Two-Wheeler Racing returning to Austria is our equivalent of ‘everything reminds me of her’ as it seems only yesterday when we saw the two McLaren boys go for each other’s throats on the legendary Red Bull ring. The opening laps were in the mood of reciting the same old story as the Marquez brothers found themselves battling for the lead after a rear tyre blow-up disaster for both Bagnaia and Aldeguer. This is what happens when sibling rivalry meets motor racing, as Alex gave his all to keep Marc Marquez at bay, while Acosta lost sight of the top two. The dream was sweet while it lasted, but Marc Marquez got his chance and ‘Carpe Diem’ed’ the moment to get the lead and come home to yet another win ahead of his brother Alex Marquez, with Acosta finishing the podium.

The jinx of the Red Bull ring was the only hope for us fans, but little did we know that the run Marc Marquez is on, no jinx will ever be enough. Having fluffed the start at the Sprint, Bagnaia nailed the start to get ahead of polesitter Bezzecchi, flirting with the prospects of a pole and our hopes to see anyone but Marc Marquez hoard the trophies like bachelors hoard Maggi noodles. Marc Marquez was on a hunt as he got Pecco first and Acosta later, while Pedro Acosta was making Alex Marquez’s life difficult in the race. Marc was now on the tail of Bezecchi like a bounty hunter, chipping away at the lead. With an amazing move down the hill, Marc returned to his familiar spot after an exciting to and fro with Bezzecchi and came home to win 2-wheeler racing’s 1000th race. Aldeguer was a rookie on a charge to finish P2 ahead of Bezzecchi.

Going full McLaren mode for our fans, we are doing everything to help them bring prizes home and that’s why we are excited to announce the launch of Monthly Fan’s Championship!!! Apart from Off 2 Qatar and it’s fan championship, we now introduce Monthly Fan’s Championship starting from August 2025. Every month, from August to November, 4 monthly contests across the span of 4 months and the top 5 users on the FC leaderboard will be rewarded big and the ultimate prize of them all, an exclusive motorsport memorabilia made by For 1 Studio.

Motosport has never been this rewarding but it now is, with Grid Master, take your racing weekend to the next level with actual stakes and prizes in the game. Experience some of the skin in the game thrill and rewarding prizes only by participating in Grid Master’s Monthly Fan’s Championship!

Stake Kick Sauber team has been nothing but a disgrace on the grid of the 2024 season. Reserving dead last spots more often than not, spending time on one pitstop equivalent to 40 pitstops of McLaren and going through most of the season without scoring a single point. We didn’t expect anything else from them this season and treated them more as a place-holder for the upcoming Audi next season. (A team to keep the drill machines functional.) The start of the season was no surprise, but the turnover has shocked every fan and pundit alike. Who knew that the P5 in Spain from Nico Hulkenberg was just a trailer of what’s about to come? A podium in Silverstone where teams like Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes were on the track and running, and from then on, competing in the top 10 consistently with the two drivers, the team is now in the fight for the top of the midfield and it’s safe to say that the arrival of Jonathan Wheatley has done what no one expected from the green wheely bins.

The upcoming Austrian GP comes as the biggest respite in what seems like an eternity without racing. We are seeing one of the most dominant performances unfold in front of our eyes by the rockstar Marc Marquez, while the battle behind him turns spicier and spicier with every round of the campaign. Jump on this thrilling bandwagon before the Grand Prix weekend by taking part in Grid Master’s Hungarian GP Contest now live only on Grid Master and stand a chance to out-smart others by sheer passion and tactics to win forever bragging rights on the sports we all love so much!!!

So join now and be a part of the intense battle before the battle!

Sergio Perez has been picked as the hottest candidate for the Cadillac seat from the end of the 2024 season, even though Perez himself was still sheltered under the delusion that he would continue with Red Bull (which, in hindsight, would have been the best choice). However, the freshly baked rumours suggest that Cadillac might also be going after Horner now that he is a free agent, and that would bring back the most uncomfortable couple in the paddock. We fear accidentally bumping into our exes, imagine MARRYING THEM. A lot of awkward and uncomfortable conversations lie ahead for the Cadillac team if this plan goes through, and at least one of them would be tempted to veto this out. It doesn’t seem long before Christian Horner will be back on the grid with some team, and Cadillac now just holds the opportunity to do the funniest thing ever.

Championship on the table for two McLaren boys with Oscar in his ‘Villain Era’ and a memorable trip to Qatar on the table for lucky fans throught the OFF 2 QATAR Contest and Fan Championship Contest. Will the upgrades bring Ferrari in contention, can Red Bull finally be a two drvier team? How intense will be the McLaren battle moving on? So many questions to be answered when we return back from the Summer break. To sweeten the stake, we also have Fan Championship Table ramping up from the points of our ethusiastic and passionate participants fighting with all their intuition and skills on the table to make it to the top of the table to win their ultimate racing experience to watch the season reach it’s exciting end in the shrine of speed- Qatar itself!!!

So much to play for and so much to win, so participate now in Grid Master Contest to make your way ahead in the Off 2 Qatar League and Fan Championship Table!

Fan of the Sidepod podcast? Would you like to hang out with the most awesome and fun bunch of our racing pundits? YOU CAN NOW! Join Grid Master and participate in the upcoming contests under the Off-2-Qatar campaign and get a chance to win a trip to Qatar with all the Sidepod members. Make this experience your most memorable racing experience yet and join our Sidepod members in the shrine of speed to witness the Championship battle unfold in front of your eyes!

Presenting a brand new section of your much-loved newsletter, called DID YOU KNOW? A segment where we take random, interesting, shocking facts, trivia and stories, realising how they painted the motorsport world, how we now see and love!

Did you know that in the 1997 European Grand Prix at Jerez is the only race in F1 history where three drivers set exactly the same pole position time — Jacques Villeneuve, Michael Schumacher, and Heinz-Harald Frentzen all clocked in 1:21.072.