36.360] eventually you know, become. I can't wait to one day buy double A batteries that just
[48:36.360 -> 48:38.080] look like Alex Albon.
[48:38.080 -> 48:49.180] That'd be incredible. My other theory of where this like next evolution of the next couple years will go is Lewis is mainstream celebrity.
[48:49.180 -> 48:52.840] So even though he has built this established network
[48:52.840 -> 48:53.920] of his own partnerships,
[48:53.920 -> 48:58.680] he is as much Beyonce as he is athlete.
[48:58.680 -> 49:01.260] He is a mainstream celebrity.
[49:01.260 -> 49:03.400] He is not an influencer per se.
[49:04.760 -> 49:06.120] I think what's going to be interesting for
[49:06.120 -> 49:12.360] the future F1 drivers on the grid who are navigating into this space of kind of like
[49:12.360 -> 49:19.220] what direction down the path they care to take. Do they go after more mainstream celebrity?
[49:19.220 -> 49:22.920] And I'll put Daniel Riccardo in this bucket. Like his goal has definitely been, I want
[49:22.920 -> 49:29.660] to be on talk shows, I want to be in tabloids, I want to be talked about in magazines that don't exist anymore.
[49:29.660 -> 49:36.840] But like he's gone I want to be as a mainstream traditional celebrity as possible. But then
[49:36.840 -> 49:41.140] I think there is the other route which is really connect with your fans and go more
[49:41.140 -> 49:45.640] of the non-traditional celebrity route where there might be
[49:45.640 -> 49:50.520] some overlap still but they're building the YouTube channel they're maybe
[49:50.520 -> 49:55.120] starting their own podcasts they're going more of the youtuber influencer
[49:55.120 -> 49:58.760] route deeper than they are now and I'm gonna be really intrigued to see which
[49:58.760 -> 50:07.200] drivers kind of take which offshoot and if they make, if they try to straddle it, how that works. Because Lewis,
[50:07.840 -> 50:14.640] that works because Lewis is Lewis. And it was also like, I'm not gonna say the first to do,
[50:14.640 -> 50:20.160] but like he was the first of his kind to like branch out and be like as mega as he was. Lewis
[50:20.160 -> 50:25.440] was always the first. Right. Lewis is the first and only in everything he's ever done,
[50:25.440 -> 50:27.640] which sounds exhausting and awful.
[50:27.640 -> 50:30.720] But yeah, but that matters.
[50:30.720 -> 50:34.160] And it matters that celebrities thought Lewis was cool, right?
[50:34.160 -> 50:36.600] Like, up until F1 got huge in America,
[50:36.600 -> 50:39.360] it was like F1 and Lewis Hamilton in particular
[50:39.360 -> 50:41.940] was like the cool thing that celebrities knew.
[50:41.940 -> 50:43.680] Like, oh, I'm friends with Lewis Hamilton.
[50:43.680 -> 50:51.200] And people would be like, oh, who's Lewis hamilton you know race car monaco michelle obama in the mercedes garage
[50:51.200 -> 50:55.920] you know like things like that like i can't really see like peter gasly pulling that off
[50:57.840 -> 51:02.720] no i do not think michelle obama and peter gasly would get along quite very well
[51:04.960 -> 51:05.120] but you know that's not what i meant but i love the mental image of them trying to have a and Pierre Gasly would get along quite very well.
[51:08.560 -> 51:11.760] You know, that's not what I meant, but I love the mental image of them trying to have a conversation. That is the only thing, and I know that's not what you meant, but it's the only thing that
[51:11.760 -> 51:15.440] was in my mental brain. So I had to also share it with you.
[51:16.720 -> 51:20.560] Yeah. So those are my two theories about like the next evolution of this.
[51:21.440 -> 51:28.640] I'd love to see some actual race car podcast that's not the Max Verstappen podcast.
[51:30.640 -> 51:36.240] I just I want to see more F1 drivers doing like normal mundane things. Like I want an F1 driver,
[51:36.240 -> 51:41.600] I've I've said this before on the podcast, but I want a morning routine. I want a nighttime routine.
[51:41.600 -> 51:45.440] I want like I want like a random vlog.
[51:45.440 -> 51:49.120] I just want Carlos to blow dry his hair on video.
[51:49.120 -> 51:54.960] I just don't understand what product is going in his hair that it does that.
[51:54.960 -> 52:00.000] Cause it, it, I need his, his hair is full of secrets and I need to know them.
[52:00.000 -> 52:06.960] I've given my podium of my most surprising moments from the Italian Grand Prix, so I
[52:06.960 -> 52:12.560] obviously have to follow up with the least surprising or moments that I found not surprising
[52:12.560 -> 52:18.320] at all, and I completely 100% expected these all to occur.
[52:18.320 -> 52:25.000] Honorable mention, Ferrari designing really ugly race suits for Manzo.
[52:25.000 -> 52:37.000] I just... I wanted to say it was an improvement from last year, except last year had black fireproofs, and that's it.
[52:37.000 -> 52:52.320] So I'm not surprised, Alpine's performance.
