Liam Lawson replaces Sergio Perez for F1's hardest gig: 2024 driver market complete

Red Bull Racing and Sergio Perez finally make their split official, with Liam Lawson picking up the pieces and F2 title runner-up Isack Hadjar moving up to RB alongside Yuki Tsunoda. We reveal the results of the alternative championship in a self-indulgent final countdown for the year's final episode.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome to Pit Talk, a Fox Sports and
Speed Cafe Formula one podcast. On today's episode, the final
for the season, Sergio Perez is out of Formula One,
with Liam Lawson promoted from RB to take his place
alongside Max Verstappen. In twenty twenty five and we award
the most prestigious prize in all motorsports, the Pit Talk
Alternative Championship. My name is Michael Lomonado, motorspord writer for

(00:23):
Fox Sports Australia. It's great to have your company and
the company of my co host from Speed Cafe. You
can call it racing balls if you like, but to him,
it will always be Minardi. It's Matt Kosh.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
It will always be Minardi. It's fact founded by Gen Klomonardi,
based in Fayanza. It's an Italian team. You can put
whatever color jeans you like on them, but yeah, it
will always be Minardi and all forever long for the
days we have Johnny Moore, Bedelli and Taso Marquez. I mean,

(00:57):
Gaston Mezkane. How can you go past the goliaths of
Formula one qualifying. I'm not sure he ever did.

Speaker 1 (01:06):
Qualify, but if he did, it would have been great.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
He was, he was I think it was Actually it
was Argentinian.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Yes, he was the last Argentine to have raced before
Franco Colobinto.

Speaker 2 (01:17):
There you go. So you know, dizzying height reached.

Speaker 1 (01:22):
Historic, historic, and forever we'll be Maybe we should just
make a rule now forever we'll be referred to as
Minardi from now on, regardless of what happens to the
team name, because I'm sure there are many more team
name changes in that team's future, considering how many they've
had in the last four or five years. It's been
a big week in Formula One News will of course
get to the topic of the week, Sergio Peris, Liam

(01:43):
Lawson and the final red bull seats on the twenty
twenty five driver market in just a moment, but let's
wrap up what have been some of the more minor
stories since the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and Matt. Let's
start with Valtrie Botas and Honor Area Australian, because both
he and Mercedes had confirmed what had long beat expected
that he will return to brack is the team third
driver for twenty twenty five, ahead of an attempted return

(02:04):
in twenty twenty six.

Speaker 2 (02:05):
The Mullet and the murk like that. It's yeah, it
makes a lot of sense as well. You've got George Russell,
who's got a bit of experience but isn't isn't a
championship contender. You know, he's never been through that process.
You've got a young drive and killing Kimmy Antonelli. You've
got then their third driver in Voucheri Botas, who has

(02:25):
that experience, knows a team can jump in and do
the job if he's ever needed to, so he takes
a lot of boxes there. I think that they probably
weren't getting from someone like Fred Vesti or or some
of the other cats they had footing around, So that
makes a lot of sense. But it also just keeps
Voucheri's foot in the door for potentially Cadillac or something
down the track, although I suspect we might see Sergio

(02:46):
end up there.

Speaker 1 (02:47):
Well, it worked well for Mick Schumacher, didn't it pathwell
trodden me.

Speaker 2 (02:52):
Well forever Grojeon in fairness and Treddie Racing, having secured
an in principle entry to the sport in twenty twenty.

Speaker 1 (02:59):
Six, has secured Ferrari power units to bridge the gap
between its first season and whenever General Motors debuts its
first engine at the end of the decade. That's for
the press release, and it's also changed its name officially
to Cadillac Formula Racing.

Speaker 2 (03:13):
This is all to do with the F one entry
and all sorts of legal rights that come along with that,
because what's happening behind the scenes at the moment is
discussing how they formally bring that team into the sport
because entries to Formula one don't yet open until for
twenty twenty six. Don't you open until sort of mid
December next year, so you've got that delay. Then there's

(03:35):
also the concord, so they can't actually sign anything to
say yes, we're going to enter. So Nita Current was
some sort of pre agreement. To have that pre agreement,
you have to have all the business names and stuff
in order, so it's just admin on the back end
of that. But there's lots and lots happening behind the scenes.
It's all just it's all very boring and less. You're
an accountant and me.

Speaker 1 (03:56):
Maybe an account is a previous life. Let's go over
two fians to Minati, where RB has confirmed it will
be known as Racing Bulls from next year. Walking back,
it's controversially bland RB monica that it used only for
this season. That's per the twenty twenty five entry lists
published by the FIA recently.

Speaker 2 (04:14):
The stupid thing is internally the team always referred to
itself as Racing Balls. You had the team trying to
push this v CARB thing that no one used, even
to the point where I remember sitting down and doing
an interview with someone at Red Bull and I asked
a question about RB, and the comms person Jompeding and said,
no, no VCARB, no RB. But they even I mean they

(04:41):
had a logo registered as a trademark that had the
website URL. All this stuff came out over twelve months ago.
And then we get to the entry listeners. Are RB brilliant.
It's a meaningless acronym for racing balls. Has some heritage
as well. It sort of refers B back to some

(05:02):
of the playing collection that dietrich Manaship's collected, the Fighting Bulls,
so it's the Racing Bulls to sort of draw parallels
with that. So there was some logic and reasoning behind
it that made some sense, and then they just completely
screwed up the marketing and sale of it, trying to
give too much coverage to Visa and cash App. I
now expect payment from them for that coverage because yeah,

(05:28):
it was just dumb, wasn't it. So three was just
the third, fourth, fifth different name in about five years.
It was Minarti, Toro Rosso, Alpha Tawi RB Racent was
his number five.

Speaker 1 (05:39):
Yes, when was Alpha Tawi twenty twenty?

Speaker 2 (05:42):
Yeah, I reckon that was twenty. Yeah, so it.

Speaker 1 (05:44):
Would be three in four years pretty much three and
five years. So it's not great, not stable, I think
for me, the most difficult part was when they launched
RB and CEO Peter Bier said, no, no, it doesn't stand
for racing balls. It stands for Red Bull, like that
other team we've got cover on.

Speaker 2 (06:00):
What is this all about, like Ibleipstitch the football team.

Speaker 1 (06:03):
Yeah, it's just a bit of a mess. At least
it's at least that's a name. Now I suppose it
on an acronym, but anyway, look, we'll figure out. I
guess people will understand how they feel about it once
we start using it next year, changing tach completely coinciding
with the FIA Prize giving Gala in Rwanda last week.
Obviously the inferior prize giving Gala the one that's coming
up later in this podcast. The country's president, Paul Kagame,

(06:24):
is officially confirmed that the country is bidding to join
the calendar with a purpose built circuit outside the capitol Kirgali,
which is well would be represent Formul one's return to
Africa if this does get off the ground for the
first time in decades.

Speaker 2 (06:36):
And meanwhile, South Africa has done exactly the same thing
with the announcement of the formation of a steering committee
to host a Grand Prix from twenty twenty seven. So
you've now got these two African nations vying for Formula one.
It'll go to Rwanda. I'm in the process of writing
a story explaining exactly why that will happen. But there's
some strong business logic behind the rwand and Grand Prix

(06:59):
that you may may not agree with the ethics of,
but it's there. Meanwhile, the South African Grand Prix seems
to be basically Lewis Hamilton said it'd be a good idea,
so it must be. I think there's the entire business case,
and there's plants, got great kay Lame and all sorts
of stuff to grade one so I could host it.
But yeah, they are one to Grand Prix. Don't be

(07:22):
surprised if that gets announced. Keep an eye I don't
know if I saw it be life by the time
the podcast goes live, but keep an eye out for
my store and speed Cafe for that because it does
go into some of the business side of it, behind
it all, and the logic behind it. And there is
a strong degree of logic there.

