Chequered Flag Formula 1

Jennie Gow, Harry Benjamin, Formula E driver Sam Bird, and BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson reflect on the Chinese Grand Prix. We hear from race winner Max Verstappen, as well as Lando Norris and Fernando Alonso.

Harry Benjamin, McLaren Formula E driver Sam Bird, and BBC F1 correspondent Andrew Benson reflect on the Chinese Grand Prix sprint, as well as qualifying for Sunday’s race. We talk about Max Verstappen’s imperious form, Lewis Hamilton’s contrasting day, plus ask if Lando Norris will ever win a race.

Jennie Gow, Jolyon Palmer, Bec Clancy & Andrew Benson look ahead to the Chinese Grand Prix. We discuss the return to China after five years away, Fernando Alonso’s new deal at Aston Martin, and whether Max Verstappen can be challenged this weekend. We also hear from the three-time world champion, as well as Alonso.

Jennie Gow, Harry Benjamin & Alice Powell react to the Japanese Grand Prix. We hear from Max Verstappen after his third win of the season. Plus, discuss the battle at Ferrari hearing from both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc. The team also discuss Yuki Tsunoda after yet another impressive drive, hearing from the home hero.

Harry Benjamin, Alice Powell & Andrew Benson reflect on qualifying at the Japanese Grand Prix. We hear from polesitter Max Verstappen, plus Sergio Perez and Lando Norris.

Jennie Gow, Jolyon Palmer, Bec Clancy & Andrew Benson look ahead to the Japanese Grand Prix. We discuss whether Red Bull will have more reliability issues, and how Carlos Sainz’s victory in Australia changes the dynamic at Ferrari. Plus, should Alonso have received a penalty in Melbourne? And could Sebastian Vettel make a comeback to the sport?

Rosanna and team look back at the first race of the season. They reflect on Max Verstappen’s lights to flag victory and hear from the Dutchman. Checo Perez and Carlos Sainz are also one the pod after finishing 2nd and 3rd.

Rosanna and the team look back at the first qualifying session of the season. They hear from the top three as well as Lewis Hamilton who starts back in 9th.

For the last three months, we have followed the Williams and Mercedes teams as they prepared and built their cars for the 2024 season. Holly Samos and Sarah Holt have been our guides as we’ve gone with them inside the factories - but now it’s almost time to return to the track. First, the teams have to launch their race cars and reveal them to the rest of the world. Williams have travelled to New York to present their car in front of their American fans and partners. For homegrown driver Logan Sargeant this is a chance to mix business and pleasure. Even on the brink of a new season, Formula 1 is already looking ahead. On the horizon in 2026 is a major new set of technical regulations. The next generation of F1 cars will use less energy - and run on sustainable fuels with net zero CO2 exhaust emissions, as the sport’s CEO Stefano Domenicali explains. The teams are also looking to the future. Mercedes are introducing sustainability initiatives close to home and Williams are on the path to transforming their org

Lewis Hamilton has returned from the Christmas break with some shocking news for his Mercedes team. His bombshell makes headlines around the world - with some calling it the biggest story in Formula 1 this century. Even if that’s a little far-fetched, there is no doubt that his decision has sent shockwaves through the F1 community. At Mercedes, team principal Toto Wolff is used to having to react quickly - almost as quickly as his drivers on track. The Austrian has to face a barrage of media questions about the driver who has won six World titles with his team - and who has also become a friend. Holly Samos has exclusive interviews with the key protagonists.While Mercedes take just a moment to reflect on Hamilton’s news, Williams are making their final preparations for the 2024 season. Logan Sargeant is back at Grove for his seat fitting along with his race engineer Gaetan Jego. Making sure the driver is comfortable in the cockpit is crucial, especially when racing on bumpy tracks at high speed. The Mercedes

Inside their high-tech Formula 1 factories, Mercedes and Williams are in a constant cycle of pushing the boundaries in the car build. And the clock is ticking. With just a few weeks to go until the start of the 2024 season, Williams are working overtime as the final components of the car go into manufacture. Team principal James Vowles says these crucial weeks towards the end of January are the busiest time for the workforce at his Oxfordshire facility, bar none. But what will be the very last piece of the car to be made? Sarah Holt and Holly Samos are going inside the factories to find out. At the Mercedes factory in Brackley, COO Rob Thomas is aware time is now at a premium. The wind tunnel is still hard at work trialling aerodynamic upgrades that hold the promise of more performance on track. They then need to be put into production - but can the factory afford to leave it as late as possible to give the wind tunnel team more time? There are still some important milestones to go in the car build and for Me

