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Clark Rodgers
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Updates and an educated, fun and unique perspective into the world of Formula One and other motor sport disciplines.

  1. 3d ago

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1171

    ON TODAYS PROGRAM… KIMI IS NOW UNSTOPPABLE! FERRARI GETTING CLOSER AND CLOSER MAX INSISTING THE CAR IS UNDRIVEABLE AND … FERNANDO SAYS….IT WAS 20 YEARS AGO TODAY THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER... TRIBUTE TO PHIL HILL AND…INTERVIEWS WITH A.J.FOYT AND TONY KANNAN AND YES WE DO NEED YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP THIS PROGRAM ON THE AIR, JUST CLICK ON THE SUPPORT F1WEEKLY TAB YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO. It was a perfect way to end the weekend, it was an incredible team effort, especially from strategy to believe in me and go for one-stop. Today was a really important victory. The perfect way will be to finish off [the Championship] in style and then just enjoy the rest of the season. I'm aware it is close, but the mindset doesn't change. I want to finish the season on a high, to go into 2027 with high hopes. GEORGE... It was another difficult day for me today. I just didn’t have the pace and I’m unsure why that is. My first stint wasn’t great, and I was struggling initially on the Medium tyre but after the pitstop my pace felt stronger and I felt I could make some progress. However, once I caught up with the McLaren of Piastri, I just couldn’t overtake and ended up stuck behind him for the remaining laps of the race. The time penalty from the opening lap cost me a couple of places but overall, the pace just wasn’t good enough today for me to be fighting at the front. The lack of performance is something me and the team will look at and work on over the next couple of days. Hopefully we can make some improvements ahead of next weekend in Mexico and come back stronger for the rest of the season. Toto... That was an exceptional drive from Kimi. He and the team didn’t put a foot wrong all afternoon, showing strong pace throughout along with making all the right decisions strategically. What makes today particularly satisfying is where we came from on Friday. We didn’t look like we had a car capable of winning this race, but the team kept working, made good decisions and turned the weekend around. That is a credit to everyone here in Austin and back in Brackley and Brixworth. For George, it was a more difficult afternoon, and the result doesn’t reflect the pace we know he has. He was hindered by a five-second time penalty that dropped him behind the McLarens and then he got stuck behind Piastri. We will look at this weekend overall, understand what we could have done differently and work together to make sure he can have a stronger weekend in Mexico.

