Ep81: Kimi keeps winning, Russell in tears, Belgium BP

Ep81: Kimi keeps winning, Russell in tears, Belgium BP

Dianne and Ciara Gillan recap the 2026 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, where Kimi Antonelli took pole by the biggest margin of the season, on his dad's birthday, and converted it into another win to extend his lead in the Drivers' Championship. Recorded late Sunday night in WA after a rare dry Spa race. Also on the table this week: George Russell's heartbreaking lap-one DNF after clipping with Lewis Hamilton and the five-second penalty that neither Sky Sports nor we agreed with, Russell close to tears in his post-crash interview, Mercedes admitting all Merc-powered cars had start-line issues, Max Verstappen stealing second on lap one thanks to a tow from Isack Hadjar and the FIA's confusing 30-place grid penalty, Charles Leclerc briefly leading the race, the Piastri and Norris team orders drama with Lando's engineer telling him "no yo-yoing, I'll explain later," Hamilton nearly running over his pit crew and the unsafe release investigation, Norris's slow pit stop that cost him a podium shot, Arvid Lindblad's career-best qualifying in P7, Gabriele Bortoleto's equal career-best in P8, Kimi's growing calmness in the car, and the Leclerc and Piastri incident that somehow escaped a penalty while Hamilton's didn't. Plus a fun stat from Autosport: if you started in F1 at 20 and made every Q3 for 15 seasons before retiring at 35, you'd still be 50 short of Hamilton's Q3 record. And Lewis Hamilton going soft-launch public with Kim Kardashian and family on social media. Nicole Piastri's favourite hotel in the world? Right beside the Spa circuit. Budapest next weekend, then the summer break. Silly season is about to properly ramp up, and hopefully some clarity on the Middle East races before the next round. Follow Ciara at Formula Live Pulse: https://f1livepulse.com [https://f1livepulse.com] Website: https://awaywegopodcast.com [https://awaywegopodcast.com] Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663 [https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6 [https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast [https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast] Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com [https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/ [https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast [https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast [https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast [https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast] Threads: https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast [https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast]

Ep80: Silly season: Max, Oscar, Horner

The mid-season break has barely started and the paddock is already on fire. Di is in Margaret River, Ciara is in Berlin, and this week they unpack every rumour worth talking about in the 2026 silly season. Is Max Verstappen really talking to McLaren? What would actually be in it for him, and what would Jos Verstappen do inside a team with two number one drivers? Then there's the other side of that swap: Oscar Piastri to Red Bull. Di and Ciara debate whether Laurent Mekies can build a championship-winning car around him, and whether McLaren would ever really back Oscar to win a title now Lando has one on the board. Also on the table this week: Christian Horner's next move and why Ferrari feels wrong on every level, the Flavio Briatore factor at Alpine, Gucci officially joining the grid and the fashion war brewing with Louis Vuitton, Yuki Tsunoda linked to Haas with money behind him, Fernando Alonso's future at Aston Martin, and whether Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and Dubai are all at risk if the Middle East situation escalates. Plus a fun fact from the Second Seat Podcast about Oscar's cursed special helmets, and a big F1 Academy moment: 16-year-old Ciara Battig taking pole and P2 on debut as the wildcard at Silverstone, Abbi Pulling becoming the first woman to win a GB3 race, and Nina Gatterman testing an Alpine F1 car. Back next week after Spa. Follow Ciara at Formula Live Pulse: https://f1livepulse.com Website: https://awaywegopodcast.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast Threads: https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast

Ep79: Ferrari's 250th, a safety car finish and the British GP that should have been

Show notes: The British Grand Prix delivered wheel-to-wheel battles, a championship leader fighting a broken car, and a finish that left almost every fan deflated. Charles Leclerc took Ferrari's 250th Formula 1 win at Silverstone, but it came under a safety car after Max Verstappen's late DNF, which is exactly as unsatisfying as it sounds. Dianne Bortoletto and Ciara Gillan, motorsport journalist at Formula Live Pulse (f1livepulse.com), break down everything: Kimi Antonelli's fighting spirit on a mechanically compromised car, George Russell's fortunate second place, Ferrari's decision to keep Lewis Hamilton's five-second penalty quiet until the pit stop window, and the track limits debate that nobody can fully agree on. There's also a fun fact about who actually controls the lights at the start of every Formula 1 race. This week: the safety car controversy, the track limits debate, Oscar Piastri's nightmare race, the sprint results and Predict the Podium leaderboard update. Website: https://awaywegopodcast.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast Threads: https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast Next race: the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.

Ep78: Ferrari disappoints in Austria

Ferrari arrived in Austria with a big upgrade package and left with Lewis Hamilton fifth and Charles Leclerc eighth. George Russell inherited pole position beating a split-second yellow flag, then he led every lap, and won. Dianne Bortoletto and Ciara Gillan break down the race, the qualifying controversy, Kimi Antonelli's chaotic opening laps, and why the Red Bull Ring broadcast left viewers feeling seasick. Also this week: the FIA removes presidential term limits, Rachel Brookes departs Sky Sports, Cadillac's double DNF inside five laps, and Carlos Sainz's proposal that would change Formula 1 entirely. Ciara Gillan is co-founder of Formula Live Pulse: https://f1livepulse.com Predict the Podium: https://awaywegopodcast.com/play-along/ Subscribe to the Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com Website: https://awaywegopodcast.com Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast Threads: https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast

Ep77: Classic Monaco F1 just €150, with Colin Johnston

Most Formula 1 fans file Monaco under one day, one budget you don't have: yacht money, championship-week crowds, a Sunday grandstand seat that costs more than the flights. Motorsport historian Colin Johnston has spent years doing it the other way. This week Colin joins Dianne Bortoletto to show how to experience Monaco, Goodwood and the great old European circuits as an independent traveller, without the championship-weekend price tag. He makes the case for the Monaco Grand Prix Historique: the same iconic circuit, the cars you grew up watching, a fully open paddock, and three days of racing from 150 euros. He breaks down where to sit at Sainte Dévote, why Menton beats Nice as a base, and the 7 euro 80 train ride that drops you right at the track. There's Monza in 2024 from inside the paddock the day Charles Leclerc won, the Tifosi compared to Irish rally fans, and why Goodwood Members' Meeting is the most carefully curated weekend in motorsport. Colin writes Formula 1 history for Mercedes, so the conversation also turns to myth-busting the 1950s, the Mille Miglia and Stirling Moss, and whether something real is lost from the sport now that the danger has gone. Plus the final three: the race Colin would travel to, the race destination he would pick for a holiday, and the driver, dead or alive, he would take on holiday. Colin Johnston Website: https://racingdaydreams.com [https://racingdaydreams.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinjohnstonuk/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinjohnstonuk/] X: https://x.com/CJGrandPrix [https://x.com/CJGrandPrix] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cjgrandprix/ [https://www.instagram.com/cjgrandprix/] Website: https://awaywegopodcast.com [https://awaywegopodcast.com] Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663 [https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/away-we-go-podcast/id1783230663] Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6 [https://open.spotify.com/show/4zhYpuRy3mL6y44ZERI0X6] YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast [https://www.youtube.com/@AwayWeGoPodcast] Substack: https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com [https://awaywegopodcast.substack.com] Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/ [https://www.instagram.com/awaywegopodcast/] TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast [https://www.tiktok.com/@awaywego.podcast] Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast [https://www.facebook.com/awaywegopodcast] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast [https://www.linkedin.com/company/away-we-go-podcast] Threads: https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast [https://www.threads.com/@awaywegopodcast]