F1Weekly Podcast # 1137

ON TODAYS PROGRAM…

FIRST PROBLEM…THE F1 TV COVERAGE IS STINKO!

LOOKS LIKE MERCEDES IS GOING TO GET AWAY WITH IT AGAIN!

FERRARI LOOK FAST BUT THE BAD DECISIONS CONTINUE AND ASTON MARTIN LOOK TO BE IN TROUBLE FOR THE REST OF THE SEASON!

THIS WEEK’S NASIR HAMEED CORNER… WE HAVE A CANADIAN BONANZA!

TEDDY YIP JR., DANIEL MORRAD AND ROBERT WICKENS!

George Russell…
That wasn’t a straightforward afternoon, but this win feels very sweet! Congratulations to the whole team; they’ve done an incredible job and this victory is for them.

We had a difficult and chaotic start and from there, were yo-yoing with the overtakes between Charles and me. I could have perhaps used my energy more smartly to defend when I first overtook him and that cost me when he passed me back. It was quite stressful from in the car but hopefully meant we put on a good show for the fans.

We stopped quite early on when the Virtual Safety Car was deployed and knew we were going to have to manage our tyres from there. We were not clear on whether the one or the two-stop was going to be quickest or which one was the right decision to help us take victory. The strategy team made a great call though and I am really happy we could take the victory and the 1-2. It’s a perfect way to start the season and we will enjoy this moment, but it is still very early days in the championship, and we know our rivals will be trying to close the gap quickly. It wasn’t easy for us so let’s see how we perform in China next week.

Kimi Antonelli

What an afternoon and what a weekend! It has not been easy on my side of the garage here in Melbourne, but we’ve come away from here with a great result. I want to say a huge thank you to everyone at Lauda Drive and Morgan Drive; they’ve produced a really strong car and a platform for us to build on. This 1-2 is for them and due to all the hard work and effort they’ve put in over several years.

Coming to the grid, I had a lower battery level so the start was very stressful! We obviously made a slow launch but from there our recovery was good and our pace was strong. That enabled us to fight our way back to the Ferraris and ultimately, after we went through the pitstops, to take a 1-2 for the team.

There is a lot we’ve learned about our car and how to operate within these new regulations this weekend. Whilst we were the strongest team in Melbourne, we are going to have to work really hard to stay ahead. I’m now looking forward to China and seeing what we can do in Shanghai.

MAX…

“The first laps were pretty hectic and we just needed to stay out of trouble. I had some issues at the start with the battery so as soon as the clutch was dropped, I had no power so that is something we need to understand. We then got quite cleanly through the field, did some decent overtakes and learned a bit about what we could do. We settled into our own race but unfortunately had a little too much degradation; the tyre behaviour was surprising as we had a lot of graining on the Hard compound, which of course compromised our stints and meant that we couldn’t really fight for more. So, this is something that we need to go back and understand a bit more. We also tried everything at the end to overtake again and gain a position but when we got close my tyres opened up. Overall the Team still did a great job: it was a decent comeback from P20 and we will work as a Team to close the gap further.”

ISACK…

Newgarden Hunts Down Victory,
Takes Series Lead at Phoenix
  AVONDALE, Ariz. (Saturday, March 7, 2026) – It took Josef Newgarden 17 races last year to earn his only victory of the NTT INDYCAR SERIES season.

That winning box already is checked this year, two races in.

SEE: Race Results

Two-time series champion Newgarden earned his first victory of the season and 33rd of his illustrious career by closing down and passing leader Kyle Kirkwood with seven laps remaining to win the Good Ranchers 250 on Saturday at Phoenix Raceway. Newgarden, who started second, drove away to a 1.7937-second victory in the No. 2 XPEL Team Penske Chevrolet over the No. 27 JM Bullion/Gold.com of Andretti Global driver Kirkwood.

