2021 Saudi Arabian GP Race Review | WTF1 Podcast

Chaos?! Chaos. The Saudi Arabian Grand Prix had title drama, crazy driving, odd stewarding calls and questions over the circuit. We try our best to cover it all in our race review podcast.
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00:00 Intro
02:20 Embarrassing Driving Standard
38:17 FIA Lost Control
01:03:30 F*** Me Sideways!
01:15:19 ABCDEF1
01:28:55 Predictions
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[@syfax3697]

When SEB retires, he should become race director. He's wise and confident. Perfect match!

[@davidmashishi2080]

Red bull bais

[@thanasisdakakis4775]

@@davidmashishi2080 LOL nope if he was biased he would be towards ferrari but Seb would be a great director and he would not be biased.

[@Sheamu5]

I think Seb is going to go off into the sunset and enjoy his family life.

[@ThatOneDude7]

@@Sheamu5 Someone who knows all the WDCs backwards is simply addicted. He might just come back after some time and he definitely knows no matter what position he may want he will get. Because simply, everyone is a Sebastien Vettel fan.

[@GloomGaiGar]

@@davidmashishi2080 I'm sorry no one told you this yet but Seb drives for Aston Martin now and he was at Ferrari before that. Very easy to miss if you have the IQ of a stick insect.

[@amoe1234]

ABCDEF1 should be expanded next year. I would love to give Masi and the broadcasting director a grade.

[@isuller]

Yeah, but "He has to improve a lot to get an F-" would be boring after a few race...

[@matthewsmith6390]

TV Director.... "Z"

[@hk6099]

& for the teams as well.

[@LibyanSoup]

A moment of silence - when you realise that this weekend in Abu Dhabi it's Kimi's last race in F1.

[@vinitnair7519]

And Jesus shall depart too.

[@reemkhattar]

quite a fitting tribute ironically

[@LibyanSoup]

@@reemkhattar well at least I now know some one out there got my ‘silence’ reference.

[@bartandaelus359]

Max and Lewis crash. Lando goes on to win his first race to Kimi 2 and Gio 3. Ric 4th to steal back 3rd.

[@nissan300ztt]

Bye. He waited far too long.

[@th3r486]

"totos been more level-headed this year" totos headphones: are you sure about that

[@riancastermans1607]

The comments if it was Christian Horner who did this. Throwing his headphone like that.....

[@zooski1516]

@@riancastermans1607 no kidding.

[@PlayTrickBLOGSPOT]

@@riancastermans1607 like him or not, Horner always stays composed, even when his drivers are crashing out etc.

[@dimaz3]

I don't think Max will deliberately crash into Lewis but he definitely won't take any avoiding action. That's been his driving style in all the late races where he knows Lewis HAVE to back out every single time in order to keep the competition alive and he became overly aggressive.

[@livefast-xc8lm]

Not allowed…. Aggressive or not. Its too much

[@zooski1516]

@@livefast-xc8lm haha do you forget what Lewis did to nico in the their last race?? Probably u are new to f1.

[@GloomGaiGar]

@@zooski1516 He's talking about crashing into a title rival just to win the championship just like the Michael and Villeneuve.

[@9999AWC]

@@zooski1516 That was 5 years ago. Stop living in the past.

[@faizmaulida341]

@@GloomGaiGar you mean Silverstone 2021?

[@TP_Gillz]

If Max is ahead of Lewis in Abu Dabi and Lewis has the pace advantage to overtake him, there is NO way Max is going to let that happen cleanly lol. Just prepare yourselves now for that.

[@Pandatoofu]

Well all I know is you cant look at social media for at least a few months. But I would love to have such a dirty fight between these to. Just so intense.

[@Bearical]

@@Pandatoofu indeed, just like the good old days

[@AsTERiiXHDx]

And every bit is deserved after silverstone and hungary shit show from mercedes

[@blakebarone1809]

@@AsTERiiXHDx Meh. Silverstone was intentional. Hungary was not.

[@cheesyriceo4]

I’m just gonna call it: they’re going to crash. At the back chicane between straights. I just wonder how bad it’s gonna be

[@stevenlarratt3638]

If a driver is asked to give a place back it should be done at a set place on the track determined at the pre race breif. (Edit: thanks for the likes, another thought is if another driver has overtaken the disadvantaged driver then the driver giving back the place will loose two spots. That way the driver will have already had the opportunity to give back the place and a potential new strategy could emerge. If things have gone to the stewards then this could be a secondary method of penalty)

[@shoonaldo]

Exactly! And not heading onto a DRS straight

[@Sup3rStud]

I was thinking this. After the sh** show that was this race it’s needs to be clearly communicated X driver pulls to the side & gives the place back on the start/finish straight on lap X. Leaving no ambiguity around the situation.

[@InekeD81]

I like this! and after that you’re not allowed to overtake for a set number of corners,

[@DLH_VISUALS]

I've been saying this for a while. That removes all doubt about driver intentions and sets a rule that can't be interpreted any other way.

[@maroc-al-helmidi]

@@Sup3rStud and doesn’t reovertake the next corner

[@stayoffthemarbles6790]

I think Tom nailed it on the head. The driving standards in Jeddah are an absolute result of the FIA mishandling brazil. In my opinion, Max was over the line and the FIA let it slide. That decision was a complete deviation from every ruling to that point. Masi has allowed F1 to become a game of mario kart. No one knows what the rules are and driving standards are not enforced equally or consistently. Masi needs to be replaced so this farce will end. Never missed charlie whiting more than I did this weekend.

[@lowk3ychris484]

And yet Red Bull said after Saudi that the FIA is favoring other teams

[@Formula1bliz]

The FiA let it slide? The FiA let Lewis crazy driving slide

[@mrrodman2k]

@@Formula1bliz wait what crazy driving from Lewis?

[@AZBCDEE]

@@Formula1bliz No need to disguise yourself every time as a max fan why do you always cry about Lewis? Fanboys always in denial with one yet never talk about another

[@mal0ko]

Because masi wants to crown a new king. And be a king maker. And max wanting to win like schumi vs hill, winning by a crash. More so in this next race since max has more wins, and the rule is if the score are tied at the end the next thing to chose a Champion is the most number of wins, which max has. And im sure max is aware of that, so all he has to do is takeout lewis and its all hail king max...

[@forza218]

Toto showing such emotion has given us some great meme's.

[@Tinei1]

He always makes great memes

[@Zeegoku1007]

Also Perez just standing there after crashing , on twitter the replies were flooded with memes of him 🤣

[@_lowpoke700]

I'm feeling he might go super sayan if Hamilton crashes out next race.

[@martyndavies1482]

Assume Mercedes has at least one person who's sole job is to look after headsets, so busy week ahead for him or her.

[@_lowpoke700]

@@martyndavies1482 you just know some underling was scrambling to grab a new headset for Toto as soon as he started to swing.

[@alifpr]

The podcast was uploaded quicker than Checo hitting the brakes on that first turn

[@danielbalogun4573]

🤣🤣

[@user-ot4wm2fh8g]

Don’t we usually get it Monday night? It was late

[@hackzord8462]

@@user-ot4wm2fh8g isn't that the joke?

[@user-ot4wm2fh8g]

@@hackzord8462 I’m not quite sure lol, I kinda would’ve said Checo slammed the brakes on when he realised he was about to rear end Max!