Speaker 1 (07:42):
And I mean at the end of the day, it
has what every modern circuit really needs, which is public backing.
If it doesn't have some big billionaire, if it's been
backed by the president.

Speaker 2 (07:51):
I thought you were going to say, uninspiring desert surrounding it.

Speaker 1 (07:54):
Well, that's also pretty crucial, as we've learned from And
we all look forward to the kidious to join the
calendar in the well.

Speaker 2 (08:02):
Will it be at night? That's my next question, it.

Speaker 1 (08:04):
Asked to me obviously, because you want to what you
wouldn't want it to look too different to all the
other race tracks, would you by running the day? So
we all looked forward to that one. And finally let's
conclude with Carlos Science and Ferrari because they've made farewell
to each other with the track date Furana a Furano
with Carlos Science and Carlos Science of course Senior and
Junior cutting laps around the track in the F one

(08:26):
seventy five, the team's twenty twenty two cars A. I
think this is his final big public official engagement as
a Ferrari driver.

Speaker 2 (08:34):
This made me realize that for I really missed a
tricky because they've got a bit of a two for
one deal by signing Carlos Science, didn't they Yeah, they
could have just rotated them through and paid them meet
half the money. It's like a free reserve driver, don't
even have to change the stickers on the car. But
a seriousness this was minder setting is that Fred Besser
tem Princi will sort of put this to Carlo Si Senior.

(08:57):
It was Vesso's initiative. And how cool would it be
your dad's a motorsport legend to jump on track with
your dad turn a few laps in a Ferrari at
its home track. I just have some fun, no pressure,
no expectation, just go out there and have some unabashed fund.
I think that sounds like a bloody good idea. I
love the video, I love some of the radio exchanges

(09:19):
that we've heard. It's just a good wholesome way when
they've really shafted Carlo.

Speaker 1 (09:28):
Just a good wholesome way to end. On's a pretty
disappointing in the relationship. Leave it on a somewhat positive note.
At least his ending on a positive note is Carlos
science in a weird way. The ending of Sergio Pairs
at Red Bull Racing a little bit more complicated, certainly
a little bit messier, but it has been confirmed at
least a week and a bit nearly two weeks after

(09:49):
the season ending race in Abu Dhabi, the Sergio Pairs
will not be racing for Red Bull Racing in twenty
twenty five. Depending on whose press release and comments you'd
want to believe, he's either decided he wants to sabbatical
or he's taken the money and walked. I guess in
between there you could kind of see both of them
being accurate, because he's chosen to walk because he's been
paid off. But in any case, it's clear that Red
Bull Racing has not wanted him there for a little

(10:11):
while now, and he will be replaced by Liam Lawson
with all eleven Grand Prix of experience under his belt
across two seasons, of course, and he'll be the least
experienced Red Bull Racing driver since vid Antonio Liuzzi made
his debut for the team in two thousand and five,
and then after him Robert Dornboss. It's not an interesting that,
isn't it something we all have seen coming now for
I don't know a month or so, maybe more, but

(10:33):
it's now finally been confirmed, and like, well, let's out
with Surjo Paris before we talk about the Liam Lawson angle.
In fact, let's give him his due. I suppose disappointing
way for him to end his Red Bull Racing career,
but I think there's at least some sincerity. Dare I
say it in the team's comments that he has been
a valuable member of that team for three of the
four seasons. At least he has contributed to constructors championships

(10:57):
and at least to one driver's championship in twenty two.
So how do you think, in totality will reflect on
Paris's career at Rebel Racing.

Speaker 2 (11:04):
I think he was solid enough obviously twenty twenty four
didn't get a plan. There was a wobble in twenty
three as well, which he was able to recover from.
But we've got to put almost this year to the
side a little bit like we did Daniel Riccardo sort
of from when he left Reno. You know, he's almost
sort of two careers, like the Michael Schumacher return thing
compartmentalized twenty twenty four and look at the first three years,

(11:25):
and he was pretty solid. He helped the team win
constructive championships, finished second in the championship himself, giving Red
Bull its first one to two in that competition in
its history. That's a pretty good thing given that, you know,
Mark Webber wasn't able to do that obviously, Daniel Ricardo
and said, we weren't able to do that because the
car just wasn't there to win championship. So that's that's

(11:46):
quite an achievement to finish second, you know, to get
to a Formula one I've said this before, you have
to be a phenomenally good racing driver to then finish
as the next best guy in the championship. Yes, he
had a significant car advantage, but you still have to
be able to maximize that, and he did enough so
I think from that element alone, we should reflect kindly

(12:06):
on his career and his time at Rebelm more specifically.
But the big point that everyone is forgetting is let's
go back six seven years. It was about twenty seventeen,
twenty eighteen something like that. He saved seventeen what is
now Astamat the Force India had gone bust. He put

(12:26):
it into administration and doing so, he saved four hundred
people's jobs. That's you know, yes, he was out of
the job himself effectively, but he saved four hundred people's jobs,
four hundred people who were far less well off than his.
That deserves to be applauded massively because he didn't have
to do that. He could let the team sink, but

(12:48):
he didn't know. I thought that that was extraordinary. He's
a six time Grand Prix winner. You know, that's a
pretty bloody good career. There are world champions who have
won less Grand Prix than Sergio Perez, so let's keep
it in active. Twenty twenty four didn't go to plan,
but everything up to that point was pretty positive, I
think for Sergio.

Speaker 1 (13:08):
And I think what it demonstrates is actually, I mean,
obviously he to use a phrase that's in vogue now
in Formula one, probably exceeded his shelf life at Red
Bull Racing, But I think that reflects a bigger story really,
which is he was originally brought into Red Bull Racing
essentially as a stop gap solution. He wasn't meant to
be a permanent, long term driver, who was meant to

(13:28):
be there, arguably for as little as a year or
a couple of years, let's call it a nice round
three seasons, and for three seasons he was productive enough
to use that word again enough In twenty twenty one,
his contribution in Abu Dhabi won Max for staff and
the Driver's Championship. I think that's something people sometimes also
gloss over the fact that the only reason Lewis Hamilton
was in a not totally dominant position when that safety

(13:51):
car came out was because of that battle with Sergio
Peris in the middle of the race. In twenty twenty two,
he did enough to win the Contructor Championship, and then
twenty twenty three, as he said, he got that one
too with the team, which had never before been achieved.
So despite those form slumps that occurred in all of
those seasons to worsening degrees as we went on, made
a meaningful contribution over three years when the team wasn't

(14:12):
convinced that had an alternative to him, did the job
year four. However, when you know, logically in a cycle
this long, you would expect a team to have its
ups and downs, as Red Bull Racing has had. Probably
they didn't expect to have such a down this year
after the up of last year, but was found to
not be enough for a team at the very front
of a very competitive field this year. You know, we

(14:33):
had thought we're by many metrics, the most competitive season
ever in Formula One, by a number of winners one twos,
by team four teams competing for victories, all that kind
of thing. And I think it just shows and this
is maybe the broader picture at Red Bull Racing, that
that in decision over its driver lineup, its lack of
security over how it wants to use its four cars,

