Paddock 43: An F1 Podcast

LONG YOUTUBE DESCRIPTION
Fresh back from the 2026 Singapore Grand Prix, and I have thoughts. Max Verstappen finally won at Marina Bay, I think Lewis Hamilton got his Ferrari strategy gamble wrong, and McLaren’s Sprint collision was completely unnecessary. Kim Kardashian, though? Brilliant PR weekend.
This week on Paddock 43, I’m unpacking the Singapore GP from both sides: being there in person, then coming home and catching up on everything happening around the race.
It was my first trip to Singapore, and I wanted to experience the event as a fan. I’m sharing how our Zone 1 Walkabout ticket worked, what approximately A$1,500 got us, the grandstand views, watching qualifying from the Singapore Flyer despite my Ferris wheel phobia, and getting absolutely drenched on the way to Sprint qualifying. Plus, where we watched Sunday’s race, late-night hawker food and why I’d recommend a hotel with a pool.
On track, Max delivered both poles and both wins. George Russell’s Sprint crash happened right in front of us. Lewis stayed out after missing the pit entry under the Virtual Safety Car, and I’m getting into why I think he got the gamble wrong—as well as the communication between him and Ferrari.
Then there’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. A gap doesn’t automatically make a move worth attempting, especially against your teammate on the final lap. I’m talking about the collision, the lost points and Lando’s initial response versus his later apology.
Off track, Kim Kardashian addressed the awkward Martin Brundle moment and joked with Kimi Antonelli about the towel incident. I thought she handled both really well.
Also in this episode:
• Formula 1’s announced return to Africa with a Rwanda Grand Prix agreement.
• Why the timing is early 2030s, what we know about the proposed circuit and questions about access for local fans.
• The proposed V8 engine return, turbocharging, hybrid power and why we shouldn’t expect a straight replay of the 2013 soundtrack.
• Christian Horner’s Guardian interview and my reaction to his account of his dismissal.
Do you agree with me on Lewis’s gamble? And was Lando’s Sprint move worth the risk?
Subscribe to Paddock 43 for Formula 1 news, race reactions, fan experiences and my take on what’s happening on and off the grid.
Hosted by Elle Baillieu.
#F1 #SingaporeGP #Paddock43
LONG PODCAST DESCRIPTION
I’m back from my first Singapore Grand Prix, slightly exhausted and with plenty to talk about. Max finally got his Singapore win, Lewis got the strategy gamble wrong in my opinion, and McLaren gave us another teammate collision we really didn’t need.
But first, the fan experience. I wanted to see Singapore properly, so we went with a Zone 1 Walkabout ticket, got drenched heading to Sprint qualifying, watched qualifying from the Singapore Flyer and finished Sunday near pit exit for Max’s win and the fireworks. I’m sharing what our ticket included, what we paid and what I’d recommend if you’re thinking of going.
Then it’s into the racing: Max’s weekend sweep, seeing George’s Sprint crash in front of us, Lewis and Ferrari’s communication, and why I thought Lando’s move on Oscar was unnecessary. No further action from the stewards doesn’t mean McLaren should be happy about it.
Kim Kardashian also had her redemption arc with Martin Brundle and Kimi Antonelli. Credit where credit is due—I thought it was a brilliant PR move.
Plus, Formula One’s return to Africa, the Rwanda circuit plans, the proposed V8 comeback and why “V8” doesn’t mean we’re getting the old naturally aspirated engines back. I’m also giving my reaction to Christian Horner’s Guardian interview.
Let me know where you land on Lewis’s decision, the McLaren collision and the V8 hype.
Paddock 43 with Elle Baillieu.
SHORT EPISODE / TRAILER DESCRIPTION
Back from Singapore, and I think Lewis got the gamble wrong, McLaren’s collision was unnecessary, and Kim Kardashian handled her PR brilliantly. Plus: Max’s first Singapore win, my Zone 1 Walkabout experience, F1’s return to Africa and what the V8 comeback actually means.

🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43 – The Formula 1 Podcast That Keeps It Real!



🏎️💨If you love F1 drama, race breakdowns, driver gossip, and unfiltered opinions, you’re in the right place! Paddock 43 is your go-to podcast for everything happening on and off the track



.🚥 What You’ll Get Every Week:

✅ Race Recaps & Analysis – Who dominated, who bottled it, and what it means for the championship.

✅ Breaking F1 News & Rumours – Driver transfers, team drama, FIA chaos—nothing’s off-limits.

✅ F1 Lifestyle & Behind-the-Scenes – From team principals to race engineers, we break it all down.

✅ Hot Takes & Debate Segments – lets get controversial



Unlike other F1 podcasts, we bring the energy, the humour, and the unfiltered takes—just like chatting F1 with your best mates.



Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode!



🔔💬 Join the Paddock 43 Community:

📲 Follow us on Instagram (@paddock43podcast) & TikTok (@Paddock43Podcast) for BTS, F1 Memes, Live Q&As, and Breaking News Updates.🎤 Got a question or F1 hot take? Drop it in the comments—we might feature it in the next episode!🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube – Hit that follow button so you never miss a race-week recap!🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43—where F1 meets the fans. Let’s race!