[@jizmonkee75]

The big question in my mind is, is Masi being put under pressure by FOM to make decisions that improve "The show" ? Honestly, I hope it is just shear incompetency as that can be fixed easily with a stronger race director, but if FOM are interfering..... can somebody pass the tin foil? I need a new hat.

[@sidewalkere]

That's absolutely happening.

[@filipruml]

Probably not but I wouldn't be surprised if there are a lot of conspiracy theories about that since this season is just too ''good'' when it comes to drama

[@mdcclxxviepluribusunum1066]

They can’t blame Lewis so they blame the fia

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

It's possible, won't be the 1st time but Whiting was able to cope with it better.

[@ryaramaf1gobshite397]

Yeah I’m thinking along the same line’s with Brundle’s commentary he’s got a terrible pause whenever VER does something wrong then say’s thing’s like “I don’t think he’ll get a penalty for that”!!!20yrs ago I’d hear him say things like “you’ve hit the wrong part of him Micheal”!!! I hope it’s pressure from the top cos he was such a great man who learned from the best but has fallen far short this yr!!!

[@hartke2305]

We need a jingle to go with Katy's weekly podcast rant

[@omgMBP]

this is a great idea

[@nissan300ztt]

I just want Katy's company for a few hours! LOL

[@WingedEscape]

I vote for 5 seconds of blast beats, some grunting and sickly tuned guitars over a burning background ending with the gameboy advance *pling* to que the adorable Katy

[@abhigyanchatterjee8627]

Have been waiting to hear Katy's rant 😂

[@youssefhammad1178]

Made me queasy :-D

[@Johann_Gambolputty_of_Ulm]

The only redeeming quality of this disgrace of a racing weekend - getting more juicy rants ^^'

[@MikeLikesBikes095]

The moment I saw Matt make a vid about the race, I’ve been anticipating her rant

[@radical3280]

Crazy that Lewis still set faster times even with a broken wingplate

[@viktorbalslv6160]

Illegal car

[@proffesionalretard]

Ye it was surprising but he did have a low fuel load and they even said the end plate damage wouldn’t really effect performance

[@Duuuval23]

@@viktorbalslv6160 keep trying.

[@luisruiz3638]

You don't need great aero when most of the time is gained on the straights.

[@tarushdei]

Fuel weight adds a lot to these cars. They hold up to 110kg of fuel in a car that weighs about 800kg with the driver.

[@cmanning007]

We have to stop comparing ages of the drivers verse years they have been in F1. There is no reason why Max should be driving like that with 7 years in F1.

[@2005StangMan]

Exactly, Max is 7 seasons in, 140 race starts. He’s 46th on the list of all time starts, already.

[@Ellipsis115]

I think that the FIA are the most to blame for the race but honestly, if backmarkers acted like Max letting Lewis past, they would be universally villified.

[@benjones4376]

If Lewis drove with the same aggression as Max this season then Bottas would be world champion with the amount of DNF’s they would of had

[@ranchalita]

True. Just like his only other title challenge in F3 was riddled with DNFs despite having the most wins.

[@sianlouiseeex]

After the BS throughout this season I'd be over the moon if Bottas won the WDC 🙃😂

[@reggienaidoo6514]

@@sianlouiseeex Ideal race in Abu Dhabi, Lewis leads,Bottas second, Max some distance away .Lewis gives the win to Bottas.That will be fitting considering how much Bottas helped him over the years and a great parting gift for Bottas.Maybe I should get back to the real world.

[@sianlouiseeex]

@@reggienaidoo6514 it's a lovely thought mate but probably not happening 😅😂

[@brooksfarmer5795]

@@reggienaidoo6514 as a Max fan that would be pretty cool tbh

[@Kemfii]

I think the Masi slander is unwarranted. Charlie Whiting had 20 Years of experience Masi has barely been here two years. I wonder what Charlie's first years were like. Especially in the chaotic era of the late 90's and early 2000's. Also think Horners comments were inappropriate. Also the constant bashing on Masi for things that are not in his powers such as the stewards decisions. Thought Saudi was one of Masi's better performances as race director. Also Masi is not the head of the FIA. I think the place swap offer was rather brilliant, even though he probably didn't realize ocon had passed. Even though he rectified it immediately

[@ThatOneDude7]

Unfortunately Masi made mistakes. But exactly as you have said, i also believe the Masi slander is completely unwarranted. 2 years is simply not enough. Masi has been dropped right in the middle of one of the bloodiest rivalries of all time. (The proof being that a Ham-Vers-Bott podium has been the most common podium in F1 history. Not to mention that Merc and RB have reigned supreme for ovet a decade now) You simply can't expect him to do a perfect job.

[@GloomGaiGar]

@Jeffry Chen it's already hard to get messages across why add more meaningless words? Messages are supposed to be short and clear not nice and long winded.

[@GloomGaiGar]

Calling for him to resign is SO easy but I don't see anyone coming up with a better replacement.

[@taylorb9860]

I haven’t listened to all of it but I have to say, the reason people get mad about peoples comments or feeling/opinions is that you’ll make a big deal over this race and max yet you all called Silverstone not a big deal and seemed to even question whether Hamilton should’ve gotten a penalty for what was as equally desperate of a dive into one of the fastest corners on any F1 circuit and Lewis seemed to think he wouldn’t need to brake taking the corner tighter. And now you don’t care that Lewis and valterri were driving super slow (which everyone knows benefits the tyres) it was farcical, the fact they were allowed to do it and then again for raikonnen backing max into Lewis, it’s a joke all around To me there the same. If Lewis/merc are bending the rules to gain an advantage, I expect their rival is going to do something and for max, that’s race even harder and he went for it, gave it back afterwards.

[@vincentras1991]

Agree totally with you. That’s where the British bias shines through.

[@ferryfernandus1423]

@@vincentras1991 very blatantly. and the sad thing is that. they always say they're neutral.

[@markvanrijn618]

I think the problem is that because the championship is so close and Max feels cheated out of some points, he was so far ahead and then The bigg silverstone swing and the incident Botas went torpedo into Max and Perez. Because the effect of the incidents felt worse for Max then for Lewis, Max feels justified to go harder because he feels he was impacted more then Lewis. Both have done some nasty things this season but I think Max lost more because of all the "dirty driving" then Lewis did points wise. Max probably did more dirty driving in terms of amount of actions, but Mercedes did have more impact championship wise then what Max did to Hamilton.

[@fifa22isshite90]

But Max has been doing it since day one of the season. Imola and Barcelona for example. Where he punted lewis off the track on both occasions... its just gotten worse since then

[@markvanrijn618]

It has been such a rollar coaster of a season I can hardly remember those races :)

[@fifa22isshite90]

@@markvanrijn618 I mean tbf. Im still struggling to remember most of what happened just last race so i get you on that 😂😂

[@scottmeredith3359]

Good analysis

[@supmikpaddleboarding5871]

Lewis was just less affected because he dodgned most of those dirty moves,otherwise...

[@vedranb87]

The problem with those scenarios of Max taking out Lewis circulating in folklore is now that if for whatever reason we have a double DNF for them in a single incident, through no fault of their own (like another Bottas Hungary), it's going to justify all those stories forever even though healthy majority will acknowledge this isn't the case, it's still going to be the case.

