Episode 17 - Ferrari, Italian Grand Prix

Show Notes

Chuck Hayes and David Gould cover Ferrari, Italian Grand Prix, George Russell, Lewis Hamilton, and McLaren on this episode of The Chequered Flag Report.

• Ferrari
• Italian Grand Prix
• George Russell
• Lewis Hamilton
• McLaren
• Max Verstappen
• Mercedes
• Dutch Grand Prix

What is Chequered Flag Report?

The Chequered Flag Report is the fastest hour in Formula 1 — a weekly podcast and radio show built for fans who want more than the highlight reel.

Co-hosts David Gould and Chuck "Iron Man" Hayes break down every Grand Prix the way it's talked about in the paddock: race previews and predictions, post-race analysis, driver market rumors, betting lines, sponsorship and the business of the sport, and the storylines the mainstream coverage doesn't get to. Bahrain to Abu Dhabi, Monaco to Vegas — wherever the lights go out, the Chequered Flag Report is calling the race.

David brings 30+ years across business, radio, and the worlds of luxury and sponsorship — the voice behind the business of Formula 1. Chuck brings three decades in Las Vegas media, a CBS Sports Radio chair, and a deep motorsport pedigree from a family that co-owned race teams alongside legends like Dale Earnhardt and Mark Martin.

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The Chequered Flag Report Transcript
AssemblyAI transcript ID: 1e9c7c84-d5ca-461d-a27e-1317f83fb4aa
Status: completed
Duration: 2386 seconds
Speaker mapping: A = Chuck Hayes, B = David Gould

[0:00] Chuck Hayes: Welcome to the Checkered Flag Report. This is Chuck Hayes with David Gould, and we're here talking Formula One. Why? Because it's round 15, Italy, Monza. David, the temple of speed.
[0:12] David Gould: Yeah, man, I'm— I think I'm carbo loading now on pasta, just getting ready for the race.
[0:19] Chuck Hayes: You know, honestly, I haven't seen you this excited about an event other than when they came back from the break. You've been pointing at Italy for a while, and I think there's a lot of people out there that remember how special Monza I think it was short-shrifted in the movie F1: The Movie.
[0:37] David Gould: Yeah.
[0:37] Chuck Hayes: But there was that scene when Brad Pitt and his team were running on the track, on the old track. Right. And that's the romance of Formula One.
[0:46] David Gould: Yeah. And given that Zandvoort is no more, you know, you want to hang on to these classic tracks because there's so much history and so much meaning and, you know, heartbreaking to lose one of these things. So, I'm excited for it. I think it's going to be great. And hey, man, there's an Italian who's leading the way.
[1:07] Chuck Hayes: We're going to remind everyone, our presenting sponsor, Chavez Realty Development Apartments, Business Affairs, Real Estate Assessment. That's 626-440-1545. 626-440-1545. So, yes, that is true. We're coming off the European run where we've had Monaco, Spain, Austria, Great Britain, Belgium, Hungary, Netherlands, and now Italy before we go back to Spain. And it's at that point in time, David, where Kimi's established himself with 242 points and the former teammates are in the second position. George Russell, 183 points. Lewis Hamilton, 183 points. And That makes for great storylines that the fact is the kid is out there, he's the leader, but the 2 former Ferrari— excuse me, McLaren teammates— Mercedes. Wow. McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari. That's the big 3.
[2:09] David Gould: Yeah.
[2:09] Chuck Hayes: The former Mercedes teammates are in a really big battle because no matter what happens, Lewis Hamilton's having a great year. No matter what goes down in this. George Russell, even though he's in 2nd, not having the year he wants.
[2:25] David Gould: Not having the year he wants, but he's lucky to be in 2nd, frankly. I mean, it's been so up and down for him. Um, and I'm not taking anything away from George, but he's had some, just a terrible run of bad luck. I don't think he's feeling the support, feeling the love from the team because they got the phenom out there. And I think it's— there's some sort of like something poetic about this, that the 2 teammates that are tied at 183, or former teammates, I should say, that, you know, that's, that's almost the storyline before the storyline.
[3:01] Chuck Hayes: David, I held back not wanting to pollute your mind and how we go inside Dave's brain today will tell us a little bit about that. But I got a promotion email from a shoe company.
[3:17] David Gould: Yeah.
[3:18] Chuck Hayes: Uh, not our sponsor, so we're not going to give them the love, but I do wear their products.
[3:23] David Gould: Yes.
[3:23] Chuck Hayes: That, uh, was a photo shoot that was done obviously way early in the year of, uh, Kimmy and Russell.
