The Motorsport Files

The Motorsport Files
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Hosted by Drew Bentham, Zac Stanley & Chris Gilbertson, new episodes land every week covering Formula 1, BTCC, WRC, ERC and British rally and racing - race weekend reviews alongside in-depth conversations with the drivers, co-drivers and rising talent living it. Expect genuine human stories over lap times and standings, including an ongoing commitment to spotlighting the women shaping motorsport at every level. Whether you've followed the sport for decades or you're just discovering it, follow along so you never miss an episode.

  1. 20h ago

    Ash Sutton's Fifth BTCC Title and the Collard Replacement Row

    Ash Sutton wins a record fifth BTCC title, and we give our verdict on Silverstone, the Collard replacement debate and what comes next. Ash took the championship with four races to spare after driving from 12th to first in Race 2, and we talk through exactly what made him so hard to beat this year. We also go through Aiden Moffat's reinstated Race 1 win, Mikey Doble's strong weekend, Tom Ingram's wet Race 3 victory and the rebuilt Power Maxed Racing Audi squad that is closing in on the independents title. The biggest talking point away from the track was Osamu Kawashima replacing Ricky Collard at EXCELR8 for the final two rounds. We give our honest opinions on pay drivers, minimum standards and why the BTCC finds it so hard to bring in sponsors, prize money and a bigger TV slot, and we would love to hear where you land. We also look at Ash's win rate against Jason Plato, Colin Turkington and Matt Neal, ask whether he chases the all time win record or tries another series, and talk about Tom Chilton's MSport engine switch, Dexter Patterson's Jack Sears Trophy and Dan Rowbottom's unlucky Race 3. Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:00 Welcome and Our Silverstone Weekend Verdict 1:53 Why the Silverstone National Circuit Falls Flat 5:01 Aiden Moffat's Race 1 Win Is Reinstated 6:06 Power Maxed Racing's Audi Comeback 7:51 The Toyotas and the Ford Focus This Season 8:48 Ricky Collard Out and Osamu Kawashima In 11:02 Pay Drivers and the Case for a Minimum Standard 14:20 Why Was the Kawashima Deal Kept Quiet? 18:36 BTCC Sponsorship and Revenue Problems 22:42 ITV Coverage and Kwik Fit Activation 26:05 Tom Ingram's Race 3 Win 28:00 Tom Chilton's MSport Engine Switch 29:35 Dexter Patterson Takes the Jack Sears Trophy 30:24 Ash Sutton's Record Breaking Title Win 34:46 Ash Sutton vs Plato, Turkington and Neal 37:32 CPRL, Plato and the Mercedes Story 39:30 Dan Rowbottom's Race 3 Windscreen Problem 41:54 Will Ash Sutton Go for a Sixth Title? 48:39 What Is Coming Next on The Motorsport Files The Brands Hatch finale is on 10 and 11 October, and we have an Ash Sutton special and a full 2026 season review planned for the winter. Follow the show so you do not miss either one, and a rating helps other touring car fans find us. Find us on social at TMF Pod 23, and find Chris on Instagram and TikTok at Motorsport Woking. Episode guides are on our website at www.themotorsportfiles.com

    Ash Sutton's Fifth BTCC Title and the Collard Replacement Row

  2. 4d ago ·  Bonus

    Ford Returns to WRC in 2028: What It Means

    Ford is returning to the WRC as a full factory team in 2028, with an all-new WRC27 car planned for 2029. Drew and Chris react to the news from Rally Sardinia and ask whether it could tip Hyundai into staying. Ford Racing announced a full works programme from 2028 alongside M-Sport, its first since 2012. In this short episode we look at what it means for M-Sport after a tough few years, Malcolm Wilson's long history with Ford, the new promoter, the WRC27 era, whether the new car could be petrol or electric, and what it could mean for Hyundai, Toyota and a bigger grid. In this episode: (00:00) Ford are back: a works team for M-Sport (01:04) M-Sport's rocky few years (01:57) Malcolm Wilson and Ford's rally heritage (03:11) Fiesta first: Rally2 vs WRC27 (05:18) Can Ford tip Hyundai's decision? (07:18) Toyota, Ford, Hyundai and Subaru? (07:55) Drew's lifelong Ford love Your turn: will Ford's return convince Hyundai to commit? Tell us on our socials. Subscribe to The Motorsport Files wherever you get your podcasts, and leave a rating or review if you enjoyed it.

