F1 Beyond The Grid

He was part of one of F1’s most dramatic finales, but there’s so much more to Timo Glock’s story than that rain-soaked lap in Brazil. A relative late-comer to racing, he quickly showed speed, made smart sponsorship deals and caught the attention of F1 teams. Timo tells Tom Clarkson about the surprise phone call which led to his points-scoring Grand Prix debut, the disappointment of dropping out of the sport, the moment he felt it was ‘game over’ for his racing career, and an all-or-nothing season which gave him a second chance at F1. With Toyota in 2008 and 2009, Timo scored podiums which proved he was worthy of a race-winning car. He reveals how agonisingly close he came to a career-transforming move in a pivotal period at the end of 2009, only to find himself racing at the back of the grid in 2010. Plus, his friendship with the Schumachers, the moment lawyers decided his F1 future and that final lap in Brazil in 2008: the ‘impossible’ action, the crazy reaction and an unlikely friendship that followed, ten years in the making.  This episode is sponsored by: Shopify: sign up for a FREE fourteen-day trial at shopify.co.uk/gridBetterHelp: when you want to be a better problem solver, therapy can get you there.Visit betterhelp.com/grid today to get 10% off your first month

He’s a Zandvoort ‘beach boy’, who became a local hero in F1. Racing in the Dutch Grand Prix was a dream come true for Jan Lammers, but he struggled to show his speed in Formula 1 and dropped out of the sport after 4 difficult seasons. He was always determined to return to motorsport’s pinnacle and waited a record 10 years for his chance. Jan tells Tom Clarkson about his rise from junior European champion to F1, the impact impatience had on his career, how bad luck repeatedly ruined his best chances of a life changing F1 result, and how a change in attitude and focus on learning helped him take Le Mans victory in 1988 and return to F1 after his decade away. Today, Jan is Sporting Director of his hometown racetrack, Zandvoort, and is working to make the Dutch Grand Prix a spectacular and sustainable event.This episode is sponsored by: MSC Cruises: Explore MSC Cruises world of destinations and book yourself a holidaythat’s going to take your breath away from start to finish on msccruises.comExpressVPN: Secure your online data  by visiting ExpressVPN.com/GRID and get an extra three months FREEDoor Dash: For a limited time our listeners can get 50% off and zero delivery fees on their first order of $15 or more when you download the DoorDash app and enter code GRID 

He fought one of F1’s all-time greatest duels, was often untouchable in qualifying, and his victories were celebrated by entire nations. René Arnoux spent a decade racing the likes of Gilles Villeneuve, Alain Prost and Niki Lauda. He raced and won for both Renault and Ferrari, leading the Scuderia to a world title in 1983. René passionately and vividly talks Tom Clarkson through his remarkable career, remembering his epic wheel-to-wheel battle with his great friend Villeneuve in 1979, negotiations with Enzo Ferrari, his lost chance to become World Champion and his rivalry with Renault teammate Prost. Arnoux also picks the 2022 F1 driver he thinks is most like himself Related episodesGilles Villeneuve Remembered Racing for Enzo Ferrari René’s pick of 2022: Lando Norris This episode is sponsored by: LinkedIn Jobs: find the candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post a job for free at linkedin.com/GRIDDave: download the Dave app from the App store right now.  Sign up for an Extra Cash account and get up to 500 dollars instantly. For terms and conditions go to dave.com/legal. Instant transfer fees apply. Banking provided by Evolve. Member FDIC.Santander: Countdown to Zero is a global competition for startups and scaleups to help the motor sport world become more sustainable. And that’s why we are looking for sustainable and innovative proposals that allow us to continue enjoying our passion while respecting the environment. Register your idea on santanderx.com before 8th September. 

