It could be the last-ever Dutch Grand Prix, and Max Verstappen's final home race. Tom & Chris preview a potentially wet, sprint-format Zandvoort, plus Cadillac's shock team-boss change and a top 6 separated by just nine points over the last 4 Grand Prix.

In this episode: why Cadillac swapped Graeme Lowdon for Marcin Budkowski mid-season, whether McLaren's Hungary upgrade travels, the incredibly tight top-six title fight of recent races, Aston Martin & Honda's new engine, silly-season latest, our sprint-weekend predictions, and a mailbag on sim racing and ghost cars.

Chapters 0:00 – Intro: first race back 1:46 – Cadillac's shock team-boss change 13:24 – Dutch GP preview: Zandvoort's farewell 17:01 – McLaren, Ferrari & a title race in nine points 21:45 – Aston Martin & Honda's engine gamble 23:38 – Silly season & Max's last home race 25:35 – Predictions 30:28 – Mailbag: sim racing, ghost cars & deltas 39:46 – Wrap-up

🔮 Play our free Prediction League: closes at sprint qualifying, 3:30pm Fri UK: backofthegrid.com 🏆 Fantasy F1 & IndyCar (Grid Rival + official F1 Fantasy): backofthegrid.com/fantasy ⭐ Support us on Patreon — includes our community Discord: Patreon.com/Backofthegrid 📱 @BackOfTheGridF1 on X, Instagram & Facebook

Back of the Grid is a weekly F1 podcast by fans, for fans, with Tom & Chris. New episodes every Tuesday.

#F1 #DutchGP #Verstappen

Only one driver made our S tier this season, but is it who you would expect?

It's summer break, so Tom & Chris dust off the tier maker and rank every 2026 F1 team and driver from S ("top tier") to D ("shouldn't even be here").

In this episode: with the driver market gone quiet, we go team by team from Cadillac at the back to a Mercedes side that's built the fastest car on the grid but can't stop it from breaking. Every call is backed by qualifying and race head-to-heads plus the average qualifying gap between each teammate pairing. Expect strong opinions on Verstappen's current form, Antonelli's record setting run, where Russell really landed, Hamilton vs Leclerc, and why Williams and Aston Martin ended up where they did.

🏁 Build your own tier list and send it to us: https://tiermaker.com/create/2026-f1-rankings-15262159 🔮 Free Prediction League — get in before Dutch GP qualifying: https://backofthegrid.com 🎮 Grid Rival F1 & IndyCar fantasy leagues: https://backofthegrid.com/fantasy 💜 Patreon (includes our community Discord): https://patreon.com/backofthegrid 📱 @BackOfTheGridF1 on X, Instagram & Facebook

Back of the Grid is a weekly Formula 1 podcast by fans, for fans. Hosted by Tom King and Chris Evans. New episodes every Tuesday through the season.

#F1 #Formula1 #F1TierList

Is Stefano Domenicali right that F1 fans don't understand, or even care about, the sport's technology? We get into it. Plus a wild calendar shake-up as Malaysia returns (sort of), and talk of a German GP comeback.

In this episode: Domenicali says the wider fanbase doesn't grasp the power-unit rules — so we ask whether that's fair, or just a soundbite for the shareholders. We dig into the engine-regulation vetoes and MBS's push to claw control back from the teams, the strange "Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia" that finally brings Sepang back, the packed run-in with Abu Dhabi and Qatar still in doubt, Hockenheim's bid to bring back the German GP, and the mystery Silverstone/COTA announcement.

Chapters: 0:00 Intro & our first-ever missed review 1:17 Domenicali: are F1 fans 'too dumb' for the tech? 9:25 Engine reg vetoes & MBS's power play 13:44 Malaysia's back… as the 'Bahrain GP in Malaysia' 19:55 Calendar chaos: triple-header, Abu Dhabi & Qatar doubts 22:17 A German GP return? Hockenheim's push 24:32 Free-to-air, Sky & the F1 TV multi-screen game-changer 28:04 Silverstone & COTA's mystery announcement 30:35 Wrap-up & send us your questions

🌐 Prediction league & more: backofthegrid.com ❤️ Patreon (includes our community Discord): patreon.com/backofthegrid 📲 Follow @BackOfTheGridF1 on X, Instagram & Facebook

Back of the Grid is a weekly Formula 1 podcast, by fans, for fans, hosted by Tom King & Chris Evans. New episodes every Tuesday through the season.

#F1 #Formula1 #BackOfTheGrid