[3:31] David Gould: Yeah.
[3:32] Chuck Hayes: And the way it's positioned, George is the dominant person in the photo.
[3:38] David Gould: He's the alpha.
[3:39] Chuck Hayes: Yeah, he's the alpha. This is my team. I'm the leader. The kids just happen to be in the shot. Like, maybe he didn't have school that day and let them tag along. I mean, I'm not trying to be facetious. Well, you can read a lot into body language, especially when they're marketing an athlete.
[3:57] David Gould: Yes.
[3:57] Chuck Hayes: And he was not front and center. I can tell you that right now. George Russell, when they were— when they were donning the, the togs, if you will.
[4:05] David Gould: Of course.
[4:05] Chuck Hayes: They're like, well, George, you're taller and obviously you're the leader of the team, so let's get you here.
[4:10] David Gould: More experienced.
[4:11] Chuck Hayes: And Kimi, can you— Work your way over here. Now, the individual ones, they have a little more personality in there, and it's, you know, showcasing him. But hey, that's just the marketing part of the business. Yeah, the results is another thing.
[4:25] David Gould: Yeah, and you gotta, you know, everybody— bravado is what is part of the game, okay? Having that kind of, uh, you can call it machismo, you can call it anything, uh, that, uh, dominant posture is part of the game. This translates to racing too. You know, they, they have to, they have to walk the walk and drive the drive. Okay. This is, this is part of it. So I don't, I don't see that as a flaw by any stretch of the imagination that, that George is kind of like, hey kid, come on. You know, I think that is just all part of the food chain. I mean, you know, this, the kid, Kimi is relatively new and he's going to get knocked around a little bit. Okay.
[5:05] Chuck Hayes: Right. This was 4 years ago though. Right. And him and Lewis Hamilton were in the picture. George would be in the back and Lewis would be doing what he does as the 7-time world champ. And so there's— George is in one of those no-win scenarios, right, that no matter what it is— and again, I liken back to the racing as part of the Bond movies, and of course, you know, 007 being a Brit and Sean Connery playing the role back when I loved 007. George Russell would be a great guy down the road in regards to having that coolness, the calm, not getting too excited, but taking care of business. And for a while, we've had a little bit of a crack in the armor in regards to him with the little brother because Kimi was forcing the issue and George was pushing back and Toto was like, Not on air. We're not going to do this now. We'll deal with it later on. But the fact that they actually have to talk about it must drive George Russell mad.
[6:11] David Gould: Of course. Yeah, it's— this is the between-the-ears part of the game. And in days gone by, that stuff was all taken out offline. And now— and we can discuss this on the next segment— Everything is online. Everything is played out on Instagram, played out on social media. So that drama is no longer hidden behind the curtain. That drama is no longer guys banging around in the locker room or going at each other's throats and ready to punch each other. That stuff is all played out like, okay, I'm going to hold it together because I'd like to kill this guy.
[6:48] Chuck Hayes: Hey, I want to remind everybody out there, follow us, The Checkered Flag Report, @LVCheckeredFlag, @LVCheckeredFlag. And what does David Gould say about that?
[6:58] David Gould: Well, hey, give us some love, man. Give us a like and retweet, please.
[7:02] Chuck Hayes: As we continue this, and, uh, this is just a really great season that we're involved with because everything that you could possibly want when we talk about these drivers has not included McLaren, and they're the defending world champions. And Lando Norris has been on a good run, and, uh, we haven't mentioned Ferrari's, uh, Lewis's teammate Charles Leclerc. Max Verstappen, normally the top of the food chain in regards to the storylines, a guy who who now has a new contract.
[7:32] David Gould: Yep.
[7:33] Chuck Hayes: And my goodness gracious, the, uh, the amount of revenue that, that he is producing. Uh, Oscar, uh, Piastri sitting there at 7th where it could have been him last year. He could have been the world champion. So David, when you have these 7 drivers, uh, in the order that they are—
[7:51] David Gould: Yeah.
[7:52] Chuck Hayes: Uh, not putting anything against, uh, Isaac Liam or Pierre Gasly, But this 7 is where it's going to be for the rest of this season. And as we follow this, how people handle where they're at or where they want to be and how well they drive or how competitive they are is really going to be the storyline because it really is a battle between Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren and Red Bull to some extent, not at the level where we've seen Red Bull before, but I don't put out Max Verstappen, other than the horrendous crash that he had, for him to come back and go on a run.
