Making Formula 1 accessible to all
I didn’t intend to release an episode so closely to the previous one, but news in the world of Formula 1 has forced my hand.
Daniel Ricciardo leaves RedBull. To Renault?!
OMG.
Listen to the episode to learn about the Driver Market and the knock-on effects that this will have to the rest of the teams.
In this episode we cover the clutch (and F1 gearboxes generally), tire compounds – particularly around how they play into strategy, and Canada!
Referenced Material
Senna through the streets of Monaco with a manual transmission
Robert Kubica’s crash at the 2007 Canadian Grand Prix
Felipe Massa and Sergio Perez’s shunt at the end of the 2014 Canadian Grand Prix
Patrick Stewart does a shoey on the podium
Summary of Jenson Button’s win at the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix
This week we dive down the technical side by looking at brakes, hear about some Formula 1 lore with Brawn GP, and wrap up with one of my favorite race locations – Brazil – because it’s nearly guaranteed to be exciting.
Some heavy heavy topics for the first letter of our Formula 1 A-Z series!
First we’ll start out with acceleration, G forces, and performance generally. I’ll do my best to compare to a top road car – the McLaren P1 – just to give you an idea of the insanity of Formula 1.
Next we’ll dive in to aerodynamics talking generally about downforce and drag, then into a bit of history on Formula 1 and then into modern aerodynamics and some of the loopholes in the formula that teams have leapt through with clever aerodynamic developments.
Finally we’ll wrap up with Fernando Alonso. He’s an impressive driver who has won the Driver’s Championship twice – though honestly it should be more. There’s a fascinating article about how Ferrari orchestrated Alonso’s demise at the team in order to scoop up Sebastian Vettel, leaving Alonso with no choice but to head back to McLaren. He’s also in pursuit of the Triple Crown of Motorsport.
Referenced Material
Difference in lateral acceleration at Australian GP from 2016 to 2017
Sounds of an Exhaust Blown Diffuser
The McLaren MP4-25 – Gorgeous car!
Start incident at Spa where Romain Grosjean crashed into (over?) Fernando Alonso
(I actually forgot that Grosjean managed to take out Hamilton as well. Pillock.)
Mattiacci and Alonso – the real story
Wonderful piece BBC did for Alonso’s 200th Grand Prix
Top Gear’s Richard Hammond drives Fernando Alonso’s championship winning Formula 1 car
In this inaugural episode we’ll talk about “Formula 1” and just why is it called that, who runs Formula 1, the championships – yes plural – that are up for grabs, the teams themselves, engine suppliers, the race weekend format, and finally – the race itself.
Hopefully at the end of this episode you’ll know enough to follow a race weekend without too much trouble. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast so you don’t miss anything! Feel free to ask questions or give feedback over on Twitter @_f1explained.
If you are new to Formula 1 or are curious about following it, this podcast is aimed right at you. There is a lot to learn about F1 and it can be overwhelming. We will focus on breaking down the basics from A to Z in easy to process bite-sized pieces.
