On The Gravel

A “Lifetime” Contract/F1 Offweek - On The Gravel

In the off week before our first return to the Shanghai International Circuit since 2019, Fernando Alonso decided to kick off the silly season by resigning a “lifetime” contract with Aston Martin through 2026. Elsewhere around the paddock and motorsport, the ever growing hype and trust around Kimi Antonelli has been reinforced through multiple more scheduled tests with the W12 and W13, Andretti is set to push for F2, F3 and a WEC entry to cement their push for a Formula One team, and Prema has decided to expand their reach to the Indycar series stateside. Along with this, Formula One released the official 2025 calendar with a reshuffle of the opening rounds of the season, rumors of Alpine selling the team floated around the internet, and MotoGP took a trip to COTA for round 3 of the championship. With a resurfaced track, limited testing due to the sprint weekend, and a first time excursion for many of the drivers, the Chinese Grand Prix is set to be an exciting one. We can't wait to share our reactions with you next time out On The Gravel!

April Flowers | F1 Japanese Grand Prix

This week On the Gravel took us to one of the most iconic tracks in all of motor racing, the famous Suzuka Circuit in Japan. It was a bounce back from heartbreak for Max Verstappen and a good showing of tire strategy throughout the field during the course of the race. A first lap racing incident between Albon and Ricciardo had us contemplating if Williams would give him Sargeants car under the red flag, a charge up the field for Leclerc and the midfields' fight for the lower points kept us on our toes. News in the paddock this week featured the acquisition of rights to MotoGP by F1’s parent company Liberty Media, David Sanchez’s departure from McLaren, and the incoming Pirelli tire test after the Japanese Grand Prix. Kimi Antonelli is getting a private test in the W13 and tensions may be heating up at Williams after drivers crashing, the lack of substitute chassis and drivers being swapped in the process. A lot happened this week but with an off week on the horizon, we aim to keep you in the loop with us while On the Gravel.

Rally Safari - F1 Off Week/WRC Kenya

The off week before our excursion to Japan On the Gravel brought some interesting news in F1 and viewing of the Safari Rally at Kenya in the WRC. Talk on Perez’s future at Red Bull and what it means for the pipeline of talent in the family, Zak Brown’s contract extension at McLaren, and Honda’s plans for their new base for PU’s in the UK were a few notable points of discussion this week along with a new unwanted record taken by Lando Norris, Aston Martin’s astronomical bid for Adrian Newey, and Ricciardo coming under serious pressure at RB. Once we made our way to Kenya, we were treated to an exciting spectacle with a convincing win for Kalle Rovenpera of Toyota Gazoo and Ford’s first podium at the event since 2002. Another race at night in the states awaits this week as we continue to keep you up to date On the Gravel!
 
 

Smooth Operations - F1 Australian Grand Prix

Round Three of the Formula One World Championship in Australia kicked off in unusual form with Max Verstappen, for the first time in 43 participations, suffering a mechanical failure. A convincing victory for Carlos Sainz followed with issues for Hamilton, a controversial final lap incident between Alonso and Russell, as well as the Albon/Sargeant chassis drama heavily impacting the weekend for Williams. On top of the race review this week, Adrian Newey seems to be in advanced talks with Ferrari, Verstappen's exit clause with Marko is looked over and some concerning statements from drivers on the F1 president are mentioned. The Formula 2 and Moto GP Recaps conclude our dive this week On the Gravel as we look on and over the pond to the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka in two weeks time!

(Pin)ning the Blame

Our first off-week On The Gravel in 2024 was an interesting one after last week's Saudi Arabian GP. An incident that went under the radar for most, Dorian Pin had a race victory - in the F1 Academy series - snatched away after a post race penalty for failing to slow from racing speed which caused some controversy and necessary discourse over checkered flag bearing, the positioning of the flag box, as well as communication between team and driver. Along with this, a full timeline was drafted about our favorite Red Bull drama along with the weekly update on the ever growing series. Some other notable points from this week include talk over a potential Wolff/Alonso coffee excursion, Bearmans future, and a backtrack into Mercedes lack of a fight posed in Jeddah. WEC and MotoGP news conclude this off week as we gear up for the Australian GP in a week's time!

An Unexpected Debutant | F1 Saudi Arabia Recap

Round Two of the F1 World Championship took us to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia and while it was a familiar winner,  for most,  there was an all new face in scarlet red. This week On The Gravel a potential return to Turkey is discussed, Saudi Arabia’s huge plans for a new F1 circuit in the coming years, as well as one more conversation over the delusion of Christian Horner. The race weekend brought a surprise debutant from the Ferrari Driver Academy in Oliver Bearman as Carlos Sainz was diagnosed and treated for appendicitis. A race of many parts, seeing the potential of Bearman showcased, a strategic masterclass from Haas, and some good battles between the Mercedes and McLarens gave us a nice race under lights. Concluding with our F2, IndyCar and MotoGP talk for the week, we hope you enjoyed this week in racing as much as we did!

Lights Out | Bahrain Recap

It's Sunday, the first race of the season at Bahrain has concluded with a commanding victory for Max Verstappen, but the Dutch National Anthem will not be stealing our show this week. On The Gravel this episode, the Christian Horner drama has come to a clean end, the lights have gone out and we’ve finally gone racing. Alpine’s disastrous car has proved itself on track throughout the weekend, a messy start for Hulkenberg set up a wonderful recovery drive for Stroll, and multiple teams faced some major engine cooling issues throughout our 57 laps at Bahrain. Sergeant suffered a steering and brake bias issue to ruin his outing, along with Leclerc having a brake issue that starts the Ferrari pain off strong. Along with talk over the F2 running as well as the 6hrs of Qatar in WEC, there's plenty to pick through this week in F1 and the greater racing world as we gear up for the Saudi Arabian GP this Saturday!

Rubber Hitting Asphalt

Preseason Testing has concluded which means its Race Week! A fruitful few days in Bahrain saw all the teams taking their 2024 challengers to track to conduct their preparation for the season ahead with some notable shocks up and down the grid. Covered this week On The Gravel are our thoughts on testing, chat on flow-vis and aero rakes, the dreaded drain covers, as well as the sneaky front wing loophole exposed by Mercedes. Our preseason predictions follow, with some reserve driver talk and our thoughts on the newest season of Drive to Survive. With some touches on WEC, WRC and MotoGP, there is plenty to look forward to in the world of racing as we prepare for the Bahrain GP this Saturday!

Final Reactions

Our last dry Sunday in the world of F1 commences On The Gravel this week with our reactions to the final five livery releases, insight into our top five and not five, and a technical dive on new innovations and changes made by some of the teams before preseason testing. On the other side of the racing world, the WRC race in Sweden caught our attention with some notable finishes and the Daytona 500 rain out means green flag racing on a Monday this year. Preseason testing begins on Wednesday morning to keep you on your toes as we’ve made it to the final lap of the offseason.

Night Mode

Our second Sunday in February swiftly arrived with four new livery reveals with a controversial point of similarity between their use of carbon fiber. In other news, Christian Horner has had serious allegations of inappropriate behavior put forth in front of the F1 World, Stake F1 has come across a notable issue of legality in Switzerland surrounding their title sponsorship, and F1 could very well be heading back to Maylasia with Petronas striking a new deal becoming the title sponsor of the Sepang International Circuit. With the British GP locked until 2034, Pete Bonnington failing to follow Hamilton to Ferrari and talk on the upcoming WRC event in Sweden, there’s plenty to catch On The Gravel as we head under 10 days until Pre-Season Testing in Bahrain!