[8:29] David Gould: No, it's possible. Anything's possible. I don't think Kimi has this thing sewn up by any stretch of the imagination, especially with Lando, who seems to be coming on strong. And they seem to have— McLaren seems to have momentum now. And there's another way to look at this too, that you have that leading clump of the 3 teams, the 3 bigs. You got Ferrari, McLaren, and of course Mercedes. Well, 4, I should say. Red Bull's up there too, but not quite where they have been in the past. But you got those guys up there in the front. But interestingly enough, there's a story going on mid-pack with a lot of these young drivers that really, I think, is overlooked. Because when everyone's looking at the race, they're always looking at the leaders. They're looking at those change. And then if they happen to have time, they'll switch back to mid-pack and see some drivers drivers, lead changes, and so forth. But I would tell people, don't overlook mid-pack because there's a lot of good stuff going on there.
[9:30] Chuck Hayes: 100%. David Gould with Chuck Hayes. We're talking Formula 1. We're getting ready to box, box, box, take on 4 fresh Pirellis. Uh, you can kind of project that in the next 3 to 5 years.
[9:41] David Gould: Yep.
[9:41] Chuck Hayes: That those mid-packers— there'll be some people that fall away. Fernando Alonso will retire, and well, who knows what's going to happen with Lance Stroll. But we're going to take a short timeout as we talk Formula 1. Yeah, why? We're getting ready for the Temple of Speed Chuck Hayes with David Gould. Follow us @LVCheckeredFlag. Welcome back, segment 2, Checkered Flag Report. This is Chuck Hayes with David Gould. We're talking Formula 1, and we want to thank our presenting sponsor, Chavez Realty Development Apartments, Business Affairs, Real Estate Assessment. That's 626-440-1545. 626-440-1545. Okay, segment 2 is always one of my favorite ways to go in regards to this show, and we thank you for continuing to follow us. We're going to go inside Dave's brain, and this segment is devoted to what Mr. Gould has on his mind as he gets ready for one of his favorite countries and one of his favorite races with a lot on the line. And David, I'm going to throw it to you because there's some interesting storylines in regards to personality, which if there's anything about personality, it is definitely Italy. It's got a lot of personality.
[10:48] David Gould: Yeah, it does. A lot of passion, a lot of great food, and A lot of racing. The home of Ferrari. Anyway, what occurs to me a lot of— I've been doing a lot of thinking now because we had the week off. There was this week break. And whenever there's this week, there's a break in the action, there's like this vacuum. And what fills it, I think you can see it on social media, is a lot of speculation, a lot of forecasting, a lot of— Because Everybody's got to fill this time with something because they don't have actual race stats, results, what have you, to go to as evidence of what they're saying is true. And some of the stuff is pretty crazy. I mean, everybody's like, you know, Max signed the contract and everybody's going, wow, that's amazing. He signed the contract for a lot of money. And for me, I was like, well, what's so surprising about that? I mean, he really had no place else to go. There weren't other teams that were going to open up that— other teams of his caliber. There's only maybe 2 or 3 teams that he'd transfer to. And let's face it, those guys are booked. They have— those seats are filled, and they're not getting rid of anybody. And he's certainly not going to do something like go to Cadillac and be their guinea pig. So I find that very interesting what goes on in the psyche, in the mental state of Formula 1 outside of the racing when there's a break in the action.
[12:18] Chuck Hayes: Yeah, in regards to going back to Italy and, you know, with off week, of course, last time they went out on the track, there was some realignment because Yuki Tsunoda was back in and Racing Bulls because Isaac Hadjar had an issue. So Liam Lawson was back in and this is going to go around and around until Hadjar's wrist is good enough to go. And who knows what kind of medical tests that they have to go through in regards to him being cleared to get back in the car so that all that is well.
[12:48] David Gould: Right.
[12:48] Chuck Hayes: And, and David, when, you know, when you talk about that, who would ever thought in the year 2026 that a 19-year-old would be returning to Italy, his home country, as the leader in the most competitive international motorsports division, Formula 1? Kimi Antonelli, 242 points with such a great season. Underway of being just the guy on the podium. And when he's not on the podium, uh, there's a storyline regarding that. And he's just had one of those years. And so where do you perceive, uh, him coming back emotionally? Where would, where would you be telling him, uh, if you were the team principal? Would you not bring him back early? Would you wait till the last moment to bring him back into town? Or— You know, the people in Monza, selling tickets is not an issue there. So it's not like you have to bring the circus to town early to drum up ticket sales. Would you hold him back?
