08x07 - What Happens In Vegas

[bunniefuu]

Three to go.

And we're ready
for the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

To win it would be awesome.

The one race in America
we haven't won yet.

Las Vegas is unbelievably special.

You think of the size and scope,
the entertainment,

it's gonna be a giant race.

Las Vegas is quite spectacular.

It's everything Formula 1 stands for.

It's global, it's ritz and glitz,

and night and big money and big crowds,

and it's got very much
a... a Super Bowl feel to it.

So you wanna put on a good show.

McLaren are
the Constructors' Champions of 2025.

We've had an unbelievable season.
Constructors' is wrapped up.

Now all that's left
is the Drivers' Championship.

We're gonna be super aggressive
to try and win this weekend.

So let's go racing.

Hey!

Laurent Mekies,

new CEO and Team Principal
of Oracle Red Bull Racing.

If you are in this job,
there is only one brief.

It's winning. And that's what
we'll be chasing this weekend.

You know, Max won before in 2023,

but this year, you could have
pretty much four teams winning the race.

Vegas, baby!

Whoo-hoo-hoo!

Last year, Vegas was pretty good for us.

We finished first and second
and were pretty dominant.

And this year, the goal is to win again.

I think the favorites are Mercedes,
and Max, as always.

That'll probably upset someone
that I said that.

Maybe Ferrari.

We can't overtake here?

We had a tough season,
but, uh, sometimes we are a bit unlucky.

Vegas is a bit different,
with the show around the event,

but we are trying to stay focused
on track activities.

This is a big race to win at a big time.

What Zak's achieved with McLaren
this season is very impressive,

but, uh, we'd like to beat him.

It's gonna be a good showdown.
I'm excited.

We are friends, but on track,
we are competitors. We are fighting.

It's a battle between giants.
And nobody wants to lose.

Let's go win this thing.

- Good luck.
- Thank you.

We will see on Sunday.

- The race is on Saturday.
- Oh, really?

- Seriously?
- Yeah.

Okay. We will see on Saturday.

- What's happening?
- Good to see you.

- Good to see you.
- Good to see you. All good?

You made it in.

- What's happening?
- How are you?

Good. Yourself?

- Congratulations on the year.
- So far, so good. Three to go.

- Already got half the battle.
- Half the battle's done.

We've got two drivers
that I think are very capable

of winning the World Championship.

Yeah, I didn't realize we were kind of
taking over the whole restaurant.

They're both fiercely competitive.

They're gonna be
battling each other this weekend,

so, uh, watch this space.

You have two great freaking drivers.

And obviously, they...
they both wanna win so bad.

Oscar and Lando just pushed.

Like, I think they're both better
because of each other

than if they had a weak teammate.

But there can only be one champion
at the end,

so, you know, when one wins,
how the other one is gonna feel, you know?

Like, how will you guys handle that?

I can recognize when to talk
to the driver and when not to.

I gotta read the body language

of when do they want me
to come put my arm around 'em.

- That's a tough... a tough one.
- Let it cool down in the moment.

And then it's gonna be like,

"You guys both had k*ller years.
We won the Constructors'."

"You led the World Championship.
One finished first. One finished second."

So I guess Max, you know,
I mean, he's not going away.

He's that bad guy in the horror movie

that, like, as soon as you thought
he's out, comes back to life.

- You know? He's just...
- I mean--

- What a fierce competitor.
- Yeah, he is unreal.

Of course we wanna win
the Drivers' Championship.

I think we can win it.

So I'm gonna get everyone sat.

- Yeah.
- And then I'll do a welcome.

But Max Verstappen is one of the greatest
Formula 1 drivers of all time.

So I think every race now
is absolutely critical.

We have in the room

a bunch of cool people
from a variety of sports.

We have legends of baseball.
We have legends of golf.

We have legends of hockey.
We have legends of motor racing.

There's only one legend
that is great at all of them.

Hello, I'm Zak.

Zak's living his best life right now.

There was a time not too long ago

where that McLaren had
not a single sponsor on it.

Now you're the champion.

The crosshairs are on you.

The king sits last.

Bon appétit!

What do you guys do?

Formula 1.

Are you guys racing this weekend?

No, we're part of the team.

Really? Well, good luck.

Thank you.