  2. Oct 18

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1170

    ON TODAYS PROGRAM… MAX IN THE LAST 25 MINUTES GOES FROM 24 TO P9 BUT…PENALTIES KILLED THEIR CHANCES LANDO MOCKING OTHER DRIVERS IS WRONG! LIAM LAWSON GOES COUNTRY IN AUSTIN AND … FERNANDO SAYS…WERE BACK TO GP 2 GP2 ENGINE AHH. THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER... INTERVIEW WITH TWO F1 WORLD CHAMPIONS…LANDO. NORRIS AND MARIO ANDRETTI!   AND YES WE DO NEED YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP THIS PROGRAM ON THE AIR, JUST CLICK ON THE SUPPORT F1WEEKLY TAB YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO.   Mercedes praises Verstappen’s final stint: 'Without that small incident would have been way more possible'   Stefan Wendl, Head of Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing, is incredibly proud of Mercedes-AMG Motorsport's season. The German manufacturer ended the GT World Challenge Europe season with three titles and a victory in the final race. Max Verstappen's participation was also a major highlight for Mercedes. Now that the GT World Challenge Europe season is over, Mercedes can look back on it with satisfaction. The team is taking no fewer than three titles back to Affalterbach: the overall drivers' championship in the Endurance Cup, the overall teams' championship in the Endurance Cup, and the overall drivers' titles in both the Sprint Cup and the Endurance Cup. To top it all off, the #17 GetSpeed Mercedes-AMG GT3 won the race in Portugal. For Fabian Schiller, Ralf Aron and Maxi Götz, it was a victory they had waited a long time for. Wendl believes Verstappen Racing could have achieved more if they had not received a drive-through penalty. "It's always nice and actually not only for us as a brand, as a great owner, to have him that he chose us as his family to be here in the GT Sport with his team," Wendl told GPblog after the race in Portimão. Tom Hartley Jnr Ltd announces the sale of five extraordinary McLaren Formula 1 cars. From Ayrton Senna’s and Gerhard Berger’s championship-winning MP4/6As to Lando Norris’s 2023 MCL37A, the most modern Formula 1 car ever offered for private ownership. 18 October, 2026 — Oxfordshire, United Kingdom — Tom Hartley Jnr Ltd, one of the world’s most respected and exclusive high-end dealers in classic and historic sports cars and racing cars, is delighted to announce the offering for sale of five highly significant McLaren Formula 1 cars, each being presented directly by McLaren Racing and carrying exceptional provenance from the highest levels of Grand Prix competition. Spanning 32 years of McLaren history in Formula 1, the collection brings together cars driven by some of the greatest names in motorsport, including Ayrton Senna, Gerhard Berger, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, and Lando Norris, and represents a rare opportunity to acquire genuine works McLaren Grand Prix machinery directly from the team responsible for creating and campaigning it. The five cars are: 1991 McLaren MP4/6A, Chassis #04 1991 McLaren MP4/6A, Chassis #07 2012 McLaren MP4/27A, Chassis #01 2021 McLaren MCL35M, Chassis #01 2023 McLaren MCL37A, Chassis #03 The five cars are offered individually, having each remained in the custody of McLaren since its final period of competition, and will all be prepared by McLaren for their next owner/s. The cars represent a significant chapter in McLaren’s history and tell an extraordinary story of technological and sporting evolution - from the naturally aspirated Honda V12 of Senna and Berger, to the naturally aspirated V8 era of Button and Hamilton, and the turbo-hybrid generation and the emergence of Norris as McLaren’s latest World Champion. Each car has remained within the McLaren organisation following its racing career, meaning that its history, identity, and provenance remain intrinsically connected to the factory team that designed, built, and raced it. For the new custodian, that also provides an exceptional and unrivalled level of authenticity. The five McLaren Formula 1 cars are now available for acquisition through Tom Hartley Jnr. Zak Brown (Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Racing) said: “We have decided to part with these iconic McLaren Formula One cars because we feel that having them simply sitting in storage is a disservice to what they represent. These cars were built to be driven and raced, and we want to see them being used and enjoyed. We believe that is the best way to keep our history alive and our heritage business active. “Tom Hartley Jnr is the person we have entrusted to handle the sale. Few people understand the Formula One car market as well as Tom does, and nobody is more active within it today. We were also very impressed by the way he handled the sale of the Ecclestone Grand Prix Collection, and McLaren has worked with him successfully for many years.” Tom Hartley Jnr said: “I’m very excited to bring this opportunity to market. It is incredibly rare for a collector to have the opportunity to acquire race-driven Grand Prix cars directly from the manufacturer and team that built and campaigned them, and that makes this a very special offering. “We have a great relationship with McLaren and have worked closely with Zak and his team for many years, assisting them with a number of sales. However, to now be able to publicly offer these cars directly on McLaren’s behalf is very exciting, and I’m personally looking forward to finding great homes for them. “When we handled the sales of both the Ecclestone Grand Prix Collection and the Ojjeh Collection, there was significant interest in acquiring individual cars, but ultimately both collections were sold in their entirety to single buyers. There is of course every possibility that the same could happen here. However, these five cars will be offered individually and there is no time pressure whatsoever. Our priority, and McLaren’s, is to find the right homes for them. ”I’m very grateful to McLaren for entrusting my business with these sales. We are extremely active within the Grand Prix car market and appreciate more than most just how special it is to own a race-driven Formula One car. The personnel, technology, and innovation that go into creating a Formula One car far exceed anything found in a road car, and for me this is where the automotive world comes closest to the traditional art world. Values have moved considerably in recent years, but I still believe this market has a long way to go.” Notes to editors: 1991 McLAREN MP4/6A CHASSIS #04 Chassis #04 is an exceptionally important ex-works McLaren from the height of the Senna-Berger era. Raced by Berger during McLaren-Honda’s successful 1991 World Championship campaign, the car finished second at the 1991 San Marino Grand Prix, contributing to one of the most dominant McLaren performances in Formula 1 history. That Imola race saw McLaren achieve a remarkable 1-2, with Berger following Senna across the line after both had lapped the entire field. This was only the second Formula 1 race in history in which both team-mates, driving cars of the same chassis type, achieved this. The MP4/6A went on to deliver McLaren its fourth consecutive Constructors’ Championship, while Senna secured his third Drivers’ title. Chassis #04 also carries the remarkable distinction of having been utilised in testing by Senna, providing a direct connection to one of the greatest drivers and most celebrated periods in Formula 1 history. Powered by Honda’s legendary RA121E naturally-aspirated V12, the MP4/6A represents the final generation of McLaren’s great V12-powered championship cars.  1991 McLAREN MP4/6A CHASSIS #07 The second 1991 MP4/6A, chassis #07, offers an equally compelling combination of competition history and works provenance. Raced by Berger during McLaren-Honda’s 1991 World Championship-winning campaign, chassis #07 finished second at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, McLaren’s home race. The car qualified within the top five for each of its four Grand Prix appearances, including an impressive third-place qualifying position at the German Grand Prix. Its history extends beyond Berger’s race appearances - Chassis #07 was tested by three-time World Champion Senna at Silverstone in 1992. Significantly, the car was never crashed. Like chassis #04, #07 has remained with McLaren since its final race and is being offered directly from the works team. It will be fully restored by McLaren before delivery to its next owner. Together, the two MP4/6As offer an exceptionally rare opportunity to acquire not merely two championship-era McLarens, but two cars with direct connections to Senna, Berger, Honda, and McLaren’s 1991 World Championship success. 2012 McLAREN MP4/27A CHASSIS #01 Chassis #01 represents one of the most accomplished periods of McLaren’s modern Formula 1 history. Raced by 2009 World Champion Button during the decisive closing stages of the 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship, it competed against the backdrop of one of the most intense title battles of the modern era. The MP4/27 was among the fastest cars of its generation, recording seven pole positions and three Grand Prix victories during the 2012 season. Chassis #01 achieved the fastest lap at the Indian Grand Prix and secured a strong top-five finish at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, demonstrating the outright pace of McLaren’s final generation of naturally aspirated V8-powered Formula 1 cars. It was also tested by Hamilton and is now offered directly from McLaren, where it has remained since its final race, and will be fully restored by McLaren prior to handover. 2021 McLAREN MCL35M CHASSIS #01 The MCL35M represents an important bridge between McLaren’s historic past and its contemporary Formula 1 renaissance. Chassis #01 was raced exclusively by Norris during the 2021 Formula 1 World Championship season. It was a podium-finishing car at Imola, Monaco, and Monza, and was part of one of the defining moments of McLaren’s modern era: the team’s famous 1-2 finish at the 2021 Itali

