P1 with Matt and Tommy - Our reaction to day three of F1 testing

Episode Date: February 23, 2024

We're back with a recap of the final day of testing - next stop, actual racing! And the Charles Leclerc title charge is gathering momentum...WE'RE GOING BACK ON TOUR! Tickets for our April live shows are available right here! You can sign up to our Patreon here! You'll get access to exclusive episodes you won't hear anywhere else, every P1 episode ad-free, full driver interview videos, early access to tickets and more!Follow us on socials! You can find us on Twitter, Instagram, Twitch, YouTube and TikTok. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello everybody and welcome back to the P-1 podcast. Or should I call it the Charles LeCler podcast? Because we are reflecting on the final day of Formula One testing. And yes, I know I'm getting a little bit ahead of myself with that, just purely because tyres matter. But we have a lot to talk about, a lot to reflect on, as testing is now done and dusted. No more BS after this moment.

No more, oh, well, we don't really know what's happening. It's all going to be unveiled next weekend. Well, sorry, next Thursday, Friday, Saturday. Yes, don't forget Saturday race, everyone. But yeah, finally we can forget testing and learn a little more. We've learned a little bit from today, but it's still that very awkward kind of, we don't know what everyone's doing yet.

Like we say, don't look too much into times unless Leclair is fastest, as Matt says, and look who was fastest. Exactly, and it wasn't even that good of a lap time, personally, to be honest with you, even though the graphics said C5, I'm pretty sure it was a C4 time. But we'll get onto all of that very shortly. Let's start the five-star review from Billy 47 in Australia. Just an unreal pod with great humour and will-knowledge, keep it up legends.

That's the fastest five-star review of all time. Is that Billy or is that Max Verstappen giving us that review? But either or, thank you so much, Billy. Please let us know your five-star review. If you want to submit one, that would be amazing because it helps the podcast, massively. Okay, final day of testing then, and fastest is Charles Leclair. But if we're being realistic, fastest is Max Verstappen, because it's Max Verstappen. I was actually reading something on social media, so I'll take it with a pinch of salks, there's rumours and this, that and the other,

and internally it's been reported that blah, blah, blah, but according to something that, you know, Bob's uncles, Jeremy's aunt, Max thinks that the RB20 suits his driving style more than the RB19. So do you want to start the tennis channel yet or are we still waiting until next week? No. You get so triggered, I love it. Yeah. I mean, it's like the least surprising thing ever that Red Bull are very good, I think, in a non-regulation change. Maybe they might be, dare I say, even better than last year, which is scary.

But like I said in the last one, there are so many things. to look forward to. And Ferrari have looked good. I'm not saying they're Red Bull good, but maybe it's a surprise when there was a lot of hype around maybe McLaren and could Mercedes be better. I think Ferrari are looking like Red Bull's biggest challenges, even if that biggest challenge is one second slower, which is what Mercedes said, that a lot of engineers think that Red Bull might even have a second advantage on the field. And William's thought half a second. Look, this is bigger than P1, Tommy.

This is Formula One we're talking about here. You know, this is the state of our sport right now. Max Verstappen, slow down. Thank you so much. I think also, I don't think there's a question about it, but we do need to shout out our boy, Joe Guan Yu, up in P3 with that vibrant green car. Just setting in a little time at the end,

you know, just to throw in a little bit of, there's F1 testing, because it all felt very, you know, top teams at the top, and that was it. Like, oh, okay, is F1 testing actually sort of representative of who's what? And then shows like, no, here you go. I'm going to throw this one in here just so people think Stake are actually going to be good, but sorry, Salba. I feel like we should try and instill Salba because they're not even going to be called that for most races. I don't think are they, so. No, I don't think so.

Yeah, I did miss there being maybe a rogue team doing something good. So thank you, Jo Guanyu for, yeah, like popping a P3 time. I would be amazed if that is the case when it comes to... I've just seen as well, Tommy. Sorry to butt in. The top eight are all different teams. Lovely. So you're saying Formula One is hugely competitive.