He’s an F1 star, and he’s still getting brighter. Lando Norris is on a mission with McLaren, determined to deliver trophies and titles. He’s twice come agonisingly close to his first F1 victory. That is just fuel for his fire. Lando opens up to Tom Clarkson about the races he feels he should have already won, his moments of self-doubt, his ambitions, his attitude to life and work, and how he’s seen by the public and his fans. Lando reveals he sometimes dwells on past frustrations, but his focus is fixed on future glory. He’s honest and illuminating about things he and his team can improve. One day soon, he says, ‘there won’t be any excuses’. Working on winning will ‘make things sweeter… a much cooler story’. As you’ll hear, the hard work has already begun…Have a listen to Lando’s first F1 Beyond The Grid appearance in March 2020Plus other related interviews from the BTG archiveDaniel RicciardoCarlos Sainz  McLaren CEO (and Lando’s golf buddy) Zak Brown This episode is sponsored by: Liquid IV: get 15% off ANYTHING you order when you shop better hydration today using promo code GRID at liquidiv.comBetterHelp: our listeners get 10% off their first month at betterhelp.com/GRIDBabbel: receive six months free with a purchase of a 6-month subscription with promo code GRID at babbel.com/play

Since South Africa 1993, Beat Zehnder has not missed a Formula 1 Grand Prix. Hungary 2022 was his 538th race weekend, and he’s spent them all with the same team. Once it was known as Sauber, today it’s Alfa Romeo. Before joining Sauber, Beat was a ship engine mechanic. He was kicked out of his first job interview with the Swiss racing team because he had no interest in motorsport. How and why, then, has he spent so long in Formula 1? Beat tells Tom Clarkson incredible stories of the tiny Sauber team’s amazing entry into F1, and its repeated struggles for survival. Schumacher, Frentzen, Raikkonen, Kubica, Vettel and Leclerc are just some of the drivers Beat has worked with, but who does he call ‘the most complete’ of them all? Beat’s love for the sport was shaken at times of tragedy, but his loyalty and love of teamwork have never faltered.This episode is sponsored by: Harry's: make sure to support the podcast and start your own skin care journey, by redeeming a free Harry’s Trial Set at harrys.com/grid. All you cover is £3.95 for delivery and your freebie will be added at checkoutExpressVPN: visit expressvpn.com/grid to get three extra months free

He’s the newest member of ‘The Piranha Club’ – the nickname for the ruthlessly competitive group of F1 Team Principals. Aston Martin’s Mike Krack is not a newcomer to F1, however. A former European go-kart racer, Mike earned his engineering stripes with Sauber in the early 2000s, where he moulded and mentored a young Felipe Massa. He witnessed the supreme strength and skill of Robert Kubica, and steered Sebastian Vettel through his Grand Prix debut at BMW in 2007. Vettel and Krack are now back together at Aston Martin, and Mike has illuminating insight into how the four-time champion has developed as a person and as a racing driver.  Mike tells Tom Clarkson about his life leading major manufacturers’ racing programs, including the reason he previously walked away from Formula 1. He explains how he’s ‘finding his way’ as boss of the sport’s most ambitious team, charged with fulfilling owner Lawrence Stroll’s aims of challenging for the World Championship.Related episodes from the F1 Beyond The Grid archive: Sebastian Vettel  Robert Kubica Lance Stroll  Lawrence Stroll  Felipe MassaThis episode is sponsored by: Babbel: go to babbel.com/play and use promo code GRID for an extra six months freeCalm: visit calm.com/grid for 40% off unlimited access to Calm’s entire libraryAthletic Greens: get a FREE 1 year supply of immune supporting Vitamin D AND 5 FREE travel packs with your first purchase, just visit athleticgreens.com/f1btg

