Podcast: Missed Apex
Published Date:
Sun, 02 Apr 2023 21:31:53 GMT
Duration:
1:46:09
Explicit:
False
Guests:
MP3 Audio:
Please note that the summary is generated based on the transcript and may not capture all the nuances or details discussed in the podcast episode.
Spanners and Trumpets are joined by driver analyst Alex ‘Jeansy’ Vangeen and legendary streamer and sim racer Scott Tuffey aka Stuffeyy as they dodge all the ‘roos in the Australian Grand Prix. From red flag roundups to restart regrets, from Russell’s radio skills to Sainz’ sorrows, no car position goes undetermined in this, the latest episode of Missed Apex Podcast.
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**Transcript:**
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**Missed Apex Podcast**
* Welcome to Missed Apex Podcast, hosted by Richard "Spanners" Ready.
* Join Spanners, Matt "Trumpets" Trumpet, Alex "Jeansy" Vangeen, and Scott "Stuffy" Tuffey as they discuss the Australian Grand Prix.
**Whose Race Is It Anyway?**
* Spanners expresses his frustration with the recent trend of manipulating safety protocols for the sake of entertainment in Formula One.
* He believes that the sport's beauty lies in its natural unpredictability and that forcing exciting finishes undermines its integrity.
* The panel discusses the controversial red flag decisions during the Australian Grand Prix and the impact they had on the race.
**George Russell's Performance**
* Spanners questions whether George Russell is ready for top-level competition based on his recent performances.
* The panel analyzes Russell's driving and decision-making during the Australian Grand Prix and debates his potential as a future world champion.
**Ferrari's Struggles**
* The panel discusses Ferrari's disappointing start to the season and whether they have talked themselves out of any meaningful success.
* They examine the team's strategic errors, driver mistakes, and overall lack of competitiveness compared to Red Bull and Mercedes.
**Verstappen's Victory and Motertainment**
* Despite winning the Australian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen's performance is scrutinized by the panel.
* They debate whether this was one of Verstappen's worst races in recent times and if the pursuit of entertainment has compromised the sport's integrity.
**Conclusion**
* The panel reflects on the overall message and takeaway from the Australian Grand Prix.
* They emphasize the importance of preserving the sport's natural beauty and authenticity while acknowledging the need for occasional excitement.
* Spanners reiterates his belief that fans should value the sport for what it is and resist the calls for constant drama and manufactured excitement. **Missed Apex Podcast Episode Discussion**
* **Race Overview:**
- The Australian Grand Prix was filled with incidents, including red flags, restarts, and controversial penalties.
- Drivers were eager to make up positions at the restart, leading to aggressive driving and several collisions.
- The first corner was particularly chaotic, with multiple drivers making contact and causing damage to their cars.
- Gasly and Stroll were involved in a collision, resulting in a penalty for Gasly.
- Sainz received a harsh penalty for colliding with Alonso, dropping him out of the points.
- The race was eventually won by Sergio Perez, with George Russell and Lando Norris completing the podium.
* **Key Incidents:**
- Sainz's penalty for colliding with Alonso was a major talking point. Many felt it was too harsh, while others argued that it was justified.
- The decision to roll back the race to the previous lap after the red flag also caused controversy. Some felt it was the right call to ensure fairness, while others argued that it punished drivers who had gained positions on merit.
* **Driver Performances:**
- Perez drove a strong race to take the victory, despite starting from fourth on the grid.
- Russell and Norris both had impressive drives to finish on the podium, with Russell showing great skill in defending his position from Hamilton.
- Alonso drove well to recover from his collision with Sainz and finish in the points.
* **Overall Thoughts:**
- The Australian Grand Prix was an entertaining race with plenty of action and drama.
- The controversial penalties and decisions added to the excitement and talking points.
- The race showcased the talent of the drivers and the competitiveness of the 2023 Formula One season. - George Russell's consistent performance is highlighted as a positive aspect of his racing, earning praise from the hosts.
- The hosts discuss the radio comments made by Russell during the race, noting his assertiveness and willingness to advocate for himself and his team.
- A debate ensues regarding the decision to pit Russell for hard tires during the safety car period, with differing opinions on whether it was the correct strategic call.
- The hosts delve into the finer details of the pit stop strategy, analyzing the potential time gains and losses associated with the decision.
- Max Verstappen's race performance is brought into question, with the hosts pointing out several instances where he made mistakes or struggled with his car.
- The discussion shifts to Lewis Hamilton's struggles with the new regulations and his ongoing efforts to adapt to the 2023 car.
- The hosts compare Russell's driving style to that of Jenson Button, noting his smooth and controlled approach behind the wheel.
- The conversation turns to the topic of Max Verstappen's driving standards and whether his aggressive style warrants criticism.
- The hosts acknowledge Verstappen's dominance in the race but maintain that he made several uncharacteristic errors throughout the weekend.
- The reliability of Red Bull's car is brought into question, with Sergio Perez's car issues mentioned as an example.
- The hosts speculate on how the race might have unfolded if all drivers were in equal cars, suggesting that Verstappen's mistakes would have cost him the victory.
- The discussion concludes with a mention of Verstappen's historical struggles at the Albert Park circuit. **Transcript:**
**Spanners Ready**: Welcome to Missed Apex, the Formula One podcast where we go faster than everyone else while cornering just as poorly. I'm Spanners.
**Matt Trumpets**: I'm Matt.
**Alex Vangeen**: I'm Alex.
**Stuffey**: I'm Stuffey.
**Spanners Ready**: And joining us today, our driver analyst, Alex 'Jeansy' Vangeen. Alex, welcome to the show.
**Alex Vangeen**: Thank you very much. It's a pleasure to be here.
**Spanners Ready**: So, we're here to talk about the Australian Grand Prix. What a race it was. We had a red flag, a restart, and a whole lot of drama. But before we get into all that, let's talk about the good stuff. Who was your 'Good Thing' of the weekend?
**Matt Trumpets**: I'm going to give my 'Good Thing' to Lewis Hamilton. He had a great race, finishing second after starting fifth. He was really happy with the car, and he even said that he was enjoying the battle with George Russell.
**Alex Vangeen**: I agree with Matt. Hamilton had a great race. He was really aggressive on the restarts, and he was able to make up a lot of positions. He also had a great battle with Russell, and it was clear that he was enjoying himself.
**Stuffey**: My 'Good Thing' of the weekend is Max Verstappen complaining about Lewis Hamilton's overtake. It was so good to see him complain about something that he's done to other drivers for years.
**Spanners Ready**: I think that's a fair point. Verstappen has been known to complain about other drivers' aggressive driving in the past, so it was interesting to see him on the receiving end of it this time.
**Alex Vangeen**: Yeah, I agree. It was definitely a bit hypocritical of Verstappen to complain about Hamilton's overtake. But it was also kind of funny to see him get a taste of his own medicine.
**Spanners Ready**: Okay, so that's our 'Good Thing' of the weekend. Now, let's talk about the 'Bad Thing'. Who or what was your 'Bad Thing' of the weekend?
**Matt Trumpets**: My 'Bad Thing' of the weekend is the FIA. Once again, they showed that they are completely incompetent. The way they handled the safety car restart was a joke. They need to get their act together, or else they're going to ruin the sport.
**Alex Vangeen**: I agree with Matt. The FIA's handling of the safety car restart was a complete disaster. They need to come up with a better system, or else we're going to see more races end under a safety car.
**Stuffey**: My 'Bad Thing' of the weekend is McLaren. They had a terrible race, and it's clear that they're still struggling with their car. They need to figure things out quickly, or else they're going to be in for a long season.
**Spanners Ready**: Yeah, McLaren is definitely having a tough time right now. They were one of the top teams last year, but they've taken a big step back this year. It's going to be interesting to see if they can turn things around.
**Alex Vangeen**: I think they can turn things around. They have a good team, and they've shown in the past that they can be very competitive. But they need to make some changes, and they need to make them quickly.
**Spanners Ready**: Okay, so that's our 'Bad Thing' of the weekend. Now, let's talk about the 'Ugly Thing'. What was the ugliest moment of the weekend?
**Matt Trumpets**: My 'Ugly Thing' of the weekend is the crash between Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon. It was a completely avoidable accident, and it ruined both of their races.
**Alex Vangeen**: I agree with Matt. The crash between Alonso and Ocon was definitely the ugliest moment of the weekend. It was a shame, because both drivers had been having good races up to that point.
**Stuffey**: My 'Ugly Thing' of the weekend is the way that the media has been treating Nicholas Latifi. He's been getting a lot of unfair criticism, and it's not his fault that he's not as good as his teammate.
**Spanners Ready**: Yeah, I agree. Latifi has been getting a lot of unfair criticism. He's a rookie driver, and he's still learning. He's not going to be as good as George Russell overnight.
**Alex Vangeen**: I think Latifi will improve over time. He's a talented driver, and he has a good team behind him. I think he'll be able to challenge Russell next year.
**Spanners Ready**: Well, that's it for this week's episode of Missed Apex. Thanks for listening, and we'll see you next time. **Summary of Missed Apex Podcast: Australian Grand Prix Review**
The Missed Apex Podcast crew, consisting of Spanners, Matt Trumpets, Alex Vangeen, and Stuffey, analyze and discuss the highlights and controversies from the Australian Grand Prix.
**Key Points:**
1. **Red Flag Roundups and Restart Regrets:**
- The race was red-flagged twice due to incidents involving Carlos Sainz and Sebastian Vettel.
- The restarts led to strategic decisions and overtakes, shaping the final race results.
2. **George Russell's Radio Skills and Sainz's Sorrows:**
- Russell showcased impressive radio communication skills during the race, effectively conveying his concerns and requests to his team.
- Sainz, on the other hand, endured a disappointing race, plagued by technical issues and a collision with Fernando Alonso.
3. **Max Verstappen vs. Lewis Hamilton: A Renewed Rivalry:**
- The podcast delves into the renewed rivalry between Verstappen and Hamilton, analyzing their intense battle for position.
- Verstappen's aggressive driving style and Hamilton's calculated approach created captivating moments on the track.
4. **Yuki Tsunoda's Fourth Place That Never Was:**
- Tsunoda had a strong start and was briefly in fourth position, sparking hope for a potential points finish.
- However, he faced difficulties maintaining his position and eventually dropped down the order.
5. **Charles Leclerc's Missed Apex:**
- Leclerc's poor performance in the race earned him the "Missed Apex" award for making several mistakes.
- The podcast highlights his uncharacteristic errors and discusses the impact on his championship aspirations.
6. **Pierre Gasly's Costly Error:**
- Gasly's collision with Fernando Alonso resulted in a double retirement for the AlphaTauri team.
- The incident is analyzed, and the consequences for both drivers are discussed.
7. **Sergio Perez's Anonymous Weekend:**
- Perez had a forgettable race, hindered by qualifying issues and an early off-track excursion.
- The podcast acknowledges his struggles and speculates on the reasons behind his lackluster performance.
8. **Fan Safety Concerns:**
- The podcast strongly condemns the actions of fans who breached the track after the race, creating a dangerous situation.
- The hosts call for increased security measures to prevent such incidents in the future.
9. **Upcoming Race Schedule and Content Plans:**
- The podcast team announces a brief hiatus due to the cancellation of the Chinese Grand Prix.
- They plan to continue producing content during the break, including a possible pick-up show for the next race in Baku.
10. **Listener Interactions and Comments:**
- The podcast acknowledges and responds to comments and questions from listeners, engaging with the audience and fostering a sense of community.
**Overall Message:**
The Missed Apex Podcast provides an entertaining and informative analysis of the Australian Grand Prix, offering insights into the key moments, controversies, and performances of the drivers. The podcast also engages with its audience, creating a platform for discussion and interaction among Formula One fans.
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[01:32.800 -> 01:35.760] You are listening to missed apex podcast.
[01:36.400 -> 01:55.880] We live at one. Welcome to MissedApex Podcast. The title of today's show is, Whose Race Is It Anyway?
[01:55.880 -> 02:01.240] Where the rules are made up and the positions don't matter. That title supplied on Twitter
[02:01.240 -> 02:05.720] by Neil. A close runner up was was Alex who said Liberty Media have announced
[02:05.720 -> 02:11.860] a new red flag sponsor. And an honourable mention for Wutang Flan who suggested, with
[02:11.860 -> 02:18.560] a gladiator gif, are you not entertained? I'm your host Richard Ready, but my friends
[02:18.560 -> 02:25.520] call me Spanners. So, let's be friends. Welcome to our Australian Grand Prix race review.
[02:30.240 -> 02:33.360] Well, that was emotional, wasn't it? A massively overcomplicated end-of-race procedure caused by this dogged and almost cultish...
[02:34.160 -> 02:40.000] allergy to finishing naturally under the safety car. They've tried rushing through a safety car
[02:40.000 -> 02:45.120] period by skimping on the restart procedure. they've tried red flagging for two laps and having
[02:45.120 -> 02:51.200] a Thunderdome-style sprint twice now, they've tried that, they've tried counting back after
[02:51.200 -> 02:58.640] the carnage caused by that sprint red flag and they've also resisted doing a count back even when
[02:58.640 -> 03:06.640] there has been an abhorrent interpretation of the restart procedure, all on the altar of never finishing under
[03:06.640 -> 03:13.400] the safety car. The end of a Grand Prix does not always need to be an exciting Hollywood
[03:13.400 -> 03:20.740] ending. In fact, it would be deeply unsatisfying if it was. But you and I, we have power in
[03:20.740 -> 03:26.680] this sport. We know that F1 does monitor what the fans and the media say.
[03:26.680 -> 03:33.800] And we know that the media is also influenced by what we say. We can, as a fanbase, stop
[03:33.800 -> 03:38.380] calling for this drama. We can stop calling for the desperate need for F1 to be the sporting
[03:38.380 -> 03:44.000] equivalent of some Saturday night game show with an exciting and random end. We don't
[03:44.000 -> 03:51.040] have to say, red flag, come on down, the price is right. Stop calling for excitement at all costs and value
[03:51.600 -> 03:58.000] something about this actual sport. This race has shown that the Emperor is butt naked.
[03:58.960 -> 04:05.200] To some extent, please just try enjoying this sport for what it is. We need to be vocal about defending
[04:06.080 -> 04:12.640] that just pure beauty of 10 teams going out there in an earnest sporting manner based on
[04:12.640 -> 04:18.320] basic sporting principles. And I don't want to gatekeep. Enjoy what you enjoy. If what you enjoy
[04:18.320 -> 04:32.160] is sprints and red flags, I can't tell you that that's wrong, but if we keep going down this road, we're going to lose so much of what I enjoy about F1. And those that call F1 boring and demanded change are loud
[04:32.160 -> 04:37.440] and vocal. We can counteract that, right? And I'm saying we, because I'm not alone,
[04:37.440 -> 04:41.760] am I? I'm not alone in knowing that sometimes the race isn't going to bang.
[04:41.760 -> 04:45.080] I know that every race isn't gonna be a smashing,
[04:45.080 -> 04:47.640] rip roaring, Hollywood ending.
[04:47.640 -> 04:49.880] Sometimes you need the ordinary
[04:49.880 -> 04:52.840] to make the special seem special.
[04:52.840 -> 04:55.720] The sweet is never as sweet without the sour,
[04:55.720 -> 04:57.960] and I know the sour.
[04:57.960 -> 04:59.860] You can do whatever you want with your life.
[04:59.860 -> 05:02.520] You can watch what you want, you can enjoy what you want,
[05:02.520 -> 05:04.600] but one day that investment will come to harvest
[05:04.600 -> 05:08.720] and we'll have a sport very different to the one I love. It's the sour and the
[05:08.720 -> 05:13.600] sweet. And I know the sour, which makes me appreciate the sweet.
[05:13.600 -> 05:18.320] So today I'll be asking, is George Russell up for top level competition? I think the
[05:18.320 -> 05:25.960] signs are there. Have Ferrari talked themselves out of any meaningful success. Was Verstappen's performance today his worst
[05:25.960 -> 05:32.320] race for a long time, despite a victory, and has the motertainment movement finally crossed
[05:32.320 -> 05:36.520] the Rubicon? We are an independent podcast produced in the Podcasting Shed with the kind
[05:36.520 -> 05:40.480] permission of our better halves. We aim to bring you a racer review before your Monday
[05:40.480 -> 05:47.600] morning commute. We might be wrong, but we're first.
[05:49.640 -> 05:49.760] I'm joined in the shed by Matt
[05:51.200 -> 05:51.720] to Rumpit. How's it going, Matt?
[05:52.640 -> 05:53.480] It's going fine.
[05:53.480 -> 05:55.480] I'm just going to say, if all the races
[05:55.480 -> 05:56.800] are going to be that long in Australia,
[05:56.800 -> 05:57.840] could we please start them
[05:57.840 -> 05:59.280] a little bit earlier?
[05:59.280 -> 06:00.520] Or later? No.
[06:00.520 -> 06:02.360] You've forgotten about the Brave UK
[06:02.360 -> 06:04.200] audience that woke up slightly early.
[06:04.720 -> 06:09.840] Unlike you, I am not willing to brave Uncle Steve's wrath, so I would go for earlier.
[06:09.840 -> 06:13.200] Okay, well, Night Race is being muted, but let's go to our UK heroes.
[06:13.200 -> 06:15.360] What time did you get up, Alex, Genesy, Van Gene?
[06:16.400 -> 06:20.240] I woke up at four-ish, then half past five.
[06:20.240 -> 06:24.400] Yeah, I also set an alarm for five, ignored that, and eventually woke up at ten to five,
[06:24.400 -> 06:28.680] like, ten to six, sorry, like everyone else. And we're also joined by a YouTube streamer,
[06:28.680 -> 06:31.200] Scott Stuffy Tuffy. How's it going, Scott?
[06:31.200 -> 06:35.320] Hey Spanners. Thanks, Bully. Was I watching F1 or was I watching NASCAR today?
[06:35.320 -> 06:36.320] Yeah, there was...
[06:36.320 -> 06:37.680] I got a little bit confused.
[06:37.680 -> 06:41.760] And this is where I think we're going to start, Matt. This is our big ticket item. We have
[06:41.760 -> 06:45.200] to get it out of the way. it is the, what you've coined,
[06:45.200 -> 06:51.640] inter-sport-ment. But definitely, entertainment has kind of overtaken today. Am I wrong? Was
[06:51.640 -> 06:54.600] my rant too ranty and weird?
[06:54.600 -> 06:59.920] Well, yes, but that doesn't mean you're wrong. I mean, sports entertainment, we could call
[06:59.920 -> 07:05.060] it many different things here. But the fact of the matter is it's becoming increasingly
[07:05.060 -> 07:12.400] obvious that for reasons we're seeing what I would describe based on how things have
[07:12.400 -> 07:21.080] been done in the past as an increasing manipulation of safety protocols for the purposes of racing.
[07:21.080 -> 07:25.700] And I for one think that's problematic, although you might be surprised at my solution,
[07:25.700 -> 07:27.220] which I think we'll get to later on.
[07:27.220 -> 07:34.380] I think what we really need to ask though first is, what on earth is the whole safety
[07:34.380 -> 07:40.260] procedure for, Alex? And you know, I was sat there a couple of years ago saying that safety
[07:40.260 -> 07:44.540] cars would become more frequent because they were using it for the entertainment. I warned
[07:44.540 -> 07:47.200] that using a red flag instead of a safety car would become more frequent because they were using it for the entertainment. I warned that using a red flag instead of a late safety car would
[07:47.200 -> 07:51.160] become race director crack because they would do it and then their paymasters
[07:51.160 -> 07:57.960] would be happy. But today I think we experienced an abuse of the red flag
[07:57.960 -> 08:03.120] procedure purely to manufacture an ending. It slowly crept up on us though
[08:03.120 -> 08:06.700] hasn't it? They just all of a sudden started feeding them in and
[08:06.700 -> 08:09.140] feeding. All of a sudden we've got to today going, what the
[08:09.140 -> 08:12.600] hell's going on? Why is why is everything a red flag and a
[08:12.600 -> 08:15.480] safety car? Yeah. And you know, there's, I think there's a
[08:15.480 -> 08:18.140] mixture of things. Yes, they like to bring the cars back
[08:18.140 -> 08:20.700] together, especially when there is one particular car running
[08:20.700 -> 08:23.980] off at the front of the field. But also, I think they don't
[08:23.980 -> 08:25.840] want to lose laps during the race.
