20 F1 cars. 5 red lights. 0.2 seconds to react. 5 seconds to 120 mph. The start of a Formula 1 Grand Prix demands extraordinary skill from the drivers and quick decisions from the team strategists.

Katie and Christian explore the start of a race with Mercedes reserve driver and former Haas racer Mick Schumacher, who explains what happens in the cockpit in the moments before the start, and the intense run to turn 1. Former Aston Martin Head of Race Strategy Bernie Collins tells us how the race start affects the team's plan for tyres and pit stops.

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Listen to our previous episodes:

2024


How Drive to Survive is made - with Exec Producer James Gay-Rees

Why F1 pre-season testing matters - with McLaren's Oscar Piastri

How new F1 cars come to life - with Aston Martin Technical Director Dan Fallows

2023


What we learned in 2023 - the best bits of F1 Explains in 2023

Why you need to see F1 live - trackside at a Grand Prix
Racing lines, driver drinks + 'number 1 drivers'

LIVE at the US Grand Prix - with F1 Explains listeners + David Coulthard

The incredible logistics of F1 - with DHL + Alfa Romeo

How F1 racetracks are designed - with the masterminds behind Miami

How car liveries are created - with Alfa Romeo + McLaren

The mental pressure of F1 - with David Coulthard

Steering wheels - how they're designed + what the buttons do

DRS - how F1's overtaking aid works and why it matters

Tyres - an engineer, a driver and a designer explains why they matter

The 2024 F1 calendar - why it helps make F1 more sustainable

Wind Tunnels - the top secret tools where cars are created

Race engineers - the voices on F1 Team Radio, with Zhou Guanyu

Pit stops - how to do them perfectly

Simulators with Aston Martin's Stoffel Vandoorne

Racing in the rain with Mika Hakkinen + Haas race engineer Mark Slade

Street circuits with Mika Hakkinen + Bernie Collins

F1 driver fitness with Alexander Rossi + Sebastian Vettel's former trainer

F1 in the USA - why the US has 3 races in 2023

F1 Sprint weekends with Haas driver Kevin Magnussen