Return Of The Mac! McLaren Are Back On The Podium. Have We Got A Championship Fight?

This year's Japanese Grand Prix was definitely more interesting than last year's. Kimi Antonelli's wins makes him the youngest driver to top the F1 leaderboard and puts George Russell in quite an awkward place. 

Great to see McLaren back on the podium after such a bad start to their season and does this mean that we have a Championship fight coming up, but what about Max Verstappen? Another weekend where he has been very critical of the new regs, but would he be so negative if he had a better car. 

To discuss all this and more, F1, Formula E and BTCC presenter, Nicki Shields joins Nicola and Ben in the studio this week. 

01:10 Ben's Japanese Grand Prix Round Up
03:35 Mac are back, but could Piastri have won?
05:12 Ollie Bearman's accident has raised questions about the new regs
08:35 Kimi Antonelli looked untouchable, what does this mean for team dynamics?
11:55 Well done Pierre Gasly, holding off Verstappen. Is this the level Red Bull are at now?
15:06 Leclerc and Hamilton battling is great to watch, but is it costing them valuable points?
17:01 Are the 6 drivers who could all potentially be the 2026 F1 Champion?
18:20 We need to talk about the under-achievers
22:08 Let's look ahead to the next race, which is now Miami
25:30 Miami Grand Prix predictions

Don't forget to follow us so you don't miss any of our Essential F1 content and share your thoughts in the comments. 

#f1 #mclaren #mercedesf1 #ferrari #redbullracing #williamsf1 #haasf1 #racingbulls #astonmartin #audif1 #alpine #cadillac #landonorris #oscarpiastri #lewishamilton #charlesleclerc #maxverstappen #isackhadjar #carlossainz #alexalbon #estabanocon #liamlawson #arvidlinblad #fernandoalonso #lancestroll #nicohulkenberg #gabrielbortoleto #pierregasly #francocolapinto #sergioperez #valtteribottas #japanesegp #miamigp