[@kityhawk2000]

Lol through no fault of their own. 🤣 Sure

[@vedranb87]

@@kityhawk2000 You just made my point.

[@MrKilic50]

@@kityhawk2000 You say someone is guilty before an incident even happening. Haven’t seen bias so clearcut in a while xD

[@MrVish6666]

u can blame that onto max's erratic driving this whole season. mans a liability and u cannot predict what is he gonna do under pressure.

[@kityhawk2000]

@@MrKilic50 really? well you should have tried watching Max's move at Brazil

[@lordmctheobalt]

About the language of Masi & offering the deals: we have no idea how Charlie talked to the teams during his time. Masi learnt from Charlie, I doubt that he completely ignored the way his mentor handled things & just took the polite approach out of nowhere. Given the gentlemanly roots of F1 I can well imagine that when charlie came on radio to the teams to tell them to give a place back he said it like "look chaps, I'm gonna offer you to give back the position, will you accept?" but meaning "If you don't immediately remedy this bs, the stewards are gonna have a look at this mess" It's like when the queen says thst she's "not amused". It might sound soft & nice but you know you are f-ed. Also the whole "I'm gonna give you P3"-language instead of "you're starting behind lewis" was almost certainly because there was a standing start & F1 & the teams operate on which gridslot you're starting, not behind whom you're starting. I am critical of Masi (e.g. not clearing all the debris during 1 VSC), but this is unnecessary. If there wasn't FIA-team-radio being broadcasted & you simply saw Ocon-Ham-Ver on the restart you would praise Masi for resolving the situation without needing penalties. I mean how ridiculuous would it have been for Max to be penalized, when he never had the chance to give the position back because of the red flag.

[@hotshtsr20]

Agree, nicely done.

[@superkrynn]

100% agree. Race Control did a lot of bad things, this was not one of them.

[@eriksgasins9086]

WTF: 1) WTF was Massi thinking? 2) WTF was Max thinking? 3) WTF was Hamilton thinking? Crazy race. Also dangerous. The track needs widening and improving safety, if possible. If not, maybe consider a different track or maybe Saudi Arabia can build a new one?

[@Bearical]

they shouldn't have raced there at all

[@HardestLadHere]

As a lewis fan its so nice to see tom talking facts about max i also like seeing aggressive driving but he’s took it way too far these last few races and it’s constantly applauded by fans who are new and don’t really understand the sport

[@peach1681]

go watch schumacher and other drivers in the past they all drove aggressively it's not like hamilton hasn't made moves of this sort in the past years

[@HardestLadHere]

@@peach1681 Hamilton can be classed as aggressive yes but he stays on the track in between the white lines, Verstappen has been diving from way back with no intent to make the corner pushing each driver off. Just because shumi and senna have done it before doesn’t mean it’s right.

[@merenwen4495]

@@HardestLadHere The difference between Verstappen and Hamilton is that Verstappen comes running at you screaming with waving fists to beat you up, and Hamilton sneaks behind you to plant a knife in your back. They both will do everything they can to win, they just use different tactics.

[@HardestLadHere]

@@merenwen4495 i agree, lewis’s way of winning is just within the rules or borderline whereas max is willing to do whatever it takes and not care about the consequences

[@prospekt_1]

I was absolutely destroyed after the race, couldn’t even bear to think of it. This is like a therapy session for me

[@Davitron_87]

For once, Christian Horner actually said something i think most would agree with - "F1 misses Charlie."

[@2ltmiller]

i mean yes we all do but that comment was just so wrong in many ways

[@TheLibermania]

@@2ltmiller What was wrong about it?

[@registrado54]

Horner is just mad that RB is being held accountable for their shenanigans

[@discodavid26]

Christian forgets that Charlie used to get the same crap bitching from the teams that masi does now … only difference between them is red bull were a bit dominant for a few years so maybe gave Charlie more of a pass … yet because Charlie death was unexpected everybody suddenly forgets he wasn’t perfect either yet he’s become st Charlie! Yes masi not been great to put it mildly but when you factor in experience and how long in the job Charlie had … I don’t think masi has been that much worse then Charlie was for much off his career!

[@vcolin]

Why is everyone surprised by the tense title fight and battles that go on/over the edge? This is what happens when two drivers are this close together and battle each other for a championship. ANY driver would drive on the edge. Max needs to drive like this since he has the slower car (With the qualification as a great example). Last race both brake so late that they don't make the corner and force the other off track. These battles are different simply because it is for the ultimate title and not for a P3 or P4.

[@Nickelodeon81]

I only started watching F1 from 2010 but what was Massa/Hamilton like with each other in 2008? Was it this edgy? That was so close it was decided by a point.

[@supmikpaddleboarding5871]

@@Nickelodeon81 the season finale was super tense!Massa crossed the line 1st and Leading the Championship until a few seconds later Lewis overtook Glock in the Toyota,which made him gain enough points to overtake Massa...I was rooting for Lewis at the time,but it was heartbreaking for Felipe,and seeing his family already celebrating for a few moments before realizing what happened was so sad...But Felipe managed it well with pride..must have been even harder for him because it was his home GP in interlagos....

[@GloomGaiGar]

@@supmikpaddleboarding5871 the question was were hamilton and massa this aggressive to each other

[@GloomGaiGar]

@@Nickelodeon81 No because they rarely shared track space that close to each other but if they had? Yes, they would totally lock horns. It's just their nature.

[@supmikpaddleboarding5871]

@@GloomGaiGar no they weren't,hard racing yes but I don't remember moves like those from Max lately...

[@yeah377777]

Tbh I want this season to be done already. The anxiety is tru the roof. Fia have ruined this title battle with their sloppy management

[@nelspaulson3099]

Ruined might be a bit harsh. I would say negatively affected or soured. Definitely not helped.

[@Chrisp_E]

Already listened on Spotify but it was so good I have to watch it here too :)

[@liadupuis9265]

same :)))

[@sergio.h1985]

I'm glad I wasn't the only one feeling absolutely exhausted after the race finish... Honestly, if me, sitting on my couch, felt so tired from watching, I understand how Lewis was sitting with the towel over his head. That was insane!

[@rickstrating7090]

also the humid weather there

[@jeevandalip1082]

My head was banging for the rest of the day 😭

[@southerncomfort1339]

LH got a 25sec penalty for that, when it wasn't a rule for when you can repassed!! Plus Kimi pushed LH off!!

[@manat31790]

Different era, different ruleset. It cannot be helped.

[@Chrissy-H]

I think the teams should ONLY be able to call up the race director if they are coming with new evidence or information - sharing telemetry or onboard cameras etc. Both teams calling Michael Masi up for a moan just confuses him and makes it impossible for him to assess incidents just off what he has seen.

[@sam-rs8wg]

And I’m sure many other teams were calling him all race as well. I’m sure it isn’t easy to do his job when there are 10 teams calling him, plus stewards, plus the many other people on the phone to him. There should be someone between the teams and the race director

[@RickAnderson19]

Regarding the break check, I would have preferred seeing Max and Lewis play an inverse game of 🐓. Instead of racing to a cliff (so to speak), they would have a stand-off on track each refusing to go ahead of the other. The jeopardy part would have been the pack closing in from behind. That would have been far more interesting 🤨.

