F1Weekly Podcast # 1110
Play Podcast: 09-01-25f1weekly1110.mp3
The wet Dutch Grand Prix that never came! DNF chapel gifts Piastri, Hadjar podium incredible! Ferrari looking for an Exorcism. LCH receives five place grid penalty for Monza and…The Nasir Hameed corner brings you a conversation with the publisher and editor of ” Victory Lane” Magazine Dan Davis. Bonus interview…John Edwards at Laguna Seca part 1.
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Major auction reports with detailed info on selected cars.
Isak Hadjar.
Visa Cash App Racing Bulls’ Isaac Hadjar rounded off a memorable weekend with a flawless drive at the Dutch Grand Prix as he became the fifth youngest driver in Formula One history to finish on the podium. The 20-year-old qualified in fourth place on Saturday and took advantage of a late retirement from Lando Norris to secure third position at the Circuit Zandvoort.
“That feels a bit unreal. What was most surprising to me is keeping that fourth place for the whole race,” said Hadjar. “Unfortunately for Norris, we took advantage but we made no mistake and the car was unreal all weekend. I’m really happy for myself because I really maximised what I had, made no mistakes and brought home the podium. I’m so happy for my guys.”
Oracle Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen was equally impressive on his home circuit, delighting the fans as he finished in second place behind race winner Oscar Piastri. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda was also able to finish in the points as he moved from 12th at the start to ninth place at the chequered flag, while Visa Cash App Racing Bulls driver Liam Lawson finished in 12th place.
Max Verstappen.
“For me today, the highlight of the race was the first half when I was trying to get a spot and overtake. It was good to initially get the overtake but after Lando passed me again, I knew we had to manage our tyres and our pace for the rest of the race and keep everyone behind. The car did snap a bit on the first lap and I felt like I was doing a bit of drifting as there was a lot of sand on turn two.
Qualifying was a big step forward for us, but today it was a bit more difficult as we were struggling on the long runs and it was more of a fight behind me. We got lucky with P2 as we couldn’t match the pace of the McLarens in the race and were struggling with the tyre behaviour and grip in the low speed. Despite this, I’m very happy for Isack to get his first podium: he had a fantastic weekend and good lap times and coming in as a rookie is always hard and he has done really well.”
Indycar.
Newgarden Salvages Season With Home Victory at Thrilling Nashville.
LEBANON, Tenn. (Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025) – Sweet relief finally arrived at home, sweet home after the most frustrating of seasons for Josef Newgarden.
Nashville-area native Newgarden broke a 20-race drought dating back to August 2024 to earn his first victory of 2025 and 32nd of his illustrious NTT INDYCAR SERIES career at his home track Sunday, winning the season-ending Borchetta Bourbon Music City Grand Prix presented by WillScot at Nashville Superspeedway.
“Glad we got one without anything going wrong,” Newgarden said. “Happy to celebrate this team. They deserve it. It’s rewarding for our team. Tough, tough year, but good to get a win at the end.”
Two-time series champion Newgarden drove his No. 2 Astemo Team Penske Chevrolet to victory by .5021 of a second over the No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda of four-time and reigning series champion Alex Palou, who celebrated with the Astor Challenge Cup for the third straight year in post-race ceremonies.
“It’s been an amazing season for us,” Palou said. “I just had the pleasure to be the driver of that No. 10 DHL Honda car, to get so many wins and so many podiums this year.”
Scott McLaughlin finished third in the No. 3 DEX Imaging Team Penske Chevrolet after prevailing in a stirring duel down the stretch of the 225-lap race with Kyffin Simpson in the No. 8 Journie Rewards Chip Ganassi Racing Honda. It’s just the second time this season that Team Penske – the most winning team in INDYCAR SERIES history – put two drivers on the podium.
Simpson capped a strong second season in the series by holding on to fourth for his best career oval result. Conor Daly rounded out the top five in the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Chevrolet after starting 24th, gaining more spots than any driver in the race.
Louis Foster of Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing hung on to clinch the series Rookie of the Year honors by just two points over Robert Shwartzman of PREMA Racing. Foster finished 20th in the No. 45 Desnuda Tequila Honda, while Shwartzman was 14th in the No. 83 PREMA Racing Chevrolet.
Newgarden took the lead for good on Lap 205 when he passed McLaughlin when McLaughlin’s car drifted off the racing line and brushed the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2, triggering the fourth and final caution period of the frenetic race.
On the restart on Lap 214, Newgarden rocketed away while Palou – who remarkably clawed back to the front despite a flat right front tire early in the race – dove under McLaughlin for second place in Turn 1.
But Palou never could catch Newgarden over the final 11 laps, as the reigning series champion admitted he lacked the confidence to put his car in the higher groove where Newgarden, McLaughlin, Daly and others did some of their best, most breathtaking passing of the race.
The joyous relief was palpable for Newgarden after the race when he stopped his car on the front straightaway and climbed into the grandstands to exult with fans, reminiscent of his celebrations at Indianapolis Motor Speedway after winning the Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge in 2023 and 2024.
