Nico Rosberg joins Sky’s F1 team for 2018

2016 Formula One Drivers’ Champion Nico Rosberg will join the Sky Sports F1 team at selected races during the 2018 season.

Rosberg, who was part of Sky’s line-up during last year’s Japanese Grand Prix, will be part of both Sky’s UK and Italian line-ups over the course of the season. As announced before Christmas, Rosberg also joins Timo Glock over on RTL, so UK, Italian and German viewers will hear Rosberg’s analysis at various points this year.

Rosberg starts his Sky commitments during this weekend’s season opener in Australia, a race he won in 2014 and 2016. Speaking to the Sky Sports website, Rosberg said “I’m really excited to be joining the Sky Sports F1 team for the 2018 season.”

“Although getting behind the microphone doesn’t quite match the thrill of getting behind the wheel, I got a taste of it with Sky Sports last year and loved it. 2018 should be a fascinating battle, and hopefully I can offer fans a bit of an insight into the teams, the personalities and everything it takes to be an F1 driver. I can’t wait to get started.”

Scott Young, Sky’s new Head of F1, added “Bringing Nico on-board is fantastic news for Sky Sports viewers. Adding another former world champion to our line-up brings a new depth to our coverage. Nico raced for the current world championship team and this will deliver unique insights at key points throughout the season. We all look forward to his engaging perspective, alongside Martin, Damon and Johnny.”

Those of you who read my 2017 end of year review will have noted my praise for Rosberg, I thought he brought a different angle to Sky’s coverage, and helped reinvigorate their programming during the Japan weekend.

I was worried that UK viewers would not hear Rosberg’s analysis during 2018, but thankfully that appears to not be the case. In this instance, having him appear on-screen at selected races is for the best, and will keep the line-up fresh throughout the new season.

Scheduling: The 2018 Australian Grand Prix

New television graphics, new cockpit protection, a new logo, and a new over-the-top service. Formula 1 heads into the 2018 season with major changes which viewers worldwide will notice.

2018 is the last year of the current Sky Sports and Channel 4 contract, with Sky acquiring exclusive rights from 2019 onwards. Despite the wider changes for 2018, both Sky and Channel 4 field broadly similar line-ups, with the only change that Pat Symonds appears to not be returning to Sky’s talent portfolio.

The bigger changes are for the BBC’s radio team, where Allan McNish, Mark Gallagher, and Tom Clarkson all leave the fray. Clarkson is expected to be part of Formula 1’s in-house team. In comes former Renault driver Jolyon Palmer, who will commentate on every race this season, alongside lead commentator Jack Nicholls. As always, audio coverage of every session is available on the BBC Sport website.

As noted in the past few weeks, Sky’s schedule is changing for 2018, with The F1 Show moving to a post-qualifying slot on Saturday’s. However, the race day timings remain the same, meaning that there is an extra ten-minutes of build-up, and ten fewer minutes of analysis following the race. The titles of the pre-race segments are changing, with Pit Lane Live an hour in duration, and a new On the Grid segment covering the period directly before lights out.

For those wondering, there is no sign of Virgin Australia Supercars from Melbourne appearing in Motorsport.tv’s schedules, even though the round is now part of the Supercars season moving forward. Elsewhere, Channel 4 are screening highlights of the Race of Champions event for the second year running.

NOTE: Clocks go forward one hour on Sunday 25th March, with the change from Greenwich Mean Time to British Summer Time. The times listed are for GMT on Saturday and before; BST for Sunday and afterwards…

Channel 4
Sessions
24/03 – 13:00 to 14:50 – Qualifying Highlights
25/03 – 14:30 to 17:15 – Race Highlights

Supplementary Programming
25/03 – 08:25 to 09:30 – Race of Champions

Sky Sports F1
Sessions
23/03 – 00:30 to 02:45 – Practice 1 (also Sky Sports Main Event)
23/03 – 04:45 to 06:45 – Practice 2
24/03 – 02:45 to 04:10 – Practice 3
24/03 – 05:00 to 07:45 – Qualifying (also Sky Sports Main Event)
=> 05:00 – Pre-Show
=> 05:55 – Qualifying
25/03 – 04:30 to 09:10 – Race (also Sky Sports Main Event)
=> 04:30 – Pit Lane Live
=> 05:30 – On the Grid
=> 06:05 – Race
=> 08:30 – Paddock Live