[@outremer91]

last one to the finish line wins.

[@TheManThatIsF54]

That's exactly what was happening until Max slammed on the brakes!

[@Charleypritchard12]

Lewis ability to get out the way of max to stop a dnf and still beat him is just unbelievable

[@attakorns]

Next race Kimi's race engineer should do a team radio compilation like: 1. Can you hear me Kimi? 2. Have you got gloves and steering wheel? 3. Do you know what you're doing Kimi? 4. Kimi, you will have the drink!

[@timjennings8152]

58:10 that was our problem with silverstone when Hamilton yeeted max into the barrier at 53g

[@maazahmed2336]

What are you on dude?

[@elliotcrossan6290]

Thank you Tommy for speaking facts despite being a Verstappen fan

[@deezelkane]

Seriously, props to him ✊

[@alextjb]

Agreed

[@DavidCP524]

Wtf is he on about? Lewis only got the lead by leaving Max sitting on the grid. Good on him for setting things right. The second incident, Lewis tagged Max before he oversteered.

[@elliotcrossan6290]

@@DavidCP524 Lol bullshit

[@karanbraria93]

@@DavidCP524 LMAO

[@danb.5779]

Brave opening with Max's driving standards in this race... now looking forward to all the 'But Silverstone...' comments.

[@sianlouiseeex]

I was always told as a little one 'two wrongs don't make a right' maybe others should've been told the same growing up. Would cut half the arguments on F1twt down. 😂

[@nickmanhota324]

Yes but max driving has been shocking, he is fast maybe one of the fastest atm but he is to aggressive 🤔

[@sianlouiseeex]

@@nickmanhota324 100% in agreement pal. Don't get me wrong I've backed Max for the championship just to get some new blood in, but this weekend was absolutely shocking for standards. Absolute shithousery from Max and redbull this weekend.

[@hunterreeves6525]

It’s hardly even worth making “but silverstone” comments because everyone already knows Max would be champion now if Lewis didn’t throw him off the track at 180mph

[@DarkRoomAmbience]

@@hunterreeves6525 As a racing incident, and due to Max cutting in to Lewis, "but Silverstone" is not a point in Max favour.

[@davidcane7211]

Time has come to add a rule, if a car is ordered to give a position back then they also have DRS disabled for 120 seconds. Say they have 90 seconds to hand the position back and 120 secs of no DRS so impossible to game the system in the way that they were this weekend.

[@ayol1011]

There's a new rule that you can't over take in a DRS zone after yielding your place now

[@alvarovinicius8571]

Wtf? "Give the position back in the front of the train" congratulations you are fighting mazepin now, and the new cars won't have DRS anymore

[@otokonitimothy4367]

Or just, if you give a position back, then you can´t retake the position in the same sector.

[@Tegneaufreak]

Yeah let’s add more rules 😂😂😂 We need less rules mate.

[@joefantastic4991]

@@Tegneaufreak Lol even the existing rules are not being followed properly.

[@franciscogomes9844]

Max's behavior this weekend in Saudi Arabia makes me really think the championship will be decided by a crash between the rivals. It would be very sad to see such an epic season end this way... I'm not saying he will do it on purpose but his mindset of never backing out and Hamilton's will to win the championship in this final race might be catastrophic...

[@nfsrival1499]

I hope not. I really hope we get treated on a nail biting race, let the best win!

[@merenwen4495]

It is a bit ironic that Hamilton putting Verstappen into the barriers in Silverstone is the reason we are even having this discussion. But everyone conveniently seems to forget that.

[@tarushdei]

Yet Hamilton putting Max into the wall in Silverstone was the reason we are even here in the first place. The points gap at that time would have been more than enough for Max to carry through to the end of the season well ahead of Hamilton.

[@isuller]

@@merenwen4495 and if Hamilton didn't open his wheel in Brazil Verstappen would've won the Championship by now. Saw what happened there: Hamilton reacted differently and because of that he had the chance to earn points. And that's what Verstappen has to learn too: you need all the points, not just the wins.

[@sekondnature101]

@@isuller Agreed! Max would be ahead by 18 points if he learned to fight another day. Lewis knew he had to get Max on the first lap at Silverstone or he'd never see him again. Max could have been patient and at worst claimed P2 and 18 more points than he has now.

[@lekudos]

Does anyone remember a similar “after you sir, no after you sir” type of situation near the DRS line between Lewis and Alonso a few years back? Obviously Alonso isn’t max… so no bumper cars on that occasion but still…🤣

[@Argosh]

Yeah, I love Max, and I was defending him. Right until I learned about him actually slamming the breaks... Stupid. So stupid.

[@0okyo]

And that was also because the one who was behind wasn't driving right in his arse. They were driving alongside each other. That's why they didn't crash that time. Both of them were braking and accelerating.

[@thecasualfans]

That was unreal

[@TjopStick]

@@Argosh well if your not allowed to brake on a racetrack anymore... then its gonna be an interesting first corner next race...

[@ktagoe]

@@TjopStick You're being obtuse. The braking was erratic as the report stated. That is why Max was penalised

[@duykhanhle99]

Max is an exceptional driver, but he’sover the edge way to often. Lewis had to back out on several occasions this season, otherwise they would have crashed multiple times already

[@elliotcrossan6290]

Eight times by my count

[@deezelkane]

Best comment I saw regarding max - “if max, raced max, they wouldn’t make it past turn 1”. Hilariously accurate

[@saiyerugara9038]

@@elliotcrossan6290 Damn!

[@elliotcrossan6290]

@@deezelkane and if Lewis raced like Max does, Bottas would be Champion 😂

[@nickmanhota324]

@@elliotcrossan6290 yes totally agree, as per 2007 season alonso and ham raced each over allowing kimi to win the wdc.

[@FlufLord]

“and the fans gave Nikita a C” … 😯 that’s an actual shocker! tbf I think he’s been keeping his head down and putting in the work with a better attitude and the fans seem to have noticed.

[@dannyquilter8366]

Tbf neither of the incidents he was involved in last weekend were his fault. One was a breakdown of communication and Lewis pushing hard, and the other he was flying around a blind corner into the aftermath of about 4 cars hitting each other

[@Silver77777-v]

So nice to see Tommy’s unbiased rip into Max. He can’t keep driving like this. If he ruins the last race with a crash I will most likely discontinue my SkyF1 subscription instantly😂😂😂. And my favorite driver is literally GASLY. But I can’t take the gaslighting from Redbull to Max. It’s disgusting

[@GloomGaiGar]

A true fanboy. You have to hold your favorite driver to a high standard not support they're shitty behaviors.

[@aspect9070]

Appreciate a fellow verstappen fan finally accepting that he was over agressive this race , when I tell someone they just call me a lewis fan

[@DavidCP524]

Lol, what did he do wrong?

[@Reddevil514]

@@DavidCP524 shut up 😂

[@DavidCP524]

@@Reddevil514 seriously the first incident was over the line but Lewis only the had the lead because he left Max sitting on the grid. Are you seriously going to excuse one driver and criticise another? The second incident, it was clear Lewis tagged Max before he oversteered and had to correct sending him off track.

[@registrado54]

@@DavidCP524 1 there is no rule stating the time you take to get to the grid on the restart. 2. Lewis gad the right to the corner because he was ahead, max should learn how to yield which he hasn't done once in his career.