“I think we should be racing in Nashville to end the championship all the time,” Newgarden said. “We don’t need to need to go anywhere else. It’s great to be home. Pumped, just pumped.”
It was a fitting ending to a race that featured so many twists, turns and heartbreak that nearly everyone who watched it probably needed a moment to exhale after the checkered flag. There were 284 passes for position, including 130 in the top 10 and 74 in the top five – all series records for Nashville Superspeedway.
McLaughlin wasn’t the only driver to lose the lead due to hitting the SAFER Barrier. NTT P1 Award winner Pato O’Ward led a race-high 116 laps from the pole in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, but his race ended in heartbreak when a flat right front tire pushed him into the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2 on Lap 127.
David Malukas was running in second on Lap 83 in the No. 4 Clarience Technologies Chevrolet of A.J. Foyt Enterprises when he backed hard into the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2 after side-by-side contact from Foster, who was penalized for blocking. Malukas was awake and alert after the incident, according to INDYCAR Medical Director Dr. Julia Vaizer, and was released from a local hospital following precautionary evaluation and advanced imaging.
Christian Rasmussen, who earned his first career victory last Sunday at the Milwaukee Mile, saw his chance for a repeat end on Lap 1 when his No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet wiggled in traffic and hit the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2.
The varying pit and tire strategies spawned by these accidents and caution periods resulted in 12 of the 27 drivers leading at least one lap and 20 lead changes, both series records at this track.
Indy NXT.
Rowe Charges From Deep in Pack To Win at Nashville
LEBANON, Tenn. (Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025) – A decision made Saturday afternoon paid off with a stirring victory Sunday morning for Myles Rowe.
Rowe earned his second career victory – both coming this year – in the season-ending INDY NXT by Firestone Music City Grand Prix on Sunday at Nashville Superspeedway after starting ninth. It was the deepest starting position for a race winner in the INDYCAR development series since Matheus Leist won from 10th in 2017 on the Iowa Speedway oval.
“It’s amazing,” Rowe said. “It’s been a good season this year with Abel Motorsports, and I can’t thank Force Indy and Abel enough for what they do for me. It’s been a good journey, and I can’t wait to do it again with them next year. Just so happy I could give this to them at the end of the year.”
Rowe drove his No. 99 Abel/Force Indy machine to victory by .4376 of a second over Salvador de Alba in the No. 27 Grupo Indi car of Andretti Global. Season champion Dennis Hauger finished third in the No. 28 Nammo entry, giving Andretti Global two of the three podium positions.
Caio Collet finished fourth in the No. 76 HMD Motorsports car, while Lochie Hughes delivered Andretti Global three of the top five finishers in the No. 26 McGinley Clinic/USF Pro Championship machine.
This was an impound event for the series, in which teams could not change their car setups after qualifying Saturday. So, Rowe and his crew decided to set up their car with more downforce than usual for qualifying, with an eye toward the 65-lap race on the 1.33-mile concrete oval.
The decision paid off.
“We weren’t quite pleased with the qualifying, but we knew the strategy was that we come here to race,” Rowe said. “Starting ninth wasn’t what we wanted, but we knew we could race from there.
“It was just about keeping composure and making all the right moves and making them count. I’m glad we were able to do that. The crew gave me an amazing car to be able to do that.”
Rowe wasted little time climbing through the field, jumping to fourth place by Lap 5. He then prevailed over the next 10 laps in a spirited defense of that position against Michael d’Orlando in the No. 3 Priority/Rising Stars car of Andretti – Cape Motorsport.
Georgia native Rowe then dove under Collet on Lap 25 to take second and set his sights on pole sitter de Alba, who had led every lap from the start of the race.
De Alba led Rowe by .435 of a second on Lap 32 when the only caution flag of the race flew. D’Orlando nudged Callum Hedge’s No. 17 Abel Motorsports car into the SAFER Barrier in Turn 2 during a side-by-side duel for seventh place.
Mexican de Alba rocketed away on the restart on Lap 44, but it didn’t take long for Rowe to catch him and make a decisive move for victory. Rowe looked to the high groove as he trailed de Alba to start Lap 46 and then quickly dove under de Alba in Turn 1 to take a lead he would not surrender.
Rowe then maintained a gap to de Alba ranging from three-tenths to one-half of a second over the final 20 laps and never was threatened.
The sizzling race featured action up and down the 18-car field, resulting in 147 on-track passes, including 81 for position, 56 in the top 10 and 26 in the top five – all INDY NXT by Firestone records for Nashville Superspeedway.
Fernando.
“I think the car had some good pace in the race today and we finished in the points. We were unlucky with the timing of the Safety Cars in the race and we were unable to capitalise.
We had some battles at the end after the second stop, and I felt faster than some of the cars that finished ahead of us. It was an entertaining race for the fans and let’s see if we can have some good action in Monza next week.”