[08:25.840 -> 08:27.840] So for example, the first safety car
[08:27.840 -> 08:29.640] that ended up being the red flag with Albon,
[08:29.640 -> 08:31.320] there was lots of stuff on the track.
[08:31.320 -> 08:32.960] And Kyle Power was saying in our chat,
[08:32.960 -> 08:37.560] being an ex-Marshall himself, he was talking about the fact
[08:37.560 -> 08:39.800] that they could have cleaned that up very, very quickly.
[08:39.800 -> 08:42.560] But I still think to clean that up on a live circuit
[08:42.560 -> 08:44.480] would have taken 10 laps.
[08:44.480 -> 08:46.480] And I actually would have. Which one, Alex, to be clear?
[08:46.480 -> 08:46.960] The first one.
[08:46.960 -> 08:50.880] The first one. Yeah, the first one. And because there was gravel everywhere.
[08:50.880 -> 08:52.400] So like with a team of marshals...
[08:52.400 -> 08:57.760] And bits of car and the area was slightly damaged. So for me, it's a case of, I would rather see them
[08:57.760 -> 09:03.520] come into the pits, mill about and talk to their engineers for 10 minutes than have them lose 10
[09:03.520 -> 09:03.840] laps.
[09:03.840 -> 09:06.880] No, I agree with that and I think no one's
[09:06.880 -> 09:10.800] really arguing with that one. With that amount of gravel and you can see right okay obviously you
[09:10.800 -> 09:15.280] need 10 derricks in the marshal posts with broomsticks you may as well get that that sorted.
[09:15.280 -> 09:19.840] I think it's the second one that we're talking about as the entertainment one. But what it did
[09:19.840 -> 09:25.520] do was completely screw the strategy for the whole race.
[09:25.520 -> 09:28.760] And I know Matt's going to want to get in on this in a second,
[09:28.760 -> 09:31.220] but for me, it's a real conundrum,
[09:31.220 -> 09:35.460] because you can either not red flag it,
[09:35.460 -> 09:37.520] and you save the people who've had a pit stop.
[09:37.520 -> 09:40.100] Or sorry, you can red flag it, and so you change the rules,
[09:40.100 -> 09:43.240] and they can't change tires once it's red flagged,
[09:43.240 -> 09:48.960] and you screw the people who didn't stop, or you keep it as it is, and you screw the people who did stop. So who do you want
[09:48.960 -> 09:49.960] to screw, Spanis?
[09:49.960 -> 09:55.360] Scott, stuffy toughy. No, you're not the person I want to screw, Scott. I'm asking your opinions
[09:55.360 -> 10:01.560] on these. I think my main thing here is, you know, what is the purpose of the red flag?
[10:01.560 -> 10:05.120] And we saw it with the Albon one, that feels reasonable. But
[10:05.120 -> 10:10.380] how have we not got around to sorting out the tyre tactics and getting rid of the free
[10:10.380 -> 10:11.380] tyre choice?
[10:11.380 -> 10:15.160] I actually just want to disagree, I think I'm on my own here, I actually want to disagree
[10:15.160 -> 10:19.280] with all of you. I think that red flag was unjust really.
[10:19.280 -> 10:20.560] Oh the Albon one?
[10:20.560 -> 10:26.480] Yeah, I think, and a number of other racing drivers I've seen online have commented the
[10:26.480 -> 10:33.000] same thing, that how is it that that requires a red flag to clear up?
[10:33.000 -> 10:38.280] I understand that, Alexander, they probably want to check the barrier, but there's not
[10:38.280 -> 10:44.000] enough gravel there, really, that's spread all the way down the track that warrants that
[10:44.000 -> 10:46.800] red flag, in my opinion, there's nothing that,
[10:46.800 -> 10:48.280] I mean, if you saw the amount of marshals,
[10:48.280 -> 10:49.240] we only saw a little bit,
[10:49.240 -> 10:50.520] but if you saw the amount of marshals
[10:50.520 -> 10:53.560] that were there sweeping it up, I mean, wow.
[10:53.560 -> 10:54.740] Maybe it's because of the ground effect now,
[10:54.740 -> 10:56.520] they're worried about, the teams are worried
[10:56.520 -> 10:58.680] about these cars getting damaged underneath,
[10:58.680 -> 11:01.880] but yeah, red flags, ultimately, they're there for safety.
[11:01.880 -> 11:04.320] That's what they should be there for.
[11:04.320 -> 11:11.280] It should be there for worst case scenarios when they need to properly close a live track. But it feels like there's a
[11:11.280 -> 11:17.280] bit of an abuse being used. And as Alex said, it's crept up on us. I mean, I don't know, I'd love to
[11:17.280 -> 11:21.760] know what the specifics that is, but how many red flags have we had in the last...
[11:21.760 -> 11:24.240] Five years, yeah.
[11:24.240 -> 11:27.960] Since Liberty Media has taken over, how many red flags have we seen compared to previous
[11:27.960 -> 11:28.960] ownership?
[11:28.960 -> 11:33.220] And I would love the safety car stats as well, Matt, like full safety car VSCs.
[11:33.220 -> 11:35.360] And like we said, it can become addictive.
[11:35.360 -> 11:37.120] No one here is against safety.
[11:37.120 -> 11:41.960] But I think what we're really arguing is that the second one was less necessary than the
[11:41.960 -> 11:43.280] first one.
[11:43.280 -> 11:46.440] Well, I'm actually on Scott's side here.
[11:46.440 -> 11:52.820] I think the first one was entirely unnecessary if your qualification here is the track needs
[11:52.820 -> 11:55.400] to be cleaned up and the car needs to be moved.
[11:55.400 -> 12:00.840] That could have been done and has been done in the past frequently under the safety car.
[12:00.840 -> 12:05.520] So this is going to my grand unified theory of everything here that we're working towards,
[12:12.400 -> 12:18.240] unbeknownst to you and the show. But the second one was even more, and again, Scott, you put your finger right on it. The problem is, if you see Albin's accident, and then the FIA
[12:18.240 -> 12:28.900] tells you that they need to red flag it to clean it up, anyone who's been a marshal, anyone who's watched the sport a long time knows that that's simply not accurate.
[12:28.900 -> 12:32.660] Or if it is accurate, there's something they're absolutely not telling us about it.
[12:32.660 -> 12:40.780] They're being so untransparent, so opaque, that you have the sense that this procedure
[12:40.780 -> 12:42.400] is being abused.
[12:42.400 -> 12:45.520] And this is where all of this starts in my opinion
[12:46.800 -> 12:49.360] stuffy yeah, and the thing is as well is that
[12:50.160 -> 12:51.360] there
[12:51.360 -> 12:56.240] We always what it's impossible to make decisions instantly. They need to assess the information that gets
[12:56.720 -> 13:00.080] related to them from marshals on the side of the track and
[13:01.040 -> 13:03.920] And all the safety procedures that come into place, but that's when
[13:03.120 -> 13:06.160] and all the safety procedures that come into place. But that's when, which I'm sure we're gonna touch on now,
[13:06.160 -> 13:10.240] is the red flag rule in regards to them being able
[13:10.240 -> 13:13.200] to tire change and nullify the race
[13:13.200 -> 13:17.400] and nullify all the hard work of other drivers
[13:17.400 -> 13:18.800] who have gained positions.
[13:18.800 -> 13:23.040] And then, I mean, realistically, Mercedes, once again,
[13:23.040 -> 13:28.000] did they really expect the red flag to come out there?
[13:28.000 -> 13:31.040] They maybe took a risky decision to pit George Russell
[13:31.040 -> 13:31.720] from the lead.
[13:31.720 -> 13:37.520] But I think most fans and most people on the pit wall
[13:37.520 -> 13:40.080] would be thinking, no, that's going to be a safety
[13:40.080 -> 13:41.880] car for X amount of laps.
[13:41.880 -> 13:44.000] Yeah, so definitely, that does seem
[13:44.000 -> 13:46.160] to be what Mercedes thought and
[13:46.160 -> 13:50.160] so we may be surprised with that but I think really, you know, we will get to the race proper
[13:50.160 -> 13:55.520] at some point Matt, but the key issue for me here is the Magnuson had a blown tyre. Oh, and
[13:55.520 -> 14:00.320] interestingly Alex, we thought he hit the wall but you were insisting that he hadn't hit the wall
[14:00.320 -> 14:06.160] and I think you were right. On the very first replay they showed it was over his right
[14:06.160 -> 14:12.240] his right rear wheel and it very much looked like to me that it blew as he hit that rumble strip
[14:12.240 -> 14:17.360] however there's a tweet floating around or a comment floating around that um he'd been hitting
[14:17.360 -> 14:24.080] that kerb a lot during the race and maybe it was resonance consistent resonance through that um
[14:24.080 -> 14:27.080] kerb and that rumble and that rumble strip that made
[14:27.080 -> 14:31.560] the tire fail, but he didn't hit the wall due to sunlight.
[14:31.560 -> 14:37.080] Reason number 753 to listen to our podcast is we have people everywhere and one of our
[14:37.080 -> 14:46.400] patrons was at turn two with video and watching and that's Tony Keillor said absolutely that Magnusson was going wider
[14:46.400 -> 14:51.840] hitting the strips on the far side of the curb and that the tire blew before he hit the wall
[14:51.840 -> 14:57.600] and slightly more concerning a big chunk of his rim actually wound up on the other side of the
[14:57.600 -> 15:03.440] catch fence no one was hurt someone got a very cool souvenir but yeah just another thing to watch
[15:03.440 -> 15:08.020] out for. See now I still don't put that blame at KMAG unless there is
[15:08.020 -> 15:10.320] radio evidence of them telling him to stay off the curbs.
[15:10.340 -> 15:13.720] Because if, if he's using the curb and it's, and for him, it's
[15:13.720 -> 15:17.540] fine, then, and the team don't think it's fine.
[15:17.760 -> 15:20.420] It's the team's responsibility to tell him to get off the curbs.
[15:20.420 -> 15:24.000] Like we hear all the time of teams telling drivers to stay off the curbs.
[15:24.280 -> 15:28.760] Because if they said to him, we've got, we're, we're at risk on the reg, you need to stay off the
[15:28.760 -> 15:32.360] kerbs, there's no way he's hitting those kerbs. So I don't put any blame on KMF.
[15:32.360 -> 15:36.320] No, no, no. But it's just interesting that, that there was a car that was sitting there
[15:36.320 -> 15:42.200] taking those risks for whatever reason. And it was so dramatic because we've not seen
[15:42.200 -> 15:45.000] a tyre blow out like that probably since Baku
[15:45.000 -> 15:46.000] 2021. Scott?
[15:46.000 -> 15:52.400] Yeah, it all happened very quickly. There was the initial comments from Jenson Button
[15:52.400 -> 15:58.360] on Sky TV stating that that tyre's, the mark on the tyre looks like it's a lot higher on
[15:58.360 -> 16:05.120] the wall than it should be, which indicated it blew before he hit the wall and obviously that's been confirmed by guys at
[16:05.120 -> 16:12.740] the trackside. But the metal shavings or from the wheel itself is the debris that supposedly
[16:12.740 -> 16:19.920] was so far across the track which is what brought out the red flag again. And yeah,
[16:19.920 -> 16:27.760] it just seems unnecessary and an excuse to bring out what would be a grandiose finish
[16:27.760 -> 16:29.040] rather than under a safety car.
[16:29.040 -> 16:30.320] Yeah, and this is it.
[16:30.320 -> 16:34.360] Daniel in our live patron chat says, would the Albon flag have been controversial if
[16:34.360 -> 16:35.520] it had been the only one?
[16:35.520 -> 16:38.160] No, I don't think we'd have thought twice about it.
[16:38.160 -> 16:40.480] So I'm going to just do this stated premise.
[16:40.480 -> 16:46.320] I don't think anyone is arguing with me here in that the Kevin Magnuson incident didn't
[16:46.320 -> 16:51.680] really ordinarily require a red flag. And if there's someone who thinks that, you know, please
[16:51.680 -> 16:56.720] pipe up now. But if that was lap 30, he's pulled over to the side of the road, he would be recovered
[16:56.720 -> 17:00.800] in a normal fashion, there was a tyre on track which could have been recovered under the safety
[17:00.800 -> 17:05.520] car, we'd have got going in a few laps. That feels like, historically,
[17:05.520 -> 17:09.680] the kind of event that, as standard, would be dealt with under a safety car. So Alex,
[17:09.680 -> 17:15.760] I am just going to say it out loud. Faced with the prospect of finishing under the safety car,
[17:15.760 -> 17:22.080] the race directors, under some broad guidance from F1 and Liberty Media, did not want to finish
[17:22.080 -> 17:25.120] under a safety car and contrived to give us a disastrous
[17:25.680 -> 17:31.440] two-lap sprint which ended up in finishing under the safety car anyway. Am I lying?
[17:31.440 -> 17:37.360] Well we are very aware that after Spa 2021 they do not want to finish under safety car again.
[17:38.320 -> 17:41.920] But that's a different thing. I'm just going to stop it right there because that is such
[17:41.920 -> 17:47.760] a different scenario. That was where there was no race to be had because of the weather and they went out, did some Mickey Mouse laps and awarded
[17:47.760 -> 17:53.360] full points. Surely that's not the same as a normal safety car finish scenario.
[17:53.360 -> 18:01.440] They didn't have to go out, they did it to make points happen and to make sure that
[18:02.720 -> 18:05.000] the fans didn't have to pay any money.
[18:05.500 -> 18:06.340] Okay.
[18:06.340 -> 18:08.680] Didn't have, sorry, couldn't get a refund.
[18:08.680 -> 18:09.520] Yeah.
[18:09.520 -> 18:10.360] Couldn't get a refund.
[18:10.360 -> 18:11.180] But I mean, to be honest,
[18:11.180 -> 18:13.200] when all of a sudden you see K-Mag's car
[18:13.200 -> 18:14.580] hobbling along the track,
[18:14.580 -> 18:16.480] I've got to give props to Jenson Button.
[18:16.480 -> 18:19.320] He instantly called it as that's the strike against the wall.
[18:19.320 -> 18:21.960] I actually thought Jenson Button was brilliant this weekend.
[18:21.960 -> 18:24.680] I thought he was really, really good on bombs.
[18:24.680 -> 18:28.520] He's generally very, very good at that. As long as Sky aren't just grotesquely vomiting
[18:28.520 -> 18:31.520] love on him for his odd race that he won.
[18:31.520 -> 18:34.320] Did you know he won in Canada when it was wet that one time?
[18:34.320 -> 18:40.440] Yeah, and did you know that he went off the track after putting on wet tyres during an
[18:40.440 -> 18:52.400] Australian Grand Prix and won the race because everyone just saw him go off the circuit. Anyway, but for me, when you've had a car explode into a wall like that and there was a wheel in
[18:52.400 -> 18:59.040] the middle of the circuit, I instantly saw it and thought red flag, but have I been conditioned
[18:59.680 -> 19:02.720] to expect a red flag from those situations?
[19:02.720 -> 19:03.120] Stuffy!
[19:04.160 -> 19:08.480] Just going back to your point about Spa, I actually think the last time a race finished
[19:08.480 -> 19:11.360] under the red flag, was it last year at Monza?
[19:11.360 -> 19:12.720] When Daniel Ricciardo broke down?
[19:12.720 -> 19:14.040] No, that was 21.
[19:14.040 -> 19:15.040] That's the one I meant.
[19:15.040 -> 19:16.040] Was it 21?
[19:16.040 -> 19:17.040] Okay.
[19:17.040 -> 19:18.040] 21.
[19:18.040 -> 19:19.040] One by Daniel Ricciardo and McLaren got a 1-2.
[19:19.040 -> 19:22.680] No, it was, no, because then it was the year after.
[19:22.680 -> 19:30.360] It was, yeah, because Nick De Vries got his eighth position. So it was last year and Stefano De Meccali actually came out and said, we
[19:30.360 -> 19:34.200] need to look into this, we can't have this finishing under a safety car again. So this
[19:34.200 -> 19:40.840] is quite fresh in Liberty Media and F1's minds. But Alex, I think you're right. Let's, if
[19:40.840 -> 19:47.120] that accident of Magnussen's was earlier on in the race, haven't we pretty much seen
[19:47.120 -> 19:53.180] live race circuits with more debris out on the track than supposedly what was on track
[19:53.180 -> 19:58.360] at the time with Magnussen? The metal shards I think was really why they supposedly stopped
[19:58.360 -> 20:01.480] for a red flag, not the actual tyre carcass itself.
[20:01.480 -> 20:02.480] Wow.
[20:02.480 -> 20:03.480] So yeah, it's just…
[20:03.480 -> 20:06.720] Stuffy, I'm going to stick with my thing that they did it to make sure they didn't
[20:06.720 -> 20:11.800] have a safety car ending, and I will maintain that that has been to the overall detriment
[20:11.800 -> 20:15.620] of the sport, Matt, because the chaos that we saw, which we're going to discuss now in
[20:15.620 -> 20:21.020] a game of whose fault is it, the chaos that we saw was not better than just naturally
[20:21.020 -> 20:22.720] finishing after a safety car.
[20:22.720 -> 20:25.120] Oh, I would agree with you.
[20:25.120 -> 20:30.400] And the larger point here being, and I'm going to defend the FIA and F1 slightly before
[20:30.400 -> 20:36.640] we talk about whose fault it exactly was, is that I think fundamentally the FIA have
[20:36.640 -> 20:41.760] said how can we get the most racing laps when we have incidents like this?
[20:41.760 -> 20:46.560] And they've decided to use red flags to keep us from watching 30 laps of
[20:46.560 -> 20:52.560] a safety car while every last piece of gravel gets picked up by a marshal. I actually don't have a
[20:52.560 -> 21:00.480] problem with that except for the current safety red flag rules are designed only for safety,
[21:01.280 -> 21:08.380] not for competition. And as we've mentioned, the tire rule, the fixing your car rules need to be updated
[21:08.400 -> 21:10.760] and it needs to have a different name.
[21:11.040 -> 21:14.920] So they don't have to lie to us about cleaning up gravel off of a
[21:14.920 -> 21:16.840] track anytime they want to use it.
[21:16.840 -> 21:19.440] They should just say the safety car period will be too long.
[21:19.960 -> 21:23.760] We're going to bring everyone into the pit lane, 10 minutes, right back out.
[21:23.760 -> 21:24.260] We go.
[21:24.760 -> 21:26.980] And that way you get more racing laps,
[21:26.980 -> 21:29.800] which admittedly we as spectators want,
[21:29.800 -> 21:32.880] but there's no, there's total transparency
[21:32.880 -> 21:34.600] about what's happening.
[21:34.600 -> 21:37.240] And I think that's the big issue and it's a trust issue
[21:37.240 -> 21:39.800] and FIA and F1 need to be careful
[21:39.800 -> 21:42.640] because that's the one thing you don't want to break.
[21:42.640 -> 21:45.200] We are going to cover the actual race as it
[21:45.200 -> 21:49.440] panned out because there were some fascinating dynamics between their Mercedes teammates,
[21:49.440 -> 21:55.280] some deeply troubling things happening at Ferrari and of course Red Bull and Aston Martin very much
[21:55.280 -> 21:59.520] in the mix there as well. But first I want to start backwards so let's start at the end and
[21:59.520 -> 22:10.200] play my favorite game. Whose fault is it? Oh my goodness! After a very, very well behaved Bahrain Grand
[22:10.200 -> 22:16.160] Prix and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, we have witnessed some of the lowest driving standards
[22:16.160 -> 22:21.880] of a Formula One race, possibly since that Spa race in the 90s where it was wet and 14
[22:21.880 -> 22:25.200] cars crashed and they all had to go back to the tea car. We saw
[22:26.000 -> 22:32.800] 16 drivers grid up on cold tyres from a standing start with two laps to go and apparently with
[22:32.800 -> 22:40.480] nothing to lose. Win or bin was the moniker of their tactics tattooed on all their forearms.
[22:40.480 -> 22:46.240] We saw some horrendous driving and, like in my marriage, we never just have a
[22:46.240 -> 22:52.960] no-blame situation. It must always be someone's fault. So let's play Whose Fault Is It?
[22:52.960 -> 22:59.120] Let's start with one of the low-key ones, Stuffy. The American rookie, Logan Sargent,
[22:59.120 -> 23:02.840] into DeVries. Was it DeVries' fault for just being in the way?
[23:02.840 -> 23:08.600] Of course it is. Don't you know that Logan Sargent was just admiring the grandstands and forgot he was
[23:08.600 -> 23:09.600] in an F1 race?