  3. Oct 11

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1169

    ON TODAYS PROGRAM… MAX DOMINATES THE SIN FERRARI DID THE BEST THEY COULD! MC LAREN SEEMS TO BE IN THE UNHAPPY ZONE! AND FERNANDO SAYS… HONDA WILL BE BACK…   THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER... INTERVIEW WITH ZACK BROWN WHEN HE SPEAKS OF FERNANDO AND LIBERTY MEDIA…Also our BONUS… 3 MINUTES OF CHAOS AT MERCEDES IN MONACO…RIGHT. NOW.. AND YES WE DO NEED YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP THIS PROGRAM ON THE AIR, JUST CLICK ON THE SUPPORT F1WEEKLY TAB YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO. Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrates on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Singapore Max Verstappen followed up his Saturday Sprint Race victory by winning Sunday's Singapore Grand Prix for the first time as the four-time F1 world champion led from start to finish on his 250th Grand Prix start for his second 2026 triumph in a row. The Dutchman started on pole position and just about held off his challengers off the line to build up a comfortable gap, which he never relinquished over 62 laps of the Marina Bay Street Circuit. The win moves him up to fourth overall in the drivers' standings as Oracle Red Bull Racing teammate Isack Hadjar bounced back from Saturday reliability issues to finish in 10th place. Visa Cash App Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson enjoyed another productive race day with seventh spot for six points as British teammate Arvid Lindblad ended in 15th. QUOTES Oracle Red Bull Racing MAX VERSTAPPEN - 1st "It's an amazing feeling to finally win here in Singapore. We've raced here many times and there have been a few missed opportunities, so to finally stand on the top step is really special. The car has been working well all weekend and I've felt really comfortable. We had strong pace throughout the race and although I had to push at times to maintain the gap, once I was in clean air I could really get into a rhythm. We had a few issues to manage, including the radio not working, but GP did a great job and seemed to know what I wanted to ask him most of the time! It's been an incredible weekend and really nice to share another win with him and the Team. Now, we're just taking it race by race and trying to maximise every opportunity. The most important thing is that we keep having fun, and hopefully we can carry this momentum as a Team into the next few races. Austin is a very different circuit, and a very bumpy one, so we'll see how we get on when we arrive there." ISACK HADJAR - 10th "It was a fun race tonight. Coming from the back and passing cars is always enjoyable. I wanted to get into the points, of course, but around a track like this, where a train can form, I wasn't so sure. The car had strong pace from the off, especially once I got into clean air, and I could gradually make my way through. It was similar to Baku, where the Soft was much better than the Medium, so going onto it for the second stint helped a lot. It took a lot of hard work from everyone on my side of the garage to get that one point, but a point is a point for the Team. We clearly have the pace. Max showed that, and a big congrats to him, as I know he's wanted that one. I'm looking forward to Austin already." LAURENT MEKIES - CEO & Team Principal "Max delivered another outstanding performance today. The Team did a fantastic job to give him a car capable of fighting at the front throughout the weekend and, once again, Max got the maximum out of the package available to him. To come away with Pole and victory in both the Sprint and the Grand Prix is a tremendous result for the whole Team. The pace we showed tonight was very impressive, and it was a very well-executed race, as the team has delivered so many times this season. It is also a special moment to see Max finally adding Singapore to his list of victories. It is never straightforward, however, and we knew the start would be critical. We know it is an area where we still have work to do and we understood the risk going into the race, but Max and the team managed it well enough to retain the lead. From there, he controlled the race exceptionally well and made the most of the pace we had. Isack also delivered a very strong drive from the back of the grid. He was committed throughout, raced aggressively when he had opportunities and showed strong pace. After a difficult weekend, where we did not give him a real chance to fight because of the issues we had on his car, it was good to see him come away with a reward for his efforts. Credit must also go to the entire crew in the garage. They responded brilliantly well to every challenge that came our way this weekend and worked tirelessly to get the cars back out on track, session after session. It was an extraordinary team effort that makes us all proud. It has been a very positive weekend for the whole team, especially following what we achieved in Sepang, and it shows that we are becoming competitive across a wide range of circuits and conditions. That is a credit to the hard work of everyone in Milton Keynes. The important thing now is to keep learning and keep pushing. Even on a weekend where we achieved two poles and two wins, there are still areas we want to improve, both for the remaining races this season and for next year."