[13:54] David Gould: Well, when Caesar's coming back from his campaigns around the world and he's wearing his red robe and he's— robes, and he's walking up the long stairs, I don't think you need to delay that or You know, uh, front-loaded or any of that stuff. Uh, I think what they're probably telling him is, hey, this is another day in the office. Because so far, this guy has handled himself like no 19-year-old I would have ever imagined doing this under this kind— under this pressure, under the kind of things he's, he's going through. And it's a testament to Toto and how he's, uh, how he's handled him, how the, uh, You know, going from F3 all the way to F1, skipping F2, you know, and from what I understand, they've had their eye on him since they've had him since karting, since he was actually karting. So this guy's really been cultivated and knows how to handle the pressure. So I don't think that there's really any issue. I think it's a great storyline though. It's a fabulous storyline. The only storyline that would be better is if he won Monza in a Ferrari, then I think the entire— all of Italy would explode.
[15:09] Chuck Hayes: Well, that's something that I'm sure coming up when his contract is renewed and Hamilton's getting ready to move off to wherever he's going to move off to, whenever that might be. I think that might be the deal. I don't see Charles Leclerc going anywhere soon, but you never know about that if the dice are rolled a certain way. And I guess the best part about, about Kimi Antonelli being back in Italy is that he did it last year at Monza. So it's not his first time back into his homeland, and it's first time with him being the dominant force in the, in the show. But as this goes on, and I guess one of the things that I would look at is that there's probably a lot of storylines, and we don't get it this way. We might because we don't have the European coverage, but I would imagine that there's a lot of Italian journalists and television and Formula 1 coverage people that are wanting to talk with the family, that want to get insights into his friends and his neighbors and the storyline of where someone— they're doing R&D on a 19-year-old. I mean, what are we going to do, Kimi, the early years from the kart years from 3 to—
[16:27] David Gould: 19.
[16:28] Chuck Hayes: 3 to 9.
[16:28] David Gould: That's like last week.
[16:29] Chuck Hayes: Yeah, from 9 to, you know, it almost looks— and I'm not demeaning this by any means— I mean, there doesn't look like there's that much real maturing. He's just gone through the normal stages, and he is not a brutish type of athlete. He's more diminutive, more of a jockey style, right? And so you don't really see these huge growth spurts. Where the trophies are that much bigger than him when he was younger.
[16:59] David Gould: Right. And that's the— I think that's what makes the storyline so fascinating. Excuse me. It's that when he gets out of that car and takes off that helmet, you don't really know. You can't believe what you're looking at. You're looking at, I mean, with all due respect, a child. You're looking at a very, very young person.
[17:20] Chuck Hayes: I think part of the problem is his name also. Well, when you say Kimmy, I mean, it's one of those names that doesn't strike fear into the hearts of Mario or, uh, James or, uh, Fernando. I mean, he doesn't— it's Kimmy. I mean, no disrespect to his name.
[17:39] David Gould: Right.
[17:39] Chuck Hayes: If I was a publicist working with him back in the day, I would think like, okay, you know what I might do? We might change your name and use your initials. I think that'd be a good way. But you know, that's what they've decided to do. And I am nowhere near telling some person how to change their name, but I mean, for impact, it doesn't have that impact.
[18:01] David Gould: It's a new day and age and new sets of marketing rules. And maybe that, you know, I don't, I don't think that would change the style of driving. I mean, the guy that— and that's the, that's the crazy thing is when he puts the helmet on, When he gets in the car, he drives like a guy who's an old— like an old head, like a guy who's been around, like a Mario Andretti, which is if you're not on the edge, you're not racing.
[18:30] Chuck Hayes: He's definitely on the edge. Track limits are something that he likes to explore.
[18:34] David Gould: And he exceeds them on a regular basis to the point where they got to keep an eye on him.
[18:40] Chuck Hayes: Chuck Hayes with David Gould. Follow us @LVCheckerFlag. @LVCheckerFlag. We want to remind everybody that this show is powered by Coach Harvey Hyde and Football Promotions of Nevada. And we thank Coach for all that support. And as we continue on, David, as we, as we go through this, um, we've, we've looked at Italy as the, uh, you know, hotbed of, of the racing world. I mean, there's so many great stories that come out of there, but the track that is Monza— and again, all Formula 1 tracks have been redefined. Uh, it's still, uh, 53 laps, 190.596 miles. So that part of it, it's just everything is so much more, um, set for these kind of cars now. And the ability to have them compete on this, on this track is just phenomenal. And we, we look forward to our friends at, uh, F1 on Apple TV Live and IMAX with their opportunities to to celebrate, uh, the Italian Grand Prix, uh, in America this, this coming, uh, Sunday. And David, I know that, um, the big question always when F1 is in America, uh, television-wise, is do you stay up late and go and watch the event, or do you go to bed early and get up early for breakfast to be able to watch the event? So you're a veteran of the, of the party circuit. You've been that guy who has closed down some things and gone to the after, after, after event. Is F1 on Apple TV live in IMAX the ultimate afterparty?