[23:09.600 -> 23:10.600] It did look like that.
[23:10.600 -> 23:12.920] It did look like he just forgot.
[23:12.920 -> 23:13.920] What was he doing?
[23:13.920 -> 23:17.640] He actually looked like he was turning for the apex before the braking zone and then
[23:17.640 -> 23:20.880] actually then turned into Nick De Vries.
[23:20.880 -> 23:24.960] And I mean, Nick De Vries didn't have a good day at the office this weekend, but oh my
[23:24.960 -> 23:29.000] God, Logan Sargent. Yeah, just, I don't know how he's escaped a penalty.
[23:29.000 -> 23:34.080] I don't know how, obviously I understand Carlos Sainz, which I'm sure we'll touch on, but
[23:34.080 -> 23:39.600] how has Logan Sargent completely rear-ended De Vries?
[23:39.600 -> 23:42.600] Just completely get away without a penalty there.
[23:42.600 -> 23:45.240] Yeah, bizarre from him, because he's actually been quite impressive
[23:45.240 -> 23:46.480] in the first few races, I think.
[23:46.480 -> 23:49.600] So yeah, an odd one.
[23:49.600 -> 23:51.620] I know what happened to Logan Sargent.
[23:51.620 -> 23:53.580] His VR failed going into turn one.
[23:55.560 -> 23:57.480] As he was going to turn one, his VR blacks out
[23:57.480 -> 24:00.280] and he just smacks into the back of De Vries.
[24:00.280 -> 24:03.400] But as Scott alluded to,
[24:03.400 -> 24:05.880] that wasn't even De Vries' first incident of the day, because
[24:05.880 -> 24:08.000] he crashed into a lock on earlier on.
[24:08.000 -> 24:11.280] But yes, no, there's no defense for that.
[24:11.280 -> 24:12.840] So that's the easiest one.
[24:12.840 -> 24:14.880] I think he was probably just...
[24:14.880 -> 24:17.040] Seriously, I actually didn't probably know what happened.
[24:17.040 -> 24:21.880] He saw all the smoke and carnage over to his right, and was probably distracted and missed
[24:21.880 -> 24:22.880] his braking point.
[24:22.880 -> 24:26.400] Yeah, and also I'm sure we could say that the concertina effect
[24:26.400 -> 24:29.480] was exaggerated because of all the incidents up ahead.
[24:29.480 -> 24:31.540] And that kind of, you know, that gets more severe
[24:31.540 -> 24:33.380] the further back you go.
[24:33.380 -> 24:36.940] But I think some of the more interesting ones are up ahead.
[24:36.940 -> 24:39.320] And the reason, by the way, I think it wasn't penalized
[24:39.320 -> 24:41.640] is interesting in itself.
[24:41.640 -> 24:43.920] Because of the incidents we're going to talk about today
[24:43.920 -> 24:49.940] in this little who's fault is it?, it certainly wasn't the mildest. But I think if we go to the most
[24:49.940 -> 24:56.000] heinous one, I'm going to ask Matt, in your completely unbiased, non-fanboy opinion, in
[24:56.000 -> 25:00.780] the collision between Esteban Ocon, a driver who you love, admire and defend to the hilt,
[25:00.780 -> 25:07.280] and Pierre Gasly, whose fault do you think that incident was? It was Alonso for turning into signs.
[25:07.280 -> 25:12.000] Yeah, that kind of turning into signs. Okay, well you skipped ahead a little bit.
[25:12.000 -> 25:15.720] Sorry, I couldn't help. I couldn't resist. If we're only going to talk about those two,
[25:15.720 -> 25:22.120] I mean, and I really tried to be neutral as possible about it, but the moment I saw it,
[25:22.120 -> 25:26.080] it was on Gasly. He was re-entering the track, Alkan gave him
[25:26.080 -> 25:30.760] extra room, and he just drifted all the way across to the other side, not realizing his
[25:30.760 -> 25:35.140] teammate was there. And I know there are certain people who feel otherwise, and you're welcome
[25:35.140 -> 25:40.740] to be wrong about this. You're entitled to your opinion. No gatekeeping here, as we say.
[25:40.740 -> 25:45.520] But really, if you watch it, and if you listen to the commentators describe it, and frankly,
[25:45.520 -> 25:51.440] if you look at the body language of the drivers afterwards, it's pretty clear that Gasly got
[25:51.440 -> 25:58.000] the blame internally for this, and that he's fortunate it was his teammate and not another
[25:58.000 -> 25:59.680] team that this happened with.
[25:59.680 -> 26:05.880] Well, Stuffy, he's very lucky, because that was, it was actually a pretty wild rejoin.
[26:05.880 -> 26:08.840] It's like, you stream iRacing,
[26:08.840 -> 26:12.600] and that was straight out of a kind of
[26:12.600 -> 26:15.300] public iRacing lobby rejoin.
[26:15.300 -> 26:17.780] It did look like a number of official races
[26:17.780 -> 26:20.880] or weekly races that I participate in on the regular.
[26:20.880 -> 26:23.240] Every single one of your videos, basically.
[26:23.240 -> 26:25.200] Yeah, quite a few of them.
[26:27.700 -> 26:30.780] Yeah, it was it's 100% Ghazali's fault. He massively locked up going into the first corner before
[26:30.800 -> 26:32.700] Alonso was even touched by signs,
[26:33.300 -> 26:37.380] which kind of really caused Perez to take a void in action
[26:37.400 -> 26:40.400] and then the Logan sergeant to hit Nick DeVries.
[26:40.900 -> 26:43.300] But if you actually watch the replays,
[26:43.500 -> 26:46.920] the reason why it's totally Ghazali's fault is that he's looking in his
[26:46.920 -> 26:47.560] left-hand mirror.
[26:48.040 -> 26:50.960] He's not even looking, he's not expecting anyone to come on his
[26:50.960 -> 26:54.560] right-hand side and you can't blame Ocon who's got a, who's
[26:54.560 -> 26:59.280] actually got through the carnage and has got a much better drive
[26:59.280 -> 27:00.540] to swoop around the outside.
[27:00.540 -> 27:02.320] It's just Ghazali not checking his mirrors.
[27:02.520 -> 27:08.480] And I think that's why Ocon was with the whole scenario of the restart anyway, I think he was a little bit like,
[27:08.480 -> 27:13.440] eh, yeah, that's one that he's probably been given a little bit of a telling off.
[27:13.440 -> 27:18.400] Yeah, I bet. And it's a shame for Gasly, Alex, because he was having a really good race,
[27:18.400 -> 27:24.960] but you can't rejoin, go the width of the track and take out your teammate and not have it be
[27:24.960 -> 27:25.840] your fault and not
[27:25.840 -> 27:30.480] expect a bit of a shooing when you get back to the garage. Yeah so he's gone off and he's come on in
[27:30.480 -> 27:34.560] the middle of the corner in the middle of the circuit when he probably should have stayed tight
[27:34.560 -> 27:40.960] to the inside of the track but the other big error wasn't necessarily also compounding with
[27:40.960 -> 27:45.600] the fact that he was looking in only one mirror is is he was drifting off to the right-hand side.
[27:45.600 -> 27:50.560] Now, one thing every race driver knows is that if you're slow in a pack,
[27:50.560 -> 27:52.880] you stay as straight as possible.
[27:52.880 -> 27:55.680] You have to be predictable so people don't run into you.
[27:55.680 -> 27:59.440] And he just wandered off to the right of the circuit.
[27:59.440 -> 28:02.880] And Ocon just...
[28:02.880 -> 28:07.440] If I want to be critical of Ocon just because Matt's in the room.
[28:07.440 -> 28:14.080] I don't come on. There is another pedal in the car. He already lifted it.
[28:14.080 -> 28:19.680] And Ocon could have got out of it but I don't think Gasly gave him much of a chance.
[28:19.680 -> 28:27.000] And where Matt talks about the body language of the two drivers, Ocon had a wry smile
[28:27.000 -> 28:28.940] and Gazza looked like he was about to cry.
[28:28.940 -> 28:31.000] But I think the reason Gazza looked like he was about to cry
[28:31.000 -> 28:33.600] was he knew he was going to be heading off to the stewards
[28:33.600 -> 28:35.520] and he has 10 points on his license.
[28:35.520 -> 28:38.100] But Stuffy, he's got 10 points on his license,
[28:38.100 -> 28:39.940] completely got away with that.
[28:39.940 -> 28:42.040] I cannot think of any similar incident
[28:42.040 -> 28:42.880] that has not been penalized.
[28:42.880 -> 28:44.240] If it wasn't against his teammate.
[28:44.240 -> 28:47.360] Why was it? It doesn't matter. Does it matter? When it comes to driving standards, Stuffy,
[28:47.360 -> 28:51.760] and the points that are meant to protect driving standards, how has he gotten away
[28:51.760 -> 28:55.360] without any penalty points and subsequently a race ban?
[28:56.240 -> 29:01.360] Because Otmar got down on his knees and begged, please, please don't give him a race ban.
[29:01.360 -> 29:05.200] Because if he got a penalty for this it would have meant he would
[29:05.200 -> 29:10.800] have been not able to race in Baku. But yeah I don't understand the whole oh it's against your
[29:10.800 -> 29:16.960] teammate. The first person every driver wants to beat is their teammate. And you get more leeway
[29:16.960 -> 29:26.640] to hit him. Exactly what does it matter? But I think overall this restart just I've seen lots of comments saying that you can't
[29:26.640 -> 29:29.840] deny the driving standards at the restart were shocking.
[29:29.840 -> 29:34.040] But I've seen people say these are the best drivers in the world, which arguably they
[29:34.040 -> 29:35.040] are.
[29:35.040 -> 29:39.840] But at the end of the day, this is a scenario that a number of them were thinking, I can
[29:39.840 -> 29:43.880] take an opportunity here to steal some points that were never on the cards for me.
[29:43.880 -> 29:44.880] Or a podium.
[29:44.880 -> 29:45.600] Yeah, or a podium, me. Or a podium.
[29:50.720 -> 29:55.920] Exactly, or a podium. And they kept their foot in it. And that's why we saw the incidents that we did. Because guys were thinking it was pretty much a race to turn three, to be honest. Because
[29:55.920 -> 30:01.280] without no DRS, wherever you were in turn three was more than likely where you was going to finish
[30:01.280 -> 30:04.160] the race. So that's why the first corner was so essential.
[30:03.240 -> 30:04.200] where he was going to finish the race. So that's why the first corner was so essential.
[30:04.400 -> 30:04.720] Matt.
[30:05.920 -> 30:11.680] Yeah, I just, you know, wanted to get in there. One more time
[30:11.920 -> 30:15.360] with the restart. And and I know we're talking about Gasly
[30:15.360 -> 30:18.360] having a good race, I just felt the need to point out that
[30:18.360 -> 30:23.080] Ocon, whose strategy got absolutely ruined by the red
[30:23.080 -> 30:25.840] flag, was actually behind his
[30:25.840 -> 30:28.840] teammate when they pitted him, and came from P15 to
[30:28.880 -> 30:32.040] essentially make it back into the points in a race where
[30:32.040 -> 30:35.520] overtaking wasn't easy. I think both the Alpines had a good
[30:35.520 -> 30:38.640] race. And I think one thing that's very interesting is their
[30:38.640 -> 30:43.680] car overall was pretty quick here. So I'm liking what I'm
[30:43.680 -> 30:46.040] seeing overall for the team, minus them
[30:46.040 -> 30:50.280] both being out of the race due to crashing each other. Go on Alex.
[30:50.280 -> 30:52.280] Matt at my point.
[30:52.280 -> 30:53.280] Okay, fair enough.
[30:53.280 -> 30:58.680] I'll just give some, I will hop on Matt's hype there of Ocon because he did arguably
[30:58.680 -> 31:04.160] make one of the best overtakes of the day on Oscar Piastri through the kink. I can't
[31:04.160 -> 31:06.720] remember what turns they are, but
[31:06.720 -> 31:11.200] it was very impressive, them going side by side through there and him sweeping around
[31:11.200 -> 31:15.860] the outside. So yeah, the Alpines did look impressive today. And it's just the fact of
[31:15.860 -> 31:20.100] seeing both of them not finish isn't really that either of them deserve because they both
[31:20.100 -> 31:21.100] had good days.
[31:21.100 -> 31:30.000] Yeah. So I just want to jump in real quick because I've now remembered the point I actually wanted to make, which is that they've changed the penalty points. And I think one big
[31:30.000 -> 31:35.680] reason, although you would never admit it, that Gasly didn't get penalized today is because a lot
[31:35.680 -> 31:40.480] of his penalty points were for things they're not giving penalty points for anymore. I just
[31:40.480 -> 31:46.000] wanted to mention that. What this start showed was it gave the
[31:46.920 -> 31:53.000] the TV the sports entertainment that they wanted which is give drivers the desperation of
[31:53.520 -> 31:55.720] laps to make up time and
[31:56.720 -> 32:01.160] You know people will break a little bit later to try and make that extra move onto the inside
[32:01.160 -> 32:06.480] But you think they learn we often have collisions on this track at
[32:06.480 -> 32:12.160] that first section of track. You'd think they'd learn but Redmist settles in. I can make up an
[32:12.160 -> 32:16.480] extra couple of points. To be fair, the biggest winners from all of this was McLaren because
[32:16.480 -> 32:21.920] McLaren have jumped to fifth in the Constructors' Championship. Redmist, you say. Like Carlos Sainz,
[32:21.920 -> 32:26.280] the remaining Ferrari on track goes in there and takes out
[32:26.280 -> 32:33.640] the coveted and protected and much-loved Fernando Alonso. How dare he smite him? He gets 12
[32:33.640 -> 32:39.920] penalty points straight away. It was a harsh penalty. I've never seen someone go through
[32:39.920 -> 32:46.000] the seven stages of grief so quickly, but get stuck on bargaining. So absolutely, as
[32:46.000 -> 32:51.400] Carlos Sainz did, it was one of the most... Like, if you're the TV director, at some point
[32:51.400 -> 32:57.680] you've got to stop broadcasting that, because Sainz just seemed broken. He seemed distraught.
[32:57.680 -> 33:03.960] And whilst I do think it's a little bit of a harsh penalty, I think that if Alonso was
[33:03.960 -> 33:05.360] looking to his right, he could have used a little bit more room harsh penalty. I think that if Alonso was looking to his right, he could
[33:05.360 -> 33:09.800] have used a little bit more room on his left and allowed that a little bit more. But it
[33:09.800 -> 33:16.320] is on Carlos Sainz to not hit the car on the outside. So I see why it could be a penalty.
[33:16.320 -> 33:20.560] But the result of that penalty was to drop him all the way out of the points. If you're
[33:20.560 -> 33:27.400] the TV director, at some point with that pleading, you just have to stop broadcasting it just for the protection of those drivers.
[33:27.400 -> 33:36.400] Alex, it was desperate stuff. I still feel like that penalty, whilst it was his fault, I feel like it was harsh.
[33:36.400 -> 33:40.800] Now, you kind of briefly mentioned that Alonso could maybe avoid it.
[33:40.800 -> 33:48.880] Now, we all know here how much I love Fernando Alonso. No, Alonso is the opposite
[33:48.880 -> 33:54.800] of that isn't it? But yeah, unfortunately I can't put anything on Alonso to even avoid that because
[33:54.800 -> 34:01.120] he wouldn't have even seen it coming. If you watch the amount that he doesn't, that science
[34:01.120 -> 34:06.240] doesn't decelerate into that corner compared to everybody else he misses but
[34:06.240 -> 34:11.760] he was taking an opportunity he either missed the braking point or chanced it on cold tires and just
[34:11.760 -> 34:16.640] ran into the back of Alonso to be fair every single person that ended up going off after that safety
[34:16.640 -> 34:23.600] car is science's fault so i originally said the penalty that science got he shouldn't have got
[34:23.600 -> 34:27.440] because they rolled everything back readjusted the positions so he shouldn't have got the penalty that Sainz got, he shouldn't have got because they rolled everything back, readjusted the positions, so he
[34:27.440 -> 34:30.400] shouldn't have got the penalty. However, considering the
[34:30.400 -> 34:34.320] carnage that he caused, he had to be given a penalty for that.
[34:34.600 -> 34:38.280] And not finishing in the points is probably justified.
[34:38.960 -> 34:41.200] I don't know what to do here. There's two things that I have
[34:41.200 -> 34:42.760] to fix with what Alex just said.
[34:42.760 -> 34:43.680] Fix them both!
[34:44.080 -> 34:50.560] All right, fine. Let's start with Alonso. Alonso had room available to him that he chose not to use.
[34:50.560 -> 34:54.240] He wouldn't have seen him coming. He's in the rear of his car, he wouldn't have seen him coming.
[34:55.040 -> 35:03.280] And Alonso, an inexperienced junior racer with no experience of understeering through the first
[35:03.280 -> 35:05.120] turn on cold tires. Yeah, like he could, like this is my point, like understeering through the first turn on cold tyres.
[35:09.200 -> 35:14.400] Yeah, like he could, like this is my point, like if you look at him, but he didn't follow in Hamilton's wheel tracks, for example, he was a good scooch over to the right hand side,
[35:14.400 -> 35:18.160] and you know, it's lap one, it's turn one, it's cold tyres, Alex.
[35:18.160 -> 35:21.360] You're really going to make me defend Fernando Alonso?
[35:21.360 -> 35:22.160] Yes, I want to hear it.
[35:22.160 -> 35:26.240] Please, I don't want to. But no, Alonso would have
[35:26.240 -> 35:32.080] firmly had his eyes on Lewis Hamilton and not be looking out the back of his helmet to see a car
[35:32.080 -> 35:40.800] that isn't stopping in time for Turn 1. You cannot put any modicum of blame on Fernando Alonso,
[35:41.440 -> 35:45.240] however much I'd like to find a way to blame Fernando. Stuffy.
[35:45.240 -> 35:47.440] Yeah, just a quick one.
[35:47.440 -> 35:51.960] Alonso, actually, if you look at it back, I think he slightly got a better exit than
[35:51.960 -> 35:52.960] Hamilton.
[35:52.960 -> 35:57.920] So he was looking, the reason he could have had more room on the left, which I agree with,
[35:57.920 -> 36:04.120] the reason he didn't is because he's already looking at getting that swoop around Hamilton.
[36:04.120 -> 36:08.320] But, of course, science has come in a little bit too hot.
[36:08.320 -> 36:09.400] He hasn't locked up the wheels,
[36:09.400 -> 36:10.840] but he's gone in a little bit too hot.
[36:10.840 -> 36:12.600] And in that split moment,
[36:12.600 -> 36:14.280] probably thinks Alonso is going to take
[36:14.280 -> 36:15.560] the normal racing line.
[36:15.560 -> 36:16.660] It didn't happen.
[36:17.920 -> 36:19.600] The issue there is that,
[36:19.600 -> 36:21.000] I actually disagree with you, Alex.
[36:21.000 -> 36:23.480] I don't think Sainz caused all of that.
[36:23.480 -> 36:24.560] If you actually look at it,
[36:24.560 -> 36:28.640] Gasly's the one who causes it, because he caused the smoke from the big lockup, which
[36:28.640 -> 36:35.960] is why Logan went into the back of the breeze, as per your actual reasoning earlier. And
[36:35.960 -> 36:40.880] he caused the crash with Ocon. He actually, the others actually get rounds quite easily
[36:40.880 -> 36:45.240] because Alonso just slides or spins off out of everyone's path.
[36:45.640 -> 36:51.480] So I, I, why do I understand the move itself in, in particular
[36:51.480 -> 36:53.160] scenarios does warrant a penalty.
[36:53.900 -> 36:57.160] The fact of it, they've stated Gasly hasn't got a penalty because
[36:57.160 -> 36:58.560] it's a first accident.
[36:58.840 -> 37:00.560] Logan Sargent hasn't got a penalty.
[37:00.560 -> 37:01.760] They haven't even acknowledged it.
[37:02.200 -> 37:06.080] And then they've stayed in their reasoning.
[37:06.560 -> 37:13.760] Oh, well, normally we do give leniency on the first lap, but he wasn't the overall cause of
[37:13.760 -> 37:18.800] that incident. Signs actually got away with it quite clearly. And I totally understand why Signs
[37:19.360 -> 37:24.960] is crying. And him in the interviews afterwards with his Mourinho moment, I'd rather not speak,
[37:24.960 -> 37:28.600] I'd rather not say anything, was brilliant and justified.