  4. Oct 4

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1168

    ON TODAYS PROGRAM… MAX MAKES HISTORY WITH THE FORD PACKAGE! THE START OF THE RACE WAS SOO EXCITING GEORGE FOR A MOMENT HE THOUGHT HIS LUCK WAS TURNING AROUND! THE SOFTWARE BLUNDER IN THE WET WAS HILARIOUS! LCH FIGHTS BACK FOR A WELL EARNED PODIUM AND…FERNANDO BRINGS HOME THE ASTON TO P8…! THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER... LANDO NORRIS AT SILVERSTONE AND RICKY COLLARD BRITISH F3.  AND YES WE DO NEED YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP THIS PROGRAM ON THE AIR, JUST CLICK ON THE SUPPORT F1WEEKLY TAB YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO. Verstappen Holds Nerve For First 2026 Win At Dramatic Rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix In Malaysia! Max Verstappen held his nerve in the chaos of Sunday's rain-hit rescheduled Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia to bank his first win of the 2026 FIA Formula One World Championship season. The Dutchman started on pole position and initially lost the lead to Mercedes duo Kimi Antonelli and George Russell in the run down to Turn 1, however picked them off comfortably in a race that had two safety cars and a virtual safety car. The four-time world champion then held on to win by 2.307s from title leader Antonelli with Oracle Red Bull Racing teammate Isack Hadjar moving up the grid to fifth after starting out in eighth place. Visa Cash App Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson enjoyed a productive race as he moved up to finish seventh, while British teammate Arvid Lindblad earned a gutsy point for finishing in 10th place.   MAX VERSTAPPEN - 1st "What an incredible result! The race was not made easy for us with all the decisions we had to make and then the Safety Car at the end on top of everything. But we made all the right calls with the tyres, kept our cool, and it all paid off. Of course, to win a race in the first year of being a new power unit manufacturer is honestly just incredible and something everyone should be really proud of. We knew from the start that Red Bull Ford Powertrains built a strong engine and also knew the limitations too. Although it was hard at times, and we sometimes didn't believe we could get this win, we kept pushing. The Team has also been working hard to understand our issues and brought performance upgrades to the car. Step by step, we have been getting closer and today we did it, which is really special and an emotional moment. It is an incredible project and winning in our first season together is a fantastic feeling." ISACK HADJAR - 5th "Even though we managed to score P5, I am obviously frustrated. The car didn't feel as good as it did on the previous days, and then I didn't have the power after the restart at the end for two laps. If this hadn't have happened, I am sure I would have been on the podium. Despite this, it was a good overall result for the Team. I can't wait to look at the data and see what happened, then regroup and go again in Singapore. It is a track that I really, really like, so I will of course be pushing for the best result possible there." LAURENT MEKIES - CEO and Team Principal "This is another milestone moment in the history of this Team: the first victory for us as a power unit manufacturer with Red Bull Ford Powertrains in its very first season! The credit goes to all the people involved who have been working incredibly hard on this project over the past five years. Everyone in Milton Keynes and at the track deserves this moment and should celebrate it as an important step towards many more victories in the future. "The first win of the season is a great way to finish what has been an extremely successful weekend overall. After showing strong pace in every session and securing our first pole position of the season yesterday, Max converted that performance into an outstanding P1 today. In often chaotic circumstances, he remained in control throughout the race, managed the conditions brilliantly, showed the strongest pace and delivered exactly the kind of performance we know he is capable of. "More broadly, this result confirms the progress we have been making in recent months. We were already close several times, and today we converted that pace. The Team has been working tirelessly to improve our package, and weekends like this are the reward for that effort. "There are naturally mixed feelings on the other side of the garage because Isack also showed very strong pace all weekend. We could have rounded off this weekend with another double podium; unfortunately, not everything went well with his car. Finishing fifth still represents a strong result considering where he started, but naturally it is frustrating when you know more was possible. We will analyse exactly what happened, take the positives from a weekend where both drivers were consistently competitive, and immediately turn our focus to Singapore. For tonight, however, everyone should enjoy a well-deserved victory and an important milestone for this Team." Fernando Alonso RACE RESULT P8 “We have been more competitive this weekend and P8 is a good result for us. There were a lot of things that happened in the race. We started with the dry tyres and put ourselves in a difficult position, but thankfully the Safety Car started a new race for us. There are not many weekends where we can score points, so we executed well and took the opportunity. Let’s see if we can keep up this pace into Singapore where on paper we have some hope. The issues at the start were quite strange and we need to understand what happened there.”

