Grading every 2026 F1 driver so far: Only one A+ on the grid?

Mark Hughes joins Bryn Lucas to break down a stunning Italian Grand Prix, where Kimi Antonelli produced one of the most improbable wins in recent memory - starting 19th and beating a Mercedes team-mate who began 17 places ahead of him.Mark explains why the drive ranks alongside Formula 1's greatest recoveries, and whether George Russell can still realistically challenge for the title.Also this week: Liam Lawson's Red Bull return under the microscope, the fallout from Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc's Turn 1 clash and Hamilton's "no rules" comments, the qualifying paranoia gripping Ferrari and McLaren's driver pairings, and a first look ahead to Formula 1's new Madrid Grand Prix - including the banked corner everyone's talking about.Plus your questions answered: Max Verstappen's mysterious degrading dampers, how much of the current pecking order comes down to ICE performance versus energy deployment software, and who was really at fault in that Ferrari clash.Read Mark's column here: https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4xlI1H4Website: https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4zZEkJvPodcasts: https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/3UNPCAuF1 Newsletter: https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4do9xMHInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/motorsport1924/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MotorSport1924/X: https://x.com/Motor_Sport Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Hughes previews the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, breaking down why F1's fastest car keeps changing hands - from Mercedes' early-season dominance to McLaren's gearing advantage and Ferrari's new turbo upgrade, which could make it the quickest car in the field. Mark and Bryn discuss why Monza will finally reveal how much of McLaren's recent form comes down to track-specific gearing rather than raw pace, plus a team-by-team rundown of each car's strengths, from Mercedes' power unit to Red Bull's tricky setup window.Elsewhere: what F1's static 2027 driver market means for the F2 pipeline, why proven IndyCar champions like Alex Palou never get a Formula 1 look, and whether Oscar Piastri risks becoming a "number two" driver at McLaren. Mark also answers your questions on the ADUO benchmark, how points of downforce are measured, and reveals his fantasy rulebook for reinventing Formula 1 from scratch. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Hughes has found the piece of the jigsaw that explains McLaren's stunning Zandvoort form - and it isn't just the upgrades. Breaking down why Lando Norris's car was three tenths quicker through the high-speed sector but three tenths slower on the straights, Mark reveals the gearing trade-off baked into McLaren's concept since day one, and why it could leave the team badly exposed at Monza, where the Mercedes and Ferrari are geared to run all the way to 190mph before the fuel flow starts throttling back. Mark and Bryn Lucas discuss whether this is enough to put Norris back in a genuine title fight, or whether it's simply the right car turning up at the right circuits twice in a row. They also unpack Ferrari's clumsy team orders call that may have cost Lewis Hamilton a podium, why Mercedes' Toto Wolff says the development budget has run dry, and the reasoning behind Red Bull's surprise decision to hand Liam Lawson - not Yuki Tsunoda - the seat vacated by an injured Hadjar. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Hughes has handed out just one A+ so far this season - and even Kimi Antonelli's own team-mate George Russell can't quite explain how he's making a rookie-in-his-second-year look this good.Using the old-school GCSE method, Mark grades every driver on the 2026 grid at the summer break, from the Ferrari pairing of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc through to the biggest team-mate swings on the grid, where Oliver Bearman's A- dwarfs Esteban Ocon's C+ at Haas, and Carlos Sainz's A- leaves Alex Albon down on a C+ at Williams.Mark and Bryn Lucas talk through how the marking system works, why it can never be truly scientific, and what separates a driver doing everything right in a bad car from one who's simply not delivering.They also debate whether Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso deserves his grade given how far off the pace his car is, and name the team that's punched furthest above its weight - and the one that's fallen shortest - over the first half of the season. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's been a year since F1 owner Liberty Media bought MotoGP. Is the "dangerous and dirty" world of motorcycle racing about to be sanitised and commercialised?In this special episode of the F1 Show, Bryn Lucas and Mark Hughes welcome Motor Sport's motorcycle expert Mat Oxley for the latest on how MotoGP's new owner is dealing with the very different world of two-wheeled motor sport.After masterminding F1's recent boom in popularity, Liberty is looking to give MotoGP a similar boost. In this episode, recorded ahead of the MotoGP summer break, Mat and Mark explore what has changed already; how the F1 playbook might apply to the series; and why riders need to be more outspoken to give MotoGP its Drive to Survive moment.Plus Mat looks back at Aprilia's rise to the front of this year's pack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

George Russell has complained of his struggles to adapt to this year's Mercedes Formula 1 car, but world champion Lando Norris hasn't offered much comfort, saying: This is our job, we are paid millions to do it. We must drive any car they give us."More than just exposing the difference between their driving styles, the comments reveal Norris and Russell's contrasting mindsets at the start of the summer break. The McLaren driver is riding high on a wave of confidence after victory in a Hungarian Grand Prix where he was miles clear of his team-mate, while his Mercedes rival is trailing team-mate Kimi Antonelli in the championship and still getting to grips with his car.Mark Hughes and Bryn Lucas discuss what's gone wrong for Russell and how he can fix it, while asking how long a top-level F1 driver should be given to adapt to a new car.Mark also explains how he drew up his half-term scores for every F1 driver on the grid and answers your questions on Oscar Piastri's performance, and whether F1 cars need more downforce than they have.Subscribe now for every weekly episode and tell us what you want to know from Mark. Send us a message on social media or find this podcast