[37:28.600 -> 37:31.000] You forget he hit Alonso.
[37:31.000 -> 37:36.720] Well, Alonso is the poster boy for Formula One and maybe hurt Fernando's feelings.
[37:36.720 -> 37:40.840] Okay, I think we'll let Spanners have the next word on this one.
[37:40.840 -> 37:42.680] I think you're right, Alex.
[37:42.680 -> 37:48.960] I think Fernando Alonso is the man of the moment and he's really good for F1's publicity and he's shaking
[37:48.960 -> 37:54.320] it up. Aston Martin going to the grid, a former world champion back up there fighting. I honestly
[37:54.320 -> 38:00.000] think it's harder to give a penalty to Fernando Alonso and Aston Martin right now for that reason.
[38:00.000 -> 38:03.920] It's the Man United effect, it's the Michael Jordan effect. Not going to dwell on this,
[38:03.920 -> 38:05.200] all I'm going to say is,
[38:05.200 -> 38:07.760] let's just keep an eye on this throughout the season,
[38:07.760 -> 38:13.280] and let's see how many penalty decisions, rulings, go in Alonso's favour,
[38:13.280 -> 38:19.760] because the next thing that upset me was the whole way the countback was sorted out.
[38:19.760 -> 38:24.080] After all that crashing, you had Yuki Tsunoda popping up into fourth place,
[38:24.080 -> 38:25.040] Perez had lost
[38:25.040 -> 38:31.440] positions, Alonso was back in P11, and they just did a full redo and a do-over, Scott.
[38:31.440 -> 38:37.380] And I don't understand why none of that stuff that happened is acknowledged anymore. It's
[38:37.380 -> 38:42.520] all gone. None of that happened except for the cars that retired. And I just don't feel
[38:42.520 -> 38:45.280] like you can undo racing action. And if it was
[38:45.280 -> 38:50.080] the end of the race and there was a countback, there's precedent for that. But just to kind of go
[38:50.080 -> 38:56.240] nah, let's do a do-over, everybody go back to where they were, that sucked for me.
[38:57.680 -> 39:02.880] Yeah, it was also how long it took them to make that decision and inform everyone as well.
[39:02.880 -> 39:09.040] Everyone was waiting around forever. The last five, six laps felt like they took an hour to complete.
[39:09.040 -> 39:10.160] I think they did.
[39:10.720 -> 39:14.720] Everyone, yeah, because everyone was just waiting for them to make a decision. They
[39:15.920 -> 39:22.560] didn't even... What makes me... What really riles me up about these scenarios we've seen is that
[39:27.080 -> 39:28.080] me up about these scenarios we've seen is that they don't seem to have planned scenarios in place.
[39:28.080 -> 39:33.120] They don't, I mean, maybe they do, and it's difficult to plan for every single scenario
[39:33.120 -> 39:34.120] outcome.
[39:34.120 -> 39:35.120] They're hiding it very well if they do.
[39:35.120 -> 39:39.520] Yeah, it just, even so, you'd be able to take elements from different scenarios and make
[39:39.520 -> 39:42.160] an informed decision, especially a lot quicker than they have.
[39:42.160 -> 39:47.280] But I think, I mean, the comments from Alonso after the race of, uh,
[39:47.780 -> 39:51.780] saying Lewis Hamilton defended like a champion, he raced like a champion
[39:51.780 -> 39:56.560] after slating him and making more digs in the week, I think just indicates.
[39:57.200 -> 40:01.180] He's a smart man, Alonso, and just indicates how lucky he knows he probably
[40:01.180 -> 40:06.220] is with that count back decision because otherwise he would have finished outside the points.
[40:06.220 -> 40:10.380] But it's, I think overall it's the right decision because they
[40:10.440 -> 40:13.460] couldn't quite pinpoint, they didn't get through the first
[40:13.460 -> 40:16.500] sector, I think it was, and there was the mini sectors.
[40:16.740 -> 40:20.040] And I actually think DeVries and Logan Sargent, because they
[40:20.040 -> 40:22.820] crashed off into the gravel actually made it very difficult
[40:22.820 -> 40:26.000] for them to identify where everyone was
[40:26.560 -> 40:31.200] at the end of the first mini sector which was kind of the only relevant point that they had so
[40:31.200 -> 40:35.840] I just had to go back to the start line which was yeah very confusing for everyone. Genesy!
[40:35.840 -> 40:42.560] They don't do it on mini sectors they do it based on the first sector and by the time the red flag
[40:42.560 -> 40:45.760] was thrown not even Max had got to the first sector yet had got to the end of the first sector. And by the time the red flag was thrown, not even Max had got to the
[40:45.760 -> 40:50.760] first sector yet. Had got to the end of the first sector yet. So he couldn't do anything
[40:50.760 -> 40:54.920] about it. And I feel like what they should have done, as far as I'm concerned, they had
[40:54.920 -> 40:59.680] two options, which is roll the laps back and put them back in the order that they were
[40:59.680 -> 41:04.840] before the race started, or don't roll it back and keep the order that they entered
[41:04.840 -> 41:05.200] the pits
[41:05.200 -> 41:06.200] in.
[41:06.200 -> 41:10.640] Yeah, or the order that they would have lined up behind the safety car for. And that would
[41:10.640 -> 41:16.560] to me, yeah, that for me would have kept that racing alive, because it's almost like, well,
[41:16.560 -> 41:20.800] you go, okay, well, all that racing you did in the first couple of laps, you know, doesn't
[41:20.800 -> 41:25.840] count because we're resetting it. So you kind of, you can go into that
[41:32.000 -> 41:37.040] Red Flag restart map with just more, like, abandon, because you can be Lance Stroll and you can stuff it all by yourself after gaining four laps and then just go straight on in turn three,
[41:37.040 -> 41:42.160] and then you get a redo. Both Aston Martins get a do-over. Like, ah.
[41:42.160 -> 41:45.960] So, first of all, Fernando Alonso has gone and joined a team
[41:45.960 -> 41:50.760] that has probably more sway or as much sway
[41:50.760 -> 41:54.040] as either Mercedes or Red Bull do,
[41:54.040 -> 41:56.280] and are being protected because they
[41:56.280 -> 42:00.600] are seen as the next big team to come through and challenge
[42:00.600 -> 42:01.240] for the top.
[42:01.240 -> 42:02.760] So maybe they're being protected.
[42:02.760 -> 42:07.760] So to see Alonso go spinning, and then Lance Troll just drive off the circuit.
[42:07.760 -> 42:08.920] I mean, it's not even like he went off
[42:08.920 -> 42:11.280] in a glory thing of, in glory of fire smoke.
[42:11.280 -> 42:13.240] It was so unnecessary.
[42:13.240 -> 42:14.920] Locking up and flying off into the gravel.
[42:14.920 -> 42:17.920] He just drove slowly off the track.
[42:17.920 -> 42:19.160] Maybe his hand still hurts.
[42:19.160 -> 42:20.640] Matt.
[42:20.640 -> 42:22.840] When it certainly has nothing to do with the fact
[42:22.840 -> 42:25.160] that the Saudis are big sponsors of Aston
[42:25.160 -> 42:28.000] and also of Formula One as a whole.
[42:28.000 -> 42:30.560] I'm sure that has nothing to do with that whatsoever.
[42:30.560 -> 42:32.360] But I digress.
[42:32.360 -> 42:39.360] The problem for the FIA is that GPS is inadequate to the task of determining where the drivers
[42:39.360 -> 42:40.360] are.
[42:40.360 -> 42:41.720] They need a timing loop.
[42:41.720 -> 42:47.120] And as Haas pointed out, they had one, the second safety car line, and they filed a
[42:47.120 -> 42:53.960] protest, which was accepted, did Haas, about that. And upon looking at it, the stewards essentially
[42:53.960 -> 42:58.640] said the following thing, well, you know what, you've got a real point here. But given the time
[42:58.640 -> 43:07.840] constraints, and given the wording in the regulations, which is the last place all the positions can definitively been be known. The
[43:07.840 -> 43:11.840] race directors under that time constraint made a reasonable
[43:11.840 -> 43:16.000] decision to use that data and therefore we are disallowing
[43:16.000 -> 43:20.400] your protest. So they actually got it right here annoyingly
[43:20.400 -> 43:23.520] enough for almost everybody who wanted something different to
[43:23.520 -> 43:29.000] happen. Let's be honest. Haas only protested because they wanted to get Hulkenberg his first podium.
[43:29.000 -> 43:35.000] Because if the rollback didn't happen, and Carlos signs his penalty, he would have finished third.
[43:35.000 -> 43:38.000] But Hulkenberg, would he have wanted it that way?
[43:38.000 -> 43:43.000] Yes, absolutely. After all that he's been through, yes, he absolutely wants it.
[43:43.000 -> 43:45.840] However, I believe this whole safety car
[43:45.840 -> 43:54.080] line or sector one stuff is rubbish they have live trackers on the cars they know where the cars are
[43:54.080 -> 43:58.080] at every single second of the race unless it's first practice and it all falls down and they
[43:58.080 -> 44:06.960] don't know where anybody is but they know where the drivers are, so they could just stop it, pause it, and go, right, this is where everybody was. Off you go.
[44:06.960 -> 44:08.480] Matt, shaking your head?
[44:09.280 -> 44:13.920] Yeah, well, and I've mentioned this in chat elsewhere, I actually was privileged to see
[44:14.480 -> 44:19.760] an adjudication of a photo finish in a bike race back in the day. And what I can tell you is the
[44:19.760 -> 44:27.080] GPS is not adequate for separating cars by a thousandth of a second, and neither is the
[44:27.080 -> 44:28.440] video the circuit has.
[44:28.440 -> 44:32.880] And in fact, the GPS is so bad that the reason we had the safety car in Saudi Arabia last
[44:32.880 -> 44:37.160] week is they couldn't find Lance Stroll on the circuit with all of the video they had
[44:37.160 -> 44:38.160] available.
[44:38.160 -> 44:39.560] It's got to be the timing loops.
[44:39.560 -> 44:43.800] Those are the only accurate representations of the order of the cars.
[44:43.800 -> 44:45.220] They have a timing loop every
[44:45.220 -> 44:48.820] 200 meters with the mini sectors. Yeah. So they know where
[44:48.820 -> 44:53.620] everybody is every 200 meters. My main concern with all of this though is it is
[44:53.620 -> 45:00.400] open to abuse and it is open to a bias because you can throw a red flag
[45:00.400 -> 45:06.200] straight away. What's the purpose of a red flag, a safety car and full course
[45:06.200 -> 45:10.260] yellows? It's to make sure that cars aren't going past the scene of an accident fast.
[45:10.260 -> 45:15.940] So all of those incidents happened into turn one, turn two and then Stroll in sympathy
[45:15.940 -> 45:22.240] drove off at turn three and parked it. But by the time you needed to make a decision,
[45:22.240 -> 45:25.520] everyone's gone past all of those incident points. So you do a full
[45:25.520 -> 45:30.640] double-waved yellow, a full course yellow, and everything's safe. You call a red flag immediately,
[45:30.640 -> 45:36.240] you can dictate that the drivers who've lost out immediately, like Alonso, will get their place
[45:36.240 -> 45:40.800] back by saying, well, we red flagged it immediately, therefore we have to roll it back. But you could
[45:40.800 -> 45:46.440] just as easily do a full course yellow, slow down, then after sector one you could say,
[45:46.440 -> 45:51.920] okay, safety car, so that at least once they get back around we have the option to drive through the incidents
[45:52.280 -> 45:56.080] under the safety car, and then you could even wait all the way till sector two
[45:56.360 -> 46:04.320] before calling the red flag and say, everyone pit, red flag. And those different decisions, Matt, will result in very,
[46:06.600 -> 46:13.800] And those different decisions, Matt, will result in very, very different outcomes. One has Sonoda 5th, one has Hulkenberg near the podium, one has Alonso P11, one has Alonso
[46:13.800 -> 46:14.800] P3.
[46:14.800 -> 46:18.080] So it's open to a little bit of faff.
[46:18.080 -> 46:19.080] It is.
[46:19.080 -> 46:25.600] But having said that, I will say of the three red flags in the race, which is, by the way, a record for Formula 1,
[46:26.160 -> 46:31.440] the only one that was immediately and correctly justified was the one that was caused by the
[46:31.440 -> 46:37.600] Alpine incident. That was a clear red flag from the off, I think. And the only one that really
[46:37.600 -> 46:41.280] should have happened, which of course, without the others, we wouldn't have had that happen.
[46:41.280 -> 46:41.760] So I mean...
[46:41.760 -> 46:47.200] Oh no, no, this had to be a red flag. Absolutely. Oh my goodness. If anything was a red flag,
[46:47.200 -> 46:50.560] that by no means was a red flag. So I'm not disputing that. I'm just saying,
[46:50.560 -> 46:54.320] you don't have to call a red flag straight away because full-course yellow does the job
[46:54.320 -> 46:58.320] to start with. Safety card then also gives you more options and then you can choose to red flag
[46:58.320 -> 47:03.840] or not. But the timing of that decision tree changes the result massively.
[47:05.000 -> 47:10.280] That decision tree changes the result massively. Which is why it needs to be its own thing and transparent about how these decisions
[47:10.280 -> 47:12.080] are going to be made.
[47:12.080 -> 47:17.540] And you know, given past precedent, Silverstone and stuff like that, it was within the boundaries
[47:17.540 -> 47:22.940] of what one might expect, as disappointing as it was to the many fans of the drivers
[47:22.940 -> 47:28.320] who lost out.
[47:28.320 -> 47:33.120] On to the racing action, the first driver to completely stuff it in this year's Australian
[47:33.120 -> 47:40.360] Grand Prix was Charles Leclerc in an incident with Lance Stroll. But whose fault was it?
[47:40.360 -> 47:43.480] Van Gene, Alex, Gene's Van Gene. Who?
[47:43.480 -> 47:46.160] Charles Leclerc. And it's hard for me to say it's Charlotte
[47:46.160 -> 47:52.080] Clare because again it's against Lance Stroll which means I have to defend another driver that I don't like.
[47:52.080 -> 47:58.000] Lance Stroll was behind by the time they made contact. Hit the rear of...
[47:58.000 -> 48:04.400] Charlotte just came across. Unfortunately there's not much more in it and obviously whenever there
[48:04.400 -> 48:08.880] is an incident involving Lance Stroll, I always want to blame Lance.
[48:08.880 -> 48:11.680] Yeah, I'm trying my best, but you're getting in my way. Stuffy,
[48:11.680 -> 48:16.560] Stroll was from behind and just hit Leclerc. Stroll, Stroll with those mirrors again, right?
[48:18.320 -> 48:23.920] I initially thought that was the case, because I thought he does move over ever so slightly to
[48:23.920 -> 48:27.040] the middle of the track. But after watching the replays, yeah,
[48:27.040 -> 48:28.720] Charles is trying to sweep around the outside
[48:28.720 -> 48:31.040] and he just turns in a touch too early.
[48:31.040 -> 48:34.680] But Charles Leclerc, he looks a broken man at the moment.
[48:34.680 -> 48:35.560] He looked desperate, didn't he?
[48:35.560 -> 48:36.400] It was desperate.
[48:36.400 -> 48:38.400] He looks like he doesn't want to be,
[48:38.400 -> 48:40.980] he wants to be anywhere but in that Ferrari at the moment.
[48:40.980 -> 48:43.680] And I mean, there's even,
[48:43.680 -> 48:45.720] could he have tried a bit harder to
[48:45.720 -> 48:51.400] get that car out of the gravel? It looked like he kind of put his foot down on the throttle
[48:51.400 -> 48:54.680] and just went, nah, it's done. I don't even want to bother. I'm going to be at the back
[48:54.680 -> 48:57.640] of the grid and I don't want to be here this afternoon.
[48:57.640 -> 49:02.600] Stuffy, it's a real good point, man. I do wonder about the morale, Alex, because there's
[49:02.600 -> 49:05.200] a few things about Ferrari that make me think, you know,
[49:05.200 -> 49:11.280] it's either desperate or they've kind of mentally given into, yes, we're trying really hard,
[49:11.280 -> 49:17.280] but it's going to go wrong. And you look at Leclerc coming from behind against Lance Stroll there,
[49:17.280 -> 49:22.000] and doing a move that was almost guaranteed to get him taken out of the race. It's almost like, well,
[49:22.640 -> 49:24.960] if it's going to go wrong, it may as well go really wrong.
[49:21.420 -> 49:23.900] to get him taken out of the race. It's almost like, well, if it's going to go wrong,
[49:23.900 -> 49:26.740] it may as well go really wrong.
[49:26.740 -> 49:29.240] I think it's also got a lot to the fact that neither driver
[49:29.240 -> 49:31.260] are enjoying driving this car at the moment.
[49:31.260 -> 49:33.060] Last year, they had a very nice car
[49:33.060 -> 49:35.840] to drive that started off very, very fast
[49:35.840 -> 49:37.500] and gradually got slower.
[49:37.500 -> 49:41.100] And now they have a car that's not very fast and not
[49:41.100 -> 49:42.300] nice to drive.
[49:42.300 -> 49:44.660] And I think the drivers are having to overcompensate
[49:44.660 -> 49:45.540] with aggression. And unfortunately, the drivers are having to overcompensate with aggression.
[49:45.540 -> 49:47.600] And unfortunately, when you try and do that,
[49:47.600 -> 49:50.220] especially when Charles Leclerc doesn't have
[49:50.220 -> 49:53.280] the best reputation for not being crashy.
[49:53.280 -> 49:54.120] No, he's really crashy.
[49:54.120 -> 49:55.680] It's not going to be a good recipe.
[49:55.680 -> 49:57.980] And I actually think because of that,
[49:57.980 -> 50:02.980] I think Carlos, despite this third, 12th, 11th restart,
[50:03.860 -> 50:05.600] whatever it was, when he took out Fernando,
[50:06.560 -> 50:10.400] he's the less crashy of the two drivers. So I actually think Carlos might end up getting the
[50:10.400 -> 50:17.120] better of Charles this year. I agree with Stuffy and I think Charles wants out of Ferrari.
[50:17.120 -> 50:21.360] But what a choice if you're Ferrari, right? Who do you back now? The guy who just is just
[50:21.920 -> 50:25.200] far too far on the edge. Like Leclerc, that's always been the criticism,
[50:25.200 -> 50:30.640] isn't it? Like does he have the most Friday free practice crashes of any top team driver?
[50:30.640 -> 50:36.400] It's got to be up there and he's just... Sorry, I don't think that's the stat, but what is a stat
[50:36.400 -> 50:47.000] was last year Max Verstappen had more wins than when Charles Leclerc was on pole than Charles Leclerc had wins when he was on pole.
[50:47.000 -> 50:48.000] Yeah, stuffy.
[50:49.000 -> 50:51.000] Yeah, I don't think...
[50:51.000 -> 50:55.000] Carlos Sainz is holding face, or saving face, a little bit more
[50:55.000 -> 50:58.000] in front of the media than Charles Leclerc.
[50:58.000 -> 51:01.000] Carlos Sainz is kind of towing the PR line.
[51:01.000 -> 51:04.000] Yeah, we know we're not as quick, but we're plugging away,
[51:04.000 -> 51:25.840] we're trying to do well. Maybe that's because he can see internally that things are maybe more in There is not good morale in that team. And even though Fred Fasore has come in,
[51:25.840 -> 51:30.560] obviously he's taken over Bonotto's kind of car and team.
[51:30.560 -> 51:33.120] He's got work on his hands to try
[51:33.120 -> 51:35.200] and keep Leclerc at Ferrari.
[51:35.200 -> 51:38.120] I mean, who knows where he could even go,
[51:38.120 -> 51:41.240] but who wouldn't want to take a Charles Leclerc?
[51:42.040 -> 51:45.680] Oh, yeah, no, he's not going to be short of options, I'm sure.
[51:45.680 -> 51:47.160] But Morgan in our live chat, Matt,
[51:47.160 -> 51:49.960] just said there's something to be said for quiet quitting.
[51:49.960 -> 51:52.360] Have you heard that phenomenon in modern business?
[51:52.360 -> 51:54.720] Quiet quitting, where you just do the bare minimum
[51:54.720 -> 51:56.560] to get through and just pick up your check
[51:56.560 -> 51:58.280] because mentally you've checked out.
[51:58.280 -> 52:00.120] I'm not sure that that's inaccurate.
[52:00.120 -> 52:01.320] We've all been there.
[52:01.320 -> 52:01.880] I've done it.