  5. Sep 28

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1167

    ON TODAY'S PROGRAM... GEORGE BEATS MAX BY 1 TENTH MAX BEATS 100... HILARIOUS! HADJAR BEATS THE ODDS OUTQUALIFYING MAX AND BECOMING A TEAM PLAYER! NORRIS QUESTIONS COLAPINTO'S QUALIFICATIONS AND... FERNANDO CAUGHT...SCREAMING IN A PAPER BAG! THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER... A FANTASTIC CONVERSATION WITH F1WEEKLY LISTENER, EDUARDO ALVAREZ AT THE AUTODROMO HERMANOS RODRIGUEZ IN MEXICO CITY... BRAVO! GEORGE WINS IN BAKU... George Russell led from start to finish as he dominated the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The victory reduced the championship lead of his Mercedes team-mate Kimi Antonelli to 66 points - from 81 - after the Italian finished fifth, although he had recovered from starting 16th on the grid. Max Verstappen pushed Russell for the win as he took second place, less than two tenths of a second behind. Fellow Red Bull driver Isack Hadjar completed the podium by finishing third on his return to racing following a wrist injury. Yet dominance isn't a word often used when the margin of victory is as small as the gap separating the duo when the chequered flag flew at the end of 51 laps of the Baku City Circuit, four-time champion Verstappen just 0.196s down on the Merc driver having launched a late attack following two safety car interventions. George Russell It's been an incredible weekend and probably one of the strongest of my career so far. I really enjoyed that race and that final stint was some of the most fun I’ve had in a Formula One race. We had strong pace throughout and were able to build a good gap, so when the Safety Car came out it was a little frustrating, but around a circuit like Baku that's always a possibility. The restart was probably the most stressful moment of the afternoon with Max right behind me, but I managed it well and from there it was all about staying focused and not making any mistakes. In the final stint we were both pushing hard, and whilst it was intense in the car, those are the moments you enjoy as a driver. I've felt comfortable all weekend, and at the moment things seem to be coming naturally behind the wheel. We're in a good place, but Formula One changes very quickly so you have to keep pushing. The aim is to keep working hard, keep building this momentum and hopefully continue fighting at the front over the races ahead. Verstappen and Hadjar celebrate double podium in Baku Team quotes as Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrate both drivers on the podium for the first time in 2026 at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrated their first double podium of the 2026 F1 season as Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar finished second and third in Saturday's Azerbaijan Grand Prix at the Baku City Circuit. With both RB22 cars showing great speed on the ultra-fast Baku street circuit, Verstappen in particular made great early passes after the lights went out, quickly advancing from his eighth place starting spot. As the race went on, mistakes began to happen regularly and the final quarter of the Grand Prix was a chaotic one, with two Safety Car periods happening in quick succession. That was all the invitation the Oracle Red Bull Racing drivers needed to make a perfectly executed double pit-stop and effectively secure a 2–3 finish. However, with race leader George Russell firmly in his sights, Verstappen never gave up the chance in the final laps and pushed the Mercedes driver all the way to the line, finishing just +0.196s from victory. As Oracle Red Bull Racing celebrated their best team result of season to date, Arvid Lindlbad also delivered another strong points-scoring drive for Visa Cashh App Racing Bulls. The British rookie started down the field in 15th place on the grid, but drove a smart and controlled race to avoid the mid-pack chaos late in the race to end the Grand Prix in an excellent seventh place while team-mate Liam Lawson missed the points in 12th