[52:52.320 -> 52:59.480] We were unsure slightly, but kind of anticipated exactly what went down, and I mean, we just
[52:59.480 -> 53:12.560] ranted about engine freezing enough, you know exactly what went down with Alpine so wasn't that big of a shocker still sad for us to bestie though p2 not surprising
[53:12.560 -> 53:20.480] Italian Grand Prix moment max breaking the race consecutive race win record
[53:20.480 -> 53:27.220] yes it's my p2 I did completely anticipate it happening.
[53:27.220 -> 53:33.120] So you must be wondering, what could possibly be P1?
[53:33.120 -> 53:40.240] My unbelievable continued grieving for Daniel Ricciardo's injury.
[53:40.240 -> 53:42.280] It felt the whole weekend.
[53:42.280 -> 53:46.000] Liam Lawson did a really pretty great job for a full weekend.
[53:46.240 -> 53:51.160] And then when Yuki didn't even make it through the formation lap, I was, I can't.
[53:51.840 -> 53:55.280] It just kept getting worse, but it was not a surprise.
[53:55.280 -> 53:58.680] My heart is broken and I just keep seeing that.
[53:58.680 -> 54:00.200] No one knows who knows.
[54:00.400 -> 54:00.760] I don't know.
[54:00.760 -> 54:02.240] I'm sad, but.
[54:02.280 -> 54:07.200] I'm really impressed that you managed to make a podium of the least surprising things of
[54:07.200 -> 54:09.520] the weekend and it wasn't just all Red Bull.
[54:09.520 -> 54:10.760] So shout out to you.
[54:10.760 -> 54:12.480] That was a really good podium.
[54:12.480 -> 54:16.840] And all definitely things that weren't surprising at all.
[54:16.840 -> 54:18.760] But I think your order is pretty spot on.
[54:18.760 -> 54:24.680] Yeah, again, knew Max was gonna do it, but I knew I was gonna be grieving even more.
[54:24.680 -> 54:25.840] Yeah, I mean, like,
[54:26.720 -> 54:32.240] the hope alarm of me, the smooth operator fan of me was like, it's gonna happen!
[54:32.960 -> 54:36.080] I mean, the thing is, is if it was gonna happen, I really thought it was gonna be
[54:36.080 -> 54:40.080] because like, a Ferrari would take him down with them. I didn't think it was because Carlos or
[54:40.080 -> 54:46.800] Charles was gonna win. To be clear, I thought we were gonna win. Everyone just goes down. And then it's Jacko.
[54:46.800 -> 54:52.200] Right. Like, I didn't... There is no hope of a Ferrari winning in my brain.
[54:52.200 -> 54:56.300] But there was that, like, tiny percent chance that, like, there's a reason this hasn't happened
[54:56.300 -> 54:57.500] in the history of F1.
[54:57.500 -> 55:04.400] It's a Ferrari nightmare, but a miracle of them just stopping maximum winning.
[55:04.400 -> 55:05.040] I think we all would winning not actually. I think
[55:05.040 -> 55:09.680] we all would have celebrated that I think any DeVosie would have been okay with that like I
[55:09.680 -> 55:15.920] think we all just would have been like okay and the Seb gets to keep his record like you know
[55:15.920 -> 55:20.640] I don't know. Well we're not surprised and Daniel Ricciardo is still not driving.
[55:21.760 -> 55:26.960] Welcome back to Yellow Sector Notes not the the fastest walk around F1, but we will complete a full lap around the paddock, hitting
[55:26.960 -> 55:29.680] every F1 garage.
[55:29.680 -> 55:35.520] So big news, all teams were announced as compliant with the cost cap for 2022.
[55:35.520 -> 55:41.620] Most importantly, I know it's shocking for everyone, but Haas was compliant.
[55:41.620 -> 55:44.280] But I will point out that normally when there's smoke, there's fire in F1.
[55:44.280 -> 55:45.080] So I do think we
[55:45.080 -> 55:48.600] all have a reason to be suspicious about this announcement, considering there were months
[55:48.600 -> 55:50.600] of reporting about how over everyone was.
[55:50.600 -> 55:52.600] So just, I don't know.
[55:52.600 -> 55:53.600] I don't know.
[55:53.600 -> 55:54.600] Okay, moving on.
[55:54.600 -> 55:59.000] Carlos Sainz was running in a Pirelli wet tire test for the 2024 wet tires today, not
[55:59.000 -> 56:02.000] today, Tuesday in Italy, because when you're listening to this, it's Thursday.
[56:02.000 -> 56:03.000] Today is Tuesday.
[56:03.000 -> 56:04.000] Got it.
[56:04.000 -> 56:08.400] Moving on. A little behind the curtain there. Stay to the end for the outside your notes.
[56:09.040 -> 56:13.520] McLaren are planning on bringing upgrades to the next race, the Singapore GP, to help with
[56:13.520 -> 56:18.400] straight line speed, which as you saw this week they did kind of struggle with. They saw the back
[56:18.400 -> 56:25.600] of Alex Albon's rear wing for the entirety of that race, except for the little moment where they saw the back of Lewis's.