[52:01.880 -> 52:03.480] How dare those employees just simply
[52:03.480 -> 52:05.840] do the job they're contracted for and nothing else
[52:05.840 -> 52:06.840] for free.
[52:06.840 -> 52:07.840] But, but, darn them.
[52:07.840 -> 52:12.320] But for Ferrari, for both those drivers, they saw this as a potentially championship challenging
[52:12.320 -> 52:17.380] season where their rival was potentially their, their biggest rival, and it's not worked out
[52:17.380 -> 52:18.460] like that at all.
[52:18.460 -> 52:22.000] They're really fighting for seventh and eighth, and I think they're going to be fighting for
[52:22.000 -> 52:24.840] seventh and eighth for the rest of the season.
[52:24.840 -> 52:27.320] I don't know about that.
[52:27.320 -> 52:29.240] Just well, I will tell you a story.
[52:29.240 -> 52:30.240] I'm Charles LaFleur.
[52:30.240 -> 52:31.240] Oh my God, how real is that?
[52:31.240 -> 52:35.320] I will take it that we will put on our tinfoil hats and say that he just didn't really try
[52:35.320 -> 52:39.900] that hard to get out because he just couldn't handle how bad the Ferrari is, and watches
[52:39.900 -> 52:47.240] his teammate Carlos Sainz get pitted early, shunted back to 11th, and then in the car
[52:47.240 -> 52:52.200] that he thinks is no good, drive his way all the way to a podium that was only denied because
[52:52.200 -> 52:58.960] the FIA have some sort of super secret agreement with Aston Martin we don't yet know about.
[52:58.960 -> 53:06.080] I'm saying the Ferrari with basically no aerodynamic updates, was a reasonably competitive car,
[53:06.080 -> 53:11.720] and importantly, in the race. You didn't see Carlos Sainz lose his tires 10 laps from the
[53:11.720 -> 53:17.240] end and fall off the pace, did we? They've made progress with this. They're going to make more
[53:17.240 -> 53:25.240] progress with this. And, you know, I think there's something to be said for Sainz maybe not being as fast as Leclerc,
[53:25.240 -> 53:29.600] but this may be a season where his consistency advantages him a lot.
[53:29.600 -> 53:33.440] Stuffy, the man with the golden gear shift panels, what's your take?
[53:33.440 -> 53:33.680] Orange.
[53:33.680 -> 53:50.880] I think there might be a little bit of a spoiled attitude with him, thinking he should be fighting for a world championship. He knows he's as fast
[53:50.880 -> 53:55.600] as Max Verstappen, as Lewis Hamilton. He wants to be fighting for a championship and wins.
[53:55.600 -> 53:59.200] He's at a point in his career now where he's been at Ferrari for a good few years.
[54:00.080 -> 54:04.560] Maybe there's a little bit of entitlement there that podiums aren't good enough for him, because
[54:02.640 -> 54:07.920] maybe there's a little bit of entitlement there that podiums aren't good enough for him because he's in a car that can't win the championship.
[54:07.920 -> 54:14.480] So what is kind of the point is, as they say, it's a win at all costs type attitude.
[54:18.160 -> 54:22.480] Yeah, I think so. And I think that's kind of what it is at the moment. And I think there's
[54:22.480 -> 54:26.960] a little bit of like, I should have had an opportunity to win the championship last year and fight for it.
[54:26.960 -> 54:30.200] I didn't because a number of strategy calls,
[54:30.200 -> 54:31.280] don't think that the car anyway.
[54:31.280 -> 54:33.080] And then this year he's turned up
[54:33.080 -> 54:34.600] and he's absolutely nowhere.
[54:34.600 -> 54:37.120] And he's sitting there watching Max go off into the distance
[54:37.120 -> 54:38.000] and already thinking.
[54:38.000 -> 54:38.840] He's hurting.
[54:38.840 -> 54:39.680] Wow.
[54:39.680 -> 54:40.500] He's hurting.
[54:40.500 -> 54:41.340] Yeah, I think he's hurting.
[54:41.340 -> 54:43.160] And I think he's just thinking, why am I even turning up?
[54:43.160 -> 54:44.000] What's the point?
[54:44.000 -> 54:45.200] I agree. Alex?
[54:45.920 -> 54:52.160] I need to clarify a little bit on Stuffy's point about Shiloh Club being as fast as Max and Lewis.
[54:52.160 -> 54:59.600] The problem is on a single lap, probably, maybe definitely as fast as Lewis and Max.
[54:59.600 -> 55:04.480] But I think over the course of a race, he's not disciplined enough.
[55:04.960 -> 55:05.560] He makes too many mistakes. That's the one. I think over the course of a race, he's not disciplined enough. Oh yeah.
[55:05.560 -> 55:06.560] He makes too many mistakes.
[55:06.560 -> 55:07.560] That's the one.
[55:07.560 -> 55:09.040] That's the one, yes.
[55:09.040 -> 55:14.160] And that's the difference between being a fast racing driver and a good racing driver.
[55:14.160 -> 55:19.080] But as Wes states in the chat, the good news for Charles Leclerc is the next race is Baku,
[55:19.080 -> 55:20.920] where he never has any problems.
[55:20.920 -> 55:21.920] Into the castle.
[55:21.920 -> 55:22.920] I am stupid.
[55:22.920 -> 55:27.880] Okay, so yes, we as well-wishers to Charles
[55:27.880 -> 55:31.920] Leclerc, which I actually, I think most people are, he's a very likable guy, but you know,
[55:31.920 -> 55:35.760] most people were hoping that he would have come through the phase that Lewis Hamilton
[55:35.760 -> 55:39.920] and Max Verstappen have both been through where they were barging into everyone and
[55:39.920 -> 56:08.540] making a lot of mistakes. Charles Leclerc is far enough along the line now that we do want consistency and one driver that I think is delivering consistency is George Russell. a fun way to win up to 25 times your money this basketball season? Test your skills on Prize Picks, the most exciting way to play Daily Fantasy Sports.
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[57:03.360 -> 57:09.880] So my personal fan allegiances, which I love to bear here on Mr Apex Podcast, do not really
[57:09.880 -> 57:16.100] stretch to George Russell. My fan tingle has not been set off by Mr Russell, and I don't
[57:16.100 -> 57:20.760] see myself particularly supporting him in the way that I support Lewis Hamilton or Sergio
[57:20.760 -> 57:25.400] Perez. However, I don't even, by the way, think that he's on a level
[57:25.400 -> 57:32.640] with Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, say, in that raw top-top tier. But what is impressing
[57:32.640 -> 57:38.720] me about George Russell is the drumbeat consistency that he is delivering what he has. And that
[57:38.720 -> 57:48.840] might be enough in and of itself to be threatening. And what I like about that, what that's setting off in me, in my fan admiration
[57:49.120 -> 57:54.640] bones, is that it is reflective of an ethic, of a work ethic.
[57:54.680 -> 57:58.680] And I don't think you can deliver that consistency if you don't
[57:58.680 -> 58:00.480] go about your trade well.
[58:00.840 -> 58:02.080] And I can respect that, Alex.
[58:02.120 -> 58:06.320] I think George Russell is going about his trade well.
[58:07.120 -> 58:14.080] Absolutely, I mean I'm a big advocate of George ever since he was in the Williams and doing the
[58:14.080 -> 58:18.560] things that he was doing I could see that star quality. He's not and he's not the finished
[58:18.560 -> 58:25.440] article yet, he is brilliant, he is consistent as you said the drumbeat. He is matching his seven time record breaking
[58:25.440 -> 58:27.980] world champion teammate in Lewis Hamilton.
[58:28.980 -> 58:32.560] And he's doing the job that he absolutely should be doing.
[58:32.560 -> 58:36.320] And what's also great is his radio comments
[58:36.320 -> 58:39.200] are on the point as far as I'm concerned.
[58:39.200 -> 58:42.120] Everything he says, okay, sometimes comes across
[58:42.120 -> 58:43.340] a bit irate, but they're racing.
[58:43.340 -> 58:44.840] I have no issue with that.
[58:44.840 -> 58:45.400] No, but he's very much looking out for camp they're racing, I have no issue with that.
[58:45.400 -> 58:47.960] No, but he's very much looking out for Camp Rabbit.
[58:47.960 -> 58:52.280] Absolutely, he's looking after number one, and that's what they're all doing.
[58:52.280 -> 58:57.960] You know, like earlier in the race when they were telling him to preserve the tyres while
[58:57.960 -> 59:00.400] Lewis Hamilton is attacking him, and he's like, what do you want me to do?
[59:00.400 -> 59:02.880] Do you want me to preserve while my team-mate is attacking me?
[59:02.880 -> 59:03.880] Yeah, yeah.
[59:03.880 -> 59:04.880] Oh, hang on.
[59:04.880 -> 59:08.160] Alex, also, like, did he really think that at the beginning phase of a race in
[59:08.160 -> 59:11.200] the first five laps that Lewis Hamilton wasn't going to try and get past him?
[59:11.200 -> 59:16.000] That's him making a point to the team though, which is stop telling me what to do while you're
[59:16.000 -> 59:23.040] obviously not telling the dude behind me to back off. And I think, you know, even after
[59:23.600 -> 59:25.220] the call that ended up being the
[59:25.220 -> 59:28.880] wrong call for the pit stop, he still praised the team on actually that call.
[59:28.880 -> 59:32.120] What at the time was the right call to make, and it's the
[59:32.120 -> 59:34.300] call he wanted to be made.
[59:34.340 -> 59:40.240] I love his positivity and his assertion and his not wanting to blame anybody.
[59:40.520 -> 59:45.160] That kid is absolute star of now and a greater star of the future.
[59:45.880 -> 59:50.760] So if we're going to pinpoint where Russell really has the advantage over Lewis, I'm
[59:50.760 -> 59:53.120] going to say it's on the radio with his engineer.
[59:53.120 -> 59:59.640] He got Lewis's move ahead filibustered at Saudi Arabia, and he was immediately on it.
[59:59.840 -> 01:00:03.480] The team tell him once he's ahead of Lewis, he needs to manage his tires.
[01:00:03.800 -> 01:00:05.360] Lewis is close to him,
[01:00:05.360 -> 01:00:11.240] and he yells at them, even though he knows that there's no way they're going to tell Lewis not
[01:00:11.240 -> 01:00:15.640] to take the position if he has it. But I am going to disagree with you about something equally
[01:00:15.640 -> 01:00:20.880] important, which is that you said the team made the wrong call for him to put him on those hard
[01:00:20.880 -> 01:00:26.160] tires? No. Not only was that the right call for- I didn't say
[01:00:26.160 -> 01:00:29.200] it was the wrong call, I said it was the right call. Oh, you might be getting confused with me
[01:00:29.200 -> 01:00:32.080] earlier in the day, Matt, saying that I thought it was the wrong call. No, no, no, the call to
[01:00:32.080 -> 01:00:36.240] pit him under the safety car, under the out-of-bound crash, and those tires was the correct call. I
[01:00:36.240 -> 01:00:40.800] don't think so. It was. What? No, no, okay, fine. Absolutely. It was a winning, it was a race-winning
[01:00:40.800 -> 01:00:45.680] call. Wait, no, I don't think it was, because if you, under the safety car,
[01:00:45.680 -> 01:00:50.400] can get onto the fresher set of the next tyre that everyone's going to be on but a little bit early
[01:00:50.400 -> 01:00:57.040] and get the free stop and everybody else is on a softer tyre that is degrading, then that's the
[01:00:57.040 -> 01:01:01.440] right call. But those mediums would have lasted half a race distance and by the time he'd got
[01:01:01.440 -> 01:01:05.200] through Alonso, Sainz and all the rest, he was going
[01:01:05.200 -> 01:01:10.320] to be a pit stop behind anyway. And then the leaders would have pitted for their hards
[01:01:10.320 -> 01:01:13.760] even if they were behind Russell, they'd have been on fresh tyres.
[01:01:13.760 -> 01:01:18.240] I don't think it was a race winning strategy because nobody was beating Max Verstappen
[01:01:18.240 -> 01:01:21.760] today but it was definitely a podium getting strategy.
[01:01:21.760 -> 01:01:24.000] All right, let's talk.
[01:01:24.000 -> 01:01:25.840] No. Let's talk.
[01:01:25.840 -> 01:01:30.120] No, no, you put that look on your face like you're going to prove me wrong.
[01:01:30.120 -> 01:01:32.080] Not only are we going to talk, I'm going to talk about numbers.
[01:01:32.080 -> 01:01:33.360] Oh, I love this.
[01:01:33.360 -> 01:01:34.960] You've made me so happy, Spanners.
[01:01:34.960 -> 01:01:35.960] Thank you.
[01:01:35.960 -> 01:01:38.720] Um, no, let's discuss it for real.
[01:01:38.720 -> 01:01:40.440] They put Russell onto the hard tires.
[01:01:40.440 -> 01:01:47.520] Now we saw Ocon do this under the first safety car for Leclerc, and they thought they
[01:01:47.520 -> 01:01:51.280] would have fourth or fifth out of it at the end of the race, which is interesting because Gasly
[01:01:51.280 -> 01:01:55.360] was ahead, but they gave Ocon the preferred strategy. So if I was Gasly, I might want to
[01:01:55.360 -> 01:02:00.320] have a word about that. And I can understand your concern, Spanners, because after all, right,
[01:02:00.320 -> 01:02:05.680] after Russell pitted, so did Sainz. And anytime I'm doing the same thing as Ferrari's strategy department,
[01:02:05.680 -> 01:02:07.280] I might have some questions about it.
[01:02:07.280 -> 01:02:08.800] No, that's too mean.
[01:02:08.800 -> 01:02:10.320] That's too mean.
[01:02:10.320 -> 01:02:12.480] Matt at missteephex.net.
[01:02:13.040 -> 01:02:15.040] Low-hanging fruit, I cannot resist.
[01:02:15.040 -> 01:02:16.240] But let's talk about it.
[01:02:16.240 -> 01:02:21.120] When we restarted the race after the Albon red flag,
[01:02:21.120 -> 01:02:23.520] we had Lewis on the hard tyre,
[01:02:24.240 -> 01:02:25.960] and we had Verstappen on the hard tire
[01:02:25.960 -> 01:02:30.600] and they did not basically, they didn't take those tires off until the next red
[01:02:30.600 -> 01:02:33.480] flag and they would have gone to the end of the race on them as all the cars
[01:02:33.480 -> 01:02:37.280] could have done as Albin proved last year in a Williams with no downforce.
[01:02:37.280 -> 01:02:42.420] This tire at this circuit will do a whole race distance without a problem
[01:02:42.420 -> 01:02:49.680] unless you're Kevin Magnuson and you keep on hitting that ripple strip and even then it's your wheel that failed, not your tire. And I looked at the time
[01:02:49.680 -> 01:02:57.200] loss. At the biggest time loss I could identify by Lewis to Max once Max got by him because the
[01:02:57.200 -> 01:03:02.240] Mercedes is terrible at warming up those hard tires and from a standing start it was inevitably
[01:03:02.240 -> 01:03:09.600] going to happen. Russell was similar pace, quicker actually, but you know, in the 23s instead of 22s. I looked at his pace,
[01:03:09.600 -> 01:03:15.520] the farthest back he was ever from max was 11 seconds. Time gained under that pit stop,
[01:03:16.320 -> 01:03:21.040] time saved under the pit stop was about 14 seconds. So when I tell you it was a potential
[01:03:21.040 -> 01:03:32.400] race-winning strategy based on the best evidence we can find from the actual race that happened. Yeah, Russell would have had easily 3-4 seconds over Max
[01:03:32.400 -> 01:03:33.520] at the end of the race.
[01:03:33.520 -> 01:03:39.680] No, my caveat to that has to be the fact that we know full well that Verstappen wasn't pushing
[01:03:39.680 -> 01:03:48.040] at his full race potential. And we know even Hamilton wasn't, we know Alonso wasn't. Max cruised past Lewis, got a two second gap
[01:03:48.040 -> 01:03:49.640] in half a second it felt like.
[01:03:49.640 -> 01:03:50.960] Yeah, disappointing.
[01:03:50.960 -> 01:03:53.860] And was instantly managing again.
[01:03:53.860 -> 01:03:56.720] And he slowly and slowly eked the gap out.
[01:03:56.720 -> 01:03:58.520] If he needed, if the team told him,
[01:03:58.520 -> 01:03:59.920] right, you need to pick the pace up
[01:03:59.920 -> 01:04:01.720] because George is gonna come up the pit lane ahead of you,
[01:04:01.720 -> 01:04:03.560] he'd have gone a second and a half a lap quicker
[01:04:03.560 -> 01:04:07.600] because he showed it on multiple occasions that he could go a second and a half quicker.
[01:04:07.600 -> 01:04:08.480] Matt, come back on that.
[01:04:09.600 -> 01:04:12.960] Not for a whole race distance, number one. And number two, let's not forget,
[01:04:12.960 -> 01:04:18.560] Max drove himself off the circuit trying to go faster. Don't even pretend to me for a second.
[01:04:18.560 -> 01:04:20.480] He was texting his dad, I understand.
[01:04:20.480 -> 01:04:31.160] That all of the cars, because of when they changed the tire under the red flag, were engaged in a serious game of tire and resource management to make the end of the race. So
[01:04:31.160 -> 01:04:37.640] when I compare these numbers, all the teams were under exactly the same resource restriction
[01:04:37.640 -> 01:04:42.200] to get to the end. And that's why I think they're valid.
[01:04:42.200 -> 01:04:45.960] I still don't think they had any opportunity of winning that race today.
[01:04:45.960 -> 01:04:48.880] Lewis even said that in the post-race interviews as well.
[01:04:48.880 -> 01:04:53.360] But I think going back to George Russell and his consistency,
[01:04:53.360 -> 01:04:58.440] he seems to just have a better grip on this new regulation
[01:04:58.440 -> 01:04:59.760] of cars compared to Lewis.
[01:04:59.760 -> 01:05:03.880] Lewis even said at Saudi Arabia, oh, George
[01:05:03.880 -> 01:05:06.280] had lucked out into a better setup than him.
[01:05:06.280 -> 01:05:07.240] He didn't say that.
[01:05:07.240 -> 01:05:08.360] He didn't quite say that.
[01:05:08.360 -> 01:05:10.480] It was, okay, something along those lines.
[01:05:10.480 -> 01:05:13.520] He said, if I'd have gone with George's setup,
[01:05:13.520 -> 01:05:14.800] that I would have done better.
[01:05:14.800 -> 01:05:16.360] Like we went in different directions,
[01:05:16.360 -> 01:05:17.520] his was the right one.
[01:05:17.520 -> 01:05:21.040] He was insinuating that George had a better setup than him.
[01:05:21.040 -> 01:05:24.000] Well, George consistently, by the sounds of it,
[01:05:24.000 -> 01:05:27.000] is got a better grip on that car,
[01:05:27.000 -> 01:05:30.360] as you've referred to relationship with his engineers,
[01:05:30.360 -> 01:05:31.880] just seems to have a better handle
[01:05:31.880 -> 01:05:34.160] on these new regulation cars than I think Lewis has.
[01:05:34.160 -> 01:05:38.520] And I think Lewis is taking a lot more time
[01:05:38.520 -> 01:05:40.960] to get up to speed with them compared to George.
[01:05:40.960 -> 01:05:43.520] Whether that will correlate in raw pace, I don't know,
[01:05:43.520 -> 01:05:46.400] but in a day you still need to finish.
[01:05:46.400 -> 01:05:48.120] And well, of course, George didn't do that today
[01:05:48.120 -> 01:05:49.000] because his engine went pop,
[01:05:49.000 -> 01:05:54.000] but it's his consistency and his will to will
[01:05:54.080 -> 01:05:56.000] that we've seen has been impressive
[01:05:56.000 -> 01:05:57.320] since he's been in Mercedes, I think.
[01:05:57.320 -> 01:05:59.240] Alex, we shouldn't get carried away, should we?
[01:05:59.240 -> 01:06:02.120] Because there's a lot made that George Russell qualified
[01:06:02.120 -> 01:06:05.440] ahead of Lewis Hamilton, but it was by half a tenth.
[01:06:05.440 -> 01:06:06.440] Yeah.
[01:06:06.440 -> 01:06:11.960] I mean, the biggest thing that Lewis has been struggling with is, in his words, feeling
[01:06:11.960 -> 01:06:12.960] the rear.
[01:06:12.960 -> 01:06:17.560] And what that means is, is when the rear is coming around or the rear is moving, that
[01:06:17.560 -> 01:06:18.560] you know what it's going to do.