    Ford Returns to WRC in 2028: What It Means

  3. 4d ago

    Was Colapinto's Penalty Fair? Baku GP 2026 Review

    Drew and Zac go through the Azerbaijan Grand Prix 2026 from Baku. George Russell took pole and won his third race of the year, his first since Austria in June, but a late yellow flag and a boost problem nearly cost him victory over Max Verstappen, who started eighth. Isack Hadjar made it a Red Bull double podium and Kimi Antonelli recovered from a Q1 crash to finish fifth. Then there is the restart crash. Franco Colapinto locked up at Turn 1, hit Pierre Gasly and ended the races of both Alpines and Lando Norris. The stewards gave him a 10 second penalty, converted to a five place grid drop at the next race because he had retired. Arvid Lindblad made contact with Liam Lawson at the same corner and got no penalty. We argue about whether that is consistent, whether Norris was right to call for a ban, and what Flavio Briatore might do next. We also cover Ferrari and the Vasseur and Horner talk, why Hadjar was our driver of the race, whether the tyres killed the strategy, McLaren's weekend, what Baku means for the title fight between Russell and Antonelli, and the results of the TMF predictor game. It did not go well. Topics in order 00:00 Colapinto's crash: how bad was it? 02:15 Penalty row: Colapinto vs Lindblad 04:12 Briatore, Alpine and Norris's reaction 07:08 Was Baku boring? Blame the cars 08:02 Ferrari, Vasseur and the Horner rumour 13:36 Hadjar and Red Bull 15:14 Driver of the race 17:23 Russell vs Verstappen and the boost issue 19:19 Safety car, tyres and Pirelli 22:57 McLaren's weekend 25:03 Russell, Antonelli and the title fight 32:30 TMF predictor game results 36:18 Malaysia predictions 40:45 How to follow the show Play the TMF Predictor game: send us your pole, fastest lap and podium picks for the next race. Beat us and we will read yours out on the show. Full episode guide: www.themotorsportfiles.com Find us on social media: @TMFPod23

    Was Colapinto's Penalty Fair? Baku GP 2026 Review

  4. Sep 24

    Did Solberg Just Blow the WRC Title Race Open?

    Toyota confirm a 10th world title, but Solberg's Chile masterclass turns the fight three ways. Drew and Chris break down a Rally Chile that flipped the championship picture. Solberg drove a calm, controlled weekend at the front while Evans lost more than two minutes to a puncture on the penultimate stage and dropped from second to 5th, turning a comfortable points day into a genuine three way fight with two rounds left. Ogier still refuses to let his own Toyota teammates have it easy, Fourmaux continues to look like a rally winner without the result to prove it, and Neuville survives a huge multiple roll that ends his weekend early. They also get into whether a 10th Toyota championship means as much given how far ahead the team is of everyone else, Juha Kankkunen's appearance on the podium more than three decades after that first title, and a rough weekend for Taka Katsuta that raises real questions about his seat. Before the rally chat, Drew and Chris dig into the uncertainty hanging over Hyundai's WRC future, what the new WRC27 regulations might mean for the gap to Rally2 cars, and the driver market picture taking shape at Hyundai and M-Sport. Follow the show at tmfpod23 on social media and find full episode guides at www.themotorsportfiles.com. Timestamps 0:00 Intro and welcome back 1:28 Hyundai's uncertain WRC future 4:02 WRC27 regulations compared to the updated Rally2 7:57 What a Hyundai step back would mean for the drivers 11:46 Rally Chile: Toyota's title is confirmed 13:45 Does a tenth title mean less without real rivals 16:10 Individual liveries and Kankkunen's podium reunion 18:01 Taka Katsuta's brutal run of retirements 22:07 The queue of Toyota talent building behind him 24:08 The case for a Teemu Suninen seat 27:01 Oliver Solberg's mature, controlled win 29:17 Breaking down the Super Sunday numbers 32:21 Elfyn Evans' puncture and a title race blown open 35:28 Sami Pajari's quieter weekend 38:23 Ogier still racing his own teammates hard 40:03 Adrien Fourmaux, so close to a first win 44:47 Thierry Neuville's huge Chile crash 45:33 Esapekka Lappi's uncertain Hyundai future 46:55 Enni Malkonen deserves a top seat 49:00 John Armstrong's SS8 off for M-Sport 51:09 Armstrong vs McErlean, who is safer for next year 52:21 Could M-Sport run three or four cars next year 55:48 Saying goodbye to the Rally1 era

    Did Solberg Just Blow the WRC Title Race Open?

  5. Sep 21

    Is The Madring Already F1's Most Hated New Track?