  6. Sep 20

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1166

    ON TODAY'S PROGRAM... MAX WILL PASS HIS RED BULL SEAT TO ROBIN WHEN READY! YUKI TO HAAS FOR 2027? COLTON HERTA THROWS IN THE TOWL ON HIS FORMULA 2 CAREER LAWRENCE STROLL IN PANIC MODE LOOKING AT MERCEDES OR FORD AS A REPLACEMENTS FOR HIS HONDA HEADACHE! AND...FERNANDO SO TIRED OF HIS SLOW ASTON MARTIN BUYS A BUGATTI VEYRON GRAND SPORT! BRAVO... THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER A MOMENT IN MOTORSPORTS HISTORY...THE GILLES VILLENEUVE REPORT AND INTERVIEW WITH JACQUES VILLENEUVE. GRACIAS! Fernando Alonso's aluminium Veyron sat unsold for 27 months before it reached Monaco! Fernando Alonso has taken delivery of the Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport Vitesse that a German dealer has been calling the most expensive Veyron ever built since it went on sale in June 2024. A video filmed near the Casino this week shows the Aston Martin Formula 1 driver easing the polished-aluminium car through Monaco traffic. When Mechatronik of Pleidelsheim listed it, the odometer read 750 km after nine years. Chassis 8.100 is a Grand Sport Vitesse with 20 tonnes of aluminium behind it The car Mechatronik lists as chassis 8.100 was ordered from Molsheim in 2014 and delivered in 2015 with a front bumper and seamless side panels milled from solid aluminium blocks, then polished, on a body that is otherwise exposed carbon fibre. More than 20 tonnes of aluminium went to Molsheim to produce those panels, Bugatti had to write dedicated CAD programs for them, and it spent longer building this Veyron than any other. Underneath it is a standard Vitesse: an 8.0-litre W16 with four turbochargers, 1,200 hp, 1,500 Nm and 410 km/h with the roof in place. The options bill alone exceeded the Vitesse's list price of about €1.69 million before tax. The first owner held all six Veyron Legends editions and used them as leverage The car exists because of an ultimatum. According to Mechatronik, the first owner already had a Veyron Pur Sang and had ordered all six Grand Sport Vitesse Legends editions, the 2013 and 2014 series built three cars apiece, along with several Super Sports. Bugatti declined the aluminium body as too expensive, and the client answered that the rest of his order book would go elsewhere if it did not build the car. It built the car. It then covered 750 km in nine years before it was consigned to a showroom near Stuttgart. Bugatti's own La Maison Pur Sang restoration programme now treats twenty-year-old Veyrons as classics, and this one arrived at that status without ever being used. Alonso said at Goodwood in July 2024 that he wanted 'a small collection' Alonso set out the shopping list himself, a month after the Veyron was listed. Interviewed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July 2024, he said he was 'in the moment of my life where I'm really looking forward to having a small collection', and added that some of the luxury brands he had driven for 'went into a different direction: bigger numbers', whereas he liked makers that 'treat the customer like unique customers'. The list that followed was an Aston Martin one: a Valkyrie due around his 29 July birthday, one of the 38 Valiants he commissioned with a manual gearbox he admitted he never drives, and a DB5 he was chasing through the heritage department. Two years on, the cars that have actually arrived are a one-off Pagani Zonda Roadster Diamante Verde in May and now a one-off Bugatti, both bought from Mechatronik and both delivered in Monaco. A Veyron built on one customer's ultimatum fits Alonso's own definition of luxury Chassis 8.100 is the most literal version of what Alonso said he valued: a factory that built exactly what one client wanted and never repeated it. Bugatti made 450 Veyrons between 2005 and 2015, and the Pur Sang of 2007, five cars in bare aluminium and carbon, was the factory's own earlier experiment in showing the metal. That is the same instinct that produced design director Frank Heyl's bespoke Veyron, and it explains why a car that spent 27 months unsold suited this buyer. Alonso drives what the first owner did not: 750 km in nine years, then Monaco traffic The Veyron's first owner averaged less than 100 km a year in it. Alonso, by his own account at Goodwood, drives every day: he lives in Monaco, uses 'maybe more scooters than cars', and takes his Aston Martin DBX to the airport each race week. The video shows the aluminium car doing exactly that kind of duty, waiting at a junction below the Casino rather than sitting under museum lights in Llanera. That puts him in the same camp as Lando Norris, filmed in London this week in the Ferrari F40 a friend crashed last year. Alonso's price is undisclosed; Mechatronik never published one.