🏎️💨@ellebaillieu

Drivers pressing the accelerator. Cars barely moving. An entire Grand Prix waiting on a software fix. What actually happened in Malaysia?
F1 journalist and published author Luke Smith joins Elle on Paddock 43 to unpack the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia. With more than a decade covering Formula 1, Luke writes for The Athletic, part of The New York Times, and is the author of On the Grid. He was on the ground at Sepang—and takes us inside the confusion, frustration and information gaps as the start unravelled.
We break down the software failure in plain English, how the 2026 power-unit regulations contributed, why testing missed it, and what the FIA’s rapid fix does—and doesn’t—resolve.
Plus:
• What journalists and teams knew during the delay
• The drivers’ reactions and the mood in the paddock
• Whether the 2027 and 2028 changes address F1’s underlying complexity
• Confidence in the fix heading into Singapore
• Luke’s tips for enjoying the Singapore Grand Prix as Elle prepares to head over
• The Qatar and Abu Dhabi calendar situation as understood at the time of recording
Read Luke’s article in The Athletic on The New York Times website:
[How computer software bugs led to F1’s Malaysia farce: ‘Totally unacceptable’] https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7658750/2026/10/04/bahrain-grand-prix-software-bugs-explainer/?unlocked_article_code=1.GFE.fUel.Yfz8vJ1fpKfm&source=emp_shared_article&smid=ta-ios-share
Explore Luke’s book:
On the Grid
Have F1’s cars become too complicated? Tell us what you think, and follow Paddock 43 for more F1 conversations, race reactions and paddock stories.

🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43 – The Formula 1 Podcast That Keeps It Real!



🏎️💨If you love F1 drama, race breakdowns, driver gossip, and unfiltered opinions, you’re in the right place! Paddock 43 is your go-to podcast for everything happening on and off the track



.🚥 What You’ll Get Every Week:

✅ Race Recaps & Analysis – Who dominated, who bottled it, and what it means for the championship.

✅ Breaking F1 News & Rumours – Driver transfers, team drama, FIA chaos—nothing’s off-limits.

✅ F1 Lifestyle & Behind-the-Scenes – From team principals to race engineers, we break it all down.

✅ Hot Takes & Debate Segments – lets get controversial



Unlike other F1 podcasts, we bring the energy, the humour, and the unfiltered takes—just like chatting F1 with your best mates.



Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode!



🔔💬 Join the Paddock 43 Community:

📲 Follow us on Instagram (@paddock43podcast) & TikTok (@Paddock43Podcast) for BTS, F1 Memes, Live Q&As, and Breaking News Updates.🎤 Got a question or F1 hot take? Drop it in the comments—we might feature it in the next episode!🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube – Hit that follow button so you never miss a race-week recap!🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43—where F1 meets the fans. Let’s race!



🏎️💨@ellebaillieu

F1 cars needing a software update before they can race? Honestly, put them in rice.
This week on Paddock 43, we unpack the Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia—from the chaotic start at Sepang to the software bug that left cars struggling to move. What actually went wrong, how do the 2026 regulations fit into it, and why didn’t testing catch the problem?
Plus, Max Verstappen’s first win of the season, Kimi Antonelli’s growing championship lead, and all the paddock goss.
In this episode:
🏁 Max wins and George’s title hopes take another hit
🚩 Software failures, the FIA’s testing admission and why F1 needs to step up
🔋 What’s changing in the power-unit rules for 2027 and 2028
🏆 The maths behind Kimi’s championship advantage
💸 Aston Martin’s 2027 line-up and the reported Alonso and Stroll salary figures
🏎️ Lewis Hamilton backs Fred Vasseur amid Ferrari speculation
🇲🇾 Could Malaysia return to the calendar permanently?
And I’m heading to Singapore this weekend—please have the software sorted before I get there.
Should Sepang be back permanently? And how are you feeling about the new regulations? Let me know in the comments.
Subscribe to Paddock 43 for F1 race recaps, opinions and the goss worth talking about.
Salary figures discussed include media reports and estimates, rather than confirmed 2027 pay disclosures.
#F1 #Paddock43 #MalaysiaGP

🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43 – The Formula 1 Podcast That Keeps It Real!



🏎️💨If you love F1 drama, race breakdowns, driver gossip, and unfiltered opinions, you’re in the right place! Paddock 43 is your go-to podcast for everything happening on and off the track



.🚥 What You’ll Get Every Week:

✅ Race Recaps & Analysis – Who dominated, who bottled it, and what it means for the championship.

✅ Breaking F1 News & Rumours – Driver transfers, team drama, FIA chaos—nothing’s off-limits.

✅ F1 Lifestyle & Behind-the-Scenes – From team principals to race engineers, we break it all down.

✅ Hot Takes & Debate Segments – lets get controversial



Unlike other F1 podcasts, we bring the energy, the humour, and the unfiltered takes—just like chatting F1 with your best mates.



Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode!



🔔💬 Join the Paddock 43 Community:

📲 Follow us on Instagram (@paddock43podcast) & TikTok (@Paddock43Podcast) for BTS, F1 Memes, Live Q&As, and Breaking News Updates.🎤 Got a question or F1 hot take? Drop it in the comments—we might feature it in the next episode!🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube – Hit that follow button so you never miss a race-week recap!🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43—where F1 meets the fans. Let’s race!



🏎️💨@ellebaillieu

George Russell deserves his flowers for Baku. Max made him work for the win, Isack Hadjar returned with a podium, and Oscar Piastri’s race unravelled at Turn 1. But I don’t think you need another lap-by-lap recap from me.
This week, I’m getting into Franco Colapinto’s crash with Pierre Gasly and Lando Norris. Was a five-place grid drop really enough, and why were there no penalty points for that collision? Then there’s what happened online afterwards: the abuse, the threats, and how invested some F1 fans have become in drivers they don’t actually know.
I’m also talking Esteban Ocon’s future at Haas, Hadjar’s 2027 Red Bull deal, and my take on the Australian Grand Prix ticket backlash. Yes, the Brabham membership is expensive. No, you do not need a membership to go to the race.
And for my green flag: Jamie Chadwick finally driving a Williams F1 car, why I initially questioned the choice, and why I changed my mind.
Tell me what you think Franco’s penalty should have been — and whether the F1 fandom is getting a little too intense.

🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43 – The Formula 1 Podcast That Keeps It Real!



🏎️💨If you love F1 drama, race breakdowns, driver gossip, and unfiltered opinions, you’re in the right place! Paddock 43 is your go-to podcast for everything happening on and off the track



.🚥 What You’ll Get Every Week:

✅ Race Recaps & Analysis – Who dominated, who bottled it, and what it means for the championship.

✅ Breaking F1 News & Rumours – Driver transfers, team drama, FIA chaos—nothing’s off-limits.

✅ F1 Lifestyle & Behind-the-Scenes – From team principals to race engineers, we break it all down.

✅ Hot Takes & Debate Segments – lets get controversial



Unlike other F1 podcasts, we bring the energy, the humour, and the unfiltered takes—just like chatting F1 with your best mates.



Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode!



🔔💬 Join the Paddock 43 Community:

📲 Follow us on Instagram (@paddock43podcast) & TikTok (@Paddock43Podcast) for BTS, F1 Memes, Live Q&As, and Breaking News Updates.🎤 Got a question or F1 hot take? Drop it in the comments—we might feature it in the next episode!🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube – Hit that follow button so you never miss a race-week recap!🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43—where F1 meets the fans. Let’s race!



🏎️💨@ellebaillieu

Andy Harriss has run track safety on the F1 movie, Top Gear, Mission Impossible, No Time To Die, Napoleon and more, and worked directly with Max Verstappen, Sebastian Vettel and Lewis Hamilton along the way.
In this episode we go deep on what it actually takes to keep an F1 set, a live street show, or a Top Gear stunt safe when everything is moving at 200mph. Andy tells the story of Vettel covering for an absent Hamilton on live TV, being overtaken by Lando Norris on an ice lake in Norway, briefing Verstappen one on one before a stunt, and the moment Michael Schumacher was unmasked as The Stig.
We also get into his honest take on the 2025 F1 season, the McLaren title fight, and his next project: the Isle of Man TT movie, produced by Brad Pitt and starring Channing Tatum.
🎧 Listen to Paddock 43 on Spotify and Apple Podcasts
📲 Follow along @paddock43podcast
#F1 #FormulaOne #TopGear #AndyHarriss #F1Movie #Verstappen #BradPitt #Motorsport

🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43 – The Formula 1 Podcast That Keeps It Real!



🏎️💨If you love F1 drama, race breakdowns, driver gossip, and unfiltered opinions, you’re in the right place! Paddock 43 is your go-to podcast for everything happening on and off the track



.🚥 What You’ll Get Every Week:

✅ Race Recaps & Analysis – Who dominated, who bottled it, and what it means for the championship.

✅ Breaking F1 News & Rumours – Driver transfers, team drama, FIA chaos—nothing’s off-limits.

✅ F1 Lifestyle & Behind-the-Scenes – From team principals to race engineers, we break it all down.

✅ Hot Takes & Debate Segments – lets get controversial



Unlike other F1 podcasts, we bring the energy, the humour, and the unfiltered takes—just like chatting F1 with your best mates.



Subscribe & Never Miss an Episode!



🔔💬 Join the Paddock 43 Community:

📲 Follow us on Instagram (@paddock43podcast) & TikTok (@Paddock43Podcast) for BTS, F1 Memes, Live Q&As, and Breaking News Updates.🎤 Got a question or F1 hot take? Drop it in the comments—we might feature it in the next episode!🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube – Hit that follow button so you never miss a race-week recap!🏁 Welcome to Paddock 43—where F1 meets the fans. Let’s race!



🏎️💨@ellebaillieu