The Race F1 Podcast

The Team Principal Podcast is back! On episode 2, Otmar Szafnauer - the former TP of Racing Point, Alpine and Aston Martin - is joined by Ben Anderson to get into the thorny subject of F1 politics. They begin by discussing internal politics at Red Bull, and whether they played a part in the team dropping Liam Lawson for Yuki Tsunoda after just two races. Otmar also shares his thoughts on how fellow TP Christian Horner has managed the situation.  After that, Otmar discusses the times in his career where he’s had to deal with intra-team politics, including the time he had to resist pressure from a team owner to sign a particular driver, and the time he had to convince Alpine management to capitalise on uncertainty around a driver’s contract. He also explains how team culture is essential to prevent political in-fighting within a team, and how politics contributed to his Alpine exit. There’s also chat about inter-team politics, and the tactics teams use off-track to gain an edge over the opposition. Otmar also recalls the time he found himself in the middle of a political storm over the so-called ‘Pink Mercedes’ affair, and explains how and why alliances shift between teams. He also takes us into a meeting of team principals, explains how bosses use the media for their own benefit, and much more. Plus, after Eddie Jordan’s sad recent passing, Otmar pays tribute to a fellow team principal gone too soon. Join The Race Members' Club on Patreon today - we even have an F1-only tier! Head to Patreon.com/therace [https://patreon.com/therace%20]  * Follow The Race on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/wearetherace/], X  [https://twitter.com/wearetherace]and Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/wearetherace] * Check out our latest videos on  [https://shop.the-race.com/collection/calendars/]YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaTxfj0BzL-MaCy-YUqPRoQ] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

We discuss Red Bull’s imminent replacement of Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda in the latest edition of The Race F1 Podcast. Jon Noble joins Edd Straw to discuss the move and explain what it says about Red Bull’s driver strategy.  We discuss why Lawson couldn’t extract the pace from the Red Bull RB21 that Max Verstappen can and what it was about his progress that persuaded the team to abandon him so quickly. And with Tsunoda now having the chance of a lifetime, we ask if he’s got what it takes to make a success of his opportunity.  Join The Race Members' Club on Patreon today - we even have an F1-only tier! Head to Patreon.com/therace [https://patreon.com/therace%20]  * Follow The Race on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/wearetherace/], X  [https://twitter.com/wearetherace]and Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/wearetherace] * Check out our latest videos on  [https://shop.the-race.com/collection/calendars/]YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaTxfj0BzL-MaCy-YUqPRoQ] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Edd Straw is joined by Jon Noble and Scott Mitchell-Malm to dissect the Chinese Grand Prix, in which Oscar Piastri showed his title credentials with an impressive victory ahead of McLaren team-mate Lando Norris. Edd, Scott and Jon (with help from Mark Hughes!) discuss how Piastri made the race his, unpick the brake issue that hampered Norris, and outline why Saturday's impressive sprint winner - Lewis Hamilton - was disqualified from the race, along with Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc and Alpine's Pierre Gasly. There's also chat about Liam Lawson's perilous position at Red Bull, about Haas's surprise turn of pace, and about Alex Albon's strong start to the year, plus the guys answer another bumper crop of questions from The Race Members' Club. Join The Race Members' Club on Patreon today - we even have an F1-only tier! Head to Patreon.com/therace [https://patreon.com/therace%20]  * Follow The Race on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/wearetherace/], X  [https://twitter.com/wearetherace]and Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/wearetherace] * Check out our latest videos on  [https://shop.the-race.com/collection/calendars/]YouTube [https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaTxfj0BzL-MaCy-YUqPRoQ] * To bid for unique F1 memorabilia with Graham Budd Auctions, click here [https://www.grahambuddauctions.co.uk/auctions/upcoming-auctions/2025-03-10-f1-unleashed-tim[%E2%80%A6]-6dadc21b-f3d5-45d1-a2d5-4b12717ce274?ref=the-race.com] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Bring Back V10s pays tribute to the late Eddie Jordan with a special episode looking back at the Jordan team's greatest moments in F1. Host Glenn Freeman is joined by Ben Anderson and Matt Beer to debate which of Jordan's many highlights during its memorable time in F1 should be considered the brightest and best, charting the team's journey from a newcomer that had to go through pre-qualifying, to a brief title contender by the end of the 1990s before its decline set in during the early years of the 21st century. If you'd like to watch the free bonus show on Patreon where Glenn goes through heartfelt memories shared by our audience, you can find it here: https://www.patreon.com/posts/discussing-your-124802329 [https://www.patreon.com/posts/discussing-your-124802329] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

On this special episode of The Race F1 Podcast, we pay tribute to legendary F1 team boss Eddie Jordan, following his sad passing. Edd Straw is joined by Jon Noble, who as a journalist enjoyed many encounters with Jordan in the F1 paddock, and Gary Anderson, EJ's friend and former colleague, who designed the very first Jordan F1 car and was the team's long-time technical leader. Together, they reflect on the life and legacy of a man who was a true original - the last of the truly successful independent Formula 1 team owners and one of the most charismatic figures ever to grace grand prix racing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]