We are going into the weekend
super confident.

Max is on a comeback.

The speed, uh, never get it wrong.

And he's not going to give up.

But it's been a massive challenge.

When I got the call about the job,

the noise around the team was very high.

Uh, it was not looking good.

But the turnaround of form

in the last few months
have been spectacular.

Oh, for f*ck's sake.

Under Christian Horner as team boss,

Red Bull looked to be
completely out of it in 2025.

And Verstappen
out of the Grand Prix already.

Come on!

And yet, the job
that Laurent Mekies has done

since coming in as team principal
is nothing short of astonishing.

Max Verstappen
wins the Italian Grand Prix!

...the Azerbaijan Grand Prix!

...the US Grand Prix!

The comeback of all comebacks.

He's managed
to pull that team together again.

And Max is back,
fighting for the championship this year.

We try to keep the noise
as low as possible.

All the drama, as you call it.

We want to be performance obsessed,

and we want to be no nonsense.

Going for a race?

- We are getting overtaken by a scooter.
- Yeah.

Now, in Las Vegas,
we have an opportunity to show everyone

that we can actually compete
for the championship and take down Zak.

- You good for me to go to overtake?
- Yeah, of course.

Is my belly poking out or not?

No, you look good.

We are P2
in the Constructors', and for the team,

it's obviously important
to... to finish second.

But we wanna go back
fighting for the championship.

Elbows in!

Good.

Toto Wolff doesn't just live to compete.

Toto lives to win.

He's making his plans for 2026 and beyond,

and how he can take back control
of the sport that used to be his,

from Zak and from McLaren.

Good.

- Good?
- I'll jump straight in.

How often do you go to the gym
in San Francisco?

- I try and go three times a week.
- Really?

You are still my biggest motivation
to go to the gym.

Winning in Las Vegas
shows our ambition for next year.

And that is important in front
of the American crowds and sponsors.

Do you think
things are looking good for the weekend?

It's hard to say.

And I would like to believe
that in the future,

there will be more success.

I'm seeking perfection.

Feels like a movie

Stay right there. Don't come further.

- He's with me.
- Oh, okay.

- He's with me.
- Okay, I'm sorry.

Don't get overexcited.

Why is he going that way?

Laurent, this is paddock club.
I was like, "Where is he going?"

Morning. Afternoon.

Morning, afternoon, what is it?

Pedro, I don't have my pass.

Good start for today.

Yeah, I want to have a coffee

but a good coffee.

Yeah, zouzou.

In Vegas, to win this one
would be a good step.

Because the last race in Brazil
came with a double DNF.

I got some damage.

Ah, I'm out of this race, mate.

For f*ck's sake. What happened?

Suspension is broken.

Fred's coming into Vegas
on the back of a pretty disastrous

Brazilian Grand Prix.

Thank you. Good luck.

Fred has so much to deal with right now,

with two unhappy drivers.

So a good result in Vegas,

on a track where Ferrari does go well,

would salvage what has been
a really disappointing 2025.

My job is the most difficult job
when you don't get the result expected.

At the end of the day, I'm responsible.

- Okay.
- Anyway, are you ready?

Yeah, I've got media now.

You look...

In good form?

It's quite impossible to make predictions.

But I have my crystal ball.

Charles is well known
to be performant on the street circuit,

and I think he... he likes Vegas a lot.

I remember that Lewis was mega strong
last year in the race,

and the motivation is there.

Vegas is a tough track.

It's a street track. Super fast.

Tight.

Twisting.

Really narrow.

And all held at night

in deeply cold conditions,

which means you get
very little grip from your tires.

It is a massive challenge.

And to make matters worse...

Laurent, did you expect rain like this

when we firstly came to Vegas
at the start of this week?

I don't think anyone did.

No, I mean, we have not been trusting
the forecast for the whole week, honestly.

It's been very, very difficult to predict.

And when the rain
really starts to come down,

Vegas is one of
the most difficult circuits to get right.

Wup-wup-wup.

Sorry, guys, to keep you waiting.
Not good.

Um, all right. Here, what to say? Uh...

Obviously, it was not
a good weekend last year,

but today it will all be about are we able
to put these tires in the right window?

There is a great program across the car.
That's it, really.

It's going to be
only about that this weekend.