[20:23] David Gould: Well, I will be going to see it in IMAX, and I think it's at 6:00 our time.
[20:30] Chuck Hayes: That's when the lights go out, Dan.
[20:31] David Gould: Right.
[20:31] Chuck Hayes: When the lights go on—
[20:33] David Gould: I'm having brunch at 4:00. 4:00 AM, I'll be Bloody Mary and brunch.
[20:37] Chuck Hayes: That'd be awesome. I see. That's exactly my point.
[20:40] David Gould: Yes.
[20:40] Chuck Hayes: This is where this is going with this. Uh, uh, there's nothing like watching it when you're a little bit tired and the lights, you know, the roar of the engines and all that goes on.
[20:51] David Gould: Yep.
[20:51] Chuck Hayes: The madness. Now it's the hardest thing to stay away from social media when you get up in the morning. If you have not watched it live, if you're waking up to it, it's next to impossible to not have an update on your Facebook or your X account or your Instagram.
[21:11] David Gould: Yes.
[21:12] Chuck Hayes: Or TikTok, whatever your choice is.
[21:14] David Gould: The spoiler.
[21:15] Chuck Hayes: The spoiler, where you go, well, I guess I should have got up early to watch that, right? Do you feel obligated? Do you feel guilty when you sleep in?
[21:24] David Gould: I don't. I actually watch the races recorded much of the time because at some point you got to get some sleep because this is crazy. I guess I'll never make it on the Italian driving circuit.
[21:39] Chuck Hayes: On an off week, Formula 1, we're talking about how you consume the event. And we love that about that because— welcome back, segment 3, Checkered Flag Report. This is Chuck Hayes with David Gold. We're talking Formula 1. We want to thank our presenting sponsor, Chavez Realty Development Apartments, Business Affairs, Real Estate Assessment. 626-440-1545. That's 626-440-1545. Okay, so let's get after it, David.
[22:04] David Gould: Yeah.
[22:04] Chuck Hayes: This has got some great numbers, and let's go inside the numbers the 2026 version of the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, the Temple of Speed. All right. Overall, in the history of the race, which started in 1950, Ferrari with 20 wins. So they got 20 beautiful trophies in their shop. McLaren has 11, Mercedes has 9. And then here we go. We talk about the Lewis Hamilton mansion experience and the tour.
[22:36] David Gould: Yeah.
[22:38] Chuck Hayes: Lewis, Sir Lewis, has 5 Monza victories: 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018. So it's been a few years.
[22:50] David Gould: Yep.
[22:50] Chuck Hayes: And now that he is back in a Ferrari for the second year, this will be an interesting opportunity for him to get to the number 6 mark. Number 3 on the hit parade is Max Verstappen. 2022, 2023, 2025. And then of course you have Fernando Alonso, who won back in 2007 and 2010. Charles Leclerc, 2019 and 2024. So Max is the defending champion.
[23:23] David Gould: Yep.
[23:24] Chuck Hayes: Leclerc won it 2 years back, and wasn't that a phenomenal picture?
[23:27] David Gould: Yep.
[23:28] Chuck Hayes: I could still see that sea of red. I remember that.
[23:30] David Gould: Yeah.
[23:30] Chuck Hayes: And the only thing for Charles was that that day was just one that will go down in great memories. So as we look at this, we don't see last year the, the McLarens of Lando and Oscar, but I do know there was a battle. So you got Max as the defending champion.
[23:52] David Gould: Yes.
[23:52] Chuck Hayes: You got Leclerc looking for his territory. You got Kimi looking for his. And certainly George Russell would love to have one of those. So as we, as we open the door for this, I don't normally ask you right now about what you see. We'll get our first practice laps coming in and we'll get to see how things are going. There's no sprint race, I believe, on this event. I don't— I want to make sure that I don't misspeak, but I don't know.
[24:23] David Gould: I don't think so.
[24:24] Chuck Hayes: On this one, I don't think I missed that. I really like that. Because I need that warm-up, David. I really needed that to kind of see where everyone was at, not only from the top of the grid but from the bottom. So when you look at this coming in, and we know that, that Lando has had success, he's sitting there at 4, he's on a run, uh, Kimi obviously doing what he's doing, but is this going to be a Ferrari weekend from your standpoint, or is it going to be a Mercedes weekend? Or is it going to be a McLaren weekend? What would— as you look at it right now and you just feel it, what is it— what is this saying to you?
