MorrisF1

Hello, everyone. This is the 25th edition of the Undercutters podcast, looking back at the Canadian Grand Prix of 2025. Would it live up to the glories of the past, or be a little bit more boring, like Suzuka was? As always, you can find me on Twitter or Blue Sky as MorrisF1, or read the transcripts and admire the lovely graphs at morrisf1.blogspot.com. But that’s enough waffling from me. Canadian Grand Prix Qualifying 00m32s Canadian qualifying was another very tightly contested session. One key takeaway is that three of the drivers out in Q1, Sainz (who was blocked), Stroll, and Lawson, had teammates who made it to Q3. Alonso was very fast throughout and ended up 6th on the grid, right behind Hamilton and ahead of Norris. Another interesting result was Gasly being slowest on track while Colapinto qualified 11th and started 10th due to Hadjar’s penalty for impeding Sainz. At the sharp end it seemed a Verstappen-Piastri duel but then Russell claimed it at the last moment for a great ...

After the first two practice sessions Mercedes and Williams looked good, McLaren slightly iffy for once. In qualifying, the result was slightly annoying given I’d chosen not to back Russell, but it does set up the race pretty nicely. Q1 saw us lose Bortoleto, Sainz, Stroll, Lawson, and Gasly. The big shock departure in Q1 was Sainz, whose Williams had the pace but who was very badly blocked by Hadjar. However, Stroll going out when Alonso would do very well (half asecond slower in this session) was not great. Also notable was Colapinto escaping while Gasly was slowest on the track. Three of the drivers out in Q1 have teammates who made it to Q3. This session also saw Albon’s engine cover come off entirely, littering the track and bringing out relatively brief red flags. The top three departures in Q2 were covered by a tenth of a second, with Tsunoda, Colapinto, and Hulkenberg leading Bearman and Ocon out of qualifying. Unfortunately for Tsunoda he’ll be starting last due to a 10 pl...

Because third practice is on quite late (5.30pm) I’m posting this early, before that takes place. The first two practice sessions in Canada had some unexpected results. Verstappen topped FP1 ahead of Albon and Sainz, followed by Russell, Hamilton, and Hadjar. Norris was only 7th, ahead of Lawson, Gasly, and Leclerc. Piastri was down in 14th. In first practice we saw Leclerc crash and bring out red flags. This crash cost him about half an hour in first practice and also meant he couldn’t participate in the second session as the damage couldn’t be repaired in time. Second practice was slightly more normal, with Russell top, less than three-hundredths up on Norris. Antonelli was further back, then came Albon and Alonso, with Piastri, Sainz, Hamilton, Verstappen and Lawson rounding out the top 10. Stroll hit the wall and snapped his suspension in FP2. Mercedes and Williams are looking much stronger than last race, with Norris seemingly close and a step ahead of Piastri. Cooler temper...

Hello, everyone. This is the 24th Undercutters podcast, looking ahead to the Canadian Grand Prix. I’ve got to admit, this is one of my favourite tracks on the calendar, partly because of the amazing race in 2011. As always, if you want to get in touch you can find me on Twitter or Blue Sky as MorrisF1, or at the morrisf1.blogspot.com website. Will Piastri continue extending his lead over Norris? Will Williams bounce back after a rare pointless weekend? And will Verstappen keep his cool this time?   Quick Look at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve 00m40s The Canadian Grand Prix takes place at the Circuit Gilles-Villeneueve, a short circuit of 5.36km which means we get 70 laps in the race. There are three DRS zones, two of which are in sector 3 (the latter drifts into the start of sector 1) and share a detection point. The other zone is in sector 2. Sector 3 is prime passing territory, with a hairpin at turn 10, and the following straight also having decent potential for getting ahead. ...

Hello, everyone. This is the 23rd Undercutters podcast, and I’m your host, Morris. This time we’re looking back at the Spanish Grand Prix, the ninth of 24 Grands Prix this season and the first that saw the much-discussed flexi-wing ban. Did it have an impact? And could Verstappen fend off the McLarens to keep hold of his title? Before I recap who did well and badly in the race, look at its implications for the standings, and cover the news, just a quick reminder you can find me on Twitter or Blue Sky as MorrisF1. And I post transcripts of each episode on morrisf1.blogspot.com, usually including some graphs that might be of interest. Spanish Grand Prix Qualifying 00m52s Qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix was a highly competitive affair, as usual. Colapinto suffered bad luck in Q1 when his car let him down, but he was still faster than Tsunoda. Pretty stark contrast here, as Verstappen ended the session second quickest. Unusually, neither Williams reached Q3, with Sainz out in Q1 a...

In the first part of qualifying we said goodbye to Hulkenberg, Ocon, Sainz, Colapinto, and Tsunoda. Rough for Tsunoda, who was not only looking to have zero grip to end up dead last, his team mate was 2nd fastest at the session’s close. Colapinto had a problem late on and had to stop, but Tsunoda still couldn’t beat him. Things were very close, and in Q2 Albon, Bortoleto, Lawson, Stroll, and Bearman went out, so five different teams represented there. William has a rare weak performance with neither car making Q3. Great stuff from Bortoleto, though, putting his Sauber all the way up in 12th. McLaren looked on for the front row, but we’ve said that before only for Verstappen to disagree. However, on this occasion it actually did happen that way. In the end, Norris had a slightly scruffy final lap and Piastri claimed pole by two-tenths, which is pretty large as margins go this year. Verstappen managed to drag his car into third place on the grid, alongside Russell, who also had a very ...

So, we reach the flexi-wing regulation change. Will it alter things? Opinion is varied, mine is it won’t do much. Anyway, first practice had Norris fastest, over a third of a second ahead of Verstappen. Hamilton, Leclerc, and Piastri followed, with Lawson, Bearman, Hadjar, Tsunoda, and Gasly completing the top 10. In FP2 it was Piastri who was fastest, over a quarter of a second up on Russell. Verstappen and Norris had identical times and were narrowly behind the Mercedes. Leclerc and Antonelli followed, then came Alonso, Gasly, Hadjar, and Lawson. And in final practice, Piastri was quickest by half a second over Norris, with Leclerc and Russell a further two-tenths back and Verstappen two-tenths slower than that, putting him nearly a second behind Piastri. Flexi-wing changes may have developed in a way not necessarily to Red Bull’s advantage. Hadjar, Antonelli, Alonso, Hamilton, and Lawson completed the top 10. At this stage it looks like a McLaren fight for pole. I also think Lec...

Hello, everyone. In the 22nd episode of the Undercutters podcast we’re looking at the Monaco Grand Prix result, its implications for the title, and ahead to the Spanish Grand Prix. Spain is the last of a triple header and the first race where the flexi-wing ban comes into effect. But first, a quick reminder of what happened in Monaco and how that affects the standings. Monaco Grand Prix Qualifying 00m30s Qualifying matters everywhere but is especially important for the Monaco Grand Prix. This year it was disastrous for Mercedes with both their drivers reaching Q2 but failing to set a time. Antonelli crashed out at the very end of Q1, while Russell’s engine stopped working during Q2, forcing him to park in the tunnel. It was bad for Alpine too, with both their drivers out in Q1. At the sharp end it was a mighty battle between the McLarens and Ferraris, with Norris ending up on pole ahead of Leclerc, Piastri, and Hamilton, with Verstappen only 5th. However, the Ferrari clown show radi...