Back at base, Williams and Mercedes are returning to work after the winter shutdown. Now is the time for new beginnings – and whatever lies ahead for our two teams and the cars they are busy bringing to life inside their high-tech facilities. F1 experts Holly Samos and Sarah Holt are our guides as we catch up with the teams.At Mercedes, there is one very familiar face that everyone is pleased to see - the team’s popular star George Russell. The British racer fell ill at the penultimate race of the 2023 season in Las Vegas and has been recovering ever since. George and his performance coach Aleix Casanovas have had to adapt their plans over the winter to get ready to go racing again.Williams driver Alex Albon - who reveals he competes against his old friend Russell in other sporting contests - is also building up the strength and conditioning he needs to go racing. January is the most crucial time of the year for the drivers to get race fit. This winter it feels more important than ever, as the 2024 Formula 1

When it comes to designing and building the new Williams and Mercedes Formula 1 cars for the looming 2024 season, there is precision and, most importantly, there is a plan. There has to be because all 10 teams are facing their first winter shutdown - a new ruling by the sport’s governing body, the FIA. But things don’t always go to plan - and the teams face a race against the clock to finish key bits of the car build before the Christmas holidays. Holly Samos and journalist Sarah Holt are going behind the scenes at two of the biggest names in F1, to the heart of their mammoth operationsOne of the first hurdles for the teams to clear are the FIA crash tests. This series of tests is designed to ensure the safety of the sport, and crucially the drivers. However, for the teams they present one of their biggest challenges in the car build. At the Mercedes factory in Brackley they are waiting anxiously for news from the sport’s crash-testing facility at Cranfield University. For the all-important drivers and team p

Inside the Williams and Mercedes factories, where F1 cars come to life, the workforce is putting its heart and soul into the winter tasks now well underway. There are just 14 weeks between the 2023 season and the first race of 2024 in Bahrain. In this series, we have been allowed rare access into the heart of the operations. And at the Williams facility, in rural Oxfordshire, we are about to go on a VIP tour to learn how to build an F1 car.At Brackley, home to the Mercedes’ F1 team, the factory is united by a common purpose. Mercedes dominated F1 from 2014. But when new technical rules came in at the start of 2022, Red Bull overtook Mercedes as the fastest team on track. The desire to return Mercedes to the top runs deep - and for a very significant reason. The motivation to get the 2024 car right is massive for both teams - but first Williams and Mercedes have to absorb the lessons from last season’s car. And each team has a very specific problem that it now wants to put right. At Brackley, work continues a

The Williams and Mercedes Formula 1 teams have given us unprecedented access to their top-secret facilities as they work over the winter preparing their cars for the 2024 season. At Mercedes, the team’s superstar driver Lewis Hamilton is going into a restricted area to see how that crucial work is coming along. We follow in his footsteps as F1 experts Holly Samos and Sarah Holt get a VIP tour of one of the most important tools when it comes to designing and building the most complex race cars in the world. From his position at the very top, Mercedes team principal and CEO Toto Wolff is reflecting on how the team lost ground when major new technical regulations on car design came in for the 2022 season. At Williams, new team principal James Vowles is welcoming his first major hire - as they plot a return to the front of the grid for the nine-time World Champions. The duo are part of a crack team back at base who have been getting to grips with the 2024 car since last March.At both teams, the drivers also have

In this series, we have been given unprecedented access to two of the biggest teams in Formula 1 - Mercedes and Williams. It’s a few days after the final race of the 2023 season, and the teams are returning home to their UK factories after an epic year. It’s time to enjoy the year’s hard-fought success with the workforce of hundreds back at base. And we are there with them - our F1 experts Holly Samos and Sarah Holt added to the guest list. After a dramatic season finale in Abu Dhabi, the sport’s seven-time World Champion, Lewis Hamilton, and team principal, Toto Wolff, are leading the celebrations at the Mercedes team’s twin facilities at Brackley and Brixworth. But there is a familiar face missing. At Williams’ home in Oxfordshire, the historic team’s star drivers, Alex Albon and Logan Sargeant, have also come home. But for Sargeant, who made his F1 debut for Williams in 2023, the American’s future remains uncertain. Will he keep his place as one of just 20 drivers on the F1 grid? That’s a decision for Jam

Andrew Benson and Jack Aitken join Harry Benjamin look back at the action from the Red Bull Ring. They hear from the top three and ask whether Max Versatappen can actually win every remaining race this season.

Harry Benjamin is joined by Jack Aitken and Andrew Benson to review the day’s action. They hear from Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez after the pair had an altercation on the first lap. And they also reflect on the news that Dutch racing driver Dilano van 't Hoff died after a crash at Spa in the Formula Regional European Championship.

All episodes of Spygate available right now on BBC Sounds. In 2007 an improbable, low-fi crime nearly brought the high octane world of Formula One to its knees. Narrated by Pete Tong, Spygate draws in some of the most powerful men in the sports history and pits iconic teams McLaren and Ferrari against each other, all set against the backdrop of Lewis Hamilton’s record-breaking debut and his ferocious rivalry with Fernando Alonso. Buckle up - this season is one hell of a ride.

Jennie and the team look back at qualifying from Austin. They hear from the top three and discuss how they see Sunday’s race unfolding.