[@sarahmonserrat6552]

Thank you Tom for calling it what it is. Never been a fan of Max's aggressive style but I have so much admiration for his mega talent. He's really quick BUT HIS WHEEL TO WHEEL IS JUST IMPOSSIBLE. It's fine to be aggressive and challenge the limits, but it's also important to man up when you fuck up. Problem is, Im not sure Max has self awareness or even the slightest bit of acceptance that his driving is getting evidently too much. Or if he does, I'm not sure he cares at all. Genuinely worried and scared about Abu Dhabi. Saudi is already a preview of how far Max is willing to go to win. Pretty sure he'll be 10x more aggressive + desperate now bec. it's a do or die game for both. Hopefully not.

[@edwardization]

Max will just go 100x more aggressive in Abu Dhabi as there’s no suitable penalties applied to max. Now he knows rejoin the track n require other cars to avoid collision will only incur 5 seconds and brake test 10 seconds, absolutely worth the risk

[@Sup3rStud]

His comment that he still hold the advantage because he has more wins is worrying. At the same time I wouldn’t be surprised if he said that to make Lewis jump out the way if he sends it rather than taking him out.

[@marcelrenes2435]

It was not the best race from Max, I agree. But I don't think Verstappen will crash Lewis in Abu Dhabi. It would haunt him for the rest of his life. And lose a lot of fans, also in my country The Netherlands. Greetings from a Max fan.

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

I love his aggressive style. People act like Lewis isn't aggressive either. He is, he's very aggressive, he's just more subtle ant under control more often than Max is. Lewis will still push drivers wide at times. It's just he stays on the track and has control of the car. Max recently, has kinds been out of control unfortunately.

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

@@edwardization God help the FIA stewards for Abu Dhabi.

[@siddharthagupta6683]

Lewis had no choice but to take it easy because of the championship situation. If it was other way around I am sure Lewis would have done the same. Remember 2016 finale? Lewis was aggresive when he saw max was running away with it in Silverstone. I don't think it is max or Lewis being aggressive, it is just the championship which drives that.

[@TheBrass18]

What dangerous driving did Lewis do in 2016?

[@mrfaheem6789]

@@TheBrass18 nothing it is defence mechanism of max's fans justifying a whole season of max ramming at every possible chance to lewis getting oversteered at silverstone where max also steered into him

[@bagginzhd1715]

This race was the equivalent of last year’s Tuscan GP. Dramatic, but for all the wrong reasons. Just another example of somewhere that wasn’t ready to host a Grand Prix weekend yet.

[@mrbungle3310]

Mugell had fun overtakes in t1

[@sorayapellegrini6212]

At least when people weren’t crashing at mugello there was fun overtaking like Alex on the outside of Daniel.

[@justice4g]

Lando outqualified Dan because he retired with damage during Q2

[@MGHines0517]

12:25 brake check... What about communications from race control to the drivers not being in sync. Lewis wanted to pass on the next straigh. Max wanted to catch him on the next straight (why did Max accelerate off?) Further few drivers brake for allowing a passing move, they just pull out of the accelerator. I'm calling a race control incident, FIA to investigated procedures rather than drivers.

[@TheDragonaf1]

26:01 Karen Horner: "Max...the time has come. Executive order 44" Max: "it will be done my lord"

[@esoekeng1315]

Who is Karen? Dark Lord or Lady?

[@vincentras1991]

And another HammonGammon fanboy

[@abbeyjade3304]

Imagine if they gave Max a 10 place grid drop for the next race but also gave Lewis a reprimand for not passing a slower car. I'd certainly make for an interesting final race, I'm almost surprised they didn't do that!

[@flessuh]

The comment from Micheal Masi did surprise me after the collision, basically telling Mercedes they missed the message because they were too busy with internal radio traffic. Then after we are told the message to Mercedes came after the collision.. i get it Masi is busy but that kind of stuff just adds to the confusion for the viewers

[@paskowitz]

"Let the driver retake the position" should go directly to the drivers or to both teams at the SAME time.

[@mrfaheem6789]

masi was corrupt man whole season and abu dhabi proved it

[@ImRezqoo]

You’re hero Michael Schumacher was also a edgy driver.. keep that in mind folks

[@conor987]

No racer is clean tbh, hero worshipping is cringe

[@ThatOneDude7]

Schumy squeezing Barichello in the 2010 Hungarian Grand Prix is still one of the most outrageous deliberate dirty driving i've ever seen. It has never failed to scare me whenever i've watched it. I don't hate on Schumi but as you have said, no such thing as heroes in F1.

[@GizziMoD]

@@ThatOneDude7 Dude that was horrible.. completely agree, MS was a dirty bastard imo

[@manat31790]

​@@conor987 Mika Hakkinen was as clean and pure as Superman. Don't overgeneralize.

[@dominickbergeron797]

Yes!! A race weekend is not complete without the WTF1 Podcast!

[@basbogie7730]

Listening to the points you guys were making about Max' driving last weekend I have to take my orange glasses off and agree that this was too much... It was no were near the proffesional agressive drive style we're used from Max but more the unproffesional driving you see in F1 online open lobbies. But now I have to resort to childish what-aboutism and say: How is no one talking about the moment where Lewis was lining up for T27 (dont know what lap it was), checked his mirror and saw Max was getting along side of him (this was before going into the corner). He didn't even steer in until he nearly went off track, forcing Max to go off track. Even Masi got on the radio saying that was borderline black and white flag. Max was bad but Lewis also sank to a low level. This was the moment he could be a proffesional and not go that low and say he is more proffesional then Max but he did not and that no one is saying anything about that just baffles me a tiny bit. And again, this does not excuse Max' behaviour but Lewis wasn't an angel all race as well.

[@Anna785643]

This 🙌

[@kumaflamewar6524]

Lewis stayed on track and apparently you're allowed to defend like that. You have Max to thank for it. Every since Austria 2019 that move is on. I don't see how Max fans complain about it now.

[@Npc14]

Well if you saw your main title rival not get punished for very aggressive moves, why would you not do the same thing? It's also worth noting that Hamilton clearly got frustrated by Verstappen's shocking driving standards. also, Verstappen made so much more aggressive moves that Hamilton's was basically just a drop in the sea.

[@registrado54]

You mean exactly like max did in spain and imola and didnt even get looked at?

[@basbogie7730]

@@kumaflamewar6524 He stayed on track and missed the apex by a country mile just so he could force Max off track. In my memory and correct me if Im wrong when Max pushes people off track they always go along side into the corner. Max on the inside which means he has the right to do so. Doesn't mean its not gentleman like tho.

