This week on News from the Nerds, host James M is joined by his regular panellists, Abby and Sam. Now into the second week of F1’s impromptu early season sabbatical, the trio get stuck into the F1 news cycle (which never takes a break). Up for discussion this week is:

Silverstone under fire again

Having already dealt with negative PR over the cost for fans to attend the 2023 British Grand Prix, it has been confirmed that to guarantee entry to the all-new Thursday launch party, it will set you back £129. Is this approach fair, is it necessary, and should F1 be focusing a little less on the commercialisation of the sport?

https://twitter.com/Formula_Nerds/status/1645746931610664961?s=20

Substance over show

Guenther Steiner has come out in defence of Red Bull’s current domination of the sport, arguing that F1 shouldn’t look to minimise their superiority over the chasing pack. Meanwhile, fellow team principals Toto Wolff and Christian Horner have had their sights set on the upcoming sprint race in Baku…

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/steiner-prefers-red-bull-dominance-over-a-good-show/

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/hamilton-is-excited-for-baku-sprint-whilst-wolff-remains-conservative/

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/f1-teams-agreed-to-standalone-sprint/

Calendar changes – is less more?

F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has again openly flirted with the idea of extending the length of the F1 season. Already set for 24 races in ’24, might be manage to push that to 25? With Spa likely to drop off and South Africa and China rumoured to return, the sport might also be graced with a long-awaited debut race…

But what other calendar changes might be in store for 2024?

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/f1-planning-a-massive-overhaul-of-its-calendar-reports-say/

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/chinese-grand-prix-ready-to-return-in-2024/

F1 Academy hit the track

The all-woman racing series debuts at the end of April. This week, the five teams have made their way to Barcelona for a closed test. With the stopwatch less of an immediate concern, will the fifteen drivers manage to clock up some serious milage in their new cars?
https://www.formulanerds.com/news/f1-academy-confirms-final-driver-completing-its-2023-line-up/

https://twitter.com/f1academy/status/1628681427251339265?s=20

Ricciardo opens up

The past couple of seasons having been easy for everyone’s favourite easy-going Aussie. But now back in familiar surroundings at Red Bull, the former Renault and McLaren driver has opened up about his stint with the latter team. A year out of the spotlight might be exactly what Ricciardo needs. Will we see him again on the F1 front lines?

https://www.formulanerds.com/news/ricciardo-on-his-mental-health-since-leaving-mclaren/
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