Supplementary Programming
21/03 – 20:30 to 21:00 – The F1 Report: Australia Preview (also Sky Sports Mix)
22/03 – 04:00 to 05:00 – Driver Press Conference (also Sky Sports Mix)
22/03 – 18:00 to 18:15 – Paddock Uncut: Australia
24/03 – 07:45 to 08:15 – The F1 Show (also Sky Sports Main Event)
28/03 – 20:30 to 21:00 – The F1 Report: Australia Review

BBC F1
Sessions
22/03 – 20:00 to 21:00 – Preview (BBC Radio 5 Live)
25/03 – 05:30 to 08:00 – Race (BBC Radio 5 Live)

World Superbikes – Thailand
24/03 – 06:00 to 10:15 – Qualifying and Race 1 (Eurosport 2)
25/03 – 08:00 to 11:15 – Race 2 (Eurosport 2)
27/03 – 20:00 to 21:00 – Highlights (ITV4)

If the schedule above does change, I will update this post.

Update on March 19th – As pointed out in the comments, the Team Principles Press Conference takes place after first practice, at least in Melbourne. I have removed it from the schedule here as I cannot see it anywhere in Sky’s listings.

Sky’s F1 magazine show moves to Saturday’s for 2018

Sky Sports F1’s magazine programme The F1 Show is to move to Saturday’s for the 2018 season, provisional schedules show, whilst Classic F1 races again form part of the channel’s output this year.

The show started life on Friday nights when Sky F1 launched in 2012, with Georgie Ainslie and Ted Kravitz at the helm. Outside of race weekends, the show aired from Sky’s London studios. At the start of 2014, Sky brought in a live studio audience for the London element having experimented with it the previous season. However, this format also lasted just two seasons.

Now in its efficiency saving phase, The F1 Show’s London-based shows disappeared for 2016, and the programme length was reduced, only airing during race weekends following practice. Now, Sky’s production team, led by new Head of F1 Scott Young, have opted to move the 30-minute show to Saturday’s following their main qualifying programme.

The description provided by Sky indicates a transition back to the 2012 to 2015 race-weekend format. “The F1 Show will be a celebration of the glitz and glamour of motorsport, taking fans into the heart of each of the season’s exotic locations and capturing the eclectic personalities that surround each grand prix,” Sky said.

“Broadcast live after qualification, the show will be an opportunity for viewers to experience life backstage at a Formula 1 race, with a lighter format that is not exclusively focused on events on the track. Figures from around the sport will join the Sky Sports F1 team for discussions, challenges and more, giving a fresh insight into what goes on away from the paddock.”

From Sky’s perspective, you can see the logic in moving The F1 Show to Saturday’s, and into the heart of the weekend. Whilst the change in 2016 was welcome, the show turned into a glorified practice round-up, with viewing figures remaining lower than live coverage of practice. It is currently unknown if the show will air directly after qualifying in the European season, as Formula Two would typically fill that slot.

Elsewhere in Sky’s output, The F1 Report and Classic F1 both return to the channel in forthcoming weeks. Classic F1 returns the weekend before the Australian Grand Prix, with the focus firmly on McLaren’s heyday.

Update on March 8th – Further updates to Sky’s provisional schedules show that their race day output is undergoing a structural change as well for 2018. An example for the European races is as follows:

2017 structure	2018 structure
11:30 – Track Parade	12:30 – Pit Lane Live
12:00 – Pit Lane Live	13:30 – On The Grid
12:30 – Race	14:05 – Race
15:30 – Paddock Live	16:30 – Paddock Live

Instead of Sky’s race element starting 30-minutes before the race, from 2018 the element is billed at starting five-minutes before the race, for the benefit of those viewers who only want to watch the race and nothing else. The Track Parade segment has disappeared, morphing into Pit Lane Live, whilst Martin Brundle’s grid walk gets its own EPG billing under the title of On The Grid.