    Kimi Antonelli won the first Spanish Grand Prix at Madrid's new Madring circuit, but Lando Norris was denied by a badly timed Virtual Safety Car and a seven second pit stop. Drew and Zac spend this episode working out which one of those actually cost him the race, and it isn't the one most people online blamed it on. In this episode, Drew Bentham and Zac Stanley go through every angle of Formula 1's return to Madrid, starting with Lance Stroll's slow motion trip into the barriers that triggered the Virtual Safety Car in the first place, and whether it should have brought out a VSC at all rather than a double waved yellow. They get into Ferrari's decision to leave Charles Leclerc's strategy to chance instead of pitting him under the caution, Oscar Piastri's fading role at McLaren, and just how far clear Antonelli now sits in the championship after Lewis Hamilton's early retirement with brake failure. There's also a proper go at the Madring itself, a purpose built circuit locked into the calendar for the next ten years that both hosts reckon produced one of the flattest races of the season despite the banked corner and city backdrop everyone was excited about beforehand. Red Bull's continued climb up the order, the ongoing wait for Isack Hajar to get back in the car, and Mercedes quietly closing in on Ferrari's all time win record all get a mention too. Once the race chat wraps up, the TMF Predictor game makes its comeback so we can mark our own homework from Madrid before locking in predictions for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. Timestamps 0:00 Reacting to the Madring's F1 debut 12:49 How the Spanish Grand Prix actually unfolded 17:27 The Lance Stroll moment that changed the race 19:49 Piastri, McLaren's split strategy and the number two role 25:58 Ferrari's costly gamble with Leclerc 31:00 Mercedes, Antonelli and a title that's nearly done 39:09 Red Bull's progress and the Isack Hajar question 43:07 Marking our TMF Predictor picks from Madrid 46:46 Locking in our predictions for Baku If you enjoyed this episode, following the show means you won't miss the next one, and a quick rating or review on Apple Podcasts genuinely helps new listeners find us. Get the full episode guide and show notes at themotorsportfiles.com. Follow us everywhere else @tmfpod23 on TikTok, Instagram and Facebook.

    Is The Madring Already F1's Most Hated New Track?

  6. Sep 17

    Is Ash Sutton BTCC's GOAT Now?

    Ash Sutton is one weekend closer to a record 5th BTCC title after Croft, so are we ready to call him the greatest British Touring Car driver of all time? Drew and Chris break down the case, plus the prize money reveal and track limits mess that overshadowed the racing. This week on Motorsport Files, we're covering the 2026 BTCC round at Croft (5-6 September): Ash Sutton's title masterclass, his Race 1 team orders with Dan Cammish, and whether he belongs in the Jim Clark, Jason Plato and Colin Turkington conversation Dan Cammish's scrappy weekend, including the Tom Ingram clash and the Race 3 pile up Josh Cook's near perfect Croft, with pole, a qualifying race win and a Race 1 win The 18 track limits penalties handed out in one day, and why we think the stewards got several of the calls wrong Tom Ingram's collapse and his "we're looking at next year" comments Ricky Collard's exit from the championship and the reality of BTCC's prize money, or the lack of it What we heard on the official BTCC podcast with Alan Gow, Justina Williams of Excelr8 and Adam Weaver of Power Maxed Racing The independents title race as Mikey Doble closes in Turmoil inside the Mercedes squad, and our drivers of the weekend Josh Cook, Ash Sutton and Mikey Doble split the wins across Croft's three race Sunday, with Sutton's win his 55th in BTCC, moving him above Gordon Shedden and into 5th on the all time winners list. Tom Ingram's miserable weekend, scoring points in only one of three races, dropped him behind Dan Cammish in the standings, with Sutton now 115 points clear heading into the final two rounds at Silverstone and Brands Hatch. If you enjoyed this one, following the show and leaving a rating helps more than almost anything else we can ask for, since it is what gets Motorsport Files in front of new listeners.

    Is Ash Sutton BTCC's GOAT Now?

  7. Sep 11

    Is George Russell Finished At Mercedes?

    Kimi Antonelli won from P19 at Monza while George Russell got booed on the podium. We unpack F1's wildest weekend, Ferrari's meltdown and more. Zac and Drew are back after a short break to dig into one of the maddest race weekends of the season. Kimi Antonelli somehow won the Italian Grand Prix from 19th on the grid, going from P19 to P1 in under 25 minutes, while teammate George Russell fell apart in real time and got booed on the podium. We're asking the question nobody at Mercedes wants to answer: is Russell's time there coming to an end? Ferrari's home race turned into a proper disaster too, with Leclerc and Hamilton going wheel to wheel on lap one before Charles crashed out at Parabolica, and we get into why that relationship badly needs some ground rules. On top of that: a driver market where almost nobody is actually moving, whether Lance Stroll has finally run out of chances, Liam Lawson's rocky third race at Red Bull, Williams' worrying infrastructure problems, and why we can't stand F1's yo-yo overtaking. Then we look ahead to F1's brand new Madring circuit in Madrid and lock in our predictions for the Spanish Grand Prix. What's in this episode: 00:00 Intro, we're back 00:38 Driver market check-in: is silly season already over? 02:19 Has Lance Stroll finally run out of chances? 05:44 Alonso's future and the wait for V8 engines 07:43 Audi threaten to appeal the Monza formation lap call 08:59 Monaco's appeal drama returns 12:38 Liam Lawson's third race at Red Bull, is he good enough? 16:25 Kimi Antonelli's ridiculous Monza stats (P19 to P1) 20:48 "I'm done with George Russell" 25:31 Ferrari need rules of engagement after the Leclerc/Hamilton clash 35:51 McLaren's forgettable Monza weekend 41:20 Verstappen's "sandbagging" and a quiet P3 43:46 Williams' 17-year-old CAD system 47:04 Why the yo-yo overtakes are ruining the racing 49:42 First look at F1's brand new Madring circuit 51:27 Our Spanish Grand Prix predictions Get the full episode guide, show notes and extra reading at: https://www.themotorsportfiles.com That's also where you can sign up to our newsletter for stuff that doesn't make the podcast. Follow us everywhere else: @tmfpod23 (TikTok, Instagram, Facebook) If you enjoyed this episode, following the show means you won't miss the next one, and a quick rating or review genuinely helps new listeners find us. New episodes roughly every two weeks.

