On The Gravel Alithio Network

Round 9 of the Formula One World Championship took us to the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve for the Canadian Grand Prix, arguably the most entertaining race weekend we’ve had all season, from a Mercedes on pole and the second ever dead heat in qualifying, to all the different strategies posed by the rain and a multi team challenge for the win. It wasn’t to be for George Russell or Lando Norris however, with multiple safety cars playing into Verstappen's favor, seeing him cross the line to take his 60th victory in Formula One. Elsewhere around the paddock, Yuki Tsunoda extended his deal with VCARB for a further year, Perez somehow earned a multiyear extension, and a deep dive into the newly released images and information about the 2026 regulations. Lights out for the Spanish GP is two weeks out, but the fabled 24hr of Le Mans is here to give us a full day of racing this coming weekend and we can't wait to share our thoughts with you next time out On The Gravel.

In the build up to the Canadian Grand Prix this weekend, a lot of time was spent On The Gravel this week hashing out the validity of the penalty points system after Kevin Magnussen escaped any investigation for the kerfuffle that occurred on the first lap of the Monaco Grand Prix last week, truly bringing into question why the system remains in place if the points aren’t dished out in a cut and dry manner. Other news around the paddock centered around Haas folding their Nascar outfit and its impact on the F1 side of the business, Mattia Binotto potentially joining Aston Martin, and the impact the lap one incident with Magnussen and Perez has on the potential future upgrades Red Bull hopes to bring this season. On top of this, a new C6 tire compound is being discussed, Flavio Briatore may be returning with Alpine and a dive into the standings and destructors championship. Takes on the Indy 500, Rally de Italy in WRC, and the Italian GP in MotoGP rounded up a lengthy stint for us, out On The Gravel!

Round 8 of the Formula One World Championship brought us to the Circuit de Monaco in Monte Carlo for one of the most boring races in the history of F1, aside from the first few corners and Charles Leclerc breaking his horrid streak of luck at his home race to be the first Monegasque driver to win at home. Around the paddock, McLaren wore a special livery to honor 30 years since Senna’s passing, Lawrence Stroll and Alonso are losing patience, and Checo has been offered an extension. Along with this, the FIA abandoned the spray guards, Sainz is on Williams radar, and the CEO of Liberty media seems to have a vendetta against the Andretti family. This was the race win and race winner that Formula One fans have been yearning for and its been well worth it. Canada is in 2 weeks time and we will be right here waiting, On The Gravel.

Round 7 of the Formula One World Championship took us to Imola for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix, a slow burn of a race that built up to a wonderful race for the win towards the end for Verstappen and Norris. It wasn’t to be for Lando, but the Red Bull seems to be slowly losing its massive advantage over the field. In and around the paddock, Chicago is back in the headlines with rumors of a finalized deal for a date and circuit, Alex Albon extending with Williams past 2026, and Ferrari’s key engineering and development pickups from Mercedes. Along with this, Adrian Newey has stated that he wants to continue designing, Haas may be eying Zhou over Bearman, and Bottas may be turning some eyes at Alpine and Williams.  Plenty of racing is coming up this week with the Spanish GP in MotoGP, the 108th running of the Indy 500, and the Monaco GP in Formula One. Stick with us this week On The Gravel as we look on to see who’s drinking the milk and who blitzes the opposition on the streets of the principality!

In the week leading up to the Emilia-Romanga Grand Prix at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the racing world blessed us with the famous Month of May, widely regarded as the greatest month of the year for world motor racing. This weekend had fans booked with the 6HRs of Spa in WEC, Rally de Portugal in the WRC as well as the French GP in MotoGP. Along with our coverage and takes on those three events, there was still news to be heard around the F1 paddock. A deep dive onto the penalty points system was due after last week's Miami GP along with Leclerc apparently having no water from the formation lap, the Miami GP setting US watch records and RB Powertrains taking hundreds of employees from the Mercedes HPP engine program. To finish off, the changes to Imola were discussed for the upcoming race, all the racing events for May were outlined and Leclerc’s long time race engineer Xavi Marcos is being reshuffled elsewhere at Ferrari. Many continuous weeks of fruitful racing are on the horizon and we intend to talk about it all here when we see you next, On The Gravel.

Round 6 of the Formula One World Championship brought us to the Miami International Autodrome for a now infamous Miami Grand Prix. The sprint weekend saw some incredible wheel to wheel racing between Hamilton and Magnussen in the sprint, Sergeant being taken out at his home race through no fault, and  a first career victory for Lando Norris after a wonderful strategy, well timed safety car and upgraded McLaren. In other places around the paddock, we remembered Ratzenberger and Senna who both lost their lives 30 years ago this week at Imola, Adrian Newey’s departure from Red Bull is now fully confirmed, and we had a massive tease and subsequent disappointment from Ferrari when regarding their special blue livery this week. On top of this, members of congress have written to Liberty Media to request answers on Andretti’s denial to the sport, F1 Academy announced a Netflix series, and Williams have asked the FIA to approve Antonellis entrance to the sport. Finally, next week sees a hefty amount of racing including the 6hr of Spa in WEC, Rally de Portugal in WRC, and the GP de France in MotoGP. Enjoy Lando’s maiden victory and get ready for an incredible week of racing ahead as we hope to see you back again, On The Gravel!