“I’m very surprised,” Newgarden said. “In the middle of the race, I don’t know that I was fully believing that we had the capability to win. We just kept working through it, and I’m like, ‘Look, if we get another opportunity, we’re going to be aggressive, we’re going to be on the offense.’

“We took tires, and the thing was like a rocket ship when it needed to be, right at the end of the race. Hats off to the whole crew. I’m pumped.”

NTT P1 Award winner David Malukas finished third in the No. 12 Verizon Team Penske Chevrolet as Roger Penske’s legendary team celebrated its 60th anniversary season with two podium positions.

Pato O’Ward finished fourth in the No. 5 Arrow McLaren Chevrolet, with Marcus Armstrong rounding out the top five in the No. 66 ROOT Insurance Honda of Meyer Shank Racing w/Curb Agajanian.

INDYCAR’s first race in Phoenix since 2018 – Newgarden and Team Penske also won that event – featured plenty of action throughout the field, as there were 565 on-track passes, an INDYCAR record at the 1-mile desert oval. But a combination of tire strategy and deft maneuvering in traffic delivered the victory to Newgarden, who also won the season-ending race last August at Nashville Superspeedway to avoid a winless 2025.

Kirkwood made his last stop on Lap 192 and was running fourth behind teammate Will Power, Christian Rasmussen and O’Ward on Lap 207. Power and Rasmussen were engaged in a ferocious duel for the lead, with the left front wing end plate of Rasmussen’s No. 21 ECR Splenda Stevia Chevrolet making contact with the right rear tire of Power’s No. 26 TWG AI Honda exiting Turn 2.

That impact cut Power’s tire, triggering the final caution period of the race and ending his chances of an improbable victory after starting last in the 25-car field. Rasmussen’s car also was damaged.

During that final caution period, Newgarden and a handful of other drivers near the front entered pit lane for fresh Firestone Firehawk tires, as tire grip was a far bigger strategic factor in this race than fuel management. Rasmussen, Kirkwood, Malukas and Armstrong were among the drivers who decided to stay on track, opting for track position over traction.

Rasmussen led at the final restart of the 250-lap race on Lap 218, but his damaged car ended up being no match for Kirkwood, who drove past Rasmussen for the lead on Lap 242. Rasmussen faded in the last eight laps with car damage and worn tires, placing a bitterly disappointed 14th after thrilling the large crowd with many daring passes to get to the front five times for 69 laps.

“We were the class of the field today – best car out there,” Rasmussen said. “It’s so frustrating because we should have won the race today.”

Kirkwood led Newgarden by six-tenths of a second when he took the lead, but Newgarden’s tire advantage was obvious within less than a lap. Newgarden gnawed into Kirkwood’s lead and drove under Kirkwood in Turn 4 for the lead for good just two laps later, on Lap 244.

“We thought about it, but we were talking about it, and the pits opened,” Kirkwood said about the possibility of pitting during the late caution. “(Staying out) was the right thing to do at the time.”

As a bonus in this young season, Newgarden became the first driver other than four-time series champion Alex Palou to lead the standings since June 2024. Two-time Indianapolis 500 presented by Gainbridge winner Newgarden leads Kirkwood, 78-73, after two races as he tries to win the series crown for the first time since 2019.

“Do we really have the lead?” Newgarden said. “Two races in, so I wouldn’t read too much into it. But momentum is a big deal. It’s very difficult to understand how things work. Sometimes things go against us, sometimes they go for us. It was just great execution by the team.”

Palou placed 24th, completing just 21 laps in No. 10 DHL Chip Ganassi Racing Honda, after side-by-side contact with the No. 76 Juncos Hollinger Racing Chevrolet of Rinus VeeKay led to a trip into the SAFER Barrier.

It was Palou’s worst finish since he placed 25th last June in Detroit after contact eliminated him from that street race.

Impressive Ugochukwu earns maiden F3 victory in Melbourne.

Ugo Ugochukwu claimed his maiden victory in FIA Formula 3 with a dominant drive in the Melbourne Feature Race. 