The qualifying programme is split into two for 2018, the build-up covering the first 55 minutes, and the qualifying session itself after that. For viewing figures purposes, this site will continue to use the full qualifying show, and the three and a half hours from 13:00 to 16:30 (was 12:00 to 15:30), or equivalent, as a basis.

Sky Sports unveils 2018 F1 pre-season trailer

Sky Sports have unveiled their 2018 Formula 1 pre-season trailer that will air in forthcoming weeks across their platforms.

Unlike in 2015 or 2016, this trailer is specific to the UK audience, with viewers in Italy seeing a separate trailer.

The 60-second trailer, called The Race Starts Here, initially shows the start of last season’s Australian Grand Prix. After the initial sequence, the trailer displays several clips in reverse, from cars exiting pit lane all the way back to the cars in the factory back at base.

The last portion of the trailer focusses on three drivers, with brief glimpses McLaren drivers Stoffel Vandoorne and Fernando Alonso preparing for the new season. However, it is Red Bull driver Max Verstappen who features heavily at the end, with the caption ‘The Race Starts Here’ flashing over the screen.

Sky Creative commissioned the trailer, with production company HLA, led by Simon Ratigan, taking the reins.

Scheduling: The 2018 Barcelona test 2

After a truncated first test of 2018 in Barcelona, the ten Formula 1 teams return to the circuit this week hoping for a bit more action on track.

For Sky Sports, the schedule for the four days remains the same as the first test, with Craig Slater fronting the round-up at 21:00 each day, followed by Ted Kravitz’s Notebook. There is no #AskCrofty, as there was in previous years at testing. The Sky Sports Digital and News teams as always will provide updates throughout each day of testing.

There are two special editions of the F1 Report looking back at testing, one a general review, and one a technical overview. The presentation line-up for both is unconfirmed as of writing.

The BBC’s radio coverage also kicks off this week, with Jennie Gow presenting a preview of the new season on Thursday alongside website editor Andrew Benson and new recruit Jolyon Palmer.

Elsewhere, the IndyCar Series begins in St. Petersburg, live coverage continuing on BT Sport. The third round of the World Rally Championship takes place in Mexico, with UK TV coverage airing from Saturday through to Tuesday.

Sky Sports F1
Sessions
06/03 – 21:00 to 21:45 – Day 1 Highlights
– round-up at 21:00
– Ted’s Notebook at 21:15
– schedule repeated for following three days
07/03 – 21:00 to 21:45 – Day 2 Highlights
08/03 – 21:00 to 21:45 – Day 3 Highlights
09/03 – 21:00 to 21:45 – Day 4 Highlights

Supplementary Programming
10/03 – 17:30 to 18:00 – F1 Report: 2018 Testing Special
14/03 – 20:00 to 21:00 – F1 Report: Development Special

BBC Radio F1
08/03 – 20:30 to 21:30 – Season Preview (BBC Radio 5 Live)

IndyCar Series – St. Petersburg (BT Sport/ESPN)
11/03 – 16:00 to 19:15 – Race

World Rally Championship – Mexico
Every stage live via WRCPlus.com
10/03 – Day 1 Highlights
=> 09:30 to 10:00 (Motorsport.tv)
=> 11:00 to 11:30 (BT Sport 1)
10/03 – 17:00 to 18:00 – Live: Stage 13 (BT Sport 3)
11/03 – Day 2 Highlights
=> 09:30 to 10:00 (Motorsport.tv)
=> 15:30 to 16:00 (BT Sport 1)
11/03 – 16:00 to 17:00 – Live: Stage 21 (BT Sport 1)
11/03 – 18:00 to 19:30 – Live: Stage 22 [Power Stage] (BT Sport Extra 1)
12/03 – Day 3 Highlights
=> 09:30 to 10:00 (Motorsport.tv)
=> 11:00 to 11:30 (BT Sport 1)
13/03 – 19:00 to 20:00 – Highlights (Channel 5)

If anything changes, the above schedule will be updated.