[25:01] David Gould: I don't— you know, as much as I'd love to see it, I don't see it as a Ferrari weekend. I think that story would be fantastic, but I don't see it. I think that Lando is going to continue his role, and I think it's going to be a shootout between he and Kimi as to, uh, who's taking that top spot. Um, you know, as far as podiums go, I just, I don't know. I don't, I think that they're, Lewis and, Lewis and Leclerc are having some issues maintaining consistency, uh, with the racing. And, um, yeah, I don't know. I just don't know what I'm going to see as far as 3rd spot.
[25:37] Chuck Hayes: I'm having a little bit of a flashback. Didn't Lewis have some issues with how they were pitting the last time out in Zandvoort?
[25:43] David Gould: He was not happy.
[25:44] Chuck Hayes: Yeah, he was kind of really expressive on the, uh, on the microphone back to the pit crew. Yeah, something more than he normally is. And we know that Leclerc's had issues during the course of the spring. But again, when you're in the shop— let me ask you this first thing about Max.
[26:04] David Gould: Go ahead.
[26:04] Chuck Hayes: If you're in the shop and Ferrari is the only team that has their facilities outside of England.
[26:13] David Gould: Yes.
[26:14] Chuck Hayes: They're the only one.
[26:15] David Gould: Yeah.
[26:16] Chuck Hayes: With Lewis Hamilton with 5, and this is his second year with Ferrari, what do you think the atmosphere is inside the Ferrari workplace? How is that? How is that pressure? Does he, after last week and, and Zandvoort, a little bit unhappy with his team, does he strut it a little bit more now because they're back in, in Italy and he has 5? And he knows they're close, but maybe they're not as close as he would like them?
[26:47] David Gould: Yeah, I think that what it really comes down to for him is team management. There were some pretty odd decision-making in Zandvoort. I didn't understand why they didn't pit him at the right time, and he didn't understand it. And when, when Lewis starts— you're talking about— I'm talking about Lewis, excuse me, not if I said Max. And if Lewis is starting to use expletives, on the air, you know, he's unhappy because that guy never really loses his cool. I think that there— I think that there are some significant management problems going on with Ferrari. And I know that— I can't remember the guy's name— the team principal has, has taken some heat as of lately as far as what he's— what's going on over there.
[27:32] Chuck Hayes: And part of the reason why Lewis was so upset was he finished 16 seconds back.
[27:38] David Gould: Yes.
[27:38] Chuck Hayes: And Charles was right on his bumper, you know, at about 17.5. So, I mean, Lewis Hamilton doesn't run 16 seconds to anybody.
[27:47] David Gould: No.
[27:47] Chuck Hayes: Especially coming into Italy. And that's something that we'll have to look at. Now, you wanted to talk about Max?
[27:53] David Gould: No, no, no.
[27:54] Chuck Hayes: In Italy?
[27:54] David Gould: It was really about Lewis.
[27:56] Chuck Hayes: So, all right, well, we got Lewis covered. We know that, you know, we can talk about his person. We will do that. His person maybe to motivate him.
[28:06] David Gould: Yep.
[28:07] Chuck Hayes: Showed him a picture of, you know, maybe there's that space in that Monza room. Always one step ahead, if you will.
[28:16] David Gould: Yes.
[28:16] Chuck Hayes: So he moves something around.
[28:18] David Gould: Would you like a cookie?
[28:18] Chuck Hayes: Would you like— would you like this to be filled?
[28:23] David Gould: Right.
[28:23] Chuck Hayes: With the lady. And it must be amazing to look at them. I mean, that, that Monza trophy is one of the more beautiful ones. Not that they're not all beautiful, because when you win It's the best. It's not porcelain, but it's, it's special. And Max has had his share of, of, of those. Yeah, but not like Lewis. And again, let me— let's go back a little bit before we go to Max.
[28:46] David Gould: Sure.
[28:47] Chuck Hayes: What do you think goes through Fernando Alonso's mind when he knows that he won in 2007? He's going through a situation with Aston Martin where they're now celebrating getting into the second round and not being eliminated in the first round of qualifying. So the mindset of Alonso— what am I doing here? I've won here twice before. Does he go in there and not think that he doesn't gonna have the opportunity to win? I mean, I'm gonna ask you to be Fernando Alonso.
[29:18] David Gould: Yeah.
[29:18] Chuck Hayes: You get your ride to Monza and the shuttle opens up, or you ride your motorbike, however you do it, from where you got dressed Yeah. And you come into the paddock. What do— what is your thought process like? Man, I used to be great. Man, I am great. Maybe I could be great. What do you think it is?