I'm saying that you should be excited. yes that's that's pretty good go on it is pretty good going um look joking aside about the the the max stuff i do think and this is this was the case last year obviously max won almost every single race but the field had never been closer and it does feel like that is the case you know you can go back however much we love to say like formula one's in a dire state you can go back to barely even a few years ago. And when Mercedes had their advantage, it was the only people that weren't getting lap

was like Max and Lecler, like the whole race. And they were like literally lapping the whole field. And there were huge gaps between teams. Whereas let's not forget while, while of course Max was winning all those races, we had those qualifying sessions where, you know, like the whole field is separated by like, under a second or like, you know, the top 10 or whatever.

I don't think Hass will be in that mix, but everyone else maybe. Don't disrespect Mr Holcomberg up in 11th. Hassan Hamilton. Has actually decided to do a lap that was within five and a half seconds of the fastest time. So don't disrespect it. They might still have some pace. First question comes in from Musto Man 1. Do Ferrari really have a chance to fight for the championship?

Okay, realistic time now. We're going to, all right, the hopium's now been disconnected from my face. No, no, they do not. I think that Red Bull absolutely have it in the bag. My expectations are low, but that means I can be surprised. And if Charles LeClair sticks it on pole on Friday next week, I will also have a poll. It will be one of the most unexpected poles of all time. But no, I think that Ferrari are still good on one lap pace,

but it just feels like Red Bull have a lot more left in the tank. And also as well, with this new concept of car, if we're thinking of a whole championship season, I would probably put my money on Red Bull to further be able to develop this new concept of car that they've just introduced. Because clearly the ceiling of their other concept of car, they felt like they were maybe near the top of it,

whereas this one, surely they believe they can build and upgrade into it a lot more. So, yes, I don't think Ferrari have a chance to fight for the championship, but maybe the odd win. Yeah, excuse me if I said this yesterday on the podcast. I can't remember which I said it on maybe it was the podcast or we've also been on Twitch as well. But yeah, of course, Adrian Newe is saying the fact that they've done a complete different concept

because essentially they knew everyone was going to copy last year's Red Bull and that philosophy and that would leave them vulnerable. Whereas if they go for something completely new and looks like he's potentially made that Mercedes concept that they bended off work, they can extend their advantage and everyone then has to catch up again and then maybe in 2025 everyone has big shoulders and side pods and Adrian Newey builds an upside down Formula One car and everyone goes, oh, we need to copy that now. So yeah, the way Ferrari are, I think that they're looking very strong.

To fight for the championship is a big ask. it looks like we are in that Mercedes-style era like we were before, where it goes into the championship and you know Mercedes, like, we're going to win. You know Red Bull are probably, like, going to win. We know Red Bull are going to win. Like, it just seems like that is the case. But I think they could fight for wins in occasional races. Like, it would be unbelievable for Red Bull to do what they could last year.

and maybe there's more of a chance to pick up race victories for Ferrari. Certainly hope so. Next question, Ty C-46. How good is Red Bull and Max, slower, older tyres, and his times were close to Shal? Sorry, Matt, championship over. Brilliant. So we've gone from slightly, you know, just making me feel a little bit better about myself and Ferrari's hopes to then just saying championship over. I mean, look, it's very clear that Red Bull are strong.

I've seen lots of things circulating that was like, oh, Ferrari's hopes. He looked like they've got amazing pace nowadays and, oh, the tireware's gone and the drivability's there. And you're like, really, do you genuinely believe that Red Bull is slower in race pace now? Like, there is no way in hell that that is going to happen. And if it does, I'm in Dreamland,

but it's not going to. Let's be realistic here. Yeah, they are very good. I saw the same that they were comparing, I think it was yesterday when Science was doing his long runs with Perez and it didn't look like Ferrari were like floundering like they normally do after a few laps because we know they are very quick and they had a very quick car last season they just couldn't make the races work but yeah red bull looking very ominous and like you said at the

start if it suits max's driving style even more that is a scary prospect because of course we went into last year and which feels like a lifetime ago now where perors were was actually sort of, you know, being able to win the odd race and be there. But if it is really suited to Max, we've said it so many times on the podcast that he doesn't have days off and has very little weaknesses. So it's going to be very difficult for everyone else. But hey, there's lots of storylines in Formula One. As you will know, if you've begun to watch Drive to Survive, which launched today as well.