[01:06:18.560 -> 01:06:23.680] And if you've ever watched a Lewis Hamilton in the previous seasons, the way he drives
[01:06:23.680 -> 01:06:25.560] his car is he gets it on the nose
[01:06:25.560 -> 01:06:30.120] and then deals with whatever the rear gives him as he's going through a corner.
[01:06:30.120 -> 01:06:33.120] If you can't feel that, it takes away all your confidence.
[01:06:33.120 -> 01:06:36.960] And I've said this millions of times, which is if you haven't got confidence, you can't
[01:06:36.960 -> 01:06:37.960] go quickly.
[01:06:37.960 -> 01:06:40.360] Well, you drive with your butt in go-karts, isn't it?
[01:06:40.360 -> 01:06:41.360] You're a butt driver.
[01:06:41.360 -> 01:06:42.560] I'm a butt driver.
[01:06:42.560 -> 01:06:45.000] It's exactly what causes me an issue in simulators,
[01:06:45.000 -> 01:06:50.000] because I lose that element of feeling and I lose that feel,
[01:06:50.000 -> 01:06:54.000] which loses me time in a sim.
[01:06:54.000 -> 01:06:58.000] But with Lewis, what you've also got is they've moved their car
[01:06:58.000 -> 01:07:01.000] as further forward, as in the driving position for where the driver is,
[01:07:01.000 -> 01:07:03.000] is further forward than some of the other cars,
[01:07:03.000 -> 01:07:07.240] and that, again, I think is hurting the balance of what Lewis likes to drive
[01:07:07.240 -> 01:07:11.520] to and he is having to compromise himself to drive this car. I tell you
[01:07:11.520 -> 01:07:15.520] what, but yeah we're talking a lot about butts and driving butts
[01:07:15.520 -> 01:07:20.360] but Alex, I still think, George is dealing with it better than Lewis. Yeah at the moment and perhaps you know
[01:07:20.360 -> 01:07:24.760] Lewis is being a bit peakier because he's looking for that for that ultimate
[01:07:24.760 -> 01:07:26.800] Lewis Hamilton
[01:07:26.800 -> 01:07:32.400] type level. Whereas George Russell is already at the level he wants to be driving at. I still feel
[01:07:32.400 -> 01:07:37.520] like if I'm going to put money on, if I had to put my mortgage on which of those drivers is going to
[01:07:37.520 -> 01:07:43.200] perform better and who's going to be the fastest overall driver, I'm still hard pushed to say
[01:07:43.200 -> 01:07:46.060] anything but Lewis Hamilton is the faster
[01:07:46.060 -> 01:07:50.100] driver of that pairing and will finish ahead in the driver standings.
[01:07:50.100 -> 01:07:54.020] You have two very different driving styles between the two of them. George Russell is
[01:07:54.020 -> 01:07:59.260] a bit like a Jenson Button driving style. He's super, super butter smooth, doesn't make
[01:07:59.260 -> 01:08:05.160] too many aggressive movements on the wheel, but they match. He's like Jenson Button 7.0,
[01:08:05.160 -> 01:08:09.400] he's that much better than Jenson Button if it was. And Lewis is still that
[01:08:09.400 -> 01:08:13.360] aggressive, a bit more like Max. I mean again I would love to see the prospect
[01:08:13.360 -> 01:08:17.600] of Lewis and Max in that Red Bull together because I think they have very
[01:08:17.600 -> 01:08:23.280] similar driving styles. I also, you know, I try to pride myself on I'm a 42 year
[01:08:23.280 -> 01:08:25.640] old professional presenter but all I'm
[01:08:25.640 -> 01:08:29.960] thinking right now is, you know when the flames were coming out of George Russell's car?
[01:08:29.960 -> 01:08:31.740] That looked so cool.
[01:08:31.740 -> 01:08:38.280] It looked like a rocket ship.
[01:08:38.280 -> 01:08:39.280] Max Verstappen.
[01:08:39.280 -> 01:08:44.440] Okay, here on MrApexPodcast, and me in particular, I have somewhat of a reputation as always
[01:08:44.440 -> 01:08:45.520] going after
[01:08:45.520 -> 01:08:51.280] Max Verstappen and I think carefully about that and I think I've been quite critical about Red Bull,
[01:08:51.280 -> 01:08:57.200] obviously you know how I feel about Abu Dhabi, but none of those accusations, none of those
[01:08:58.160 -> 01:09:05.280] debates really came down to Max Verstappen. Even with his racing standards, I always felt that was down to the stewards.
[01:09:05.280 -> 01:09:10.680] And I've said, if you're going to drive against Max Verstappen and he's getting away
[01:09:10.680 -> 01:09:15.520] with that and it's not being penalised, that means that that is how racing is done best.
[01:09:15.520 -> 01:09:21.520] And I said, everyone needs to turn up and race like Max Verstappen and push people out
[01:09:21.520 -> 01:09:29.320] to the edge. Push the limits of what you can do. Ask for forgiveness rather than permission. So I've not really been critical of his
[01:09:29.320 -> 01:09:32.760] driving style. If I've ever been critical of anything it's been how it's been
[01:09:32.760 -> 01:09:37.520] policed. Definitely have been critical of Red Bull. Definitely have been critical
[01:09:37.520 -> 01:09:41.840] of the way, you know, things were managed and decisions within Formula One that
[01:09:41.840 -> 01:09:46.000] perhaps have gone his way. All I'm asking for here is a bit of leniency.
[01:09:46.000 -> 01:09:57.000] When I say this was a bad Max Verstappen performance, and that seems like a really weird thing to say about the driver that won somewhat at a canter.
[01:09:57.000 -> 01:10:03.000] So I'm going to look around my panel and see who might be disagreeing with me. Is Alex van Geen disagreeing with me?
[01:10:03.000 -> 01:10:07.040] Max Verstappen had a bad race. A bad weekend.
[01:10:07.760 -> 01:10:12.320] If we are quantifying it by the fact that he had one tiny little trip onto the grass.
[01:10:12.320 -> 01:10:16.800] No, it's more than that. He had two terrible restarts. He got outraced and outmuscled by
[01:10:16.800 -> 01:10:21.280] Lewis Hamilton. That clearly got into his head. He had an excursion on the penultimate lap.
[01:10:22.080 -> 01:10:22.640] Sorry.
[01:10:22.640 -> 01:10:22.880] Gone.
[01:10:23.920 -> 01:10:26.560] I said no out of instinct, I wasn't trying to interrupt.
[01:10:28.640 -> 01:10:37.360] No, the, as Max said, through the first, that first lap, he had more to lose than the two guys
[01:10:37.360 -> 01:10:41.200] coming through. They had nothing to lose and they lobbed the cars at him. Yeah, and that's what
[01:10:41.200 -> 01:10:48.800] Hamilton said in his dominant period as well. And he just tried to survive. And I do not blame Max for not getting his elbows out because
[01:10:48.800 -> 01:10:56.020] he knows they have incredible pace in general, and a DRS advantage that even against other
[01:10:56.020 -> 01:11:01.540] cars with DRS, they're gaining about two and a half tenths with this triple quadruple super
[01:11:01.540 -> 01:11:09.000] DRS that they've got. So he was like, if they're ahead of me, I can just get straight past them. So I
[01:11:09.040 -> 01:11:12.880] don't call that a weakness on Max's race. I actually call that
[01:11:12.880 -> 01:11:13.440] a strength.
[01:11:16.120 -> 01:11:18.640] Which is protecting himself. Okay, he had the off which is
[01:11:18.640 -> 01:11:21.120] very weird. But he had the off but it's very weird.
[01:11:21.120 -> 01:11:23.720] So I'm just gonna I'm gonna finish my list before stuffy
[01:11:23.720 -> 01:11:28.320] gets in. So out muscle Imuscled, I'm going to stick with out-muscled by Russell at the start,
[01:11:28.320 -> 01:11:30.720] by Hamilton a little bit later on.
[01:11:30.720 -> 01:11:37.320] So, badly twice off the line did he start those starts and restarts.
[01:11:37.320 -> 01:11:41.400] The off into the penultimate turn and in the very final restart,
[01:11:41.400 -> 01:11:46.180] incredibly lucky because he actually jumped the start but just didn't
[01:11:46.180 -> 01:11:52.340] jump it by quite enough to trigger a false start. Stuffy, please tell me that I'm not
[01:11:52.340 -> 01:11:57.700] going mad. This wasn't a good performance. When he wins with a dominant car, I look for
[01:11:57.700 -> 01:12:02.740] the things he did well. But today, the car dragged Max Verstappen to the win.
[01:12:02.740 -> 01:12:09.680] I get what you're saying, Spanners, because you have to look at it from an isolated perspective
[01:12:09.680 -> 01:12:10.640] of just Max Verstappen.
[01:12:10.640 -> 01:12:12.600] We know that that car is the easiest
[01:12:12.600 -> 01:12:14.160] to cook his car on the grid.
[01:12:14.160 -> 01:12:17.840] But throughout the weekends, he struggled with the car.
[01:12:17.840 -> 01:12:19.840] It was very snappy.
[01:12:19.840 -> 01:12:22.680] He took it for the gravel, I think, a couple of times.
[01:12:22.680 -> 01:12:25.160] He obviously had a lockup today.
[01:12:25.160 -> 01:12:30.160] I mean, I can only think of the spin in Hungary last year
[01:12:30.480 -> 01:12:32.960] of him making a mistake pretty much
[01:12:32.960 -> 01:12:34.540] in the last year and a half.
[01:12:36.040 -> 01:12:40.120] And for Max Verstappen's standards,
[01:12:40.120 -> 01:12:44.640] yeah, it wasn't his smoothest race weekend as a whole.
[01:12:44.640 -> 01:12:47.840] I think though, yes, he did get outmuscled
[01:12:47.840 -> 01:12:53.120] by George and he did have and Lewis and he did have some bad starts. He did have an off.
[01:12:54.400 -> 01:12:57.600] Where's the where's the butt in all of this? You're just listing all the things he did wrong.
[01:12:57.600 -> 01:13:07.480] Well I'm saying but he does have the quickest car out on track and he can drive. He's the only real competitor this season.
[01:13:07.480 -> 01:13:09.840] There's something drastically happens
[01:13:09.840 -> 01:13:11.960] throughout the year and everyone catches up.
[01:13:11.960 -> 01:13:14.160] Is Perez, who was starting from the pit lane.
[01:13:14.160 -> 01:13:16.880] So he knew with the DRS,
[01:13:16.880 -> 01:13:19.280] with how powerful it is in four DRS zones,
[01:13:19.280 -> 01:13:21.960] that he was gonna, at some point, overtake the Mercedes.
[01:13:21.960 -> 01:13:23.680] So he was playing the long game.
[01:13:23.680 -> 01:13:24.760] It was smart from him,
[01:13:24.760 -> 01:13:28.560] but it wasn't a flawless match for staffing performance by his standards from what we
[01:13:29.520 -> 01:13:34.720] used to really over the past year and a half. This is a terrible show for me. I'm defending
[01:13:34.720 -> 01:13:39.920] all the people I don't like and teams I don't like, but with regards to Red Bull,
[01:13:40.640 -> 01:13:45.000] I think the car just isn't very quick off the line. They've had, both of their drivers
[01:13:45.000 -> 01:13:46.980] have had poor starts all season.
[01:13:46.980 -> 01:13:50.660] Perez has had poor starts since like 2006.
[01:13:50.660 -> 01:13:53.040] But as far as I'm concerned,
[01:13:53.040 -> 01:13:56.520] when the starts are that poor consistently,
[01:13:56.520 -> 01:13:57.560] I put that down to the car.
[01:13:57.560 -> 01:13:59.680] And the Merc, on the contrary,
[01:13:59.680 -> 01:14:02.800] even last season has had very, very good starts.
[01:14:02.800 -> 01:14:06.120] So I'm not going to put slightly mediocre
[01:14:06.120 -> 01:14:10.880] starts down as a Max Verstappen fault. I think the only real fault Max made this
[01:14:10.880 -> 01:14:16.600] this weekend was his little off at the penultimate corner and I'll forgive him
[01:14:16.600 -> 01:14:21.040] that because he was probably bored. What about nearly stuffing it on the final
[01:14:21.040 -> 01:14:28.280] restart because that was so close that that's that's that's on par nearly with the brake magic error from Hamilton
[01:14:28.480 -> 01:14:30.600] that could have thrown away a win easy.
[01:14:30.800 -> 01:14:34.840] It was a bit wide, but he captured it and it was fine.
[01:14:35.040 -> 01:14:40.800] Well, I want to point out that everyone's talking about this really fast car,
[01:14:41.000 -> 01:14:45.760] but it's a really fast car with a fragile gearbox, which might explain why the
[01:14:45.760 -> 01:14:50.720] starts are not particularly lightning, because that does put a lot of stress on the old gearbox
[01:14:50.720 -> 01:14:56.800] when you drop the clutch. And the downshifts that are causing him trouble. And let's not forget that
[01:14:56.800 -> 01:15:02.480] Perez only started at the back because he had some sort of car trouble yesterday they weren't
[01:15:02.480 -> 01:15:05.120] able to fix. The idea that this car is bulletproof
[01:15:05.120 -> 01:15:10.400] and super reliable continues to show itself. So in some ways I would make the opposite argument.
[01:15:10.400 -> 01:15:17.520] I think it was kind of Max dragging this car to the wind with the aid of some flags that
[01:15:17.520 -> 01:15:22.320] really helped him out a lot from a strategy point of view, because he didn't have Perez
[01:15:22.320 -> 01:15:25.600] as his rear gunner. He had both Mercedes to deal with and
[01:15:27.200 -> 01:15:29.000] you know, so that argument can be made.
[01:15:29.000 -> 01:15:34.360] But the flip side is you could look at the job Perez did where he finished his fifth, which is three spots higher than they
[01:15:34.360 -> 01:15:37.120] thought he would get, and you could still argue that, well, you know,
[01:15:37.120 -> 01:15:45.440] maybe Perez still did a better job with a very fast, but not entirely reliable or consistent car in the race.
[01:15:45.440 -> 01:15:49.040] Okay, but we can at least agree that Lewis Hamilton,
[01:15:49.040 -> 01:15:52.640] Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen in equal cars
[01:15:52.640 -> 01:15:56.480] in a 2021 type scenario, the things Max got wrong today
[01:15:56.480 -> 01:15:59.660] was enough to lose the race multiple times over.
[01:15:59.660 -> 01:16:00.500] Absolutely.
[01:16:00.500 -> 01:16:02.960] Okay, there you go, that's all I'm saying, stuffy.
[01:16:03.840 -> 01:16:07.340] I think just lastly, Melbourne has never been, or Albert Park has
[01:16:07.340 -> 01:16:09.540] never been a great track for Max.
[01:16:09.600 -> 01:16:14.000] He's always had a lot of spins, a lot of issues there, lockups.
[01:16:14.380 -> 01:16:19.100] It's even as good as these drivers are, as Alex said earlier, if you don't
[01:16:19.100 -> 01:16:24.060] have confidence, then you're not going to perform to the best of your ability.
[01:16:24.060 -> 01:16:27.000] And especially in these cars, like you need to be fully on it.
[01:16:27.000 -> 01:16:31.120] And I think this weekend as a whole, he just struggled.
[01:16:31.120 -> 01:16:34.680] But that car is just so efficient with the DRS
[01:16:34.680 -> 01:16:39.040] and in a straight line that no other car passes anyone
[01:16:39.040 -> 01:16:40.600] in the DRS as quick as that Red Bull.
[01:16:40.600 -> 01:16:44.600] And he would have easily passed the Mercedes
[01:16:44.600 -> 01:16:45.520] at any point during the race.
[01:16:52.800 -> 01:16:59.360] As we head into the midfield let me take this opportunity to point on the YouTube at Stuffy's
[01:16:59.360 -> 01:17:07.360] face. Scott Stuffy Tuffy is a YouTuber, has one of the best iRacing streams out there, Stuffy,
[01:17:07.360 -> 01:17:14.760] up to 11,000 subscribers, near enough, and that still isn't enough. You have such a relaxed
[01:17:14.760 -> 01:17:20.600] style, it baffles me how you can stream with your VR headset on, commentate on what you're
[01:17:20.600 -> 01:17:25.200] doing, and the most impressive thing is when you get launched,
[01:17:25.200 -> 01:17:29.340] as happens inevitably on an iRacing, sim racing hobby,
[01:17:29.340 -> 01:17:30.480] you just keep your cool.
[01:17:30.480 -> 01:17:32.860] And I just, I would love to do what you do,
[01:17:32.860 -> 01:17:35.600] but I know that my flash to bang is so short
[01:17:35.600 -> 01:17:38.240] that it would just become a rage channel.
[01:17:39.400 -> 01:17:42.000] Yeah, it's through plenty years of experience
[01:17:42.000 -> 01:17:48.640] of breaking golf clubs when I was growing up. So yes, my anger
[01:17:48.640 -> 01:17:53.200] years are behind me and now I kind of just accept it for what it is.
[01:17:53.200 -> 01:17:57.200] And I would recommend people go and watch your stream. The links will be in the show
[01:17:57.200 -> 01:18:01.600] notes below. Just because of the way you talk through, you know, you have got pace, but
[01:18:01.600 -> 01:18:08.880] it's not, I don't think it's unfair to say you're not alien pace when it comes to just raw lap time, but it's the way you talk about navigating the field,
[01:18:08.880 -> 01:18:12.880] the wheel-to-wheel decisions, the tactics in the race, that's why I tune in.
[01:18:12.880 -> 01:18:14.400] Matt Giles Yeah, I love it.
[01:18:16.000 -> 01:18:22.640] iRacing in particular, they do 100% length races that run in conjunction with the real F1 calendar,
[01:18:22.640 -> 01:18:30.720] and I love it. I love working out the strategy side of things and yeah, it's good fun. Give my own opinions on all things sim racing and
[01:18:30.720 -> 01:18:35.320] F1 as well. So yeah, if you're interested, head on over and drop a subscribe.
[01:18:35.320 -> 01:18:41.220] And like me, you are both blessed and cursed with a massive ragdoll kitten, which interrupts
[01:18:41.220 -> 01:18:51.200] your stream frequently and features there as well. Stuffy, the midfield, is it actually a good thing that McLaren can celebrate those points?
[01:18:51.200 -> 01:18:55.600] Or are we damning them with faint praise by just throwing them a bone of going,
[01:18:55.600 -> 01:18:59.800] oh, they've done very well to slightly not suck as bad?
[01:18:59.800 -> 01:19:02.800] No, I think it was definitely warranted today.
[01:19:02.800 -> 01:19:05.860] They're clearly not where they want to be.
[01:19:05.860 -> 01:19:13.200] That's quite obvious, but considering how terrible they was in Bahrain, they've made
[01:19:13.200 -> 01:19:18.760] progressions in such a short amount of time. In Australia, Lando Norris was holding off
[01:19:18.760 -> 01:19:26.880] Perez for quite a considerable amount of laps on raw pace alone. So there is pace in that McLaren.
[01:19:26.880 -> 01:19:29.760] Lando Norris said after the race,
[01:19:29.760 -> 01:19:32.960] but clearly they've got an issue over a single lap.
[01:19:32.960 -> 01:19:36.200] They're getting themselves out of position in qualifying
[01:19:36.200 -> 01:19:38.240] and then having to fight their way through the midfield.
[01:19:38.240 -> 01:19:40.640] And that's really where they're struggling.
[01:19:40.640 -> 01:19:43.920] But I think Piastri was kind of,
[01:19:43.920 -> 01:19:45.680] I don't think he would have got points without
[01:19:45.680 -> 01:19:51.040] the final red flag. Ocon was too far ahead, but Lando was definitely on for points. And do you
[01:19:51.040 -> 01:19:56.400] know what? They lucked out with that restart at the end and yeah, got some good and well-deserved
[01:19:56.400 -> 01:20:02.160] points in my opinion. Yeah, the car isn't the disaster entirely. It's been made out to be,
[01:20:02.160 -> 01:20:10.480] but it's pretty clear if you look at top speeds and stuff like that, it's carrying a lot of very draggy downforce. And is it really competitive
[01:20:10.480 -> 01:20:16.440] with Alpine or Ferrari or Mercedes or Aston or Red Bull? So they're not where they had
[01:20:16.440 -> 01:20:22.860] planned to be. But as they have often done, they have taken advantage of actual circumstances
[01:20:22.860 -> 01:20:25.280] on the ground and made the absolute best out of
[01:20:25.280 -> 01:20:28.320] them. And that is something they've always been good at and continue to be good at.