    Is George Russell Finished At Mercedes?

  8. Sep 9

    Pajari Makes WRC History in Paraguay | Full Review

    Sami Pajari made WRC history with a third straight win in Paraguay, but Friday's chaos is the real story of this episode. For a full episode guide visit https://www.themotorsportfiles.com/post/rally-del-paraguay-2026-pajari-s-hat-trick-katsuta-s-big-crash Pajari and his co-driver Marko Salminen became the first crew in WRC history whose first three career wins came consecutively. He'd already won in Estonia and Finland earlier this season, and Paraguay made it three in a row, something no driver has managed right out of the gate before. Nobody saw Friday coming. Everyone packed for rain that stayed in the service park, and instead the crews got the roughest day of World Rally Championship action in years, starting with Takamoto Katsuta rolling his Toyota just a few hundred metres into the first stage. Three days later Sami Pajari and Marko Salminen crossed the line to complete something no crew has ever done before: winning their first three WRC rallies back to back. Along the way there's a red-flagged stage after a frightening second crash for Katsuta and co-driver Aaron Johnston, a public apology from Sebastien Ogier, a home win for Paraguay in WRC2, and a maiden WRC3 victory for Nataniel Bruun with more than fifteen minutes to spare. Drew and Chris go through the whole weekend team by team and driver by driver, including the tyre row that ran for two days straight, the moment John Armstrong drove his Ford down to the bare rim and through his own brake caliper, and how Elfyn Evans nursed a delaminating tyre for seventeen kilometres and still made the finish. Timestamps 0:00 Cold open - the Friday nobody predicted 0:47 Katsuta's first rollover - talent, pace or pressure 6:43 The Artigas crash - red flag, helicopter, relief 8:39 Even Toyota had gremlins - Solberg's starter motor drama 10:03 Solberg's quiet, mature weekend under the radar 11:53 Ogier's mood, the tyre row and a public apology 14:02 What next year's rules mean for Ogier's future 16:59 Silly season - Toyota's crowded 2027 driver puzzle 18:36 The great Hankook tyre debate 21:04 Pushing a dead tyre too far - Armstrong vs Evans 26:35 Team debrief - Toyota's imperfect winning weekend 28:48 Hyundai's revival and Fourmaux's statement drive 32:24 Neuville's rotten luck, Paddon's redemption in second 37:22 Ford's weekend - McErlean rising, Armstrong learning 40:07 M-Sport and the development team dilemma 45:06 WRC2 carnage - Cachon and Virves crash out early 47:29 Home hero Dominguez wins WRC2 again, Greensmith podiums 49:52 Virves' nine stage wins despite zero points 50:34 Silly season strikes again - Suninen's co-driver news 52:17 Paraguay's rally passion and the WRC3 story 52:39 Coming next month - the British rallying interviews 53:59 Final verdict and eyes on Chile Katsuta and Aaron Johnston were checked over and given the all clear after Sunday's crash. The Motorsport Files is hosted by Drew and Chris, back after every round of the World Rally Championship. Follow the show so you don't miss the Chile review.

    Pajari Makes WRC History in Paraguay | Full Review
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About

Hosted by Drew Bentham, Zac Stanley & Chris Gilbertson, new episodes land every week covering Formula 1, BTCC, WRC, ERC and British rally and racing - race weekend reviews alongside in-depth conversations with the drivers, co-drivers and rising talent living it. Expect genuine human stories over lap times and standings, including an ongoing commitment to spotlighting the women shaping motorsport at every level. Whether you've followed the sport for decades or you're just discovering it, follow along so you never miss an episode.

Information

  • Creator
    The Motorsport Files
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    35
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2026 The Motorsport Files
  • Show Website
    The Motorsport Files