Let's make it. Thank you, guys. Thank you.

This is gonna be a sh*t show, isn't it?

As soon as qualifying begins,
the clock's ticking.

You have a limited amount of time
to make the right decisions.

Get it wrong, and you're starting
at the back of the grid.

Strategy is the most difficult job

because quite often,

your decision is becoming
the right one or the wrong one.

Keep pushing.

Now push.

I can't get these tires to work.

Keep pushing for an extra lap.

It looks painfully slow, doesn't it?

The rain cleaned the track.

It was very, very slippery.

It's very wet.

We were not reactive
to the track conditions.

That's it for Lewis
Hamilton's qualifying efforts tonight.

Last and slowest.

We missed completely the opportunity.

It's very slippery.

We'll keep pushing, keep pushing.

And we'll box, box.
We'll chat about it when you're back.

Antonelli down in 17th.

Kimi's on a super-slippery circuit
that he didn't know.

It's unfortunate because he had the pace
to be with... with the top drivers.

There's just zero grip.

Nothing.

Copy. It looked pretty tough out there.

Tsunoda goes 19th.

We got it wrong with Yuki.

Um, specifically, we got it wrong
with his tire pressure.

Sounds like a very small thing,

uh, but it's enough
to cost him a lot of grip.

You are going to have
a curveball being thrown at you,

and you need to be prepared to adapt.

That's the name of the game.

With these tires, we will make the change.

Hopefully, we'll get it right.

Charles, push and try.

P what?

P9.

My God, how embarrassing.

Looks like it's stopped raining.
The track should get better.

Keep your speed up.

When the track starts to dry,

the only thing that it comes down to
is who has the strength mentally,

has absolutely no fear,

will push over the edge.

So, Oscar, that's P5.

So keep pushing, George.

- Looks like P4.
- f*ck!

I guess it's gonna be
between the usual suspects.

Head down, Max.

- Keep pushing?
- Yeah.

Good job. That's P1 for the moment.

So, Lando, track is clear.

- Opportunity.
- Yeah, confirm.

Max, he's gonna be picture-perfect.

We can't control his pace, his qualifying,
so we gotta focus on ourselves.

Come on, Lando!

It's pole.

Come on!

Bam!

It feels great to be the only team

with two drivers towards the front
of the field for the race.

We did better than the other teams.

And Lando getting pole was unbelievable.

It was a great lap.

Yeah, so Norris pole. That's P2.

Well done, Max.
It was difficult conditions.

It was the best result with what we had.

Yeah, unlucky.

We missed the pole. Fair enough.
Well done to Lando for getting it.

But we know we are in a good position
to fight for tomorrow.

It's first row, and it's game on.

Fred, are you okay?

No, I'm not okay.

We came to Las Vegas full of expectation.

We have to try to understand
what we did wrong.

You lose completely the momentum
with different conditions in quali,

and it's a huge frustration for us.

I'm trying to stay away of emotion,

but it's difficult.
It's difficult for everybody.

We are putting so much energy,
so much passion on this,

that you have a kind of frustration.

You just have to accept
that you didn't do the perfect job.

Welcome, guys.

Wait, who is that?

- Oh sh*t, that's Jay-Z.
- Beyoncé.

- This should be fun.
- Take it easy on me.

- Let's go, Beyoncé!
- Go, Beyoncé! Whoo!

Whoo!

You can get crazy down here.

Oh my God.

- Oh my God.
- Did you like it?

We went 200.

- Beyoncé!
- Hey, Beyoncé! Whoo!

- Love you, B!
- Love y'all.

Good morning.

Nice to meet you.

- Morning.
- Morning.

- Morning.
- Morning.

Did you experiment last night?

- I didn't look at it.
- Oh, you're kidding me.

He found some sex erotic kit
in the hotel with the Maltesers, no?

I was curious. Like, I obviously know
what, like, pleasures a woman.

You know, it's pretty obvious.

But when there's a pleasure kit for a man,
I was like, "I need to check this out."

- Did you open it?
- Of course I opened it.

I heard Zak Brown talking.
The one thing he was worried about is you.

- Don't take everything too seriously.
- I know.

Exactly. Especially... Especially from him.

Zak? I cannot stand the nail-biting.

It, like... It kills me.