[01:20:28.320 -> 01:20:33.280] You made that statement there. It's not the disaster it's been made out to be. Yes or no,
[01:20:33.280 -> 01:20:36.480] that is currently the sixth best car on the grid.
[01:20:37.280 -> 01:20:38.080] Who are you saying is?
[01:20:38.080 -> 01:20:40.240] McLaren. Above it.
[01:20:40.240 -> 01:20:40.800] McLaren.
[01:20:40.800 -> 01:20:41.200] Alpine.
[01:20:41.200 -> 01:20:41.680] It would be, yeah.
[01:20:41.680 -> 01:20:47.280] Alpine, Ferrari, and then the top three. So they're the sixth best car.
[01:20:47.280 -> 01:20:48.400] Easily they're the sixth.
[01:20:48.400 -> 01:20:49.200] Disaster.
[01:20:49.200 -> 01:20:51.800] So it is the disaster that they're making it out to be.
[01:20:51.800 -> 01:20:54.640] Sixth or below, that's a disaster for McLaren.
[01:20:54.640 -> 01:20:58.000] I'm frankly fed up of people throwing McLaren credit
[01:20:58.000 -> 01:20:59.920] for not being last.
[01:20:59.920 -> 01:21:01.480] Is that what we're doing?
[01:21:01.480 -> 01:21:04.480] Sixth best car means they're not in the points every race.
[01:21:04.480 -> 01:21:04.960] Yeah.
[01:21:04.960 -> 01:21:05.100] That's a disaster for a team that has all the facility. Martin Brundle once said about McLaren, Is that what we're doing? Sixth best car means they're not in the points every race. Yeah.
[01:21:05.100 -> 01:21:07.240] That's a disaster for a team that has all the facilities.
[01:21:07.240 -> 01:21:09.920] Martin Brundle once said about McLaren, he said,
[01:21:09.920 -> 01:21:11.760] you go to McLaren, you go to MTC,
[01:21:11.760 -> 01:21:13.700] you look at the facilities that they have,
[01:21:13.700 -> 01:21:15.360] and you can't understand why they
[01:21:15.360 -> 01:21:17.360] don't win every single race.
[01:21:17.360 -> 01:21:20.160] They have the best facilities of the entire paddock,
[01:21:20.160 -> 01:21:22.040] and they cannot make a race winning car.
[01:21:22.040 -> 01:21:22.600] Sorry, Matt.
[01:21:22.600 -> 01:21:24.200] You know how I don't like to pick a fight with you
[01:21:24.200 -> 01:21:25.840] or ever disagree with you over anything.
[01:21:25.840 -> 01:21:30.240] Oh, I know, I know. We always are just chums and friendly and say the same thing,
[01:21:30.240 -> 01:21:32.080] think with a single mind we do.
[01:21:32.080 -> 01:21:35.840] Yeah, and that's only on the show. If people knew how much we disagree on other stuff.
[01:21:37.200 -> 01:21:43.840] Alex, Gene Zee Van Gene, you also stream occasionally, and I miss the days when you
[01:21:43.840 -> 01:21:48.000] were streaming like shooty gun games on VR and your flight sims.
[01:21:48.000 -> 01:21:54.000] The flight sims are probably coming back because I've fallen back in love with that. The shooty stuff,
[01:21:54.000 -> 01:22:00.000] well the game we used to play onward is fallen out of the backside and it went and died. So that wasn't as good.
[01:22:00.000 -> 01:22:05.440] That's good. I didn't like everybody seeing squaddy spanners anyway in full
[01:22:05.440 -> 01:22:12.080] VR mode. I actually made a video the other day of me flying an F-18 and doing air-to-air refueling
[01:22:12.080 -> 01:22:18.080] for the first time. It was fun. But yeah, so I'm trying to get into more streams. The thing I'm
[01:22:18.080 -> 01:22:22.560] doing the most at the moment is I'm making liveries for people on iRacing, which I'm really enjoying
[01:22:22.560 -> 01:22:29.000] doing, especially I get some challenging ones where I don't particularly like the idea that I've been given
[01:22:29.000 -> 01:22:33.000] but I have to go to their brief. I recently made a car that looked like a shark.
[01:22:33.000 -> 01:22:34.000] I saw.
[01:22:34.000 -> 01:22:52.320] And I recently made one, today made one with lots of pastel colours which I'm not a big fan of but I went to the brief and the customer's happy. That's the important part. Pastel like BWTP. If you do want my racing livery, either Twitter or Discord or any other place, just search for my name, you'll find me somewhere.
[01:22:52.320 -> 01:22:57.840] Feedback at mistapex.net. I'll forward that to Alex and we'll make sure the link to your streaming services is below.
[01:22:57.840 -> 01:23:03.360] Alex, just make sure you get that to Matt and it'll appear magically in everyone's show notes.
[01:23:03.360 -> 01:23:05.600] But a little bit of hope for Haas.
[01:23:05.600 -> 01:23:11.440] Now Haas is a team where we can say if you're not last you're doing well and as a fan of Kevin
[01:23:11.440 -> 01:23:16.160] Magnussen I wish it was the other car that seemed to be doing well but it is Hulkenberg that is
[01:23:16.160 -> 01:23:23.680] taking this Haas by the reins and seemingly doing well. Hulk has surprised me to say the least
[01:23:23.680 -> 01:23:26.000] because I thought Kevin would kick his arse.
[01:23:26.000 -> 01:23:29.000] I did. I thought it was going to be clear daylight between them.
[01:23:29.000 -> 01:23:40.000] I thought Hulk would be consistent and just bring the car home, but bring the car home a few places and in qualifying a few tenths off of K-Mag.
[01:23:40.000 -> 01:23:45.880] But that's not the point. Maybe K-Mag is feeling the pressure and Hulkenberg has just slotted himself into that
[01:23:45.880 -> 01:23:51.340] car, is perfectly comfortable, and has gone about his job of only ever finishing as an
[01:23:51.340 -> 01:23:55.240] absolute match for fourth because he signed the deal with the devil and is never allowed
[01:23:55.240 -> 01:23:56.240] a podium.
[01:23:56.240 -> 01:24:01.040] You will be handsome and rich and you will be covered in glory and loved around the world,
[01:24:01.040 -> 01:24:03.320] but you shall never grace the podium.
[01:24:03.320 -> 01:24:04.320] And that happened today.
[01:24:04.320 -> 01:24:08.840] He very easily could have had a podium today, but the gods decided
[01:24:08.840 -> 01:24:09.840] no.
[01:24:09.840 -> 01:24:10.840] The curse! It's real!
[01:24:10.840 -> 01:24:11.840] You still have this deal.
[01:24:11.840 -> 01:24:14.440] I'm not wrong, the curse is real. Stuffy?
[01:24:14.440 -> 01:24:21.320] I have to issue a heartfelt apology to Nico Hulkenberg, because when it was trending Hulkenback,
[01:24:21.320 -> 01:24:25.840] I was thinking, no, there's's gotta be someone else for Haas.
[01:24:25.840 -> 01:24:28.480] Yes it was not an exciting option was it?
[01:24:28.480 -> 01:24:34.080] No we've seen him as a super sub and I think he'd be given plenty of opportunities to prove himself
[01:24:34.080 -> 01:24:38.960] but my god he's he's taken that Haas I was gonna say dragged but he hasn't dragged that car.
[01:24:38.960 -> 01:24:39.760] He's normalled it.
[01:24:39.760 -> 01:24:47.680] He's normalled it into Q3, three races in a row now. And he finished P7 today.
[01:24:48.080 -> 01:24:54.320] Um, he's doing a great job for him and look, Magnussen, maybe the hype of him
[01:24:54.960 -> 01:25:01.160] giving that, being given that extra shot and having, um, not as good as a teammate
[01:25:01.240 -> 01:25:04.880] as Mick Schumacher is having a mental effect on him this year.
[01:25:04.800 -> 01:25:06.240] as good as a teammate as Mick Schumacher is having a mental effect on him this year.
[01:25:11.280 -> 01:25:16.640] Who knows? I mean, how different is that Haas compared to last year? Is it that different enough for him to struggle with driving style? I don't know. A lot of it could come down to just
[01:25:17.440 -> 01:25:22.240] mentally and being shocked and putting more pressure on himself and making more mistakes.
[01:25:22.240 -> 01:25:30.320] But yeah, he was the last of the finishers. Um, so very different, um, results for Hulkenberg and Magnussen.
[01:25:30.560 -> 01:25:31.080] We'll see Matt.
[01:25:31.080 -> 01:25:34.640] I was going to try and blame it on Magnussen being a dad, but I just Googled it.
[01:25:34.800 -> 01:25:38.200] Hulkenberg also has made the terrible decision to have children.
[01:25:39.160 -> 01:25:41.680] Uh, yeah, but I'm sitting here going, wait a minute.
[01:25:41.720 -> 01:25:44.780] Why do I feel like I'm being gaslit by the entire panel?
[01:25:44.780 -> 01:25:45.200] So I just took advantage of my computer access. I'm sitting here going, wait a minute, why do I feel like I'm being gaslit by the entire panel?
[01:25:45.200 -> 01:25:48.580] So I just took advantage of my computer access.
[01:25:48.580 -> 01:25:54.360] Of the three races we've had so far, how many races has Hulkenberg finished ahead of Magnussen?
[01:25:54.360 -> 01:25:55.360] All of them.
[01:25:55.360 -> 01:25:56.360] He's been amazing and incredible.
[01:25:56.360 -> 01:25:57.360] Don't ruin the narrative.
[01:25:57.360 -> 01:25:58.360] Yeah.
[01:25:58.360 -> 01:26:02.440] The Australian Grand Prix only one.
[01:26:02.440 -> 01:26:06.960] So what we're seeing is Hulkenberg doing incredibly well and qualifying
[01:26:06.960 -> 01:26:11.840] and then essentially driving backwards till Magnuson passes him in the race. So I wouldn't
[01:26:11.840 -> 01:26:16.040] write off K-Mag just yet. And he did admit he made a mistake in qualifying yesterday,
[01:26:16.040 -> 01:26:20.960] which yeah, we're all human. So I understand these things can happen. At least his mistake
[01:26:20.960 -> 01:26:25.280] wasn't driving the car into a wall and causing $1.5 million in damage.
[01:26:26.480 -> 01:26:32.160] But I'm not, I'm prepared to admit Hulkenberg's doing quite well for himself. But I don't think,
[01:26:32.160 -> 01:26:37.280] I don't think he's really showing Magnussen his heels in the way that a lot of people assume,
[01:26:37.280 -> 01:26:38.960] because he's doing so well in qualifying.
[01:26:40.400 -> 01:26:47.760] My, my, my question is, is how long is it going to take for Steiner to change his allegiance from
[01:26:47.760 -> 01:26:52.840] his prodigal son Kevin Magnussen to Nico Hulkenberg?
[01:26:52.840 -> 01:26:56.960] We know Gunther Steiner always generally has his favourites.
[01:26:56.960 -> 01:27:03.400] I think Magnussen was always the preferred one over Grosjean.
[01:27:03.400 -> 01:27:08.080] He's come back and we've all had our opinions on Gunther Steiner with
[01:27:08.080 -> 01:27:12.880] Drive to Survive. I don't think particularly he comes across too well and gets a bit of a buyer
[01:27:12.880 -> 01:27:18.800] really for being a personality. But yeah, I'm intrigued to see how that dynamic continues or
[01:27:18.800 -> 01:27:24.080] how it plays out over the course of the season if Hülkenberg continues to outperform Megnussen,
[01:27:24.080 -> 01:27:25.200] at least in qualifying.
[01:27:25.400 -> 01:27:29.200] And if he's able to convert that as you're saying that, um, into results,
[01:27:29.240 -> 01:27:32.440] yeah, that'd be a dynamic to keep, keep an eye on, I think.
[01:27:32.440 -> 01:27:33.600] I don't know what you mean.
[01:27:33.600 -> 01:27:37.840] Charismatic individuals that go around shouting and swearing at their staff.
[01:27:37.840 -> 01:27:38.480] How, how was that?
[01:27:38.480 -> 01:27:40.760] How was that not appealing and inspirational?
[01:27:41.120 -> 01:27:42.720] So, uh, Matt and then Alex.
[01:27:43.280 -> 01:27:54.000] I will answer your question happily. It will take exactly one session with the Netflix producers for him to change his allegiance. That's my answer.
[01:27:54.000 -> 01:27:58.000] And Alex passes on that. Sorry for that pause.
[01:27:58.000 -> 01:28:05.360] It's the second time Matt's nicked, basically, what what I was gonna say. Yeah, sorry, and I was unprepared. I was pouring myself some refreshment,
[01:28:05.360 -> 01:28:07.360] but these are the things that make sense
[01:28:07.360 -> 01:28:08.440] when you watch on video.
[01:28:08.440 -> 01:28:10.520] And I would urge you, if you're an audio listener,
[01:28:10.520 -> 01:28:12.360] just come and check out the video production
[01:28:12.360 -> 01:28:13.600] every now and then.
[01:28:13.600 -> 01:28:15.380] I know some people who drop into the live stream
[01:28:15.380 -> 01:28:17.960] and then catch the rest on the podcast player.
[01:28:17.960 -> 01:28:19.280] And if you're a video viewer,
[01:28:19.280 -> 01:28:22.400] do make sure you subscribe to us on your podcast app.
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[01:29:06.480 -> 01:29:12.880] forward slash missed apex for $1.99 a month you can have an ad free feed and check out our pre-race
[01:29:12.880 -> 01:29:18.880] friday patron only previews where we tangent a little bit go off on one talk about our what we
[01:29:18.880 -> 01:29:23.680] thought of friday practice make some predictions for the race and also we waffle a little bit about
[01:29:23.680 -> 01:29:29.000] our lives and you know i i talked about my Forrest Gump moment where I just went on
[01:29:29.000 -> 01:29:33.120] a three and a half hour expedition off the bat. If that's the kind of worse
[01:29:33.120 -> 01:29:37.520] waffle content you like then maybe think about checking out our Patreon
[01:29:37.520 -> 01:29:51.040] patreon.com forward slash missed apex but now it's time for the awards.
[01:29:55.560 -> 01:30:01.480] An Australian Grand Prix that was super thrilling to start with and then very tactical and engaging, but was completely overroared
[01:30:01.480 -> 01:30:04.480] and completely overshadowed by once again, the FIA
[01:30:04.480 -> 01:30:05.360] just twisting
[01:30:05.360 -> 01:30:12.160] themselves up in knots by just avoiding just a simple sporting result. I operate
[01:30:12.160 -> 01:30:18.800] on the value on the acronym KISS. Keep it simple stupid. Sometimes the simplest
[01:30:18.800 -> 01:30:27.680] things are the best. If your whole package is dependent on a killer last lap, I'm not sure you have a
[01:30:27.680 -> 01:30:32.320] good package. If your whole event over the course of the weekend cannot
[01:30:32.320 -> 01:30:37.360] withstand just finishing normally under a safety car period, if that happens to
[01:30:37.360 -> 01:30:41.320] happen, and it doesn't happen often, one in ten races, a couple of times a season,
[01:30:41.320 -> 01:30:45.520] the safety car will happen to coincide with the end of the race.
[01:30:45.520 -> 01:30:51.840] If that ruins your product, look at the rest of the product, because a two-lap sprint race
[01:30:51.840 -> 01:30:57.760] red flag isn't going to save this sport. But I enjoyed my Australian Grand Prix weekend.
[01:30:57.760 -> 01:31:02.240] I was kind of sleepy, so I did wish that the last 10 laps didn't take an hour,
[01:31:02.240 -> 01:31:09.200] but apart from that, I had fun. I hope you had fun too. Let's give out our awards. The first one is the Good Thing Award.
[01:31:09.200 -> 01:31:18.680] Okay, so we start off super positive. Let's start with you, Matt. We never start with
[01:31:18.680 -> 01:31:24.560] you. At MattPT55 on Twitter, links to your show notes, to your social media is also in
[01:31:24.560 -> 01:31:25.960] the show notes because you do the show notes. So your social media is also in the show notes, because
[01:31:25.960 -> 01:31:31.120] you do the show notes. So you make sure yours are at the top in bold, and then in tiny letters,
[01:31:31.120 -> 01:31:34.720] it says also follow Spanners, at Spanners Ready on Twitter. Even though I'm the best
[01:31:34.720 -> 01:31:38.520] one, I get second billing. But I'll go to you first.
[01:31:38.520 -> 01:31:41.800] You're assaliding me all the way home. I appreciate that.
[01:31:41.800 -> 01:31:50.560] I'm the victim here. I'm the victim. Who was your thing of the weekend this weekend? Oh my goodness. There's so many things to choose
[01:31:50.560 -> 01:32:01.200] from and all right. I'm just going to let out my Hamilton stand a bit. His genuine excitement
[01:32:01.920 -> 01:32:07.840] over finishing second and driving the car like the way he did in the race.
[01:32:07.840 -> 01:32:15.120] I think that that for me was kind of like a it was a nice valedictory for him and guaranteed him a
[01:32:15.120 -> 01:32:20.560] podium in this season which makes it how many in a row? All of them. A whole lot. All of them in a
[01:32:20.560 -> 01:32:25.280] row. But um. A whole lot. though, he was really happy even after qualifying
[01:32:25.280 -> 01:32:29.800] third. Like he knew, like, I'm in good shape for the race. I'm up for this. He was not
[01:32:29.800 -> 01:32:34.640] phased by finishing slightly behind George Russell at all. Went about his business. I'm
[01:32:34.640 -> 01:32:40.820] disappointed that we didn't really see a nice spicy Hamilton versus Russell thing play out,
[01:32:40.820 -> 01:32:48.720] but I'm sure we're going to have that for another day because they are so closely matched on qualifying and race pace that even if Hamilton has the edge
[01:32:48.720 -> 01:32:54.120] he's going to have to be as consistent as Russell and less peaky to actually
[01:32:54.120 -> 01:32:58.200] make that count but yeah today yeah I second place back on the podium yeah
[01:32:58.200 -> 01:33:02.240] that there's gonna be a lot of people happy with that Alex my thing in the
[01:33:02.240 -> 01:33:07.040] weekend yes was going to rigid was I was originally looking forward to giving it to Albon
[01:33:07.040 -> 01:33:12.000] because he done brilliantly through qualifying and then binned it in the race. I can't have
[01:33:12.000 -> 01:33:29.840] Carbon because he didn't do a good thing. He's been so upbeat like the whole season. Like we're doing well, we're as good as Aston Martin, stop looking at the cars in green, we've made the biggest step, we're amazing, look at my hair, isn't it great?" I also thought Carlos Sainz and Gasly had brilliant races and did really, really well,
[01:33:29.840 -> 01:33:35.040] and I'm like, oh they've done great! And then they both screw it up in the final stages. So
[01:33:35.920 -> 01:33:40.560] then I was going to give it to Lewis Hamilton, but Matt again for the third time today has stolen my
[01:33:40.560 -> 01:33:44.080] thing. So what I'm going to say is, it must mean Matt that great minds think alike, eh?
[01:33:44.080 -> 01:33:45.160] Indeed. has stolen my thing. So what I'm going to say is, it must mean, Matt, that great minds think alike, eh?
[01:33:45.160 -> 01:33:47.080] So what I'm actually going to give it to
[01:33:47.080 -> 01:33:52.240] is to Ted Kravitz for the post-qualifying conversation
[01:33:52.240 -> 01:33:55.640] where he went to town as he probably
[01:33:55.640 -> 01:34:01.960] could have about why the hell Michael Bassi was in the F1
[01:34:01.960 -> 01:34:03.160] paddock this weekend.
[01:34:03.160 -> 01:34:05.800] He is obviously still really hurting and
[01:34:05.800 -> 01:34:12.200] really believes that Abu Dhabi was an absolute farce like most of us in this room do.
[01:34:12.200 -> 01:34:16.400] He said as much as he could without probably getting sacked.
[01:34:16.400 -> 01:34:22.000] I'm hurting as well but to be honest my hurt has gone well away from Michael Massey as an individual.
[01:34:22.000 -> 01:34:25.360] But I have to say if I was Michael Massey, if that had
[01:34:25.360 -> 01:34:29.920] happened to me, I probably would just keep my head down in the F1 paddock for a bit longer.