  7. Sep 13

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1165

    on today's program... KIMI OVERCOMES FIRST LAP CHAOS TO WIN AT THE MADRING! MAX SPARS WITH LCH IN THE OPENING LAPS AND HANGS ON TO P2 NORRIS SAYS SIMPLY BAD LUCK WITH VSC AND... FERNANDO SAYS...I'M STICKING AROUND...I THINK... THIS WEEK'S NASIR HAMEED CORNER...MORE MOTORSPORTS HISTORY, MARTIN AND, ALEX BRUNDLE AT THE AUTOSPORTS SHOW IN THE U.K. Formula 1 made its first trip to the new Circuito de Madring, about 10 miles outside of the Madrid city center, on Sunday, and Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli christened the track with a win. The championship leader now owns an even more comfortable lead and picks up his eighth career race win, one week after he won the Italian Grand Prix. Max Verstappen finished second after holding off Lando Norris, who was on pole after Saturday's qualifying session, but an unfortunate pit stop contributed to his third-place finish. Ferrari's Charles Leclerc finished fourth, and Antonelli's teammate George Russell came in fifth. Kimi Antonelli It was great to get the victory today, but we know we were a little bit fortunate with the timing of the Virtual Safety Car. Lando (Norris) was in control at the front, but we were able to dive into the pits just as the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, make the cheap stop onto the Hard, get the net lead and run to the end. We probably didn’t deserve to win therefore but we will of course take it. We can also be happy with our pace today. We know we are still out of step with other teams in terms of upgrades, but we have been able to win the last two races at very different circuits. That is encouraging as we continue the season; we have a good position in the championships but we know there is still a very long way to go. MAX VERSTAPPEN  “It was a great result, and we really maximised our performance, with finishing P2 on this track a solid way to wrap up a good weekend. At the start, Lewis clipped the kerb and jumped back onto the racing line, I had to go off track, otherwise both of us would have taken damage. I don't think we had the pace to challenge for the lead anyway, Kimi and Lando were faster than me throughout, so I'm happy with second. It's a circuit that's very difficult to pass on; if you position yourself in the middle, there isn't really a way through, so I was able to hold off Lando until the end. This double header has been a positive one. The car has been in a decent window both weekends, and we've been able to score consistently good points over the last few races. A podium is a nice way to end the European swing." LIAM LAWSON  "I think it was a decent race. We had good speed through parts of it, but I just think we weren’t on the ideal strategy today. We went for the alternate strategy, starting on the Hards. At the start I lost the position to Franco and lost a lot of time as it was, but by the time I cleared him the VSC came out and they’d boxed, so it was just tricky from there. The start was exciting and I had to take a lot of risks to get the move done on Franco because it’s quite difficult to overtake here. It would’ve been nice to start a bit higher, but considering where we did start, the result today was good and I’m happy we managed to gain two places in the Race. I’m much more confident in the car this week, we’ve made a couple of great steps, so there are some good things to take away from the weekend." LAURENT MEKIES, CEO & Team Principal  “After Monza another strong result from the whole Team at the end of a tough race. Once again, Max extracted absolutely everything from the car, as he always does. There was obviously some frustration at the start when he had to give the place back to Lewis, but the Team on the pit wall took a good look at it and, credit to them, made the difficult call. It was painful at the time, but Max immediately got himself back into the fight and was outstanding all the way to the flag, including a great defence against the McLaren in the final laps. It was also a strong race and some good points from Liam. It certainly wasn’t easy towards the end of his first stint on worn Hard tyres, but he kept his cool and showed good pace in the final stint. Max’s P2 is his fifth podium in the last seven races and, although we have had a couple of tricky moments along the way, we are continuing to close the gap and credit needs to go to everyone working behind the scenes at Milton Keynes, improving every aspect of the car and its PU”. George Russell No matter what we had done with strategy today we would have finished P5. The Virtual Safety Car came at the worst point for everyone who had started on the Hard tyre like me, and the best point for those who had started on the Medium. Unfortunately, that is how racing goes sometimes but it is a little bit the story of my season so far! It was very difficult to overtake today but I’ve enjoyed driving the Madring overall this weekend. It is going to be an intense run to the end of the season. I’m looking forward to getting back to the factory, working with the team, and getting ready for the first of three triple-headers. My pace today, particularly on the Hard tyre, felt good so we can be encouraged by that as we head to Baku. Hamilton Brushes Off Verstappen's Comments!! "It was pretty good racing to be honest," said Hamilton to media after the F1 Spanish GP. When the journalist noted that the radio comment was more out of frustration since he had to give the place back, the Brit agreed. "Yep, I think nothing to do with me in here," he said. He didn't add much on the incident since he came straight to the media pen after retiring on lap 7. But he didn't see it as a fight. His brake issues started early and he had no time to think about losing the place to Verstappen. Hamilton explained why he went for another lap as his pedal came back for a moment. "Yeah, I had a good start," said Hamilton. "I mean I didn't see Max taking that start and then yeah, the battle. I mean I wasn't in the battle then going down into Turn 5 but then it was when I went into Turn 5, then I hit the brake, it started stopping okay. "And then kind of the pedal took a step and ended up like stopped. It wouldn't stop all of a sudden and then I went wide and that's when I just tapped the barrier but it wasn't really, it didn't feel bad like a bad touch. "Then the pedal came back and it was fine for the next corners and things were looking okay and then the pedal went wrong. That was it," summed up Hamilton, who felt Ferrari had a decent car, seeing teammate Charles Leclerc lead for the most part before pitting to end up fourth.

