F1: Beyond The Grid

A driver market for the ages, Verstappen at his very best, emotional race wins, new Constructor World Champions and the end of some iconic eras. The 2024 Formula 1 season was sensational. On F1 Beyond The Grid, the stars of this dramatic year of racing have sat down with Tom Clarkson, revealing what it’s like being at the centre of the biggest stories of the season and sharing fascinating insight into what life is like as a Formula 1 driver, Team Principal, engineer, designer, and more. In this end-of year special, Tom picks his favourite moments from a long list of stellar guests. Fernando Alonso reflects on becoming the first driver in F1 history to compete in 400 Grands Prix and why he nearly retired much earlier in his career. Carlos Sainz explains how he recovered from physical and mental setbacks to win multiple races. And Ollie Bearman describes what it was really like making his F1 debut at such short notice in Saudi Arabia. As well as today’s big names, legends of the past like Juan Pablo Montoya and David Coulthard relive their career-defining moments. Plus, you’ll hear memories of Lewis Hamilton’s time at Mercedes and Bruno Senna’s stories of growing up with his uncle Ayrton, 30 years on from his death. Thank you for listening in 2024. F1 Beyond The Grid will return in 2025. To hear the full interviews with the guests featured in this show, click on the links below… Toto Wolff Charles Leclerc Carlos Sainz Juan Pablo Montoya David Coulthard Bruno Senna Fernando Alonso Andy Stevenson Ollie Bearman Ayao Komatsu  Tom Stallard Paul Monaghan Listen to more official F1 Podcasts F1 Nation - Grand Prix reviews and previews from inside the F1 paddock F1 Explains - answering your questions about Formula 1 Experience F1 live Tickets for the 2025 F1 season are available now at tickets.formula1.com Discover F1 Unlocked Unseen. Unheard. F1 Unlocked. Dive into exclusive content from F1 experts, redeem rewards and enter money-can't-buy competitions. Click here to join for free This episode is sponsored by: Vanta: visit vanta.com/GRID for $1,000 off SelectQuote: Get the right life insurance for you for less at selectquote.com/BEYONDTHEGRID Unbound Merino: head over to unboundmerino.com where new customers can use the code GRID for 10% off of their order! Masterclass: get up to 50% off at masterclass.com/GRID

Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes: their names are together forever in the Formula 1 record books. As the most successful team and driver partnership in the sport's history comes to an end, some of Lewis Hamilton's Mercedes colleagues tell Tom Clarkson their stories of working with him:   Toto Wolff – Team Principal, on how Lewis got stronger every year of their partnership Andrew Shovlin – Trackside Engineering Director, who was on the pit wall for all of Lewis’ history-making races Clare Robertson – Head of Communications. She first met Lewis when he was 15, and has worked with him since his days at McLaren  Victoria Johnson – Marketing Operations Director, who's seen Hamilton go from Formula 1 driver to global icon  Stephen Lord - Race Team Co-ordinator, one of Lewis' closest colleagues, on the grid with him for every Grand Prix Listen to more official F1 Podcasts F1 Nation - Grand Prix reviews and previews from inside the F1 paddock F1 Explains - answering your questions about Formula 1 Experience F1 live Tickets for the 2025 F1 season are available now at tickets.formula1.com Discover F1 Unlocked Unseen. Unheard. F1 Unlocked. Dive into exclusive content from F1 experts, redeem rewards and enter money-can't-buy competitions. Click here to join for free This episode is sponsored by Vanta: get $1,000 off Vanta at vanta.com/GRID. F1 Authentics: Find your ultimate piece of F1 history and head over to www.F1Authentics.com to shop now! Shopify: sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at shopify.com/beyondthegrid

This episode is presented by Explora Journeys - redefining luxury ocean travel. 2024 has been a turbulent year for Carlos Sainz. It started with a shock: Lewis Hamilton would be replacing him at Ferrari in 2025. Then he missed a race with appendicitis. But the year is ending with multiple wins and podiums to look back on, and an exciting new challenge to look forward to with Williams next season.  Speaking to Tom Clarkson, Carlos talks about his feelings after finding out Hamilton was taking his seat, the pain he suffered after his operation and how he came back from those physical and emotional setbacks to take victories in Australia and Mexico, and secure his future in Formula 1.  As well as reflecting on a special four years with Ferrari, Sainz is also relishing his next chapter. What can he achieve with Williams? How does he rate new teammate Alex Albon? And will he cope with not fighting at the front of the grid? Related Episodes Charles Leclerc James Vowles Alex Albon Listen to more official F1 Podcasts F1 Nation - Grand Prix reviews and previews from inside the F1 paddock F1 Explains - answering your questions about Formula 1 Experience F1 live Tickets for the 2025 F1 season are available now at tickets.formula1.com Discover F1 Unlocked Unseen. Unheard. F1 Unlocked. Dive into exclusive content from F1 experts, redeem rewards and enter money-can't-buy competitions. Click here to join for free

2024 has been a rollercoaster for this week’s guest on F1 Beyond The Grid. While the end of the season provides a chance for reflection, he’s also looking forward to an exciting new venture in 2025.     Hear a preview of the episode with Tom Clarkson now and then you can listen to the conversation in full on your podcast app, or watch on the official F1 YouTube channel, from Wednesday 4th December. Listen to more official F1 podcasts F1 Beyond The Grid - exclusive interviews with F1's biggest stars. F1 Explains - your F1 questions, answered by experts Experience F1 live Tickets for the 2025 F1 season are available now at tickets.formula1.com Discover F1 Unlocked Unseen. Unheard. F1 Unlocked. Dive into exclusive content from F1 experts, redeem rewards and enter money-can't-buy competitions. Click here to join for free