(14:53):
over its driver program that in some respects has been
superseded by the more targeted driver programs of rival teams
that are all picking up some of the most talented
drivers of the next generation. It's all been found to
be wanting and Sergio pei Is being in the car
for this fourth season and having secured a contract for
a fifth and a sixth theoretically just shows actually that
there's a bigger problem Red Bull Racing has had to

(15:15):
address in allowing him to fundamentally overstay his welcome, which
I guess kind of brings us to Liam Lawson. I
don't want to tar Leeham Lawson with all of the
problems Red Bull Racing has had, because he deserves he's
shot in Formula One, and he's clearly shown that he's
probably quick enough to warrant a shot at the front,
even if it's after only eleven Grand Prix over two seasons.
But Red Bulls kind of ended up with a solution

(15:37):
that I'm not sure anyone's really one hundred percent convinced by,
are they, Because not only does it mean Lean Lawson's
going to Red Bull Racing, I mean that means Yuki
Snod is not going to Red Bull Racing because despite
them renewing his contract earlier this year, unilaterally have chosen
not to put him at the senior team, which is
kind of like, what's the point of being at the
junior team? It's going to be Isaac Kadjabin RB. But
the team, no one really seems that convinced by him either.

(15:59):
You know, they've spoken about him twice really, and it's
both of his FP one sessions, and at neither opportunity
they really say anything super positive. And that's no slight
against him. It's just suggests he's not going to be
a generational talent. It's not like they've arrived at the
perfect optimal solution whereby all ends are tied up neatly.
There's still kind of to me feel like they're in

(16:19):
a little bit of this rather just hoping that Liam
Lawson might be the circuit breaker.

Speaker 2 (16:24):
Yeah, you're right in that Sergio pais been there for
as long as he's been indicates a deeper problem within
the Red Bulls structure and one that historically and never had.
I mean back to the days of Haimongshwari and Jean
rik Vern where it brought two young drivers in and
then bones them both two more young drivers in Carlo
Science and Max Forstappen and then those guys, So once

(16:46):
upon a time there was no problem. And now that
other teams have their own junior programs that mirror what
Rebull's doing, there's less pool or you know, the pool
isn't as deep within that program, but I think it
also speaks. So this is a conversation I was having
a week or two back with someone was how long
can you realistically be Max for Staffen's teammate, and the

(17:10):
figure we landed obvious sort of two years, the reason
being that the first year can be explained and written
off as learning. You're coming into Max's team. He's a
generational talent. Everything's built around Max, and you've got to
come to terms with that. The second year you're on
equal footing, and you've then got to come to terms
with the fact that you're going to be decimated by

(17:30):
a generational talent, one of the best that Formula one's
ever seen. And at the end of that time, your
reputation Formula one is probably going to be tarnished because
not necessarily because of anything that you as a driver
have done, but because who you're competing against. And that's
if you look back too. When Daniel Ricardo was promoted
to Repel alongside seb said was sort of on his

(17:51):
way down, on his way out of Red Bull, as
Daniel was on his way in and up and as
a result at the end of what was that twenty fifteen,
fourteen or fourteen. There we go, I'm showing how bad
my memory is. But at the end of twenty fourteen,
Daniel's reputation was golden because he'd beaten the world champion,
a full time world champion. That's the battle that Liam

(18:11):
Lawson is now going to the advantage obviously that Daniel
had as he had a season or two in one
under his belt with ty Rosso and HRT, he was
nowhere near as green as what Liam Lawson is. But
that's now the opportunity that Liam finds himself in. If
he goes into Red Bull and can even match Max,
that's pretty extraordinary. To beat him is unrealistic, wholly unrealistic.

(18:33):
I guess in Daniel's favor there was regulation change as well,
but if he can go in there and deliver the job.
This is something that I actually spoke to Liam shortly
after his announcement as a Red Bull driver and it
was absolutely bouncing off the ceiling. But one of the
points that he made predictably so obviously yes, because yeah,

(18:54):
that he looks.

Speaker 1 (18:55):
So serious in their announcement Instagram. He should have been
happier than that.

Speaker 2 (19:00):
Yeah, that's sort of lean. He doesn't get too carried
away as a professional. You're get to get my away
from the cameras. And he's awesome, awesome dude, hilarious as well,
actually an incredible guitar player for what its worth. Imagine
getting him and David Hill on stage. But you know,

(19:21):
he said stuff like, there's nobody better learn from. It's
an opportunity to become the best driver I can be.
There's nobody better for me to go up against, you know,
referencing the fact that he's going to be driving alongside
a proven career killer in Max with Stafford. You know,
he's ended the careers effectively of Daniel Ricardo, Sergio Perry's
Pierre Gasoline, Alex Albert obviously guessing albut I've gone on
and done other things. But the point stands. So it's

(19:44):
a hell of a task. But he's also realistic, you know, obviously,
once he said to me, I know, the team goal
next year is to be fighting for the championship, and
if we're in a position to do that, I'm doing
my job. He knows he's not there to win necessarily
races or championships, whatever. But he said to score points
and do that consistently, which is something that Perees can't do.

(20:04):
The challenge that he will have is not only will
he be compared to Max Astappen, which is a fair
comparison because the teammate, he will also be compared to
Sergio Perez, which is a wholly unfair comparison because different cars,
different areas, different drivers, different competition, and Yuki Sonoda again
for all the same reasons. It's a wholly unfair comparison

(20:27):
needs to be judged on his own own merits, not
in comparison to others. The Sonoda thing, you know, look
that they renewed Sergio in the first place two years ago,
whatever it was, I mean that it was done then,
wasn't it. Yuki Sonoda has been there to satisfy Honda. Basically,
there are clearly issues as to why they don't think

(20:48):
he's worthy of a rebel opportunity. I think we've heard
some of those. I don't know that we know all
of them. But have we heard the same sort of
brashness that you know, aggression, fiery temper from Liam No.
We heard him being forthright on the radio. Yeah, absolutely,
but that's what rebel wants. So yeah, I don't think
Yuki has been treated harsh and the running on the
wall has been there for two or three years for him.

(21:11):
He'll do twenty twenty five with RB and then probably
move on with Honda Engines because you know, he clearly
now has no value to Red Bull, so I can't
see that he will hang around hoping for an opportunity. Conversely,
you know we saw Daniel Ricardo. Once Red Bull decides

(21:31):
you have no value to the organization beyond the Honda Engines,
that is what Yuki Sonoda is. They'll cut and run.
They'll find someone else. Ivid limblad amwasa there's a number
of kids out there that, yes, it will be a
gamble to promote, but they've done that before.