at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4fP3Tnq and drop your questions in the comments. He'll answer a selection of the best every week.Read Mark's column every Wednesday at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4fP3Tnq Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oscar Piastri and George Russell have both led the Formula 1 World Championship in the past 12 months, so why are these top-level drivers unable to get on terms with their team-mates?And how is Lewis Hamilton now looking to have the edge over Charles Leclerc after a crushing 2025 season?Mark Hughes outlines new evidence that emerged during the Hungarian Grand Prix to explain the sometime disparity between the drivers at Mercedes, McLaren and Ferrari.Last weekend's race also generated some much-needed good news at Aston Martin, which made it into the second stage of qualifying for the first time this season, courtesy of Fernando Alonso. Its aerodynamic upgrades have worked; can an improved Honda engine put the team amongst the front-runners?In the latest episode of the Motor Sport F1 Show, Mark and Bryn Lucas also ask whether Niki Lauda's sensational recovery from his horrific fireball crash at the Nürburgring, 50 years ago, represents racing's greatest comeback.And what viewer question does Mark rate as the best he's ever been sent?Listen to find out - and see what you make of the answer.Subscribe now for every weekly episode and tell us what you want to know from Mark. Send us a message on social media or find this podcast at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4hFb8kc and drop your questions in the comments. He'll answer a selection of the best every week.Read Mark's column every Wednesday at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4hFb8kc Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By removing data, cutting away from drivers' disparaging comments, and failing to broadcast in-car outbursts, F1 looks to be trying to minimise criticism of the 2026 championship. It's not a smart move, says Mark Hughes in the latest episode of the F1 Show.Watch Mark and Bryn Lucas discuss the issue in full, following a Belgian Grand Prix so dominated by energy management that it "sterilised" the normally magnificent Spa-Francorchamps circuit.This week's instalment also reveals just what was behind Mercedes' disastrous first lap, which saw George Russell drop down the running order before spinning out of the race after contact with Lewis Hamilton.Should the Ferrari driver have received a penalty? And should his team-mate Charles Leclerc got away without one after contact with Oscar Piastri?Mark and Bryn also review Isack Hadjar's sensational drive from the back of the grid to sixth place at Spa, and look ahead to Hungary, where talk of energy management should be replaced by a close battle for victory.Plus, your questioned answered: do team engineers still make set-up changes, or are they all dictated by simulators? How closely should we compare Ferrari in 1996 to Aston Martin today? And why was Piastri lagging Norris at Spa?Subscribe now for every weekly episode and tell us what you want to know from Mark. Send us a message on social media or find this podcast at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4vK9CRm and drop your questions in the comments. He'll answer a selection of the best every week.Read Mark's column every Wednesday at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4vK9CRm Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Max Verstappen may be the best driver in Formula 1 at the moment. So why would he even consider moving to current backmarker Aston Martin?Hear Mark Hughes' compelling case in the latest episode of the Motor Sport F1 Show, as he sets out why the four-time champion is considering his future, and why he'd pick the Silverstone-based team over the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren.There's also Fernando Alonso to consider: what happens to him if he's displaced by Verstappen? Mark has an intriguing suggestion.But it's not just silly season on the agenda ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix which will demand more electrical energy than the current generation of cars can provide. Can Spa provide a great race, even if cars spend much of the lap recharging their batteries?Mark and presenter Bryn Lucas also discuss who will win the team-mate batle between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, now that they both seem to be in tune with their Ferraris. How do they compare with the greatest team-mates in F1 history?Plus your questions answered: What if Toto Wolff had signed Verstappen for Mercedes in 2014; and what's really happening when drivers tweak the torque map and differential on their cars?Subscribe now for every weekly episode and tell us what you want to know from Mark. Send us a message on social media or find this podcast at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4gLZJPr and drop your questions in the comments. He'll answer a selection of the best every week.Read Mark's column every Wednesday at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4gLZJPr Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Max Verstappen arrived at Silverstone for the British Grand Prix on a high after an upswing in his Red Bull's performance. But after crashing out of the Formula 1 race, after a rear wing issue, the four-time champion sounded despondent.Red Bull must now face the possibility that he will leave the team, or even Formula 1, at the end of the season, says Mark Hughes in the latest episode of the Motor Sport F1 Show.He and host Bryn Lucas examine what Verstappen's options are, and what went wrong last weekend.At the opposite end of the scale, Charles Leclerc's fortunes changed for the better; after struggling in this year's Ferrari, which was designed with Lewis Hamilton's influence, it all clicked for Leclerc who raced to victory. What changed, and did Ferrari let Hamilton have too much influence? All is not as simple as it seems.Mark and Bryn also talk about the discontent over the race ending under the safety car; why reliability is becoming a Mercedes bugbear; and whether F1 should reintroduce refuelling.Plus, Mark answers your questions on matt paint, Honda's F1 record, and solutions to the safety car problem.Subscribe now for every weekly episode and tell us what you want to know from Mark. Send us a message on social media or find this podcast at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4wvTMdI and drop your questions in the comments. He'll answer a selection of the best every week.Read Mark's column every Wednesday at https://go.motorsportmagazine.com/4wvTMdI Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.