Show Notes
The 2026 Formula 1 season has started with a statement, and Mercedes look frighteningly fast. George Russell claimed victory in Melbourne with a dominant performance as Mercedes secured their first 1-2 finish without Lewis Hamilton since 1955. The pace of the Mercedes — described as a “rocket ship” — immediately raises questions about whether the rest of the grid can catch them this season. In this episode of The Pit Talk Podcast, Chris McHardy and former Formula 1 driver Robert Doornbos break down everything from the opening race of the 2026 season. The new 2026 regulations produced an explosive opening 15 laps with wheel-to-wheel battles for the lead, raising big questions about whether this season will be decided by drivers or engineering. Is Mercedes already the team to beat? 🎙️ The Pit Talk Podcast with Chris McHardy and Robert Doornbos reacts immediately after the Australian Grand Prix to analyse the biggest stories shaping the new Formula 1 season.
More from The Pit Talk
MAX FINALLY CONQUERS SINGAPORE. 🏆 Pole, sprint win, pole AND the Grand Prix. Robert Doornbos calls it a masterclass, and it’s scary news for 2027. Kimi Antonelli could be crowned in Austin and he didn’t even know it! 🤯 Lando cops the blame for the McLaren sprint crash and that journalist row. Ferrari throw it away again, and Robert names who’s at fault. Alonso is raging, Aston Martin are nowhere and we’re asking: where is Adrian Newey? Plus the radio that died on Max and GP, the FIA’s “human error” scandal and Robert’s 110 flights in one year. Chris McHardy and Robert Doornbos break down a wild Singapore weekend. 🎙️
F1 hit CTRL+ALT+DELETE in Malaysia. 🚨 The Bahrain Grand Prix, hosted at Sepang, served up a parade lap like nothing we've seen before. Cars ground to a halt one after another, a software glitch was blamed, the grid formed up in the pit lane and the start was delayed by two hours. Chris McHardy and former F1 driver Robert Doornbos ask the big question: has F1 got the wrong formula? Max finally wins. Red Bull's homemade engine beats Ferrari, Mercedes and Honda in its first year. And Max STILL wants the V8s back. 😳 Also in the episode: Why are 2026 cars five seconds slower than 2017? Has George Russell given up? Who at Ferrari thought slicks were a good idea? Add Liam Lawson's rocket start, Lando's karma moment and a WRC champion who crashed two corners from glory, and it's one of our wildest weekends yet. 🔥 Plus: Robert's homework to design the ultimate 20-corner F1 track, and a blindfolded hot lap challenge at Yas Marina. 👀
Ferrari are falling apart and Christian Horner is waiting. 🚨 Chris McHardy and former F1 driver Robert Doornbos dissect a chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix. Lewis ignored on the safety car call, Charles letting slip the new engine, and Fred fighting for his job with Horner's shadow looming large. Lando upsets an entire nation after his Colapinto rant, George bounces back with a Grand Slam and a jaw-dropping 8/10ths pole, and Isack Hadjar returns with a podium that has Robert calling him the Alain Prost of this era. Plus an exclusive: Red Bull have stopped developing their 2026 car. What that means for the title fight, a tour of Milton Keynes, Max's 100-kart challenge, 2027's 10 sprints, and predictions for Malaysia. Recorded at Mille Miglia, Dubai. 🎟️ Abu Dhabi GP tickets: abudhabigp.com ⚡️ Powered by Ethara Live and Dubai Eye 103.8
Monaco gave us ten overtakes this year. Madrid, a brand new circuit with a ten year deal and a World Champion as its ambassador, gave us four. Robert Doornbos was there, and he is not sugarcoating it. An industrial estate 50 minutes outside the city, a build-up that promised Macau, Monaco and Jeddah rolled into one, and then a Sunday where nothing happened in F3, nothing happened in F2 and nothing happened in F1. Plus: Robert's five takeaways, why he is calling the title for Kimi Antonelli right now, how Lando Norris lost the race by going too fast, Carlos Sainz driving like a rookie in his own back yard, Lance Stroll's record laid out race by race, and the six foot four American F3 champion who steers with one hand. And Ollie Millroy joins us from his hospital bed in Shanghai for his first interview since the crash. Six broken ribs, a fractured vertebra and a rib through his lung, and he cannot remember a second of it. He talks about the Dutch driver who pulled him out of a burning car, the marshals who did not, and whether he wants to get back in. Subscribe for a new episode every week.
Nineteenth on the grid. First at the flag. At the Temple of Speed, in front of a Ferrari crowd, in a Mercedes. Chris McHardy and former F1 driver Robert Doornbos break down the Italian Grand Prix, and Robert spotted something on the onboards that the broadcast never showed you. One driver used more of the circuit than anybody else all weekend. Plus: Charles Leclerc puts it in the wall at Parabolica again. George Russell gets beaten by a teammate who started 19th. Ferrari have no rules of engagement and it's tearing them apart. Robert reveals the real cost of reaching Formula 1 — and it's eight million dollars. The Jacques Villeneuve story. And the GT crash in China that should have killed a driver, and the rival who drove towards the fireball to pull him out. Madrid is next. Both of them have made the same prediction. ⚡️ Powered by Ethara Live and Dubai Eye 103.8