Three-time BAFTA award-winning F1 commentator James Allen returns to the broadcast mic with a thoughtful and engaging new podcast, looking at the human side of ...
In this week’s edition, we look back at this November episode, exploring how F1 teams make key decisions on areas like driver recruitment, development, and race strategy and comparing it with how things are done at a top Premier League football club.
F1 is a sport built around technology, whereas, in football, the smartest teams have only begun using technology in the last decade for recruitment, strategy, in-game tactical decisions, and more.
With James to compare how Mercedes recruited Kimi Antonelli with how Liverpool FC discovered Mo Salah, we have two experts in their fields.
Rob Smedley, former race engineer to Felipe Massa, head of track engineering at Williams and who now runs Smedley Group which advises across the F1 spectrum on data and AI. Dr Ian Graham, of Ludonautics, was famously head of the data department at Liverpool FC for 11 years. His data analysis played a key role in building the Jurgen Klopp team that won the Premier League and Champions League. His book How to Win the Premier League is a brilliant guide to the way key decisions get taken in an elite sport.
Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/
Also, listen all the way to the end of the show as we unveil our new range of Autosport Podcasts, you can get more information on Tank Slappers, Autosport National, Retro and Racing, right here: https://www.autosport.com/general/news/autosport-launches-three-new-podcast-channels/10701896/
Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.
Producer: Dre Harrison
A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport
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51:33
23: Break Glass In The Event Of Emergency
We’ve just returned from Bahrain, where the F1 teams did their only test last week ahead of the new F1 season kick-off in Melbourne.
People say testing is boring but if you know what to look for, it’s anything but. The laps are on track, and the body language of the cars needs to be analysed. But there is also the body language of the people – the teams, engineers and of course the drivers.
Will Ferrari compete with McLaren? What is Max Verstappen’s state of mind? Which of the five rookie drivers will shine? And does Aston Martin need to break glass and call in Adrian Newey to sort out their 2025 car?
James joins up with some of our colleagues from around the world to go under the skin of F1 testing and look at how some of the big stories of the season are shaping up. Our man in Italy Roberto Chinchero has the inside line, Ronald Vording gives a Dutch perspective and there is analysis from Jake Boxall-Legge.
Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1, what you like and what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/
Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.
Producer: Dre Harrison
A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport
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50:24
22: From Fake Marina To Fan Favourite
This week as we digest the F175 launch and head off for pre-season testing, we speak to one of F1’s top race promoters to find out what goes on behind the scenes to stage an event for almost 300,000 people.
This year is Miami’s fourth as an F1 host venue, part of Liberty Media’s drive to expand F1 in the US market and engage new fans.
Miami does things a bit differently and they do it with a sense of humour, which is in short supply in F1, which can take itself too seriously at times.
So how do they juggle the conflicting demands of NFL, the FIFA World Cup, the Miami Open Tennis and F1 events in the same season?
What does it take logistically to put on a Grand Prix at this scale? And what sort of tickets give the fans the best deal? James sits down with Tyler Epp, President of the Miami Grand Prix to discuss how the race has gone from "fake" marina, to fan favourite.
Global Editorial Director Rebecca Clancy and Autosport F1 Business Correspondent Mark Mann-Bryans join James in the studio. They also preview the F1 testing in Bahrain.
Remember to take part in the Global F1 Fan Survey, which we are running together with F1. Make your voice heard about F1; what you like, what you’d like to change and who your favourite teams and drivers are. Go to https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com/
Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.
Producers: Dre Harrison, Ben Holmes
Executive Producer: Jason Swales
A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport
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56:58
21: Making the F1 Fans’ Voice Heard
This week F1 held its spectacular season launch event at the O2 Arena in London in a ceremony that was all about entertaining the fans, particularly F1’s new fans.
Hot on its heels F1 is launching the latest Global Fan Survey, which is being conducted by Motorsport Network, Autosport’s parent company, in partnership with F1.
This is where F1 fans around the world have a chance to make their voices heard. There will be many useful learnings for F1, the teams, sponsors and promoters. The 2021 survey had 167,000 responses from 185 countries, with Nielsen certifying it as the largest sports survey ever conducted.
We have been conducting these surveys for many years. The 2017 survey came just after Liberty Media’s takeover of F1 and by 2021 we could clearly see the changes in attitudes and demographics among fans, who were younger and more female. So what will this new survey show?
Autosport Editor-in-Chief Rebecca Clancy and Chief Motorsport writer Ben Hunt join James in the studio and we hear from an influential voice from the US on F1’s new audiences, Toni Cowan-Brown.
If you'd like to participate in the 2025 F1 Global Fan Survey, you can do so by clicking this link: https://fansurvey2025-formula1.motorsportnetwork.com
Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.
Producer: Dre Harrison
A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport
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38:59
20: Will AI Unleash Greater Human Potential In Formula 1?
Motor racing has a long tradition as an incubator of technology. AI is the latest example as tech companies flood into the sport as partners, helping teams harness AI to improve performance. F1 increasingly uses AI in its TV and online coverage to provide insights and content tailored for fans.
The FIA is also getting in on the act; this week it announced that AI will now help the F1 race officials and play a role in sensitive decisions on things like track limits and analysis of race incidents.
So what impact is AI already having on F1? Where might it get involved in the future? And should there be a limit to how far it goes?
We hear from a panel of industry experts: Rob Smedley, CEO of Smedley Group, Former F1 Director of Data Systems; Ferrari and Williams engineer, Joe Carroll, General Manager, Telco, Media, Entertainment, Games and Sport, Amazon Web Services and Stephane Timpano, CEO Aspire, which runs the A2RL autonomous racing league, where the AI coders are the stars.
In the studio with James are Autosport’s F1 Business Correspondent Mark Mann-Bryans and Sam Agini from the Financial Times.
Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.
Producer: Dre Harrison
Executive Producer: Jason Swales
A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport
Three-time BAFTA award-winning F1 commentator James Allen returns to the broadcast mic with a thoughtful and engaging new podcast, looking at the human side of the sport.
Every episode will feature an insightful 20-minute interview with a prominent figure from inside and around the sport focusing on themes beyond the everyday news cycle. Joining James in the studio for analysis and discussion will be a rotating cast of key figures from Autosport and Motorsport’s global editorial team and guests from the broader F1 media world.
Thoughtful, accessible and insightful, the James Allen on F1 podcast takes the helmet off the sport. It is a must for any fans looking for a glimpse behind the scenes at the human beings who make the fascinating world of F1.
Get in touch with the show on JamesAllenonF1@autosport.com