[@christianorsa]

Both RB and Merc did so many things wrong during this race, and the FIA was a nightmare

[@snoopythedog3266]

What did they do wrong. Great decisions were made. So many safety's threw ideas out the window a bit

[@Controvi]

They really did. At one point I was more or less hoping they would stop the radio messages. got sick of hearing merc cry about the red flag tire change and all the weird stuff happening after -_-

[@Rivv96]

I genuinely do not understand why people are shocked or even surprised at the "deal" between the FIA and Red Bull. In the sporting regulations (art 27.3 of the Formula 1 Sporting Regulations), that states in short that if a driver gains a position by leaving the track, he has the opportunity to give back the advantage at the discretion of the race director. This is why very often you see drivers leave the track and willingly giving the place back (Leclerc vs. Sainz this same race), or get a penalty (Perez vs Leclerc at Monza). The only caveat in this instance is the red flag that occured right after Verstappen mistook the run-off area for a bus lane. During the stop, Masi simply offered, per the regulations, the opportunity to start P3 to give back the whole advantage gained. Now the wording used during that call may confuse people, but this is not a negociation. However it is important to note that given how this regulation article is worded, Masi cannot enforce a swapping of cars. He can however let the stewards enforce a penalty if the teams don't comply. That is why Red Bull had the opportunity to refuse Masi's offer. But why not do it on the track ? Well, it's one thing to swap cars during a normal race, it's another thing to do it at the restart when the lights go off or shortly after. Especially given the nature of the track and the fact that you have 13 drivers behind tweaked on adrenaline and eager to get on with it. Not only Masi's offer to Red Bull completely within regulations, the option to swap the cars on the grid was also the safest.

[@Formula1bliz]

The FiA massively favors Mercedes

[@vsam3861]

Max is the most protected driver in professional sports it’s an actual joke. The man binned a fastest lap in Q3, committed at least three offences in the race and is still applauded like some sort of champ

[@SanfordPereira]

You have a fair point. I'm a max fan and sometimes it's hard to realise that he (max) goes over the line sometimes. I guess we just want the underdog to the championship to win. And the underdog this year is Max. Max has had the worst luck with crashes in Baku, Silverstone and Hungary... thats why I want Max to win. Hope it's a clean race this sunday and may the best man win.

[@KeshavChugh]

The most awaited podcast of the year.

[@sitordan]

Wow. Tommy was ruthless regarding Max. And that says a lot considering he's a huge Max fan.

[@noteda6361]

Doesn't really say a lot because he is British. WTF1 bunch of drama whiners.

[@reymon2722]

@@noteda6361 I also want Max to win the championship but not like this. Since Monza he has been driving differently, a lot more on the tactical side. Which is also the FIA's fault because they allow it. Not british btw and not the only Max fan who thinks like this. I may be a fan but I am not blind.

[@leeroythelight]

@@noteda6361 he’s not wrong though, only Max fanboys will accept those driving standards, specially what he showed during this race. I’m a fan of a lot of drivers and would have been happy if Max won the WDC earlier tbh, but this kind of driving is just over the line. You can’t drive straight out the corner, cut it, take the lead off track and expect this to be accepted…then complains about the penalty. I hope he get his head straight and put a good fight in the finale. Looks like Marco got into his head…

[@jacklewis9249]

Was very relieved to hear that this is how he feels about his driving.

[@chriscollins550]

@@noteda6361 sorry but even none British people are saying the same thing. When are people going to stop with the biased BS and realise what really going on.

[@cyber1nix]

I think we are overlooking the potential that the decision was entirely made for ratings not for racing. Having your top 2 drivers being tied for first place going in to the final race is a ratings boom you can only dream of, the FIA stewards are well capable of determining probable finish order based on pace an aggregate data from previous seasons, they knew that this decision would lead to a season tie and ultimately a very popular season finale.

[@zaksacc]

And all the drama too, leading to lots of media exposure…..

[@terencecaron2922]

Yeah somthin fanboys dont understand is the FIA are not doin what they do for mercedes or for redbull, they’re doin it for the ratings

[@zaksacc]

@@terencecaron2922 agreed

[@cyber1nix]

@@terencecaron2922 agreed, the FIA, and the teams are businesses first and have both legal and ethical obligations to do what is best for business before what's best for the drivers.

[@Alnilam1973]

My opinion, max has been bent out of shape by the Silverstone accident, he seemed genuinely pissd off that Lewis was celebrating while he was in the hospital. Then monza crash and max is a bad person for not checking if Lewis was ok! I think Max's driving in Saudi was over the line but I can see how max could justify it to himself. Not saying his right. At the same time the Saudi circuit is not fit for purpose, the fact that we came away from it with a broken ankle being the worst injury is a miracle, in the safety conscious world F1 has become it makes as much sense as putting in a budget cap and then telling the teams they have to do more races on the same budget What are liberty and the fia playing at, easy to see where masi gets his indecisiveness from, it's not him its systemic in the fia

[@ConorF727]

He has always been an aggressive driver.

[@alastairaspara4554]

Max has been driving like this for year.

[@alastairaspara4554]

Yeas*

[@DanielGijsbers]

Max did check at Monza

[@vwbugoutracing3416]

. I’ve been waiting for it since we finished the race thank you guys for doing what you do pretty much agree with everything you said here today and just wanna get back to you some racing

[@andrewgarner3428]

The way I see it is that Lewis is like the footballer that will go down holding his face to try to win a penalty. Max is the guy that jumps in two footed and will break your leg unless you get out of the way.

[@jimmyc3030]

lewis did have some questionable tactics - the main one ive not seen anyone mention is being insanely slow on the drive up to trhe 1st restart after the red flag, where max was in the lead and was stopped on his grid a solid 10 seconds before everyone else. This likely contributed to his slow start and the desperate lunge he made at the corner.

[@dance207]

Think they said that was allowed because it wasn’t a formation lap

[@garywarburton3124]

My understanding the lap is counted towards the race so FIA doesn’t apply the same rules has a formation lap so yet again it’s within the rules not saying it’s right but if FIA don’t change the rules everyone is gonna exploit it.

[@jamiesumner3070]

@Jimmyc There is no rule for that on a restart, Masi confirmed it to Horner when they questioned it. Totally different rules compared to formation lap. They will now probably be looked into and rules put in place after this season has finished. Just Hamilton finding a loophole.

[@jimmyc3030]

ah, fair enough, thanks to everyone for the clarification :D

[@prohacvice9671]

The unforseeable events and misfortunes aside. Bahrain and the crash in Saudi qualifying, were in Max's hands. He needed to clinch both. Looking back, I think he might resent himself for these specifically.

[@UnWastedMovies]

Well yeah but Baku, Hungary and imo Silverstone where taken away from him. That's 60-75 points gone up in smoke

[@prohacvice9671]

@@UnWastedMovies Hence my preface of "unforeseeable events and misfortunes aside".

[@paskowitz]

@@UnWastedMovies I'll agree with Baku and Hungary... but for Silverstone... while it was perhaps the most dramatic collision and predominantly Lewis's fault for understanding a bit, Max still went for a risky pass. An outside pass at Copse, for position, is a risk irrespective of any other circumstance. He made the decision to pass there instead of waiting for a better opportunity (there are better corners to pass at Silverstone and there were plenty of laps left).

[@Husmanmusic]

@@paskowitz i need to fact check you there haha. Max was in front in silverstone. Lewis tried to overtake max on the inside.

[@supmikpaddleboarding5871]

@@UnWastedMovies Silverstone was the first time Max got a little taste of his own racing style... And I'm happy that Lewis didn't back off that day.. yesterday we saw one champion trying to keep it clean.and we saw one crazy kamikaze willing to do everything,legal or illegal to stay in front!!! And the FIA is a joke by giving him a 10sec penaltie which is totally pointless and doesn't affect or punish him at all... Red Bullfia!!!!

