Zandvoort played host to an action-packed Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday, with Oscar Piastri taking victory, McLaren team mate and title rival Lando Norris retiring, and Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar claiming a superb maiden podium finish.
Marcin Budkowski, who worked with Piastri at Alpine and has held engineering roles at Ferrari and McLaren, joined F1 Nation host Tom Clarkson in the paddock post-race to reflect on all the drama and talking points.
After Norris’ late mechanical failure, Piastri’s seventh victory of the season moves him 34 points clear at the top of the Drivers’ standings. What does that retirement mean for Norris’ title hopes and his approach for the rest of the year? How did Piastri end up getting the better of Norris after trailing him in all three practice sessions?
Budkowski shares fascinating insight into how different Piastri is in the cockpit compared to out of the car with his helmet off, and why the Australian has surprised him after having some doubts about his title-winning credentials.
Norris’ loss was Hadjar’s gain, as the Frenchman jumped up a place from P4 to P3 to score his first podium in F1. How did Hadjar execute his best weekend in F1 so far? And should Red Bull promote him to be Max Verstappen’s team mate in 2026?
Elsewhere, Ferrari had a weekend to forget with a double retirement, after Charles Leclerc was taken out by Kimi Antonelli and Lewis Hamilton crashed into the barriers. Budkowski tells Clarkson why he thinks Antonelli is going through a difficult patch at Mercedes and why Hamilton’s struggles with the car remind him of Daniel Ricciardo at McLaren.
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