[01:34:29.920 -> 01:34:37.840] And he was going around smiling and talking to people. One guy on TikTok caught up with him
[01:34:37.840 -> 01:34:41.520] and said, I'm a Lewis Hamilton fan, do you fancy explaining yourself about the
[01:34:41.520 -> 01:34:45.200] Abu Dhabi? And he just walked off away from it.
[01:34:45.200 -> 01:34:49.440] At some point, at some point though, just we'll say like on a personal note, at some point the
[01:34:49.440 -> 01:34:53.440] individuals involved in that do have to be able to move in with their lives. So no one is
[01:34:54.720 -> 01:34:58.080] suggesting that Michael Massey has to go in like a forced exile.
[01:34:58.080 -> 01:35:01.520] He can move on with his life when he sits and does a tell-all interview.
[01:35:01.520 -> 01:35:06.920] Ah yeah, he's signed an NDA so he can't. I'm sure he signed an NDA. I'm sure he can't. So let's
[01:35:06.920 -> 01:35:07.680] move on from that.
[01:35:08.000 -> 01:35:10.040] Not suffer. That's the wrong word. But then he's gonna have
[01:35:10.040 -> 01:35:11.000] to deal with the flat.
[01:35:11.400 -> 01:35:13.200] stuffy. Who's your thing of the weekend?
[01:35:14.120 -> 01:35:19.040] My thing of the weekend is Max Verstappen complaining about
[01:35:19.240 -> 01:35:22.920] Lewis Hamilton's overtake. Because, ah,
[01:35:22.960 -> 01:35:24.960] isn't that like the missed apex? This is meant to be the
[01:35:24.960 -> 01:35:25.200] greatest. overtake because, isn't that like the missed apex? This is meant to be the good list.
[01:35:25.200 -> 01:35:29.600] No, no, because it was so good to see him complain basically
[01:35:29.600 -> 01:35:34.000] with exactly what he's done to people for years and years and
[01:35:34.000 -> 01:35:36.600] years and actually Lewis did nothing wrong.
[01:35:36.600 -> 01:35:38.700] Because Lewis left plenty of room.
[01:35:38.700 -> 01:35:42.800] Max actually drifted out too far wide and Fort Lewis pushed him
[01:35:42.800 -> 01:35:46.440] and it was just just nice to see, that's all.
[01:35:46.440 -> 01:35:47.560] But do you know what?
[01:35:47.560 -> 01:35:50.200] This is how you've made Lewis
[01:35:50.200 -> 01:35:53.860] and plenty of other drivers feel since you've joined F1.
[01:35:54.660 -> 01:35:55.560] So yeah, it was just,
[01:35:55.560 -> 01:35:57.800] and he still couldn't let it go after the race either,
[01:35:57.800 -> 01:36:00.520] which was just a bit like, oh, come on, come on, mate.
[01:36:00.520 -> 01:36:03.600] You seriously do have a bee in your bonnet about Lewis.
[01:36:03.600 -> 01:36:07.560] And George's move was equally as aggressive at turn one.
[01:36:07.560 -> 01:36:08.560] Yeah.
[01:36:08.560 -> 01:36:11.060] It was equally as aggressive he didn't care about George, he doesn't care about anyone
[01:36:11.060 -> 01:36:12.400] else making a move on him.
[01:36:12.400 -> 01:36:15.480] It's only when Lewis makes a move on him that he just gets really upset.
[01:36:15.480 -> 01:36:19.860] But it was just it was just nice to see him moaning about it and that there was actually
[01:36:19.860 -> 01:36:21.400] nothing wrong with the move whatsoever.
[01:36:21.400 -> 01:36:29.680] But that rule is only clarified because that is what I have called the Verstappen move for a long time and before that that was the Hamilton move but Verstappen
[01:36:29.680 -> 01:36:34.240] took it to another level but but yeah but surely Max Verstappen cannot complain about people
[01:36:34.240 -> 01:36:39.520] pushing them wide but he did what I said Rosberg should have done against Hamilton which is hold
[01:36:39.520 -> 01:36:46.000] your ground. If the inside car then clatters you whilst you remain on track, then yeah, you've got something to complain about.
[01:36:46.000 -> 01:36:50.000] But the fact is, he just, he stayed in the space that Hamilton left him.
[01:36:50.000 -> 01:36:53.000] And Hamilton left him enough space, they both stayed on track.
[01:36:53.000 -> 01:36:58.000] If he'd have wanted to keep all four wheels on the track and then let Hamilton hit him and gone,
[01:36:58.000 -> 01:37:01.000] well, I stayed on track, that would have been another issue.
[01:37:01.000 -> 01:37:04.000] Oh, I guess I have to do a Thing of the Weekend.
[01:37:04.000 -> 01:37:08.360] Actually, I'm going to give my Thing of the Weekend to the fourth place that never was, so I'm going to give
[01:37:08.360 -> 01:37:12.640] it to Yuki Snowda, because I think... no, fifth place. I think he was up in fifth place.
[01:37:12.640 -> 01:37:18.040] And although I think that driver lineup is starting to look a little bit weak, unless
[01:37:18.040 -> 01:37:30.600] they get their jog on, but also the car is looking really weak and so it's kind of hard to tell without a... I'm a Sonoda fan but without like a you know a class A Supernova
[01:37:30.600 -> 01:37:35.360] standard candle like a Gasly or someone like that in there where you know
[01:37:35.360 -> 01:37:39.040] they're getting the best out of it it's hard to tell whether that Alfa Tauri is
[01:37:39.040 -> 01:37:44.120] as pish as it looks or whether... It is. There's no benchmark driver though is there?
[01:37:44.120 -> 01:37:45.760] There's no benchmark driver so it could be
[01:37:45.760 -> 01:37:50.160] a combination of both but that whole Alfa Tauri package is looking like I see why it's
[01:37:50.160 -> 01:37:56.220] for sale. I've been a very harsh critic as you guys will know of Yuki Tsunoda and this
[01:37:56.220 -> 01:38:00.920] year is definitely a make or break year for him but these first three races I actually
[01:38:00.920 -> 01:38:06.640] think he's done a very good job. He's been, That Alfa Tauri is not a great car this
[01:38:06.640 -> 01:38:12.880] year. It's probably the weakest package I think and the fact of it he's always fighting for the
[01:38:12.880 -> 01:38:19.920] points these first three races. Unfortunately he got just drawn into a fight today. At one point
[01:38:19.920 -> 01:38:24.240] I looked down he was eighth position I looked back and then he was 12th. Yeah exactly. It was
[01:38:24.240 -> 01:38:26.240] 14th I was like where's, where's that come from?
[01:38:26.240 -> 01:38:28.000] So he hasn't got the package.
[01:38:28.000 -> 01:38:32.400] So points today, he finished 11th in the first two races, just outside the points
[01:38:32.760 -> 01:38:36.040] and closely fighting for the points as well.
[01:38:36.160 -> 01:38:39.400] Yeah. And then this race, it was well-deserved, to be fair.
[01:38:39.400 -> 01:38:40.400] So credit where it's due.
[01:38:40.400 -> 01:38:41.800] If he continues the way he does, then...
[01:38:41.800 -> 01:38:45.200] But the fact that he was briefly 5th, that's my thing of the week,
[01:38:45.200 -> 01:38:48.960] over the weekend, because I'm wishing him well. Now we get to all be a little bit negative
[01:38:49.760 -> 01:38:51.280] with this award, which is called...
[01:38:51.280 -> 01:38:54.160] Oh no, you missed the Apex!
[01:38:54.160 -> 01:38:59.040] Okay, so here's where we go into full armchair fan mode and criticise people,
[01:38:59.040 -> 01:39:04.960] driving 300 kilometres an hour and go, I reckon, I reckon I would have done better.
[01:39:04.960 -> 01:39:05.520] So I'm going to get in
[01:39:05.520 -> 01:39:11.840] quickly. Charles Leclerc gets my missed apex award. Settle down, settle down Charles. I know
[01:39:11.840 -> 01:39:17.760] it's a bad season but just hunker down. Beat signs, show what you can do, show the world you're a
[01:39:17.760 -> 01:39:26.560] world champion potential driver, you're just lacking the car because we're not seeing that right now. Matt Trumpets, who missed the apex for you?
[01:39:27.440 -> 01:39:33.600] Oh, there are so many choices to be made here, but I will make the one that will get everybody
[01:39:33.600 -> 01:39:39.440] angry because after saying nice things about Gasly earlier, it's going to be really hard to
[01:39:39.440 -> 01:39:43.600] ignore the fact that he quite literally missed the apex. Missed the corner.
[01:39:44.240 -> 01:39:47.360] Missing Alonso's car and then came back on track,
[01:39:47.360 -> 01:39:51.840] put his teammate into the wall and cost them double points in the race.
[01:39:51.840 -> 01:39:56.640] And so, even though I know it wasn't intentional, and even though the rest of the race
[01:39:56.640 -> 01:40:01.280] sort of makes up for it, yeah, that's kind of a big mistake for me.
[01:40:01.280 -> 01:40:03.680] Van Geen, who missed the apex for you?
[01:40:07.760 -> 01:40:16.720] of a big mistake for me. Van Gene, who missed the apex for you? Uh whoever's responsibility it was or actually the entire um mechanic team on Sergio Perez's car. Oh yeah. That ruined anything for
[01:40:16.720 -> 01:40:22.240] any... I mean we haven't spoken about Perez at all. No and in fact. Because he had the most anonymous
[01:40:22.240 -> 01:40:25.280] weekend possible. Exactly. Because he went off on the second corner
[01:40:26.000 -> 01:40:31.840] in qualifying because the car just wouldn't stop after having various issues during practice three.
[01:40:32.480 -> 01:40:38.320] He did a good job, fine, he was fine in the field, but the team firmly let him down.
[01:40:38.320 -> 01:40:41.680] This week, and I think it's because we've spoken a lot about Perez and his, you know,
[01:40:42.480 -> 01:40:46.240] quote unquote challenge to Max Verstappen after the race win
[01:40:46.240 -> 01:40:50.320] last time out. And it was actually an active decision this week where we went, Perez's story
[01:40:50.880 -> 01:40:55.280] is one of the least interesting stories this weekend, which is why we're not going to cover it.
[01:40:55.280 -> 01:40:57.040] Stuffy, who missed the apex for you?
[01:40:58.480 -> 01:41:08.880] It's not actually any driver. It's the idiotic fans who at the end of the race decided to take the opportunity to get
[01:41:08.880 -> 01:41:11.760] onto a still live track.
[01:41:11.760 -> 01:41:15.880] So there was a number of them who climbed fences.
[01:41:15.880 -> 01:41:18.280] I don't know how they got through.
[01:41:18.280 -> 01:41:27.280] They surrounded Hulkenberg's car as well, but there's images and videos of cars going past on their on their
[01:41:27.280 -> 01:41:31.920] closed down lap I think it is, cool down lap. Even so these cars are still on
[01:41:31.920 -> 01:41:35.720] their cool downs lap going a hundred miles an hour and it is we saw it
[01:41:35.720 -> 01:41:39.440] obviously different scenarios than a couple of years ago with protesters but
[01:41:39.440 -> 01:41:47.200] these are actual fans who have taken the decision to get onto a live track and have spoiled it for a minority
[01:41:47.200 -> 01:41:53.840] of a record crowd at Australia. And yeah, it's disgusting because one day something bad is going
[01:41:53.840 -> 01:41:59.040] to happen. It is, but look, as an 80s kid, I'm not excusing it at all, but like I just remember
[01:41:59.040 -> 01:42:04.400] scenes of, you know, people coming on track and swarming Mansell's Big Red Five and being on track.
[01:42:04.400 -> 01:42:09.320] It was, it used to be an oddly normal oddly normal thing and as a Colchester United fan,
[01:42:09.320 -> 01:42:13.920] you know, one of the things you really look forward to, like in a cup fight, in a cup game or, you know, winning the
[01:42:14.440 -> 01:42:20.880] FA Trophy in 1995, one of the best bits was like storming on, pushing past the stewards and
[01:42:21.200 -> 01:42:23.200] celebrating with the players. So I understand...
[01:42:23.360 -> 01:42:26.400] Sorry, you're saying that Colchester have fans that actually came on to pitch.
[01:42:26.400 -> 01:42:31.600] Yes, loyal fans, family enclosure, £3.50 a game, double championships, conference and
[01:42:31.600 -> 01:42:37.400] FA trophy. You can't take that away from us. But yes, it's not acceptable in this day and
[01:42:37.400 -> 01:42:42.700] age and we are still trying to understand whether Uncle Steve, Amy and our Jono Simone
[01:42:42.700 -> 01:42:45.560] were amongst those people. Matt?
[01:42:45.560 -> 01:42:50.920] Well, I just wanted to make the point that the promoters of the Australian Grand Prix
[01:42:50.920 -> 01:42:55.820] have been called into investigation by the stewards.
[01:42:55.820 -> 01:43:01.840] And just to make it slightly worse, the detail that Scott left out was that Hulkenberg's
[01:43:01.840 -> 01:43:05.000] car was displaying the red light,
[01:43:05.460 -> 01:43:08.120] which means it potentially could electrocute
[01:43:08.120 -> 01:43:09.620] anyone who touched it.
[01:43:09.620 -> 01:43:12.120] And there were fans all the way down there by it.
[01:43:12.120 -> 01:43:16.740] So this is a bigger and developing deal.
[01:43:16.740 -> 01:43:19.580] Probably it will all get worked out in smoky back rooms
[01:43:19.580 -> 01:43:20.620] as it usually does.
[01:43:20.620 -> 01:43:22.900] But yeah, I'm not gonna go wholeheartedly
[01:43:22.900 -> 01:43:25.400] in blaming the fans if it was that easy for
[01:43:25.400 -> 01:43:26.800] them to do the thing.
[01:43:26.800 -> 01:43:27.800] Yeah.
[01:43:27.800 -> 01:43:28.800] Yeah, go on.
[01:43:28.800 -> 01:43:31.040] No, I'm just saying it.
[01:43:31.040 -> 01:43:34.640] I think you people still make that conscious decision.
[01:43:34.640 -> 01:43:39.760] Whether there's an open gate, do you walk through it onto a live racetrack?
[01:43:39.760 -> 01:43:42.280] Just a bit of common sense.
[01:43:42.280 -> 01:43:46.480] Wait until the cars have all gone past or the race is totally finished.
[01:43:46.480 -> 01:43:48.960] Like Monza. They all flood onto the track, don't they?
[01:43:48.960 -> 01:43:54.480] I'm all for that. And I think that's something that I'm sad to see, actually, that we don't
[01:43:54.480 -> 01:44:00.240] see more of that storm in the track once the race is finished and everyone's around on the podium.
[01:44:00.240 -> 01:44:05.520] That's an image that we don't see enough tracks anymore but this particular scenario,
[01:44:05.520 -> 01:44:12.160] it could have ended very badly and hopefully there was some poor fan issues last year.
[01:44:12.160 -> 01:44:15.440] Hopefully we don't see more of that this year.
[01:44:16.560 -> 01:44:21.840] And that is the last race for a little while. The Chinese Grand Prix of course was cancelled
[01:44:21.840 -> 01:44:31.760] this year and hopefully it's going to be back on the circuit next year because I do love that track. But we have three non-F1 race Sundays until the next
[01:44:31.760 -> 01:44:38.560] Grand Prix in Baku. So until round four for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, stay tuned to MissDAPEX
[01:44:38.560 -> 01:44:43.120] podcast. We're going to go a little bit into off-season mode but we're going to try and bring
[01:44:43.120 -> 01:44:49.280] you great content, great guests, we're going going to do possibly a pick-up show for this Grand Prix next Sunday and have
[01:44:49.280 -> 01:44:54.400] a bit of a state of the nation and see where we feel F1 is at, as well as bringing you
[01:44:54.400 -> 01:44:58.720] people like Mike Caulfield. I hope you really enjoyed Mike Caulfield and Mark Preston in
[01:44:58.720 -> 01:45:03.560] our midweek buffet. That's the kind of content that we're trying to bring you, especially
[01:45:03.560 -> 01:45:05.080] when there's no races
[01:45:05.080 -> 01:45:06.080] on the schedule.
[01:45:06.080 -> 01:45:10.280] And I would say enjoy this pause a little bit, because from here on in, I think it's
[01:45:10.280 -> 01:45:11.280] race to race.
[01:45:11.280 -> 01:45:15.120] I think, Matt, how many triple headers have we got coming up?
[01:45:15.120 -> 01:45:16.120] About four?
[01:45:16.120 -> 01:45:18.120] Matthew Feeney Sure.
[01:45:18.120 -> 01:45:19.120] Sounds good to me.
[01:45:19.120 -> 01:45:20.120] I don't actually know.
[01:45:20.120 -> 01:45:24.560] That's not the kind of thing I pay attention to, but it's going to be a packed calendar
[01:45:24.560 -> 01:46:13.200] once we get back to it. And And for our live stream viewers and our Patreon listeners on the Patreon feed...
[01:46:19.200 -> 01:46:25.520] I'll tell you what guys, there's a late entry that's just jumped into the Patreon live chat which is Paula
[01:46:25.520 -> 01:46:30.600] which is Paula who says where's where is it I've lost it now there's been so much reaction
[01:46:30.600 -> 01:46:35.400] to it a car that will electrocute a fan who is not supposed to be on the track is sort
[01:46:35.400 -> 01:46:47.180] of self-policing it's a very grim but somewhat valid point I think so and we'll continue with Stuart Neill, going with, if this continues LeClerc
[01:46:47.180 -> 01:46:49.000] will grow a mullet.
[01:46:49.000 -> 01:46:54.020] Okay, nobody got that, fine.
[01:46:54.020 -> 01:46:55.020] Right over everyone's head.
[01:46:55.020 -> 01:46:56.020] We're gonna go now to-
[01:46:56.020 -> 01:46:58.860] And over everyone's head, and then neatly down the back.
[01:46:58.860 -> 01:46:59.860] There you go.
[01:46:59.860 -> 01:47:02.860] It's a Botox reference.
[01:47:02.860 -> 01:47:10.480] Yes. Wes is in with LeClerc can still win this, which I thought was very topical.
[01:47:10.480 -> 01:47:16.160] And Maria Kledos with I think FIA needs Will Buxton to explain to them their own rule.
[01:47:16.160 -> 01:47:18.800] Alex, go on.
[01:47:18.800 -> 01:47:23.040] Wes was on fire today, actually.
[01:47:23.040 -> 01:47:28.320] There was Gastly by Gazly as a potential show title um Chris
[01:47:28.320 -> 01:47:35.120] Fonseca always Chris Fonseca um for the next race Aston Martin get three respawns to their last valid
[01:47:35.120 -> 01:47:39.920] position when they can off the track. Oh my god that is a competitor that that's that's oh my god
[01:47:39.920 -> 01:47:43.840] it did it just felt like that because i was looking at it and you remember last week when i had my
[01:47:43.840 -> 01:47:47.840] whole rant about oh see Mercedes are the second best car, then they got given the podium
[01:47:47.840 -> 01:47:53.760] back even though they did touch the thing with the thing and then today both their cars are off
[01:47:53.760 -> 01:47:58.160] and you go well that's it then, Mercedes have overtaken them and then at the click of a finger
[01:47:58.880 -> 01:48:04.400] they're restored to third and fourth after both being off. How does that happen?
[01:48:04.480 -> 01:48:10.440] third and fourth after both being off. How does that happen? EJ had one as well which is Leclerc did a stroll move on stroll.
[01:48:10.440 -> 01:48:12.680] Okay, yeah, fair. Matt?
[01:48:12.680 -> 01:48:16.880] Well, Chris Vonseca has just said to the FIA, it's not a three-week break,
[01:48:16.880 -> 01:48:21.400] it's a very long red flag and that would win but we've had to roll the results back.
[01:48:21.400 -> 01:48:26.320] It's gotta be Paula, it's got to be Paula. It's got to be that Paula one.
[01:48:26.320 -> 01:48:31.080] And it is Peek-a-Paula all the way home with a car that will electrocute a fan who is not
[01:48:31.080 -> 01:48:33.960] supposed to be on track is sort of self-policing.
[01:48:33.960 -> 01:48:38.560] Mr. Apex Podcast does not endorse the electrocuting of fans nor wish for fans to be electrocuted.
[01:48:38.560 -> 01:48:40.120] However, that was hilarious.
[01:48:40.120 -> 01:48:45.000] Comment of the week.
[01:48:45.000 -> 01:48:46.000] We're out of here.
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