- What?
- It's so rank.

Stop it.

The bigger the weekends,
the more pressure.

Big events always excite me,

so, uh, with a lot on the line,
that's where the adrenaline comes out.

Max is the guy that we're racing.

He's knocking at the door,
and, uh, Max always delivers.

- What's the plan?
- To go as fast as possible.

Yes. That's a good one.

He's a fierce competitor. He never stops.

So I'll be using both eyes and any eyes
I might have behind my head.

Thank you. See you later.

But going into race day, Red Bull
will be more determined than ever.

You know, people want
to see us chasing McLaren,

and that's what we are after this weekend.

How much risk can Lando take?

I said we don't have anything to lose,
but he has to be careful.

And now I saw an interview,
and he's saying he will take risks.

He wants to win.

From Las Vegas,

this is Formula 1

between the bright lights
and the landmarks.

Radio check.

Seventy-five seconds.

George Russell starts fourth for Mercedes.

Kimi Antonelli starts 17th tonight.

He's not in a good starting position,

but Kimi is an integral part of the team.

He knows he needs to perform.

That is maximum pressure.

Radio check.

Loud and clear.

Charles Leclerc starts ninth.

Lewis Hamilton starts 19th.

With every challenge,
there's an opportunity, lads.

Yep. Let's have a good one.

Yuki Tsunoda starts from the pit lane

after Red Bull changed
his engine overnight.

We have only one car that
has a chance, so it's full attack mode.

- Okay, Max, so radio check?
- Yep.

Max Verstappen is on
the front row ahead of Piastri in fifth.

But Lando Norris will start on pole.

Max being in a hunt
is going to be a dogfight.

He's unbelievable in the car.

Ten seconds.

We just need Lando
to keep in front of Max.

And hopefully, his car will get a little
bit smaller in our rearview mirrors.

We're gonna go for it.

Lando Norris is off!

And Verstappen takes the lead!

- Yes!
- Come on!

Serves you right!

That's P1 for now.

Good job, Max.
You kept it calm, kept your head.

One thing we know is that
your best shot is at turn one, lap one,

and Max rarely, rarely gets that wrong.

Oh my word!

So much chaos going on
throughout the whole field.

Pace is good.

P13.

P12. That was an awesome start.

Lewis Hamilton is up seven positions.

Max Verstappen in the lead.
Then it's Norris.

Lando, Russell is behind.

Yeah, good job. So P2.

Yes!

Antonelli getting close to Colapinto.

Kimi, currently in P15.

Colapinto 1.0 ahead.

Okay, good lad.
Still plenty to play for here, Kimi.

Just keep looking forward.

Look at these lap times. Kimi's 33.9.

It's unbelievable.

Nice work, Kimi.
You're the fastest man on track.

Kimi's lap times
are getting faster and faster,

but he needs to get himself
towards the front of the field.

Hadjar now comes in to the pit.

Piastri has been called to the pit lane.

We are staying out.

We had really good pace.

That was the moment where we're thinking,
"It looks like it's a one-stop."

"Should we give it a little bit
of a push more on the tires

and see whether we can get to the end?"

Antonelli now up to P8.

So it's now Ocon, the car ahead.

Overtake is available.

Okay, nice work, Kimi.

Lando, the gap to Russell ahead is 1.4.

Overtake him.

Come on!

Gap 0.5.

Go on, Lando!

Good effort, mate.

Antonelli,
who has run 32 laps on the hard tire,

now finds himself in fourth position
as everyone else has pitted.

Kimi's shown speed,
but he needs to manage the tires.

On a one-stop,
if you can't nurture the tire to the end,

you're gonna be eaten up
by the guys behind.

Oscar, the car ahead is Antonelli.

Car behind is now Leclerc.

And gap 0.8 behind.

Gap 0.7 behind.
Everything you've got, mate.

Here we go.

Come on!

Okay, gap 0.8.

Piastri, 1.3.

This is not good enough.

I am pushing like crazy.

Keep your head down.

Piastri and Leclerc
not making any inroads on Antonelli.

Right, let's go get Max.

Yep.

I don't think there's much you can
do to stop Max other than just beat him.

We can't influence what he does,
so we just gotta focus on ourselves.

- Car behind, Norris.
- You want me to push?