Another talking point and a question from BRM 185. If you were a drain cover, why not wait until the GP to make your big move? Seems like a wasted opportunity to red flag testing. Obviously a joke. But again, we had another drain cover come loose. I believe it might well have been the same drain cover as the one yesterday, which then literally turns the entire next hour, hour and a half, into investigating the entire track again.

Slightly concerning, I would say, when we go into a race in less than a week's time. Of course, I'm sure with the two incidents now that there will be a full investigation to make sure that this doesn't happen in the race because they were lucky in this second occasion that no one drove over it. Of course, I think it was Perez that lifted it up,

but there was no one behind that drove over it, unlike Charles LeCler, sometimes. Yeah, a rare moment. where Ferrari wasn't the next car up ahead. Exactly. Incredibly unlucky. But in a race, you have much less chance of that happening because there's 20 cars on track circulating as fast as they possibly can.

So, yeah, there's going to have to be some investigation there to make sure that doesn't happen again. And, yeah, it's, you wonder why. And time as well. And time. Why is it happening? Yeah, because it's not a quick fix. Yeah, exactly.

Like, you know, we've seen it happen in practice sessions before even, like, you you know, the Vegas one. And they could do it in testing because there's seven, eight hours of running left or whatever. And they're at Bahrain where they've got the luxury as well, where the floodlights come on. So they don't have to worry about light and things like that. But other circuits, you know, I think this keeps happening,

which, like you say, poses the question like, why now? And that is something that people have been asking, you know people in the paddock and stuff i saw a quote from or like adrian newie spoke to a a publication saying that essentially like the cars being so heavy now and there are of course ground effect as well where all the the air is being channeled through the floor it's causing these incidents because it can't be a coincidence that this drain cover thing you could count like three or four times in the last like 25 years but in the last three years if you just take the last like three years it seems to have been what like six or seven maybe it seems to like be such

more irregular occurrence than we're we're used to so it has to be these new cars and the way and the way it is and it it makes you yeah it maybe is a concern because it's happening more and more now Yeah, it has to be, for sure. You know, the way in which these cars are built now, and as you say, the ground effect, the large suction that it creates to create grip and downforce is unfortunately causing some of these tracks to be tested.

And I guess it's not just, it's not like it's a massively vulnerable area that's just, you know, come up straight away. It's just lap after lap after lap. You've got 20 cars going around. It's going to just get weaker and weaker and weaker. And clearly some of these tracks can't cope with it. that and you do wonder how long it's going to be until the FIA are able to do something in order to actually ensure that these tracks are ready for these new generation of cars.

I know it's not that new. Light, small cars. Maybe, maybe that, we will see. Ace 12 Adam, should McLaren be concerned about their reliability? McLaren, for some reason, tests just don't go all that well for them. it just feels like they are one of those teams. I don't think it's anything too crazy, not like they've had in the past when they've had teething problems with Honda.

Look, they're just learning. And other teams have also had issues. We had Red Bull having issues with Perez yesterday. It's not like they didn't do any running. So I'm not going to jump the gun here and say that McLaren should be really concerned. They still look quite quick from what we've seen glimpses of. but no, McLaren fans, I think you're all right, which probably means you're DNFing in the first place.

Yeah, for me, like we've said, every testing podcast we've done, you can't look too much into testing, but maybe McLaren... If you've got it by now, you'll never get it, you know what I mean? I know. But McLaren maybe are that team for me that maybe have under-delivered in terms of hype, perhaps. I think, you know, McLaren have, they were hugely hyped going into the season. We're both guilty of that. And I think everyone has been hyped with how good they were at the end of last season.