[29:40] David Gould: Well, I would say that body language says a lot. And Fernando's body language in past races this year has been very telling.
[29:49] Chuck Hayes: When he said he wanted to get back and watch the World Cup, Remember that before the race?
[29:55] David Gould: Right.
[29:56] Chuck Hayes: That was to me— I've never heard an athlete say that who was going to race in a Formula 1 race.
[30:01] David Gould: Yeah.
[30:01] Chuck Hayes: Just going, I hope it doesn't go longer so I can get back on the plane to watch World Cup.
[30:06] David Gould: Yeah. That to me says everything. And I'm not finding fault with him necessarily because he's still a great driver and I don't think he really has the team to support him. Aston Martin has just not been, not been great.
[30:23] Chuck Hayes: But hope springs eternal. They are improving. We know that. And again, it's the small things, but maybe this is the direction that lower grid is going. And to me, I think the guy with the biggest frustration of all of them is Carlos Sainz. He went from driving a Ferrari to being in Williams and not being competitive at all.
[30:46] David Gould: No. No, in fact, Williams is having another horrendous year. So, yeah, Fernando, I think, is— it might be time to hang it up because unless he can get somebody that— a team that is really up to his abilities, then there's no, no point to it. But the more you learn what these drivers go through physically, then you got to wonder about a guy who's what? What's he, 46? Something like that?
[31:13] Chuck Hayes: I think he's 44.
[31:14] David Gould: 44. Okay, so 44 years old. Going through 5 and 6 Gs going around some of these, some of these turns. That's, that's brutal. That is brutal. So I don't know. I don't know, man. Maybe, maybe it's just time to hang it up.
[31:32] Chuck Hayes: At what point do you go, enough is enough?
[31:35] David Gould: Right.
[31:35] Chuck Hayes: Because you know what? The check's clear.
[31:38] David Gould: Yeah.
[31:38] Chuck Hayes: And Aston Martin is a great brand and they're doing all they're doing and he's still the lead guy.
[31:43] David Gould: And leave under your own steam. Rather than, like, get cut. That's the last thing you want as a vet that's had a lot of success. Don't get cut.
[31:52] Chuck Hayes: Father Time is undefeated, David. We know it. And you're in a sport that is very, very demanding.
[31:57] David Gould: Yep.
[31:58] Chuck Hayes: What do you think when he looks at Kimmy? Does he see himself back when he was that guy?
[32:07] David Gould: I don't know. I don't know what he sees. But I don't know. That's a very good question because you could say that for a lot of these drivers. You could say that for Lewis. You could say that for any of them that, you know, this guy's 19 and some of the more experienced drivers are, what, 26, 27? So they got 6 years and they're looking back going, that, that used to be me, except I didn't win like that.
[32:34] Chuck Hayes: 19 years is a long time. And to win your first Grand Prix in 2007, Yeah. And then, then in 2010, and that, and that's kind of showing you that at the front of the grid in 2012, you know, Lewis was there with Alonso and they were battling and there was a lot of other drivers who aren't driving anymore and they're still in the game and they still have— I liken it when they come into their, their paddock and their pictures on that garage wall.
[33:01] David Gould: Yeah.
[33:02] Chuck Hayes: When you walk in and you see your picture on your garage when you drive into your house, Doesn't it make you feel good?
[33:07] David Gould: Well, sure it makes you feel good. And that's now, you know, why Russell is posturing and trying to shove Kimi out of the picture or, you know, whatever.
[33:16] Chuck Hayes: So Chuck Hayes with David Gold. We want to thank Coach Harvey Hyde, Football Promotions of Nevada for powering the fastest hour in radio. And David, as we wrap up this segment 3, we're going to start talking about schedule because the more they do this, The closer we get to Vegas.
[33:33] David Gould: Yeah.