The Campos Racing driver recovered from a slow start, which dropped to third, to win the race ahead of TRIDENT’s Freddie Slater. ART Grand Prix driver Taito Kato took the final spot on the podium after Théophile Nael and Noah Stromsted both received time penalties. 

AS IT HAPPENED 
Polesitter Nael kept the lead into Turn 1, while Slater got ahead of Ugochukwu to take second place at the opening corner. 

Slater’s strong opening lap continued as he tried to go around the outside of Nael at Turn 3 only for the Campos driver to shut the door. 

Kato was also on the move for ART Grand Prix, as he managed to make a move around the outside of TRIDENT’s Stromsted at the penultimate corner for P8. 

On to Lap 2, Ugochukwu was within one second of Slater and overtook his rival at Turn 9 to get back to P2. 

Ugochukwu then closed in on Nael rapidly after and once again made a move at Turn 9, this time to take the lead of the race. 

Just behind them, Kato and Mattia Colnaghi went side-by-side through Turns 9 and 10, with the ART driver taking P7. 

Out in front, the top three had separated themselves and were two seconds clear of Maciej Gladysz at the start of Lap 8. 

Brando Badoer and Nicola Lacorte had been battling for P5 with the former having lost the place to the DAMS Lucas Oil driver earlier in the lap. As he looked to regain the position, he spun at the final corner, dropping him down to P12. 

The Safety Car was then called upon on Lap 9 with Nandhavud Bhirombhakdi having found the barrier at Turn 12. 

Racing resumed at the start of Lap 12, and Ugochukwu pulled out a 1.1s gap to Nael, who was coming under pressure from Slater after running wide at the exit of Turn 4. 

The Campos driver was holding on to P2, but Gladysz lost P4 to Lacorte at Turn 9, while Bruno del Pino was up eighth ahead of Colnaghi after making a move at the same corner. 

Lacorte was charging towards the podium and was right on the back of Slater at the start of Lap 15, and before taking P3 on the brakes at Turn 12. 

Moments later, Nael was given a five-second time penalty for a false start. 

Slater though was struggling on Lap 16, coming under pressure from his teammate Stromsted, who had just overtaken Gladysz for P5 at Turn 12. 

Lacorte’s hopes of a podium were damaged on the next lap, losing out to Slater, before contact with Stromsted gave him front wing damage. The Stewards then handed the DAMS driver a five-second penalty for a false start, while Stromsted was later handed a 10-second time penalty for causing a collision with the Italian. 

Slater had recovered things nicely and was within 0.5s of Nael for P2 by the start of Lap 20. The TRIDENT driver used the DRS to overtake the Frenchman at Turn 9 to get up to second. 

Just as Nael was fighting Stromsted for the final spot on the podium, the Safety Car was called upon with Woohyun Shin having pulled over at the side of the road with rear suspension damage at Turn 6. 

The track could not be cleared in time for a restart, with the race ending under Safety Car conditions, leaving Ugochukwu to take a first victory in F3 ahead of Slater. With Nael and Stromsted’s penalties taking effect, Kato inherited P3. 

Del Pino followed his Sprint Race victory with a run to P4 ahead of Gladysz and Enzo Deligny. Brad Benavides was seventh for AIX Racing ahead of Pedro Clerot and Jin Nakamura, with Colnaghi in 10th. 

KEY QUOTE – Ugo Ugochukwu, Campos Racing 
“The Feature Race done here in Melbourne, managed to come away with a win, so super pleased, my first win in F3. It’s been a perfect start to the season, we have been quick all weekend. P2 of the line, fell back a little at the start but managed to make my way back through to the lead and from there I had a nice gap until the last Safety Car. Super happy and thank you to the whole team.” 

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS 
Campos Racing’s Ugo Ugochukwu leads the Drivers’ Championship after Round 1 with 25 points, ahead of Freddie Slater and Bruno del Pino, who both have 18 points. Taito Kato is fourth with 16 points, while Enzo Deligny is fifth on 12.

