F1: Chequered Flag

We’re on a high-speed taxi ride with teenage sensation Kimi Antonelli as he takes series co-host Holly Samos on a thrilling hot lap around Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix. The 18-year-old’s career is also hitting the gas, after Mercedes chose him to replace seven-time Formula 1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton and handed the Italian his F1 debut in 2025.Already a social media sensation, Britain’s Ollie Bearman is also finding his feet in F1 and co-host Sarah Holt joins him in the passenger seat at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, a summer highlight on the British motorsport calendar. When it comes to life as an F1 driver, the 20-year-old Haas driver is still adapting to being in the spotlight during his rookie season.It’s not only fresh, young drivers who are driving F1 into the future, the Cadillac Formula 1 team are also preparing to join the grid in 2026, when major new technical rules are set to shake-up the sport. On a sprawling industrial estate - just metres from the Silverstone circuit - Sarah and Holly are taking an exclusive first look at the team’s F1 factory.But founding an F1 team - even with backing from U.S. car giant General Motors - is a huge undertaking, as Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon reveals in this episode.- F1: Back at Base is an IMG Production for the BBC, hosted by Rosamund Pike - Co-hosts & Executive Producers are Sarah Holt and Holly Samos - The Producers are Alasdair Cresswell, Joe Aldridge, Jack Winstanley and Mitchell Marshall - Production Management from Abbie Collingwood, Katie Killeen and Giulia Duggan - The Senior Producer is Ollie Kneen - The Executive Producer for IMG is Steve Tebb - The Story Editor and Scriptwriter is Sarah Holt - The Showrunner is Holly Samos - And the Commissioning Editor at the BBC is Stevie Middleton

In this eight-part series, hosted by actress Rosamund Pike, we’re going behind-the-scenes with next generation stars, Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli and British Haas hotshot Ollie Bearman, during their rookie Formula 1 seasons in the 2025 World Championship.We are in the passenger seat with the drivers - and we do mean that literally - following the final races of their maiden campaigns and lifting the lid on driver life away from the track with F1 experts Sarah Holt and Holly Samos as our guides.Former teammates in junior categories, Antonelli and Bearman, are now simultaneously finding their feet on motorsport’s toughest grid. In this series we hear from the two drivers, and those closest to them, as their journey to the top continues.From inside the Mercedes team, experienced race engineer Pete Bonnington, aka Bono, reveals how he is guiding Antonelli to follow in the footsteps of his former driver, seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton while Driver Development Advisor Gwen Lagrue explains how he spotted the natural talent that convinced Mercedes to sign Italian teenager Antonelli at a young age.Haas rookie Ollie Bearman already has a huge social media following but the attention directed at an F1 driver is next level. The British racer, who made his F1 debut with Ferrari in 2024 as a stand-in for a sick Carlos Sainz, is feeling a lot of love from the fans as we join him at a special appearance with Haas at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.The 20-year-old can also count on family support and we hear from his younger brother Thomas, also a promising racer, and how they are deciding just who gets to go on Ollie’s race simulator.As Bearman continues to bring home the points for Haas in 2025, Haas Head of Strategy and Driver Development Ed Brand and his race engineer Ronan O’Hara explain how Bearman is growing as one of F1’s next generation stars.But it’s not only the drivers who are driving forward F1’s future - there is also a new team about to enter the top tier of motorsport. The series is also following the start-up Cadillac Formula 1 team as they race to join the grid for the very first time. Their uncharted journey is fraught with jeopardy, but they have unlocked their doors and let us inside. Fan favourites and former F1 race-winners Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez are making their comebacks with Cadillac - and we hear from both of them throughout the series.Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon and Executive Engineering Consultant Pat Symonds explain how the team have had a mountain to climb to make it to the grid in 2026, when major technical regulations, governing how the cars are designed and powered, are also set to shake up the sport.Hollywood legend Keanu Reeves is following in our tyre tracks as he documents Cadillac’s journey to the grid. The actor is also predicting drama as F1 enters a new era in 2026. We hear from him in an exclusive interview as he anticipates that the “hopes and ambitions” of all the teams up-and-down the grid will be tested by the sport’s new rules.As one season ends another, fraught with uncertainty like never before, lies just around the corner. In this series, we journey with the Cadillac F1 team and drivers Antonelli and Bearman over the winter as they prepare to go racing in F1’s new era.- F1: Back at Base is an IMG Production for the BBC, hosted by Rosamund Pike - Co-hosts & Executive Producers are Sarah Holt and Holly Samos - The Producers are Alasdair Cresswell, Joe Aldridge, Jack Winstanley and Mitchell Marshall - Production Management from Abbie Collingwood, Katie Killeen and Giulia Duggan - The Senior Producer is Ollie Kneen - The Executive Producer for IMG is Steve Tebb - The Story Editor and Scriptwriter is Sarah Holt - The Showrunner is Holly Samos - And the Commissioning Editor at the BBC is Stevie Middleton

Harry Benjamin, British racing driver Sam Bird and the BBC’s F1 correspondent Andrew Benson look back on the 2025 F1 season from McLaren’s Woking HQ. We reflect on some of the pivotal points this year, hearing from world champion Lando Norris and the team principal of the constructors’ champions, McLaren’s Andrea Stella.

Rosanna Tennant and Harry Benjamin are joined by 1996 world champion Damon Hill to reflect on the title-deciding Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Who would take the crown at Yas Marina Circuit as Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri went head-to-head? We hear from all three drivers as the 2025 season reaches its conclusion.

Who will be crowned the 2025 F1 champion? After Max Verstappen puts it on pole, Steve Crossman, Harry Benjamin, Rebecca Clancy and Rosanna Tennant look back at qualifying and assess how it shapes Sunday’s title decider. They hear from all three championship protagonists and discuss how the race might play out.

Will it be Max? Will it be Lando? Or will it be Oscar? Steve Crossman and the BBC F1 team look ahead to the final race of the season, hearing from all three title contenders and asking who might have the edge. Plus, they reflect on what we learned from the trio as they faced the media on Thursday.

Harry Benjamin, Jennie Gow and former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley look back on a dramatic Qatar Grand Prix. On the day that Lando Norris could claim his maiden F1 world title, would the Briton seal the championship, or would the fight go down to the last round in Abu Dhabi next week? We hear from Norris, as well as rivals Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen.

Harry Benjamin, Jennie Gow and former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley look back on a packed Saturday in Qatar, as the sprint race took place as well as qualifying for Sunday’s Grand Prix. Could Oscar Piastri claw back vital points in the title fight or would Lando Norris put himself on course to claim his maiden world title at the Lusail International Circuit? Plus, would Max Verstappen continue his remarkable championship fightback?

Harry Benjamin, former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley and the BBC’s F1 correspondent Andrew Benson look ahead to the Qatar Grand Prix. On the weekend where Lando Norris could claim his maiden world championship, the team hear from the British driver as well as title challengers Oscar Piastri and Max Verstappen. Plus, it’s another sprint weekend so the team react to Friday’s sprint qualifying.

How costly could McLaren’s double disqualification prove to be? Rosanna Tennant is joined by Harry Benjamin and Alice Powell to pick through the technical infringement that’s opened the door for Max Verstappen. He is now level on points with Oscar Piastri and just 24 behind Lando Norris. We hear from the Dutchman after his race win, and from a downbeat Lewis Hamilton following a difficult evening.