[@jacobgorham6477]

For me the red flag tyre change rule should be changed. Still allow for tyre/damage changes however not allow it to count as your mandatory stop. Feel like that would be the best compromise.

[@edwingarcia7269]

Remember Emilia when Hamilton un lap him self I’m sure you’ll dint say anything there.

[@hellothere-us7iw]

Kimi also was able to unlap during red flag during his Ferrari days. The shouting of steering wheels and gloves race.

[@johnnie9110q]

This race was just too much spice for my liking... Ofc I want them to fight for the championship, but in a fair and clean way. Get out of the car, shake hands, gg next. This whole bitterness and drama (and chaos from the race director) ist too much in my opinion. There is enough drama, I dont need it in the sport i really like... And btw keep up the great content, love the channel :)

[@scottmeredith3359]

This 👆

[@swarajchouriwar6054]

Post race conference was the most awkward thing ever. Reporters were like , Lewis did you call max A F***ing crazy man and Lewis was like yes because he was acting like one. Seeing Max's face whilst that was going on was one of the saddest thing to see.

[@callumjb7668]

max deserves all the hate he gets

[@RJW14]

Was that a Dutch reporter? Because anyone who says anything not overly positive about Max gets nailed to the cross by them. What a useless question. (ps. I'm Dutch)

[@enzoma7253]

Great stuff, absolutely spot on.

[@davidcasciari1989]

Been looking for this Podcast since the race ended

[@anthonyschroeder521]

Tommy's point about it being DQ worthy is exactly what I was thinking, even as a Max fan. Absolutely ridiculous set of events

[@bosmans1978]

Complete bs

[@mverst433]

Over reaction IMO. Imagine this season without Verstappen. Just try it. Ok? Yeah, thought so.

[@lsdesignweb]

I agree ... it seems some people like Trainspotting rather that F1 races

[@IsDitGerben]

Totally agree. That’s the British biased in them I suppose, eventhough they say they aren’t.

[@registrado54]

So he gets to do anything because he made the season fun? Lol what a childish take

[@mverst433]

@@registrado54 no not anything. But come on, you know there is an element of truth in my words.

[@Xx-Zeppelin-xX]

Great stuff!

[@simola1241]

Enjoyed this podcast

[@iwanevans607]

IMO what we saw from Verstappen was desperation and that all stemmed from binning it in Q3 from that point on he was literally going to do anything to win that race and ensure either Hamilton didn’t finish or he was at least behind him when they finished, quite sad that it’s come to this but Max is feeling it now, he knew that was a critical face and he just took it too far, I really want and hope for a clean and fair battle in Abu Dhabi this week and whoever wins, wins 🤷‍♂️

[@zafert85]

Was the season clean?

[@hiran4935]

He needs to know that at this stage Mercs are too quick. Simulations showed racepace was 0.5s faster in Mercs. So letting them by is the only thing to do rather than being despo about loosing it. He is such a kid.

[@zafert85]

@@hiran4935 WHAT? WTF you on about? So if the sim says Mclaren racepace is 1s faster than RBR and Merc they should just let Mclaren pass by?

[@hiran4935]

@@zafert85 Letting them by means not letting them by giving space, I meant like defend correctly without pushing people wide over the corner everytime, dude. Like how many times did he do that? Hell I want to see him win, I am tired of Lewis but come on, just make it subtle. He is acting so desperate out there. Just frigging defend to the rules and if it doesn't work Lewis will pass. What else can he do? The Merc is a rocketship at this point. I mean if I was Lewis I would be annoyed too. How can you pass the guy when he is driving off the line?

[@iwanevans607]

@@zafert85 I’m not talking about the season I’m talking about Q3 and the race in Jeddah

[@HCL_Plus]

“I think Toto is more level headed than Christian” *as Toto proceeds to escalate physical violence towards his equipment and furniture*🤣

[@wana.me003]

😂😂better than punching someone instead, but I get your point!

[@kishbasketmouth5910]

Awesome job guys my 1st time here

[@NTK94.]

Katy trying to bring the mourinho meme to life waiting in the carpark😂

[@billystanford275]

This race was so exciting everyone forgot that Hamilton was quite literally hinting at a conspiracy after the Red flag (first one)

[@TheLibermania]

Did he?

[@J0bix]

@@TheLibermania he was complaining so much on the radio, I got a brainfart. So I can't remember.......

[@jamien6317]

Yes whilst forgetting how he was able to get an entire lap back and fix his car after binning it in Imola. I get his frustration but he should remember when the shoe has been on the other foot.

[@billystanford275]

@@jamien6317 I remember when VSC first came about and Seb and Lewis went back and forth a couple times with winning by a pit stop under the VSC. They both called bullshit and trickery each time the other driver done it, whilst forgetting they benefitted at some point too 🤣 I guess it's that Champion mentality of "surely I can't lose in a fair race so it's not fair cause I didn't win"

[@delvismbalilwa3602]

He complains but at least he doesn’t try to crush his competitors out of the race

[@Fr3ddyM3hrCurry]

I love how the Battle of Kimi and Seb fighting feels like "Granpda vs Grandpa" battle. And meanwile Lewis, who is two years older than Seb, is racing for the title in his never ending Prime And the straight chicane (I dont think that spelling is right) is possible cause they moved it away from the grandstands than the original chicane was. so the chicane now has a much greater radius now

[@limz4485]

A team principle should NEVER criticize his driver in public, never. Sorry Katy, just think what that would do to a team? You handle that in private.

[@ThatOneDude7]

He's a team "principle", you don't tell him what he can't do to his driver. I think I also have a pretty good idea as to what it does to a team, I'm pretty sure Bottas would agree.

[@blakebarone1809]

Max going out of control to try to keep a lead is incredibly different than Max intentionally knocking them both out.

[@FuzzyFiend6258]

It’s crazy how similar this race was to Baku 2017. Ok hear me out real quick: In both 2017 and this race title protagonists enter the races with a small points margin. The Baku race starts and a Red Bull car (toro Rosso of kvyat) is sideways on the track, similar to checo after the first restart. The you have kimi crashing with another car (bottas in 2017 and seb in Saudi) which spews carbon fiber on the track. Alonso then gets on the radio calling for a red flag or full safety car to clear the debris, which in both live broadcasts of both races is broadcasted. Then the most infamous part of both races the “brake test”. In 2017 seb accusing Lewis of brake testing him and in this years race Lewis accusing max of the same. The result of the incident in both cases was the title leader at that point and title underdog getting a penalty for dangerous driving and the title favorite and defender (Lewis Hamilton in both races) not getting a pen but instead a mechanical fault of some sort. In Baku it was the headrest coming undone forcing Lewis to pit and in Saudi a broken front wing. (Although the front wing had minimal impact on the race compared to the headrest in 2017). All the while you had two teammates battling super closely, Checo and Ocon in 2017 and Charles and Carlos in Saudi. Finally you had bottas just beating out a midfield team driver on the line to take a podium. I’m not sure how many other people noticed this but I thought it was really interesting how similar these races were. Also, both on newly built street circuits in countries with questionable human rights records.

[@_lowpoke700]

Wow. I didn't even think of any of that, that's really cool and kinda wierd.

[@flessuh]

The "brake check" thing is in no way comparable with Baku 2017.. back then Seb was punished for the wheel banging, there was no order to give a position back, and it was at low speed. The rest around it, sure.