And Lando Norris, you know, finishing so many races, P2 behind Max, and their improvement, you thought, well, they've got to go into this new season and be really, really good. But I don't know, like my initial gut feeling is maybe it's not, need to have a bit of of a rethink on them maybe being as good as I maybe thought they would be at the start of the year, but maybe they'll surprise us, but what we do hope is, well, it can't be any worse than last year, surely, which I say we'll find out. If they do under five pit stops each, they've done a better job. Lando has been riddled with a few issues, I guess, over testing. He's You need 20 laps today, which it's not ideal.

And I want to apologise in advance for predicting Landonore's to be world champion and feel maybe the curse is already hitting. So apologies for that one, Lando. But we will see that they still look pretty nifty in the hands of Oscar Piastri. You did 91 laps today. They've still got plenty of data in the bag. And if you combine the two, you know, you've got 112 laps. Sorry, 111 laps.

So it's not too bad. It's not the end of the world for McLaren. And they'll have plenty to learn going into the... next week. Aldi Marko 5 comes in with your pecking order based on what we have seen. Well, wouldn't you love to know our pecking order and who we predict is where? Well, we've got it coming for you very, very soon, where we're going to predict our driver's championship from 20th all the way to first.

We'll reflect a little bit on what we've learned, what little we've learned in testing. and also mainly base it on vibes because that is the pretty much core of P1 is based on vibes and sometimes the predictions are incredible and sometimes they're terrible but you tune in either way and that's part of the fun right

it keeps us I do like as well not knowing you do want a bit of guesswork like I know I know everyone tries to like analyze everything but I'm kind of glad glad that you don't have tech yeah we don't know because you don't you don't want like you know

formula one themselves for example to basically like run it through this big data program and go this is the order and and it be correct every year essentially and you know because you want to go into that first race and yeah have a have joe when you're getting on the podium or something random like that which obviously i'm joking and isn't going to happen but uh you don't want to know exactly what's going to happen. So there might be, you know, the odd surprise and stuff. The beauty of the unknown. Yes. Which is definitely not what you get when there's a sprint weekend.

But thankfully they've changed it slightly, so we aren't ruined completely. Had to get some sprint slander in there, didn't you? Yeah, I thought, you know, I'm just trying to get any good books, to be honest, mate. So you're nice to me for the whole season when Max wins 24 out of 24. Right, that is it. I think that pretty much summarizes day three of testing. Overall, how I would summarize it is that, God, it was actually quite dull. There wasn't much that actually went on. The track tried to give us something to talk about.

But realistically, Bahrain and 2024 F1 was very smooth sailing for a lot of it. Just teams doing laps. There wasn't any crashes, was there, or anything like that? No, there's never going to be... The odd stoppage. But really not a lot to actually dissect in terms of like a team massively failing

or anything like that. I think that a lot of teams will be ready. relatively happy with how the last three days have gone. Yeah, it's never going to be like a huge shock or crazy things happening when it's not a massive regulation change. So, yeah, no surprise, really. No surprise indeed. But I still want to see it, by the way, like, I'm not going to be like, don't show testing.

Cool. Don't not show testing. There you go. Is that your final thoughts? Don't do not. Don't do not. Well, maybe, yeah, because I don't, want people to think that like, you know, we had that year where they didn't show testing and we're

like, why aren't you televising it? And then they show it and we go, oh, it's not that interesting, but like it doesn't matter really. Like, it is that thing that you kind of like have on in the background and you just sort of like absorb it. And it's nice to see Formula One cars back. But I don't think that there needs to be this conversation like maybe last year people where it's like, how can we make it more exciting? Do we simulate a mini race? Oh God. No, I wasn't. No, I wasn't. No, I I know you were, but just to cover that idea off. Yeah, it was more just that everyone is so reliable these days that there's really no one conking out or anything.

I know. Bring back 50 DNFs. 50. Wow. Okay. Okay, so thank you everybody. Lots of love. And we'll see you next week for race week. Real racing.

It's coming. Enjoy Drive to Survive. We've got a reaction video and podcast coming out for that as well. P1 live show tickets are still available for London, Cambridge and Bath, so go and get them if you haven't already, and we'll see you very soon. Bye! Bye! Make sure you follow us on all of our socials.

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