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New commercial rights holder announced for the WRC and ERC in landmark deal

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Rally Finland
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Formula 1
The principles Stella holds dear at McLaren to make the F1 team tick

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Hungarian GP
The challenge Haas faces in trying to meet F1 budget cap: "Fighting with both hands tied"

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WRC Rally Finland: Ogier claims lead after incident-packed morning

WRC
Rally Finland
WRC Rally Finland: Ogier claims lead after incident-packed morning

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Formula 1
Bahrain GP in Malaysia
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Thailand to host MotoGP 2027 season opener

MotoGP
Thailand to host MotoGP 2027 season opener

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Hungarian GP
Why progress 'won't satisfy' Red Bull until it can give Verstappen a winning car
Podcast

JA on F1 Podcast: How Mercedes' Antonelli signing compares to Liverpool's Salah acquisition

Rob Smedley is the latest guest on the James Allen on F1 podcast.

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Reserve Driver, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team

Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Reserve Driver, Mercedes-AMG F1 Team

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

This week we are doing something a little different. We explore how F1 teams make key decisions on areas like driver recruitment, development and race strategy and compare it with how things are done at a top Premier League football club.

 

F1 is a sport built around technology, whereas in football the smartest teams have begun only in the last decade to use it for recruitment, strategy, in-game tactical decisions and so much more.

With Smedley able to compare how Mercedes recruited Kimi Antonelli to how Liverpool FC discovered Mo Salah, we have two experts in their fields.

Smedley, former race engineer to Felipe Massa and head of track engineering at Williams, now runs the Smedley Group which advises across the F1 spectrum on data and AI.

And Dr Ian Graham, of Ludonautics and most famously head of the data department at Liverpool FC for 11 years. His data analysis played a key role in building the Jurgen Klopp team that won the Premier League and Champions League. His book, 'How to win the Premier League' is a brilliant guide to the way decisions get taken in an elite sport.

Send your comments or questions to: @jamesallenonf1 on X/Twitter or jamesallenonf1@autosport.com.

A Motorsport Studios production for Autosport

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