Nikola Tsolov takes comfortable F2 Melbourne victory!

Nikola Tsolov claimed his maiden victory in FIA Formula 2, becoming the first Bulgarian driver to win in the Championship. 

Rafael Câmara followed his fellow rookie home, taking P2 for Invicta Racing while Laurens van Hoepen earned TRIDENT a podium in third position. 

AS IT HAPPENED 
Martinius Stenshorne got the start he needed to take the lead from second, but teammate Alexander Dunne was challenging him for the lead into the first corner, slotting into P2. 

Tsolov also got a good getaway from the grid, moving up to third position for Campos Racing. Teammate Noel León made contact with Oliver Goethe and slipped down the order with damage. 

Lap 2 and Dunne dived to the inside of his teammate at Turn 11, and the two Rodins remained side-by-side through to Turn 13 as Stenshorne fended off his teammate. 

On the run to Turn 1 on the following lap, Dunne got a slipstream and looked to have a move done, but contact between the pair left both with damage and out of the race. 

Tsolov inherited the lead ahead of Câmara and Beganovic before the Safety Car was deployed to recover the Rodin cars. 

The Safety Car was withdrawn at the end of Lap 5, and Tsolov began to build a buffer over the Invicta driver behind him. 

Ritomo Miyata was on the move on Lap 7, rounding Kush Maini into Turn 9. Sebastián Montoya was the first to pit for a mandatory stop, switching to the Soft compound tyres. 

Beganovic was in from third on the following lap as the top two continued on. The Swede filtered out in 11th position, prompting Tsolov and Câmara to respond on Lap 10. 

The duo rejoined in the same order they entered, but Beganovic had lost positions to Laurens van Hoepen and Goethe, though now had his tyres up to temperature. 

Into Turn 5 and the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy member dived to the inside of the MP and claimed 8th on the road. He then claimed seventh from the TRIDENT at Turn 9 and was homing in on the back of Câmara before the end of the lap. 

After a few laps in the wake of the Brazilian, Beganovic made a great dummy into Turn 9 to take fourth place down the inside on Lap 14. 

The DAMS driver’s progress was for nought however as he pulled to the side of the track on Lap 17 and into an early retirement. With his car in need of clearing, the Virtual Safety Car was deployed, converted into a full Safety Car on Lap 19. 

That allowed Nico Varrone on the alternative strategy to make his mandatory stop and fit the Supersoft tyres, re-joining with his lead intact, but was later handed a 10-second time penalty for speeding in the pitlane. 

Racing resumed on Lap 22 with the Van Amersfoort Racing driver under pressure from behind. Tsolov made an immediate dive to the inside at Turn 3 to take the lead. Crucially, Câmara couldn’t follow his rival through, allowing the Bulgarian to build a buffer. 

A dive to the inside at Turn 11 on Lap 27 gave the Invicta driver P2, but the gap to the race leader stood at 2.2s heading into the final six laps. 

Lap 29 and despite a valiant defence, Varrone slipped out of the podium places as van Hoepen and then Goethe completed passes on the Argentine at Turns 9 and 11. 

Miyata was making a late race charge for Hitech, taking P6 from Tasanapol Inthraphuvasak and then fifth from Varrone on Lap 30.  

Out in front though, Tsolov was uncatchable, and he claimed victory for Campos in Melbourne. Câmara and van Hoepen completed the podium. 

Goethe wound up fourth ahead of Miyata, Inthraphuvasak, Colton Herta, Gabriele Minì,  Montoya and Joshua Duerksen, who rounded out the points in P10. 

KEY QUOTE – Nikola Tsolov, Campos Racing 
“Very excited to finally win my first F2 race in a Feature Race on top of everything as well. I think in Qualifying we already had the pace to be fighting for pole. Then coming into today after a tough day yesterday, I tried to put everything back together and be resilient, and managed to take home the win.”