Australia Quali

It’s the 2026 season start and we’re at the first race of Formula 1 in Albert Park. The two Mercedes head out for Quali. Verstappen and Russell drive out in tandem, Russell bringing up the rear. Whether figuratively or not, Russell bringing up the rear has been the theme throughout the entire practice season after Max signed his 2 year contract with Mercedes after leaving Red Bull. Max doesn’t play second fiddle, he’s a killer, he is in front.

The rumour mill was churning at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, with whispers that Daniel Ricciardo’s days at Red Bull might be numbered. The Aussie driver, once the golden boy of the team, has been struggling to keep pace with his teammate and the rest of the field.

Red Bull's Helmut Marko, known for his ruthless approach to driver management, has hinted that a decision on Ricciardo’s future will be made after the Singapore Grand Prix. The smart money is on Liam Lawson, who impressed when he filled in for an injured Ricciardo last season, to take over the seat.

Carlos sainz is not my favorite driver. I don’t even like him because I think he’s too whiny. Then again he’s no different from the rest with Lando being the worst offender in my opinion. But Carlos didn’t deserve to end the Azerbaijan GP in that way. Especially after that magnificent move he pulled. His moves left Perez flat footed after Charles defended turn 1 like a champion. Carlos didn’t tip toe, didn’t sneak, but strutted confidently past the Mexican. It felt like Checo was slowing down for double waved yellows. Sainz’s confidence was supreme enough that he almost whizzed past his teammate. He only backed out of the move because he didn’t have the room to pull it off. 

In a shocking move that has sent ripples through the F1 paddock, legendary car designer Adrian Newey has jumped ship from Red Bull to Aston Martin, lured by an eye-watering £30 million annual salary package that includes bonuses and shares. The Silverstone-based team, backed by billionaire Lawrence Stroll, has pulled out all the stops to secure Newey’s services as they aim to challenge for world championships.

Newey’s pay packet is so substantial that it dwarfs the salaries of most F1 drivers, with only the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen earning more. When questioned by the BBC about what justifies his hefty compensation, Newey humbly responded, “Better ask Lawrence… I don’t know. I’m just me. I am in a very fortunate position where I don’t need to work now. I could retire and have a comfortable lifestyle very easily. But I still love the job that I’m doing.”

In a move that sent shockwaves through the Formula 1 paddock like a V12 engine on full chat, Adrian Newey, the mastermind behind countless championship-winning cars, has confirmed his defection from Red Bull to Aston Martin for the 2025 season.

Newey, who has more titles under his belt than Lewis Hamilton has tattoos, will bid farewell to the Red Bull team he’s called home for over a decade, leaving behind a legacy of aerodynamic wizardry that would make even Gandalf jealous.

Max Verstappen began the 2024 Formula 1 season much like he ended 2023: at the top of his game. With Red Bull’s Adrian Newey-designed RB20 car setting new benchmarks in aerodynamic efficiency and power, Verstappen cruised to victory in nearly every race from the season opener through to the Spanish Grand Prix. It seemed almost inevitable that he would claim a fourth consecutive World Championship.

Early Season: Unstoppable Force

By the time Formula 1 arrived in Spain, Verstappen had amassed an astounding 303 points over 16 races, leading his closest competitors by a wide margin. Lando Norris, in second place, had only 241 points—a clear indicator of Verstappen’s superior performance. In the early races, Max was practically untouchable. His confidence behind the wheel, combined with Red Bull’s technical prowess, left rivals scrambling to even challenge him. Up to Spain, Verstappen had won the majority of races, often securing pole positions and fastest laps, extending his lead with each passing weekend. However, as the paddock moved to Austria, the tide began to turn.

In a move that’s about as surprising as a rainy day at Silverstone, Mattia Binotto has revealed that he’ll be playing the role of Sauber’s interim Team Principal until Jonathan Wheatley can pry himself away from Red Bull’s clutches next summer. It seems that Audi, in their infinite wisdom, decided to poach Wheatley from the Milton Keynes squad, but the Briton is stuck in a contractual quagmire until July.

Sauber, who have been operating without a proper Team Principal since Frederic Vasseur bid adieu in 2022, will now have Binotto at the helm, steering the ship through the choppy waters of the upcoming season. The Swiss-Italian, no stranger to wearing multiple hats during his tenure at Ferrari, has graciously accepted the position, even if it means he won’t be a fixture at every race weekend. As for Sauber Team Representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi, well, your guess is as good as mine.

In the high-octane world of Formula 1, where the cars are fast and the lights are plentiful, Sergio Perez seems to be engaging in a bit of a playground game, albeit with higher stakes. Fresh from his latest escapade at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, our man Sergio finds himself a mere stone’s throw away from a race ban, collecting penalty points like they’re going out of fashion.

The stewards, after donning their finest detective hats and scrutinizing the footage with all the intensity of a cat watching a laser pointer, found Perez guilty of what is essentially being a bit too eager to leave his pit box. The verdict? “Car 11 [that’s our Sergio] was released from a pit stop in an unsafe manner,” they declared with the gravity of announcing a verdict in court. To add a dash of drama, Fernando Alonso had to perform an impromptu ballet move in his car to avoid kissing bumpers with Perez.

The sun beating down on the tarmac, the smell of high-octane fuel in the air, and the sound of Formula 1 cars lining up on the grid. It’s the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, and if you slept through the race but just tuned in hoping for some semblance of the word “competition”, then you might as well stop reading now. Max and Checho, 1-2 finish.

Sergio Perez, despite being slapped with a five-second penalty for nearly sending Fernando Alonso into next week with an unsafe release, managed to keep his cool and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc at bay. As for the rest, well, it was business as usual – with a few dashes of drama sprinkled in for good measure.

In the world of Formula 1, loyalty is as fleeting as the latest tyre trend, yet Max Verstappen, the wunderkind of Red Bull Racing, has declared his allegiance to the energy drink empire with a fervor that could only be matched by a teenager professing love for the first time. Amid a swirling vortex of rumours, speculation, and the occasional espionage worthy of a James Bond subplot, Verstappen has firmly squashed any insinuations that he might be eyeing up Mercedes as his next high-speed steed.