Speaker 1 (21:48):
Yeah, I'm sort of a little bit in two minds
about all of those things. On the one hand, like
we've sort of illustrated this. The former Minati dam used
to just be ruthless about the way we deal with
its drivers. Yuki Sonoda. Putting aside the Honda connection, I
suppose who's clearly quick. He's quick enough to have been
a Red Bull backed driver, even though the Honda connections.
What got him there. Clearly is talented enough to be there,

(22:09):
but would never have survived into what will be a
fifth season by now because if that already decided he
wasn't going to Red Bull Racing, that would be it.
As you say, they would be much more willing to
take a punt even on I mean any number of
the young drivers' talk about arvadd bad he's gonna have
his first F two season next year. There would have
been more than enough. You know, he'll have that F
two season. Doesn't matter where you'll finish, You'll end up
at a racing Bulls or whatever it'll be called in

(22:31):
twenty twenty six, which may well be the case, and
the same applies for Liam Lawson at the senior team now.
Admittedly Red Bull has its history is relatively short, which
means it sometimes it's hard to look back at how
it behaved in its early years, particularly very early years.
Been no resemblance to the team today or even then
it's middle success years. You can't just copy and paste,

(22:53):
particularly considering Max with staff and is so much at
the center of the team, Unlike even Sebastian Vedel in
those days. I think the team is much more built
around Max and was around Sebastian a couple of different ways,
and so I don't think it's a problem to promote
Lean Lawson with so relatively little experience, particularly also in
a year when Mercedes is taking a punt on Kimi
Antonelli who hasn't had any Grand PRIXV experience, and maybe

(23:15):
that reflects on their lower ambitions next year. But I
think if you ask anyone Mercedes, they would hope that
they'll be contending for regular wins and maybe even the
championship next season. And if not, he'll still only have
one year of racing under his belt in twenty twenty six,
when they definitely will hope for that. But on the
other hand, Red Bull Racing needs some stability and it's
hard to imagine that being achieved with Liam Lawson. But

(23:37):
then I guess if you argue that, then you're arguing
essentially to go and find someone just like Sergio Peis,
because this was the argument raised after Alex Albon's career
with Red Bull Racing ended, and they went and found
someone who was a safe set of hands, essentially, and
that's where they land on. You know, had that thinking prevailed,
probably would have ended up with Valtribotas at Red Bull
Racing because it feels like he's in exactly the same
position to his career Pairs was looking for a drive,

(24:01):
So that's kind of it's sort of it's just an
interesting position. I find the whole Red Bull program to
be and I guess this is sort of like the
reverse of growing Pains, where they're trying to return to
the format they had maybe five or six years ago,
where they had a team dedicated only to drivers who
were there for no more ridi than three seasons and
they were turfed, and then you just try them at
Red Bull Racing. It's just going to be very interesting.

(24:23):
I think this next few years at Red Bull's gonna
be very interesting. There could be some very hard questions
for the team to answer. I hope Liam does well,
obviously because I think he deserves a probably quite a
long career in Formula One. But I mean, how many
times can drivers who are teammates with Maxistaff and get lucky,
Because I feel like that that's what they've all been right.
Pierre Gasly could have had his career ended, but because

(24:44):
he was at the start of that drying up of
the pipeline. There was a seat for him back at
whatever it was called at that time, Toro Rosso I think,
and he was able to rebuild himself Minardi the former
Marati team. Likewise, Alex Albot, I mean he was out
of the sport for a year but managed to find
his way back into William Sergo Perry's may have had
his career ended by this. He sort of suggested he
wants to remains to be seen, Like you said, maybe

(25:05):
the Cadillac team. A lot can change in twelve months, though,
what will happen to Liam Lawson if things don't work
out in the ideal way and read Bull loses patience again?
So I hope he does well enough to avoid that
for a least a couple of years and build a
reputation that'll see him continue into Formula One for a
long time. That's the news for the last week and
a half whatever it is technically of the official Formula

(25:26):
One season. Let's all pretend everything stops now for a
couple of months until racing starts again.

Speaker 2 (25:30):
Let's hope it all stops. I need a break, Yeah, I.

Speaker 1 (25:32):
Think everyone needs a bit of a break. Christmas is
just so close. But of course, our Alternative Championship has
not concluded yet. We must wrap this one up. We're
going to get to the full rankings in just a moment.
But of course, having missed the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
review and now back for the final episode wrapping up
the entire season, we do have points to give away.
We do have a couple of entries still for the

(25:52):
Alternative Championship before we can officially declare a winner. Matt,
do you want to start us off with the last
six selections of the ALTRA season?

Speaker 2 (26:01):
Yeah, the one where the points don't matter and everyone
doesn't know it exists, but they really, really really want it.
So my points have been skewed not just by Abu Dhabi,
but by the events of the last week or so
as well. So there is a bit of a Liam
Lawson flavor to the first selection, which is obviously Liam Lawson.

(26:23):
I've given him four hundred and thirty seven points because
that's a number of points that that Max scored this year.
I was tempted to go for given the number of
points between Max and Sergio, but I thought I can't
be bothering the mass.

Speaker 1 (26:39):
I think you're pretty much just har it don't you,
and that you probably get your answer.

Speaker 2 (26:42):
Yeah, probably it was a third though.

Speaker 1 (26:44):
Oh yes it was actually wasn't that we talked about that.
It was about a third. That's great.

Speaker 2 (26:49):
So it was four hundred and thirty seven points. A
third of that is I've got socks on. I can't
count that.

Speaker 1 (26:55):
That's too much, very good. I like that, though. I'm
going to start some not esoteric, maybe a little bit
tenuous of a point score, considering we don't often talk
about reserve drivers, especially if they're not knocking on the
door for Formula One. I'm taking thirty points off Sauber
or the former Sauber team, the former BMW team, and
then anyone look at it for describing development drivers Tao

(27:16):
Porchet and Zane Maloney as having graduated from their driver
academy when really what they're saying is they're severing all
ties with them and don't want anything more to do
with them. That was beautifully creative language, well I mean
creative language warranting points off. Of course, thirty points off.
I say thirty because that's ten for each of them,
including Carrie Shriner, who at least is sticking with Soubur

(27:38):
in a new role, but has also in inverted Commas
graduated from the Academy.

Speaker 2 (27:44):
Yeah, yeah, I saw that and it was Yeah, it's
some of the most creative public relations I've seen in
quite some time. Actually took to Twitter and and sort
of made his much because, let's face it, effectively it
was a press release to say so long and thanks

(28:04):
for all the fish yes, to borrow a hitchhiker's guard
to the galaxy reference. It was. Yeah, it was glorious
in its ridiculousness. So I wholeheartedly agree with with thirty
points off. In fact, I encourage you to reconsider give
them more off.

Speaker 1 (28:23):
Maybe I should maybe all maybe all times of by ten.

Speaker 2 (28:28):
That we're talking three point one hundred points a driver, well,
will you've taken three hundred points off? I've given three.

Speaker 1 (28:43):
Oh, okay, not enough to balance it out, but to
botas okay.

Speaker 2 (28:47):
Because he's a third driver, it's message. I think that's
a good move for all involved. It's not a brilliant
move because that's face that he's not racing, but it's
a good move and worthy of three points. And given
that we have a history of taking huge numbers of
points off, I think even just getting one point in
the alternative Championship is pretty seismic.

Speaker 1 (29:06):
Yes, it is a good.

Speaker 2 (29:08):
Yeah, he gets three points for inking a deal would
be third driver at.

Speaker 1 (29:15):
Me, very good. I've in fact, I've noticed now I'll
just let you know in advance. At all, I'm only
taking points off. So it's next is one hundred and
fourteen points off Red Bull. We've already talked about this
for exercising Yuki Sonoda's contract extension calls earlier this year,
but still clearly having no interest in promoting him to
the senior team, one hundred and fourteen being the total

(29:37):
number of races he'll be competing for the brand if
he leaves at the end of next season. As I guess,
we sort of expect him to. Now. Just tremendous shit
housery from Red Bulls driver management program is it. It's
got a team that's specifically established to feed Red Bull Racing,
and they continue to sign and more. I guess the
context of this it was just as he was suggesting
there was interest from other teams and if there was

(29:58):
no interest from Red Bull Racing, he would consider, uh,
you know, stretching his wings, putting his career in the
hands of someone else, and Red Bull says no, we've
got the contract and that's fine and contractually are allowed
to do so. But to have no obligator, to have
no even inkling to promote him, just seems like a
massive waste of time.

