Should we expect another Mercedes-Ferrari head-to-head in China?

The Race F1 Podcast

The Race Media Ltd

Sports

4.5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 11 March 2026

⏱️ 57 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

As F1 heads to a very different circuit for the second race of this new era, might that allow Ferrari to challenge Mercedes for top spot this weekend? And could the Italian team really emerge as a title contender this season after a promising performance in Australia, despite coming off second best?

Ahead of the Chinese Grand Prix, Edd Straw joins up with Jon Noble in Shanghai to answer those questions and to tackle a whole heap more that were sent in by The Race Members' Club, including: How good is Ollie Bearman? Which team is really leading the midfield? And what will happen if the Bahrain and Saudi Arabia races are cancelled?

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Transcript

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0:00.0	The Athletic
0:02.0	The Athletic
0:04.0	The race is on, and as F1 heads to a very different circuit for the second race of this new era, might that allow Ferrari to challenge Mercedes for TopSpot this weekend?
0:27.9	And could it really emerge as a title contender this season after a promising performance in Australia, despite coming off second best?
0:33.6	I'm Ed's draw and joining me in Shanghai to look ahead to the Chinese Grand Prix is John Noble.
0:39.4	Well, John, we're here in my hotel room in Shanghai, which explains the slightly weird high table. You've been here, I think, a day more than me. I just arrived.
0:45.5	It's time lost all evening. Time has lost all. We're into that stage of the season where I don't
0:49.3	know where I was or when I was. Today's Wednesday. Yeah, I landed Tuesday morning, so it's yesterday. So I've been, yeah, I've seen slightly here just a little bit longer than you, but I think my jet lag's a bit less than you because I'm quite similar to Melbourne, like three hours offset. I think you've got eight. Yeah, so I've got a bigger bit of adjustment to doing, and I still think it's yesterday anyway, so I can't complain. But lots to talk about in this episode. Obviously, it's great to
1:12.6	get another race straight away. But before we get into the Chinese Grand Prix, John, obviously,
1:16.5	there's been quite a few comments in terms of what we've been talking about, certainly in the preview
1:21.9	and in our Australia coverage about the quality of the racing, the reasons for it, etc.
1:25.7	We've had a few people kind of saying we're a bit too harsh and need to leave a bit more time.
1:31.1	Do you think we're falling into the old trap of F1 overreacting?
1:34.7	I don't know if you've been too harsh.
1:36.0	I think what, and I think this is something I said on Sunday after the race is that what I don't know yet and nobody knows yet is was Melbourne the new normal is this what
1:46.5	26 racing's going to be like was it an extreme did we get an extreme worst qualifying in terms of
1:53.3	the super clipping and those speed drop-offs and lifting coast but an excessively exciting race at least
1:59.7	at the beginning because it was energy starved,
2:01.9	or is this the new norm?
2:04.6	So I think this is why we need some answers this weekend, because I don't think anyone
2:08.5	thinks those first 10 laps were rubbish.
2:11.4	You can argue that, you know, lots of overtaking, was it proper overtaking or not, is a
	...

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