  8. Sep 7

    F1Weekly Podcast # 1164

    ON TODAY'S PROGRAM... ANTONELLI WINS AT MONZA FROM 19TH ON THE GRID! BRAVO! FERRARI FAIL AGAIN AT MONZA BUT...THERE COULD BE HOPE GEORGE SEES HIS CHAMPIONSHIP HOPES FIZZLE FREE MCLARENS GIVEN TO MOTORSPORTS TRIBUNAL JUDGES! AND...FERNANDO SAYS...GP2 ENGINE GP2... THE NASIR HAMEED CORNER FEATURES: NICO HULKENBURG AND F1W LISTENER RICHARD BRIGHT WHO, BUMPS INTO NASIR IN COLOGNE! BONUS: DESIREE'S MONZA TRACK HISTORY! AND...YES WE DO NEED YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS TO KEEP THIS SHOW ON THE AIR, JUST CLICK ON THE SUPPORT F1W TAB, YOU KNOW YOU WANT TO! F1W TAB Kimi Antonelli's stunning victory in the Italian Grand Prix from 19th on the grid will go down in Formula 1 folklore - and, remarkably, his team boss Toto Wolff said that he had seen it coming on Saturday. After Sunday's race, Wolff said that beforehand he thought that one of his two drivers was going to be standing on the top of the podium. It was an eye-opening statement given they started the race 17 places apart on the grid, George Russell on the front row alongside shock pole winner Pierre Gasly's Alpine; Antonelli on the penultimate row. "I thought one of the two is going to win," Wolff said. "Either George, because he was on the front row, or Kimi because he's going to walk over water, here at Monza. And I felt that yesterday also." Wolff was asked to explain why he felt a performance he was comparing to a miracle was on the cards. "It's been a while that I've seen drivers," he said. "Energy levels, mindset or behavioural pattern. I knew that was his mission today, to win the race. I chatted with his father yesterday. The father also saw that coming. "These are the moments where you can see how a weekend is panning out through the sessions that a special moment can come." “I will remember forever” – Antonelli’s joy of winning the his home race from the back of the grid The Italian GP podium is always a special one, but for Kimi Antonelli to win his home race after starting all the way down in 19th place, the young Mercedes driver let out all his joy over the radio, and couldn’t hide his emotions even after the race, saying the fans just add “that little bit extra” emotion that spurred him on to a success he “will remember forever“: “I think this is the most special podium of the season,” he said in the press conference after the race. “To see all the fans on the straight, it’s just incredible. And then, of course, you know, being at home, it adds that little bit of extra. And, yeah, super, super happy with that.“ When asked if this was the best race of his career, Antonelli was quite philosophical in saying the best one is “yet to come“: “I mean, the best one has yet to come, but I feel like it was one of the best races I’ve done so far, and one that I will remember forever. “I think definitely the fans gave that little bit extra to push more. “For sure, the support has been great this weekend. So definitely, seeing the grandstand cheering every lap, for sure it gave that little bit of extra to push more and to try and do even better to win it.” McLaughlin Ends Drought With Dominant Laguna Seca Win MONTEREY, Calif. (Sunday, Sept. 6, 2026) – Scott McLaughlin ended a long winless streak and the 2026 NTT INDYCAR SERIES season in style, dominating the Mission Foods Grand Prix of Monterey for his first victory in more than two years. Pole sitter McLaughlin drove the No. 3 DEX Team Penske Chevrolet to victory by 1.3739 seconds over the No. 27 Sam’s Club Honda of Andretti Global’s Kyle Kirkwood. The win was the eighth of McLaughlin’s INDYCAR SERIES career and his first since Sept. 1, 2024, in the second race of a doubleheader weekend at the Milwaukee Mile, snapping a drought of 36 races. SEE: Race Results “My little girl (Lucy, born in October 2024) hasn’t seen me win yet, and now she has,” McLaughlin said. “So, Dad’s coming home with a trophy, baby. Let’s go! “These guys and girls at Team Penske have stood behind me the whole time. Congrats to Alex (Palou) on his fifth (championship), but we’re working hard to beat them, and today was a big step in the right direction.” Alexander Rossi finished third in the No. 20 Java House ECR Chevrolet for his first podium finish since placing third at this event for Arrow McLaren in June 2024. Felix Rosenqvist placed fourth in the No. 60 Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian Honda. David Malukas put two Team Penske cars in the top five in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet. Alex Palou punctuated the fifth NTT INDYCAR SERIES championship that he clinched last weekend at Milwaukee with a quiet drive to eighth place in the No. 10 DHL Lightning Bolt Honda of Chip Ganassi Racing after he won this race the last two years. But Palou and the CGR team celebrated its record-tying fourth consecutive season title with donuts on the front straightaway by the driver and again in a boisterous post-race Astor Challenge Cup presentation. McLaughlin left absolutely no doubt about his dominance in this race on the 11-turn, 2.238-mile road course. He only trailed during pit stop sequences and ended up leading 87 of 95 laps, erasing all memories of the six podium finishes without a win since his last triumph. There was only one caution period in the race, for a Lap 1 incident in which Sting Ray Robb’s No. 77 Juncos Hollinger Racing – Goodheart Chevrolet hit the rear of Dennis Hauger’s No. 19 Ault Block Chain Honda of Dale Coyne Racing in Turn 6, sending Hauger spinning into the tire barrier. McLaughlin had no problem pulling away from the field on the restart on Lap 4, and his precise driving and Team Penske’s clean, quick work during three pit stops took care of the rest. “We had to be solid,” McLaughlin said. “That’s what it’s going to take to win a championship. What a great warmup we had. Bring on 2027.” Kirkwood, who started sixth, had climbed to second by Lap 20 after Palou pitted to switch to a different tire strategy and shadowed McLaughlin for the rest of the way, pitting at the same time as McLaughlin on all three stops. McLaughlin’s lead was nearly four seconds at the halfway point, but Kirkwood pulled as close as 1.2 seconds on Lap 72 due to running his final stint on the faster but less-durable Firestone Firehawk alternate tire. But McLaughlin eased away in the closing laps on the more durable Firestone primary tire, as Kirkwood admitted he and the Andretti Global team took a safety-first approach to ensure the driver would finish a career-best second in the standings. Kirkwood ended up 86 points behind champion Palou. “Second in the championship, and that’s my best road-course finish,” Kirkwood said. “We just played it super clean, super methodical. I wish I could have had a go at Scotty there at the end on the better tires, but we knew who we were fighting, and that was for the championship, mostly. So, we played it safe there. Second place is best of the rest.” 2016 Indianapolis 500 winner Rossi also was a fixture in the top three for most of the race, producing the best day for ECR since teammate Christian Rasmussen won in August 2025 at Milwaukee. Rasmussen also finished third this year at World Wide Technology Raceway, but road courses have been a weak spot for ECR this season. The best previous finish on this type of circuit was sixth by Rossi in June at Road America. “I don’t think I could state the significance of it just with how challenging this year has been for the whole organization and how much road courses have been a huge struggle of ours,” Rossi said. “There was a lot of doubt coming into this event whether we could find a direction, so I think this is just a huge reward for all the effort.” Despite finishing last in the 25-car field due to the incident with Robb, Hauger hung on to win series Rookie of the Year honors. He finished with 228 points, 15 ahead of Mick Schumacher of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing in the rookie race.

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