[56:33.120 -> 56:39.200] Andretti Autosport is rebranding to Andretti Global that they announced this week. This seems like the branding move could be a signal for something or not. They could just be rebranding
[56:39.200 -> 56:52.720] from Autosport to Global or they could be joining a Global Motorsport effort. Moving on, Esteban is teasing a drop with SD Bestie merch.
[56:52.720 -> 56:57.800] Mercedes is releasing a special t-shirt specifically for the Singapore GP, which always reminds
[56:57.800 -> 57:01.440] me that every team should be doing special shirts for every race.
[57:01.440 -> 57:04.280] It is so cool, I really like the shirt.
[57:04.280 -> 57:08.480] Unfortunately, Nicole, cover your ears, Daniel Ricciardo is confirmed to be out for the Singapore GP
[57:08.480 -> 57:11.120] and is rumored for the Japanese GP as well
[57:11.120 -> 57:14.240] and would make his return in Qatar.
[57:14.240 -> 57:17.760] Aston Martin has dropped to fourth in the Constructors
[57:17.760 -> 57:21.920] which I'm really bringing up because I had nothing else to say for them this week
[57:21.920 -> 57:25.720] but I will remind you that compared to last year, this is fantastic.
[57:25.720 -> 57:27.760] I think if they managed to finish the season in fourth,
[57:27.760 -> 57:29.680] that would be an incredible achievement,
[57:29.680 -> 57:31.120] but I'm sure they're bummed,
[57:31.120 -> 57:33.560] considering about two weeks ago they were second.
[57:35.360 -> 57:37.340] F1 Academy championship contender
[57:37.340 -> 57:39.520] and Sauber Academy driver, Lena Buehler,
[57:39.520 -> 57:43.440] spent the Italian GP in the Alfa Romeo garage.
[57:43.440 -> 57:46.440] That is a mouthful I wrote for myself there.
[57:46.440 -> 57:48.800] Including getting to be in the car for pit stop practice,
[57:48.800 -> 57:49.800] which looked really cool.
[57:49.800 -> 57:51.600] I'm glad she got that experience.
[57:51.600 -> 57:54.160] And last but not least, Duracell has a sweepstakes
[57:54.160 -> 57:56.060] running with Williams, giving away two tickets
[57:56.060 -> 57:57.280] to the Vegas GP.
[57:57.280 -> 57:59.520] Make sure you go enter because it would be really exciting
[57:59.520 -> 58:01.880] if one of you won, and you know it worked.
[58:01.880 -> 58:02.880] We won!
[58:02.880 -> 58:04.520] Hi Duracell, that would be fun.
[58:04.520 -> 58:05.840] Okay, bye. That is the grid walk for September know it, we won. Hi Duracell, that would be fun. Okay, bye.
[58:05.840 -> 58:08.840] That is the grid walk for September 7th, 2023 completed.
[58:08.840 -> 58:10.840] How was my sector time today, Nicole?
[58:10.840 -> 58:13.800] Faster than Louis finally announced
[58:13.800 -> 58:15.080] his contract extension.
[58:16.080 -> 58:18.760] As always, that is a low bar for me to hurdle over.
[58:20.200 -> 58:22.640] Thank you to voiceover man.
[58:22.640 -> 58:24.160] Thank you to Ferrari.
[58:24.160 -> 58:26.480] That feels like really weird to write, and
[58:26.480 -> 58:30.900] oh my gosh, there's something in my eye, so do not, thank you to that little fuzz.
[58:30.900 -> 58:33.820] Thank you to our four-legged executive producers.
[58:33.820 -> 58:37.740] If you are, oh my gosh, I really have something in my eye, this is such a nightmare, oh my
[58:37.740 -> 58:38.740] god.
[58:38.740 -> 58:44.740] Okay, I'm gonna pause for a second.
[58:44.740 -> 58:47.800] If you are an audio listener, don't forget to follow, turn on
[58:47.800 -> 58:49.900] auto downloads, rate and review the pod.
[58:49.900 -> 58:51.800] It'll take you two seconds.
[58:52.200 -> 58:55.900] If you're watching on YouTube, hi, you look so pretty today.
[58:56.200 -> 58:59.000] Subscribe, like the video and leave us a comment letting us
[58:59.000 -> 59:01.600] know what was your most surprising part of the Italian
[59:01.600 -> 59:04.800] Grand Prix or least surprising part of the Italian Grand Prix.
[59:05.200 -> 59:12.380] All of these things really help other people find our podcast our show and we sincerely sincerely appreciate you doing them
[59:12.660 -> 59:16.700] Join us for daily gridwalks. We are at gridwalk show on all social media platforms
[59:17.620 -> 59:23.420] TikTok Twitter threads X what is all the things search gridwalk show you will find us
[59:23.680 -> 59:25.200] X, what is all the things search gridwalk show you will find us.
[59:29.240 -> 59:30.960] We will be back to walk the Formula One grid every single Thursday, and we sincerely hope that you join us.
[59:31.280 -> 59:34.040] But today felt like a grid gallop and not a grid walk.
[59:35.360 -> 59:35.880] Go birds.
[59:35.880 -> 59:37.120] Happy start of the NFL season.
[59:42.270 -> 59:44.270] You