Speaker 2 (30:15):
If one dispells, you know, the link to Honda and
ignores that. But yes, I hardly agree. It does seem
a bit rough on. So you take those points away
from Red Bull, not from Yuki Sonoda.

Speaker 1 (30:27):
No from Red By.

Speaker 2 (30:28):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (30:28):
No, absolutely, he's had enough theoretical points taken off his career.
I suppose, hasn't he so after Red Bull?

Speaker 2 (30:34):
Well, yeah, that makes that makes a lot of sense,
doesn't it. It's it's it's harsh, But that's the game
we play, isn't it.

Speaker 1 (30:41):
So it is. There's no forgiveness. There's no soft points
here in.

Speaker 2 (30:47):
There really aren't there.

Speaker 1 (30:49):
Very few points at all.

Speaker 2 (30:50):
In fact, well, you're a better chance of losing them
than scoring them in fairness, And on that theme, yes,
and sticking with the kicking the ball while it's down. Ye,
I'm going to take one nine hundred and eighty five
points off of RB slash Racing Bulls slash Alpha TOWI
slash uh, Tororosso for besmirching the Minardi name the marketing.

(31:20):
The word you used before was magnificent shit housery. That's
gone on. Yeah, Minardi entered the sport into Formula one
is in nineteen eighty five, and it ran as Minardi
pretty much all the way through until it was about
two thousand and five. Yeah, two thousand and five, when
two thousand and six when Red Bull took it over
as Torosso, and then it's had more name changes than

(31:43):
hot lunches since then. But yeah, so, nineteen hundred and
eighty five points coming off of RB slash Racing bulls slash. Whatever,
can we can we preemptibly take points away from next season?

Speaker 1 (31:57):
Yeah? Maybe maybe after we doll out the final championship positions,
we can reset the tally as we see fit. Finally,
I'm taking eighteen million points off Sergio Perez for in
September tweeting a meme that he would not be leaving
Red Bull, a tweet scene by eighteen million people only

(32:19):
two months later leave red Bull. So good in fact,
that the users on x or Twitter as formerly Twitter,
to keep with the Minardi theme, have a subjected it
to a community note saying no, in fact, he did leave,
I think effectively eighteen million times lying about his contract intention.
I'm sure, and I'm sure his intention was not to leave.

(32:40):
But nonetheless, eighteen million points of that's that's fantastic.

Speaker 2 (32:45):
I deeply appreciate that for all sorts of reasons, because
it's just the arbitrary application of points.

Speaker 1 (32:54):
That's what we stand for.

Speaker 2 (32:56):
That is everything the Alternative Championship stands for. The very
foundation of the competition. There is no rhyme nor reason,
no logic, often no mass in forced either. And yeah,
that's that's I like it. I like it a lot.

Speaker 1 (33:17):
Well. That brings us to the end of the Alternative Championship, Matt.
They are all of the entries now calculated and tabulated,
and we can now reveal the winners well, of course
read out all them in reverse championship order. We want
to have a bit of hype building up now, Matt.
You've been calculating the numbers, so I'm going to leave
the top ten to you, but will make our way
up from the bottom. There were sixty six entries in

(33:38):
the end. Over how many weeks or episodes we've done
of this podcast, I'm going to start with number sixty
six on negative four Is this in millions? Four hundred
and seven million, nice one hundred and seven million, nine
hundred and ninety nine, nine hundred and eighty points, So
a number as large as it is specific to Ticketmaster

(33:59):
last on the Alternate Championship least.

Speaker 2 (34:01):
There is a logic for that, because I never actually
gave it a number of points. This is one of
my awards, that's right, I remember, and I just decided
that it is going to finish last because it has
one job and his wholesale failed to deliver. And this
sort of relates to tickets going on South the Australian
grand Print. The system crashing and they're having to delay
it by year by year, by a day. And I

(34:25):
got stuck into them because I've got one job and
they failed miserably and then tried to blame someone else. Yes,
it's like my children, I didn't do it while you're
holding that hammer. So yeah, they're they're deliberately at the
bottom because their points were a multiplier of whoever finished.

Speaker 1 (34:47):
Search points next worst.

Speaker 2 (34:49):
Yes, that's it, that's it.

Speaker 1 (34:52):
I like that a lot. Next worst was Formula one
itself on negative two hundred and three million, nine hundred
ninety nine, nine hundred and nine points. It was for
saying Las Vegas doesn't need a sprint because it's already
so fast, and that has nothing to do with a
reported sprint hosting. For your four million dollars accrued from
every circle that hosts a sprint. Let's look at third last.

(35:14):
It's Williams on negative two hundred million points.

Speaker 2 (35:17):
Yeah, so that's the the reinvestment that Dalton's made, the
over capitalization and not over capitalization, but they're close to
over capitalizing on that team. And just it wasn't a
great season, lots of crash damage, underwhelming. I thought it
was poor to bring Logan Sargent out of the car
and the Australian Grand Prix just a few decisions through

(35:39):
the year I didn't like, and so when there was
an excuse to give it a two hundred million dollar deduction,
I took it very good.

Speaker 1 (35:46):
Next on the list in sixty thirty Sergio Perez, most
of which is his negative eighteen million points from just
a few moments ago. James vowed sixty second. I believe
I gave him a positive number. Maybe it was just
one point because he did because he mentioned that Franco
Colin No, not Franco Colinbindo, bigy, pardon who was he
talking about? Actually he said it was good mix. Schumacher

(36:07):
of course, that he would be good but not great
in justifying Franco colobinto being promoted to the team, which
I thought was good. But you then subsequently took quite
a few points off him.

Speaker 2 (36:17):
Yeah, for much the same reason as I did with Williams.
I didn't agree with some of the decisions, so I
found a way to give him a whack and I
took a lazy one hundred and sixty eight thousand off him.
I mean, I think we said at the time that
he needed a big back half of the year. He
just didn't deliver, did he.

Speaker 1 (36:34):
No, he just did never really recover from that big blow.
In fact, I think the one point it must have
been the same week or a similar week as the
British Grand Prix, which lost one hundred and sixty eight
thousand points. I believe this is to do with the
ticket sellout situation. On Sunday there were several tickets still available.

Speaker 2 (36:52):
I think it was this was due to the capacity
and claim it was a sellout crowd just like from memory, Qatar.

Speaker 1 (37:00):
I mean that's always helps when they're in seats.

Speaker 2 (37:04):
I was going to say, well, there's plenty of seats,
but only the very few tickets very hard to come by,
not because not because they're in high demand, but because
there's only about six of them.

Speaker 1 (37:13):
I like that. It's a country of many seats for
few tickets. I like that a lot. Sixtieth in the
order on negative ten thousand points is Johnny Herbert.

Speaker 2 (37:25):
For his comments as a pundit while also being as steward.
So his punditary comments on the dishing out of a
penalty that he himself dished out yes to Maxim Staffin
at the Singapore Grand Prix and then in Mexico as well,
and then the inconsistency there because he gave a ten
thousand dollars fine. I think it was yes' to char

(37:48):
Leclair rather than community service. So I think Johnny should
pick up the tab for that one.