Yes, please.
For reference, the gap is 5.1.

- Here we go.
- Come on, boy!

- Let's try and pick up the pace.
- Yeah, no, I am.

Sparks flying
out of the back of Lando Norris.

We're just slow.

Uh, what do I do? 'Cause

sometimes I lift more,
and it just feels worse.

What is going on with Norris?

What is the issue he's dealing with?

We'll just have to, uh, compromise
with the skid plate being dodgy?

- Yeah.
- A lot?

Lando is nursing some form of issue.

Gap is 9.6.

Okay, Max, this is the final lap.

Max Verstappen wins
the Las Vegas Grand Prix!

Whoa! Yes, simply lovely, that.

Well done, Max.
That was proper... proper domination.

Very happy. Well done, guys.

Lando Norris hangs on to second position.

- Checkered flag?
- Yeah, that's checkered flag.

Good job, mate. So P3.

Yeah, that was... that was a tricky one.

Yeah, George, congratulations
to the podium. Really good.

Kimi Antonelli finishing fifth!

Yeah, Kimi, the...
the pace was from another planet.

It's mega. It was mega.

P6.

Like, how did I end up in tenth?

I thought we were looking good
at one point.

Max Verstappen taking career victory 69.

Did you see he was fastest lap again?

Yeah, but you can't stop him.

I think the win was very, very significant
in the way that it was a dominant win.

Nice driving, boy!

Fantastic. Well done.

The work we are doing,

we only do that
to achieve that magic moment.

Whoo!

Ah, good race, but...

I don't like second.

Max Verstappen
has won the Las Vegas Grand Prix,

but you have to say
it's a great result for McLaren.

Lando Norris remains 30 points clear
at the top of the Drivers' Championship.

Uh, McLaren...

We think there's a...
This is odd. This is weird.

They're under investigation with the FIA.

I think they might be in trouble.

- Something is currently happening.
- Yeah.

And if you get summoned
and the measurement is ill*gal,

I think there's probably only one outcome.

We have something
we have to agree on what to say here.

Do they always check?

Yes.

Netflix are filming behind.

Okay.

Lando, what happened at the finish?

Was it a fuel management issue?

Uh, it might have been.
The team were telling me there was some...

I think there were sensor issues,
from what I got told after.

They didn't tell me during the race.

Very quick one. I've got Zak Brown here.

That did not look like an easy evening
at the office. How do you view it?

It was kind of a boring race.

Can I ask what the problem was
with Lando's car that slowed him?

We were just managing.

We wanted to, uh,
be on the conservative side.

So if there's too much wear,
then they get disqualified.

Out of the way.
Out of the way, please. Out of the way.

Uh, Lando.

Oh, yeah. It was at its limit.

- Below the limit.
- Oh, they were below the limit?

- The second check is in there.
- Okay.

Have they come out?

- Have they come out?
- No.

We have some breaking news for you.

Both McLaren drivers
have just been disqualified

from the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Um, what was the issue with the car?

We had a skid wear issue,
so the car was too low.

It was unbelievable.

Less than a piece of paper
that we were off by,

but the rules are the rules.

It's not any one person's fault.

If it is, it's mine
'cause everything rolls up to me.

Vegas is all about taking a gamble, right?

Zak gambled and lost

in front of
the biggest audience imaginable.

And the impact is enormous.

With two races to go,

this double disqualification

completely knocks McLaren
off their stride.

Heading into this weekend,
we were talking about Max being...

you know, it's mathematically possible.

But he could actually now win
his fifth world title.

It looks like this is going
all the way to the wire.

Max has never believed
that this is his title to win.

It was going to take McLaren doing
something that would allow him in.

This is that moment.

From an outside shot...

it's game on.

- We looked like idiots.
- Can't afford any more mistakes.

We head into the final two races

with a three-way fight
for the Drivers' title.

- Verstappen is a monster.
- He will smell blood.

Zak Brown described you
as a guy in a horror movie.

You can call me Chucky.

We could be standing
on the brink of history.

- Funny things can happen.
- Norris has fallen behind.

Let's f*cking go, guys.

Oh, come on!

That was classic Red Bull shithousery.

It is time to crown a champion!

It couldn't be more disastrous.

Unbelievable, Max.