[@98MTBiker]

I'm glad you noticed that as well. All of the team radio adds to the drama. Incident wise that race was quite close to this. Of course now there was even more of the dirty driving and questionable overtakes but indeed a lot of similarities.

[@FuzzyFiend6258]

@@flessuh yeah that’s for sure true, but Baku 2017 and this race are the only races I even remember when one driver accused another of brake testing, let alone one championship protagonist accusing the other. I was getting major deja vu watching the Saudi race.

[@marcelrenes2435]

Great podcast! Good evaluation of the race and everyting around it. Greetings from a Max fan. 👍

[@RobWSS1]

I think the most clear track change is turning the 21/22 section into a low speed chicane.

[@Franky46Boy]

Everybody seems to forget that former World Champions like Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna were very aggressive drivers in their time too. Maybe not everything they did was compressed in one such a race, but...

[@Evilroco]

Schummi lost all championship points for driving like Max ,people who compare them like to forget about that .

[@BicMacAndChips1]

This is why I love watching WTF1 so much. British bias is always thrown round from watchers on this channel but it's so far from the truth - Matt is a Schumi and Leclerc lover and Tom is a Max fan and yet they (and Katie of course) always give such balanced views and objective thoughts - always a pleasure to listen.

[@Saitamabaldopm]

Although I agree, I think they didn’t focus on a fair amount of Lewis’s little tricks that probably should have been penalised, saying that the FIA clearly showed they are tailoring this championship with the leniency of Max’s punishments.

[@faizmaulida341]

Compare it to the silverstone episode. You will see the different naration when lewis and max make a mistake. It's all about naration. British bias is always there.

[@nasgeorgellis1409]

Halfway through the season I wanted Verstappen to win because he was the underdog, but the last few races he's looked desperate and just downright dirty. Hamilton has done all he can to keep the racing hard but CLEAN, verstappen couldnt be bothered. Verstappen is fully happy to crash, has Senna vibes where he will happily crash and put people's lives in danger and just shrugs it off when questioned in the media...Hoping Hamilton to win now purely cos Max has been a prat and Hamilton has been such a pro throughout...

[@dennisn5308]

I'm with you, I was backing Max for a good portion of this season, not because I dislike Hamilton, but just because Max is a very talented driver who (I thought) deserves a championship. And I still do think he is brilliant and does deserve to win, but maybe not just yet... He has a bit more growing to do and maybe Hamilton needs to teach him some humility by taking the win away from him next weekend.

[@elliotcrossan6290]

You're right that Verstappen is a dirty driver. But how was he the underdog halfway through the season? He had the fastest car for 8 of the first 12 races

[@nasgeorgellis1409]

@@elliotcrossan6290 Underdog in the context of recent history. Hamilton is a multiple champ over the last few years, with only Rosberg able to sneak in one...

[@elliotcrossan6290]

@@nasgeorgellis1409 That makes sense. But Lewis was the underdog in the context of this season in isolation.

[@nephlimjedi4741]

Sorry to crash your party, but Hamilton is just as arrogant. Almost all champions from recent memory have been dicks on or off track, simply because high confidence is a must. It's just that Hamilton has whined over the radio a few too many times for my liking if he wasn't lucky (see the team radio of last race at first Red Flag). I just can't take Hamilton serious anymore.

[@Supa-td8mh]

Smooth podcast, good unbiased points

[@markopejic2192]

Fans loved it, it's exciting

[@christianorsa]

this race was an absolute & magnificent sh*tshow lol, from all the flags and decisions to the radios, crashes and everything in between, ugh what a yoke

[@alasdairduncan3]

Exactly. Really low quality desision making throughout (from Masi and Max alike), but thoroughly enjoyable still.

[@jan3034]

cant be using the excuse that max is still young as this is his 6th year, most formula 1 drivers dont have careers as long as that so max's driving standards should be up to par and not excusing his aggressive and reckless driving just because he's still young

[@joetubenno]

I think it is a bit unfair to not take into account that Mercedes pulled some dirty tricks to push Max over the edge. Talking about Bottas holding Max off, basically denying him to pit. Also the gap Lewis left made sure Max his tires were too cold to get any grip on the restart. To be fair, Max let this get to him. But in my opinion this caused a series of events to get Max triggered. Love the podcasts! But you were savage today :)

[@keshavchaudhary2596]

That time stamp at @1:03:30 is what got my attention the most😂

[@itsgeorgemorgan]

Personally speaking, the amount of effort both drivers are putting into this Formula 1 World Championship should be praised - their motivation to do anything and everything they can is great for the sport and raises the value of the World Championship. While I don't necessarily agree with the actions that were taken out on track, I feel this only exposes the weak link that is the Stewarding. There needs to be some review of how incidents are managed and distributed - also there needs to be greater clarity in the Race Direction. There didn't seem to be a lot of understanding or even a process in place to manage that race, and it has been a consistent theme for a while now!

[@Reyzour]

i kinda disagree with this. I know what you mean with what they should be praised for. But there where to many incidents this year from both drivers that where just over the limits. And for those incidents its not ok to do anything and everything. Max has shown it more and more in the last races, but Hamilton had his "stupid" moments as well. And when you put racing above safety, thats when its too much. Both of them did this on multiple occasions this year and this should not be praised in any way. And i don't mean this in a drastic way like Silverstone but this race was also unsafe driving from both drivers even though a crash at all the points they conacted wouldn't have resulted in a hospital visit. But it is still just unsafe driving and this has been going on for more than half the season. I agree with what you say about the problem is with the Stewards though but those are not the main cause of the problems, both drivers are.

[@itsgeorgemorgan]

@@Reyzour I respect that opinion 100% - I think we are kind of on the same level with this if you read into it. I don't condone the actions by both drivers out on track - but what it reeks of is weak policing by the Stewarding teams and Race Director. Who is there to police footballers going too far? The referees. If there is no authority then there are no boundaries and it will only encourage more of this. When Schumacher pushed things over the edge in Jerez in 1997, he was disqualified from the Championship for dangerous driving, and I'd argue that what we saw at Saudi Arabia was far worse in that sense. Especially with the size and power these cars possess in this era of Formula 1 on a tight, close walled street circuit.

[@F1ll1nTh3Blanks]

@@Reyzour Let the drivers race as they please. However the FIA must police it blindly, that will fix it. None of this race tinkering nonsense we have now. Where they make decisions for the show as opposed to the letter of regulation.

[@Blackhawkso]

Part of me wonders why the FIA don't have what other race series have where race control can broadcast to all teams and drivers at the same time. It would have got rid of the issues of drivers not being told in time about something happening due to an order from the stewards.

[@artificialstupidity]

Time stamps🎉😁Thanx

[@westlylewis1]

Such a bloody good podcast!! TOPSHELF STUFF!!

[@TheLibermania]

Nahh, too biased for my liking.

[@westlylewis1]

@@TheLibermaniaThe truth hurts...

[@TheLibermania]

@@westlylewis1 Which truth? Of them being biased? I don't think that it should hurt, but i do think that they need to use their brain some more. If using the brain hurts, than i want it to hurt them, yes.

[@ben-g314]

@@westlylewis1 you mean opinions.

[@westlylewis1]

@@ben-g314 I said what I said...