Speaker 1 (37:53):
So I should, and with so many negative points, I'm
sure he'll be in a good position to do so.
Fifty ninth in the order is our old friend RB
on negative twenty two hundred and eighty seven points. Whatever
this was awarded for it feels well deserved. If anything,
there should have been more points off.

Speaker 2 (38:10):
It feels a bit like that, and a lot of
those were We're today because RB is, of course Minardi.

Speaker 1 (38:15):
Yes, well, yes, I.

Speaker 2 (38:16):
Should always be remembered and I'm with you. Probably deserved
more points off.

Speaker 1 (38:20):
Negative twenty twelve. Fifty eighth in the order is Alpine.

Speaker 2 (38:24):
It was passing off a twenty twelve spect Lotus as
an Alpine good would would Jack do? And running up
the hill in that car? I thought that was a
little bit dishonest. I didn't like it, so I took
points off one point for every year it was a
twenty twelve Spect car, So twenty twelve came off there
tally and alas there was no miraculous second and third

(38:47):
place finishing the Alternative championship for them to salvage that
that performance.

Speaker 1 (38:51):
You better believe there'll be more of that in the
all in team launch in early next year, because I
suspect there won't be too many real powers.

Speaker 2 (39:00):
At that lown lots of points off.

Speaker 1 (39:01):
He's a personal favorite of mine. I'll let you take
over the next few after this. It's fifty seventh in
the order, negative one thousand points off Shane Howard, the
Supercars CEO. I remember this one well. This was points
off for claiming he was showing respects to Daniel Ricardo
by saying he'd only be contacted at the appropriate time
about a possible Supercars drive simultaneously in the week building

(39:24):
up to the Baptist one thousand to make publicity stunt
out of it. Thought that was tremendously disingenuous and that
was a thousand points off.

Speaker 2 (39:31):
Yeah again, probably deserve more. Yes, number fifty six with
tied on negative one thousand, but because it was scored
earlier in the championship, it I ranks higher. An unnamed
McClaren manager, Yes and Memory says this was one of yours, yes,
and was for coining the phrase Papayo rule.

Speaker 1 (39:51):
That is correct. Again another in retrospect, probably someone who
should have got more points taken off them because that
was surely one of the low points of the year,
the phrase papie rus and thoroughly.

Speaker 2 (40:02):
Deserved the irony being that at the end of the
year Papia did rule. Look, they got us there they did.
They did one spot high of fifty fifth FA President
m Hume Ben Salam minus seven hundred and sixty.

Speaker 1 (40:14):
I certainly remember taking points off him for I believe
the phrase was moralizing immorlly when he said drivers shouldn't
swear and then likening them to rappers in obviously racial language.
So there was at least some points off for that,
probably points off for a variety of other things. Let's
be honest, he's not had the cleanness of seasons, has
old made mbs, but you can't say he hasn't had

(40:36):
to go.

Speaker 2 (40:38):
He's got stuck in there. Yeah, he got stuck if yeah,
if nothing else, you can say he's in a red
hot go just to prove how ridiculous the alternative championship
is in fifty fourth on minus seven hundred and six points,
is our world champion max of stuff?

Speaker 1 (40:56):
Oh there you go.

Speaker 2 (40:57):
He's not even He's not even broken the top fifty
one spot behind Toto Wolf on minus four hundred and
seventy one. I do remember many of Toto clearly something
to do with shelf life here.

Speaker 1 (41:09):
Yeah, so I from memory it was for claiming the comments.
The shelf Life comments, which were published in an extract
from that Mercedes book, were taken out of context, despite
the fact he clearly would have authorized all those comments
the way they were printed in the book and did
a small media tour about the book after that. I
just thought that was tremendously disingenuous and absolutely warranted some
points off.

Speaker 2 (41:30):
Yeah, and he'll be most frustrated because he's finished once
again behind Christian Horner and minus three hundred and twenty five.
Christian said a few silly things over the course of
the year, and a couple of really awkward interviews. There
was one with was Sky Where was that? That was
a really awkward interview with Janika Patrick just.

Speaker 1 (41:49):
After the mid season break. I believe it when they
did they'd retained Sergio Perry.

Speaker 2 (41:53):
It was gloriously awkward, But I can't remember. I thought
probably would have given points to that, because that's just
good tell.

Speaker 1 (42:00):
Well. I remember I'd have quite a few points off
in Mexico because of his pretty horrendous defense of Max
Mustaffan's driving against Lando Norris. I remember from him saying
he had literally printed out to use a Toto Wolf
quote that I think he used without realizing it Lando
Norris's telemetry to prove he wouldn't have made the corner
and therefore Max didn't deserve the penalty, saying exactly the

(42:23):
opposite of what he said a week earlier in the
US when he was also defending the staff in the
opposite incident, and then despite all of the evidence saying
he wasn't going to appeel any of the decisions. So
I think he deserved a lot of points off over
the course of what has felt like a pretty insincere
year from Christian Horner. But I guess he won the
Driver's Championship.

Speaker 2 (42:40):
Well, he's done better than well, better worse. He's done
worse than Sober because it's a new entrant as of
today with minus three hundred points, and it managed to
stay off our radar all season long, yes, and then
fell on its face at the final herd with minus
three hundred points. And I'm glad I encouraged you to
MultiMate because it just feels like it deserves to be

(43:03):
somewhere there in the.

Speaker 1 (43:04):
Team, much like the actual team avoided the points tally
almost completely until the final week or so. Also, a
new entry was Red Bull at fiftieth minus one hundred
and fourteen points, for of course, the way it's dealt
with Yuki Sonoda over the course of the season, Forty
ninth is Lando Norris, briefly a Driver's Championship contender on

(43:24):
negative one hundred and six points.

Speaker 2 (43:27):
I do remember being critical of him in Austria and
not finishing that race, not dragging the car at the
flag like Max did, and also the Hungarian Grand Prix
springs to mind, yes, the way it was a little
bit of deuce around letting oscar back through having been
given track position in the first instance to protect it

(43:48):
the second place.

Speaker 1 (43:48):
And also memory serves in sau Paolo where he described
Max Bastappan's victory as being luck and not talent oing
to the red flag. I think points would have come
off there as well.

Speaker 2 (43:57):
He's a very lucky four time world champion, that guy.

Speaker 1 (44:00):
I'm very lucky.

Speaker 2 (44:00):
Indeed.

Speaker 1 (44:01):
Forty eight is anyone who used the phrase let them race?
I fully own that one. I'm tired of hearing it.
We all we should remember, but clearly no one does
what let them race era look like, which was the
Maximstaff and Lewis Hamilton deeply controversial twenty twenty one season
which there appeared to be no rules at all. Forty
seventh I believe this one was from you all, Team
Press press relations offices on negative one hundred points.

Speaker 2 (44:25):
Yeah, there are a couple of instances during the year
where various members of the team's media teams have just
out and out lied forty six.

Speaker 1 (44:35):
It's Perlly on negative ninety points, forty fifth, Ted Kravitz
on negative seventy five points. Lance Stroll got negative fifty
one points. Probably lucky to get away with just negative
fifty one points.

Speaker 2 (44:45):
That would have presumably games just for being lent Stroll.

Speaker 1 (44:48):
Rejoining through the wet gravel in Brazil probably. Oh yeah,
after having his car repaired, I was forty third on
negative forty seven points. It feels a bit harsh, but
I do remember you giving me these points for I
said something you didn't like. You didn't agree.