[33:34] Chuck Hayes: And that's the whole goal of this endeavor. Chuck Hayes with David Gould. Follow us @LVCheckerFlag, @LVCheckerFlag, and we'll get back right with you. Thanks for staying with us. We're going to take a short timeout. Welcome back. Final segment, Checkered Flag Report. This is Chuck Hayes with David Gould, and we want to thank our presenting sponsor, Chavez Realty Development Apartments, Business Affairs, Real Estate Assessment at 626-440-1545. That's 626-440-1545. So those folks out there who are using their handheld and going and finding out about the age of Fernando Alonso, well, we found that out for you. He wasn't, uh, 46 like David said, and he wasn't 44 like I said. He just turned 45, uh, in July. So congratulations. And so he's on his way to his 46 years. And he just completed his 44th year. So yeah, we're going, we're going good. But let's, let's get into the calendar, David, and remind everybody, for those first-timers out here hearing this, F1 is an international endeavor. They started out in the springtime in Australia, then on their Far East run, they went to China and then Japan. Bahrain and Saudi Arabia were canceled. Then they came back and went to Miami in May, then Canada, then back to Monaco. Then they were in Spain in June, in Austria at the end of the month. Then on the 4th of July weekend, they were at Silverstone in Great Britain. They went to Belgium and then Hungary, and then just recently on August 23rd wrapped up the Netherlands. They're going to Monza in Italy. And then after that, they go to Madrid in Spain, and they're going to be replacing the race which they missed. Round 16 now is October 2nd to October 4th, and that will be in Singapore for the Bahrain race. Then they go back to opportunity in Singapore. And then 19th round will be in the United States at Austin Circuit of the Americas, then down November 1st to New Mexico City, which is going to be phenomenal for Sergio Perez and Cadillac to come back.
[36:01] David Gould: Yep.
[36:01] Chuck Hayes: Then down to São Paulo, São Paulo in Brazil. And then November 19th to 21st will be Las Vegas. And then they'll end the year In Lusail at Qatar, and then Abu Dhabi round 24 at Yas Island. Still talk about maybe replacing the, uh, race that was not held in Saudi Arabia. So, all right, we go on this geographical tour. There's 11 teams, 22 drivers. Talk next year that they may add another team.
[36:35] David Gould: What?
[36:35] Chuck Hayes: Oh yeah, there's that talk coming out of China, David. There's long, long, uh, want for a Chinese-sponsored team to come into the endeavor.
[36:46] David Gould: And again, is there a manufacturer associated with it?
[36:48] Chuck Hayes: We haven't heard that yet. We just heard that, that a Chinese-based team is going to emerge, and maybe that was part of the Max Verstappen negotiations that we don't hear about, that, you know, below the line, if you will. Yeah, but these are all things that are going on in this worldwide sport And we're still trying to figure out if we will ever develop an American driver. We know that Colton Herta had a chance, and he's the 3rd driver in for Cadillac.
[37:17] David Gould: Yeah.
[37:17] Chuck Hayes: So, uh, I would imagine over the next couple months he'll get some more test time and more than likely get a test in Vegas where he gets to drive the car, because we don't know what's going to go on with Valtteri Bottas and Perez. I think Perez is Brings a lot of money to the situation. Bottas brought a lot of technology and understanding from Mercedes where he was the 3rd driver last year. So that's kind of where we're at, David, as we go into our 2-minute run.
[37:50] David Gould: Yeah.
[37:50] Chuck Hayes: Take a lap. Tell me how you're feeling about this. And not only, you know, where we're at, it hasn't harmed the racing to have 11 teams.
[38:00] David Gould: That we know of. I mean, or that we can point out with, with any evidence. Anybody who knows me knows I was against the extra team because I felt that the field was getting too crowded. And I still do think that there are issues. So if they're going to add a 12th team, I'm not, I'm not high on that idea because as it is, when you see the way they have it structured, You see guys lapping other guys, and I think that that makes for a very dangerous situation on these racetracks.
[38:32] Chuck Hayes: Well, David, just think, that gives 2 more umbrella holders an opportunity for employment, and then the guys that work on the paint and construction crews, 2 more lines to paint.
[38:41] David Gould: What are you running for office or something? What is this?
[38:43] Chuck Hayes: I say put a chicken in every pot, right? We want something for everybody. More merch, more sponsorship, more signage. This is what Chuck Hayes and David Gould talk about. Mo money, mo money, mo money. And we want everyone to have a great weekend. Remember, F1 on Apple TV Live and IMAX is this weekend. So if you want to get up early and meet our friend David Gould for 4 AM opportunities, that would be a great thing. I'm going to take it one down, one play at a time. We'll be tracking this on Apple TV with all the great coverage as we get the lap times and, uh, at the Temple of Speed. This has been Chuck Hayes with David Gould. We want to remind everybody, follow us on X, uh, @LVCheckeredFlag.
[39:29] David Gould: David says, yeah, give us some love, give us a like, and also retweet. We, uh, we'd love it. Thanks.
[39:36] Chuck Hayes: Thanks, Coach Harvey Hyde, Football Promotions Nevada. We will see you next time. This has been Chuck Hayes for David Gould. Follow us @LVCheckeredFlag. Have a great day.