When Marc Surer reached Formula 1 in 1979, he was a rising star: the reigning Formula 2 champion from the mountains of Switzerland, surely destined for the summit of F1 success. But two leg-breaking crashes made Marc’s climb steeper and harder. He relives those crashes with Tom Clarkson and remembers his remarkable recovery and return to racing. Amazingly, he scored points for Arrows, and almost made the switch to Ferrari after the death of Gilles Villeneuve. Marc also came close to racing for McLaren after a secret meeting with boss Ron Dennis. Later, he survived a fiery rally crash in which his co-driver was killed. Marc shares stories of racing up mountains as a child in a country where motorsport was banned, working with F1 design genius Gordon Murray, driving brutal turbocharged F1 cars armed with more than 1000 horsepower and wrestling Group B rally cars on snow and ice.This episode is sponsored by: Dave: download the Dave app from the App store right now. Sign up for an Extra Cash account and get up to 500 dollars instantly. For terms and conditions go to dave.com/legal. Instant transfer fees apply. Banking provided by Evolve. Member FDICBabbel: right now, Babbel is offering our listeners six months free with a purchase of a 6-month subscription with promo code GRID at babbel.com/playBetterHelp: get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/grid

Before he started, as he puts it, ‘playing with racing cars’, Jody Egginton trained as a schoolteacher. His love of motorsport led him to Formula 1, and he worked his way up from Tyrell during the early years of computer-aided design (CAD) to Technical Director at AlphaTauri today. Along the way he helped Force India achieve a stunning result in 2009, fought to keep the brand-new Caterham team afloat in the 2010s and worked with Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz at the very start of their F1 careers. He’s now driving AlphaTauri’s car development, pushing a team of engineers flat out to give Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda a car which can challenge for 5th in the F1 Constructors’ Championship. Jody tells Tom Clarkson about his approach to learning, communication, problem-solving and leadership, and shares advice for aspiring F1 engineers.Related episodes from the Beyond The Grid archivePierre Gasly Yuki Tsunoda Franz Tost, AlphaTauri Team PrincipalJames Key, McLaren’s Technical Director John Barnard, legendary F1 technical geniusThis episode is sponsored by: Calm: go to calm.com/grid for 40% off unlimited access to Calm’s entire libraryHello Fresh: visit hellofresh.com/grid16 and use code grid16 for up to 16 freemeals AND 3 free giftsBabbel: go to babbel.com/play and use promo code GRID for an extra six months free

Jenson Button. Jacques Villeneuve. Colin McRae. Sebastian Loeb. The list of elite racing drivers David Richards has led is long and legendary. As an F1 Team Principal in the 2000s, he, Button and the BAR team challenged Ferrari for race wins. David tasted podium champagne, but the bottle never had ‘1st’ printed on it. Not so in the World Rally Championship and at Le Mans, where his teams and drivers have won a multitude of titles. David tells Tom Clarkson the story of his incredible life in motorsport: success in rallying, decades in F1 with Benetton, BAR and Honda, and he remembers the behind the scenes negotiations to bring his own company, Prodrive, onto the grid. Plus, desert racing with Sebastian Loeb, Extreme E with Lewis Hamilton’s team and his ongoing work to make motorsport more inclusive and sustainable as chair of Motorsport UK.This episode is sponsored by: Shopify: sign up for a FREE fourteen-day trial at shopify.co.uk/grid ExpressVPN: visit ExpressVPN.com/grid right now and find out how you can get 3 months free Harry's: get a free travel size face wash by redeeming a free Harry’s Trial set at harrys.com/grid.  All you cover is £3.95 for delivery. Your freebie will be added at checkout.

‘It’s a huge step… but the peak is miles away’. That’s how George Russell sums up racing for Mercedes. Since George joined the team’s young driver programme in 2017 he knew he could rise to the seat of a Silver Arrow Formula 1 car. How did he get there, and how high will he rise in the future? George tells Tom Clarkson about emotive highs with his former team, Williams, a bitter disappointment on his Mercedes debut in Sakhir and a learning moment in Italy which helped shaped him into the driver and the man he is today. Hear about the pressure George races under at Mercedes, his relationships with his colleagues, his view of his place in the sport, his principles and his ambitions in this in-depth conversation.Related episodes:  George Russell’s first BTG interview from July 2020This episode is sponsored by: Harry's: get hold of a free travel sized face wash when you redeem a freeHarry’s Trial set at harrys.com/grid. All you need to cover is £3.95 for delivery