Speaker 2 (45:02):
Yeah, it was the McLaren is. Yeah, McLaren is a
New Zealand team. It's not it's British. We've clarified this.
I actually I spoke to Liam about this and he
said I was making a joke and people have just
gone too far with it.

Speaker 1 (45:16):
So basically what he deserves forty seven points off because
I agreed with it. I think it's I think if
red Bull's allowed to be Austrian despite being based in
Milton Keynes, then McLaren is allowed to be KIWI. So
I stand by that, all right? Where those negative forty
seven points with honor.

Speaker 2 (45:33):
I will take forty seven points off of Liam Lawson
for you, for a sign of solidarity. I've taken forty
seven points of him. Again, it's not a voting round,
but who cares. It's the alternative championship. It doesn't matter.

Speaker 1 (45:45):
That's fine, right McLaren strategists are forty second on negative
forty four points. I mean, there are so many races.
Presumably they accrued this app still under.

Speaker 2 (45:54):
Constructor probably one for each mistake.

Speaker 1 (45:56):
Yeah, yes, quite possibly. Forty first is Logan Sergeant negative
thirty seven points. Alex albon is fortieth on negative twenty
eight points, a modest negative points total, all.

Speaker 2 (46:06):
Right, thirty nine the organizers of the Las Vegas Grand
Prix minus twenty seven points. I'm surprised is that low?

Speaker 1 (46:12):
Yes? Well, I mean I believe this was for them,
also saying that they couldn't possibly have a sprint race
because the twenty seven openings to the track or something
like that didn't seem like a very good excuse at
the time. But still top thirty nine. That's not bad.

Speaker 2 (46:25):
Yeah. Sitting thirty eight is Tom Coronell minus twenty five.
He is tired on points, but somehow behind someone who
doesn't exist, Sonny Hayes, also minus twenty five, and another
one of yours, if memory.

Speaker 1 (46:39):
Serves, Yes, I think this is for not understanding how
motors board works. Being presumably a multiple racementing drive car
drives on the need for a car that, yes, this
is car built for combat, not for being fast on
the straits or something like that.

Speaker 2 (46:53):
We can't beat him on the straits, so we have
to beat him in the curves.

Speaker 1 (46:55):
Yes.

Speaker 2 (46:56):
In thirty six on minus twenty four is has They
don't remember why. There was probably a reason, but I
don't remember it. Well.

Speaker 1 (47:03):
Then let's move on to thirty fifth. McLaren negative fifteen points.
Probably could have folded this in with the strategists and
also the unnamed management figure, but they won the constructors Championship,
so you know what they can cop this one on
the chin. Thirty fourth is George Russell negative thirteen points.
But let's move up to thirty third, which is you,
Matt Coosh negative ten points.

Speaker 2 (47:24):
Boring.

Speaker 1 (47:25):
I think you.

Speaker 2 (47:27):
Was boring there. We go. I think I think maintaining
tradition or just be boring.

Speaker 1 (47:31):
Look his book self criticism is important. Thirty second goes
to the Circuit of the Americas with negative ten points.
I remember this one well. This was for organizing a
condolence's book for Daniel vccardo in the Paddock, despite the
fact he's not dead.

Speaker 2 (47:46):
Yeah. Yeah, that was a bit weird and postal lever
social media and all sorts of stuff. It was odd.

Speaker 1 (47:50):
Next in the order is US broadcaster or podcast host
I'm sure which is Howard Stern. He's thirty first, negative
ten points for not knowing who Lewis Hamilton is. In
an interview with vanquished presidential candidate Kamala Harris, who was
apparently a big fan of Formula one. Howard Stern never
heard of Lewis.

Speaker 2 (48:09):
Yeah. Funnily enough, I've encountered someone else in the last
week or so he's never heard of Lewis Hamilton either.
So maybe we're just too wrapped up in our own
little bubble.

Speaker 1 (48:17):
Maybe we are.

Speaker 2 (48:18):
Let's go. Kimi Antonelli also on minus ten. He's in
the thirtieth place. I think this was throwing at the
fence in Monza during free practice one within two laps
of getting out on track.

Speaker 1 (48:29):
Yes, that sounds totally believable and are warranted.

Speaker 2 (48:32):
Next stuff, I'm looking forward to one of these in
a couple of year. But next up in twenty ninth
is Kyle Larson minus ten points for claiming he could
better Max for Staffan he was a better driver than
Max for Staffen was.

Speaker 1 (48:42):
Yes, he said there'd be no question that they'd be
able to beat him in the same car yeap, despite
having no clear or obvious evidence for this claim.

Speaker 2 (48:50):
Yeah, backed by a number of drivers who I'd never
heard of. Big fan of this one though. Twenty eighth,
also on minus ten the F one graphics department, the
Great Brittian Grand Prix, Yes.

Speaker 1 (49:02):
The graphics behind the podium interviews, the Spanish Grand Prix.
I guess looking forward to the next race in Great Britain.

Speaker 2 (49:09):
Minus nine points in twenty seventh is David Croft. Sadly,
that's our final negative point entry.

Speaker 1 (49:16):
So more than half of the entry so in the negative.

Speaker 2 (49:18):
In twenty six that our first positive entry on a
single point is a Achio Toyota.

Speaker 1 (49:24):
Yes, I remember this well. It's for if memory serves
begging reporters and sub editors not to run headlines reading
the Toyota is returning to Formula one, and then we
all only to wake up the next morning and read
everywhere the Toyota, including an F one's own website. That's right,
including F one's very own website. The Toyota had returned
to Formula one. So it's one consolation point magnificent.

Speaker 2 (49:45):
There's also one point for Lawrence Straw in twenty fifth.
Next up is Leo Leclair for a for stealing Instagram,
for dominating Instagram during the summer break. He's in twenty
fifth with three points. I mean, that's that's more than
I've got.

Speaker 1 (50:00):
Yes, more than Akio Toyota, see one of the biggest
automotive companies in the world. Well done to him.

Speaker 2 (50:06):
Twenty third Franco Colopinto for four points. I'm surprised he
stayed off our radar with a couple of the shunts
that he had towards the end of the year. But
a good play. Let's say, if you're in the positive,
you're doing pretty well. You are, so Franco Colopinto a
good result in twenty third with four points, could have
been so much worse for him, speaking the witch Mecca's

(50:30):
the Minati team boss five points in twenty second again
could have been so much worse, managed to stay off
the radar and avoid the carnage that surrounded RB which
ended up fifty nights.

Speaker 1 (50:40):
Yes, and I believe that he got those points for
confessing even he didn't know what was going on with
Daniel Ricardo after the Singapore Grand Prix, and that he
would be good if someone told him. Yeah, so big, honest,
I think is what those points.

Speaker 2 (50:52):
Before there's's a lesson of their team prs. There is
a lesson there. Next up is the FO Suprimo himself
on seven points. The stephanot to Monicali in twenty first.

Speaker 1 (51:02):
Probably goes with the FIA as well on ten points.
I think some of these points were for actually doing
quite a good job in Brazil when the weather was
so bad and they willingly and freely rescheduled the weekend
when in the past they would never have done so.
They would have just committed themselves to running in the
rain and canceling everything. So everyone did a good job
in twenty I'm going to leave the top ten to you,
so I'm going to take the next ten, tied with

(51:23):
the FIA nineteen points is Jean Todd, someone who hasn't
run the FIA for quite a number of years, so
quite a baffling introduction, but I'm sure the points were
warranted one way or another to be in the top twenty.
Jack Dowan gets fourteen points. I believe this is for
choosing a number that Kimmy reichen And raced with. But
Kimmy Raikinon chose because there was just the number he

(51:43):
had at the time, the story behind it. But Jack's
given it a story, so good for him. Seventeen is
char Leclair seventeen thro other on fifteen points, perhaps just
for winning his home Grand Prix in Monaco. I don't
remember specific insting for this one. Nico Holkenberg sixteen points
just for being good. I suppose these all just feel
like very good good yeah, oh yes. Now. Lewis Hamilton

(52:05):
is fifteenth on nineteen points, perhaps winning his home Grand Prix,
but controversially, Charlotte Claire is fourteenth. Again this the twenty
five points must be for winning Monaco. I'm afraid I'm
not sure what the fifteen points before. Christian Mansell is thirteenth.
The Australian Formula two driver on forty six points. Now,
I remember giving him certainly some points for being on
the podium in Monaco and a variety of points over

(52:29):
the course of the year, but I don't remember exactly
where the forty six comes from.

Speaker 2 (52:33):
I don't remember exactly where forty six was, but certainly
as a Boijan And he's good starting now too. And yeah,
if you follow him on on Twitter, if you don't,
go and follow him on Twitter, because he's hilarious, just
absolute banter man. It's it's easy. He's a good lad.
But I think I think it was basically just for
Azerbaijan and Formula two and all that good stuff.

Speaker 1 (52:53):
Yes, which is good on him. Twelfth is Simon Lasenbye
Spider Pig.

Speaker 2 (52:58):
Oh no, this is a spider pig fighter.

Speaker 1 (53:00):
Pick very good. Eleventh is Toyota for coming back, well,
don't say coming back to Formula one. This is what
it was all about, for joining Haas in a very
roundabout way, but ensuring that they will be in Formuda
one with minimum expenses expended.

Speaker 2 (53:16):
Which brings us to the top ten. And I feel
like we need some sort of big, big introduction, you know,
some sort of mantim musical number. Maybe get Neil Patrick
Harris out that sort of stuff, because in tenth place
we've got Oscar Piastri on sixty points.

Speaker 1 (53:31):
Very nice.

Speaker 2 (53:32):
It just seems like that's an accumulation of goodness. I
don't remember him saying anything particularly funny or outrageous. I
think it was just a case of doing a good
job in a few races, as a Bojan springs to mind.

Speaker 1 (53:43):
Very good. I think that's warranted, does deserve many points
this year.

Speaker 2 (53:47):
Voucheri Botas helped along nicely into ninth by the three
points I gave them today on a casual one hundred
and twenty one. I don't remember where the other one
hundred and eighteen come from, but the three for signing
with Mercedes have made all the difference. I do remember, though.
In eighth place on three hundred and twenty nine points
is Ralph Schumacher. Yes, because he made the announcement of

(54:10):
his personal life this year, which I think was fabulous.
So he got a point for every point that he
scored in his formul one career, which is three hundred
and twenty nine of them points. Structures changed since then,
so it's not really right. Probably scored more if he
was racing in modern Formula one, but three to twenty
nine points. I think that was a fair reward. He
sits one place behind a man on four hundred and

(54:33):
ninety five points Leam Lawson, which I was surprisingly high
for a bloke who's had eleven races, only.

Speaker 1 (54:38):
Six of yes, very lucrative six races this season, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (54:42):
I need to correct that. I need to take forty
seven points often that's four hundred and forty eight.

Speaker 1 (54:45):
So still impressive, still impressive.

Speaker 2 (54:48):
Makes makes no meaningful change to his position next place.
The already of this is not lost on me. Next
best or in sixth place, one nine hundred and sixty
nine points. It's Yuki Sonoda. The irony that Yuki beat
Liam by the order of what about four? Yes, that

(55:14):
that deeply amuses Yes.

Speaker 1 (55:16):
And you gave him all those points, I believe for
racing in a nineteen sixty one crash helmet at goodwoe.

Speaker 2 (55:20):
Yeah, he raised an over faous home. It's a good
which I thought that was that was kind of good.
I also gave all the next points one nine hundred
and ninety one because the DJ on the grid and
guitar played sells like teen spirit. It just put me
in a good mood, so I was bouncing around for
the rest of the day. That was worth a lot

(55:41):
of points. So you know, the DJ got nearly two
thousand points, because why not in fourth place Aston Martin
given that, given that Lawrence and Lancer both already appeared
on this a third entry for Auston Martin fourth place
with two and twenty four points, I think that's for

(56:01):
making the signing of twenty twenty.

Speaker 1 (56:03):
Four as it should be, as we should remember it
for this year. We certainly won't remember them for their
on track results this year. Why not? They're off track
signing and.

Speaker 2 (56:10):
In third place. I think we did big drum rolls
and all sorts of stuff. Maybe another musical number, bring
Neil Patrick Harris back in third place. We probably need
to change the name of this though, because it's Andretti
Ah Andretti in third place on twenty and twenty six points,
presumably again one point for the year in which they're

(56:33):
going to start in Formula one or propose to start
in Formula one. Do we need to refer them as
Andretti or Cadillac or GM or the team formerly known
as Andretti. It's a good question, is that we're just
simplifying call it Minardi. Ah, maybe we'll just do that now.
It brings us to second place. It was a big year,

(56:54):
fifty nine million points. He's been in a safe second
place for a long time, as safe as PA Championship
Adrian Newey.

Speaker 1 (57:03):
Yes, I believe that's for every reported dollar he set
to earn from Aston Martin.

Speaker 2 (57:07):
Yeah, that's that's that's a big whore.

Speaker 1 (57:11):
I mean fifty both in terms of points and in
terms of literally the money from Aston Mark.

Speaker 2 (57:17):
But it's still like it's still not a not holding
a candle to first place. Absolute runaway winner on eight billion,
two hundred billion and one is Daniel Ricardo.

Speaker 1 (57:34):
Yes, and this is of course the one point was
for the one point for fastest lape that he didn't
get in Singapore because he finished outside the top ten,
and the other eight billion, whatever it is, is for
every person on Earth. I believe because he won. The
fan Driver of the Day has a theoretical reach of
one hundred percent of the global population.

Speaker 2 (57:55):
So I think I think the world wanted him to
go out in a high he didn't make, you know,
and the championship that doesn't matter, the World Championship, the
former word World Championship, but the one that does. He
is the inaugural champion of the Pit Talk Alternative Championship,
the one that everyone wants even though they don't know

(58:15):
it exists.

Speaker 1 (58:16):
Yes, a worthy and deserved winner is Daniel Ricardo. And
on that note, that's all the time we have for
pit Talk today and indeed this season. Ahead of twenty
twenty five. You can subscribe to Pittalk wherever you get
your favorite podcasts, and you can leave us a rating
at review as well. You can give up to date
with all the latest on news throughout the off season
at Fox sports dot com dot Au and Speedcafe dot Com. Matt,
it's been a pleasure to talk you through this season,

(58:37):
of course, the Alternative Championships.

Speaker 2 (58:40):
It's been a thing. The Alternative Championship has just run
away like a train with no breaks, just like the
end of the twenty twenty four season. It was a cracker.
Let's hope that twenty twenty five is just as good
as it gives us lots of storylines to pick out
and pull out and argue about and take points.

Speaker 1 (58:56):
Off for absolutely and my name's been Michael Lomonado. Thanks
ver much for your company. We'll catch you next season.