From Hamilton bust up to Verstappen podcast: The F1 cooldown room explained

Formula 1 is one of the most intense sports in the world. High speed, high drama, high stakes - it has it all. Naturally, then, it is understandable that some of the sport's biggest stars can get very heated both under the helmet and in the aftermath of a grand prix. So how do they deal with this? and how do their battles with their fellow drivers manifest off track?

Imagine you've just watched 90 minutes of nail-biting racing action, witnessed too many near misses to count and seen drivers squabble the second they step out of the car. Now imagine that F1 have mic'd up said drivers, stuck them all in a confined space and let them rewatch some of their finest, and at times worst moments on the big screen. At its core, this is the F1 cooldown room.

Before Drive to Survive, casual and dedicated F1 fans alike could gawk at the misfortune and squabbles of their favorite drivers thanks to the cooldown room. In its modern form, this procedure sees the top three drivers head to a room to, as the name suggests, cool down before stepping out onto the podium for the celebrations and trophy presentations.

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Before Drive to Survive, casual and dedicated F1 fans alike could gawk at the misfortune and squabbles of their favorite drivers thanks to the cooldown room. In its modern form, this procedure sees the top three drivers head to a room to, as the name suggests, cool down before stepping out onto the podium for the celebrations and trophy presentations.

Max Verstappen practically lived there when dominating the 2023 season, but this year the cooldown room has displayed potential once again, providing viewers with the juiciest gossip and driver reactions to on-track overtakes and mishaps.

Most notably, Lando Norris showing his age in Hungary this year when he delivered a bizarre retort to Lewis Hamilton's compliment on the papaya's speed.

The seven-time champion was left gobsmacked after Norris declared that Hamilton had had his time in a fast car seven years ago and it was now McLaren's turn. Thanks to the cooldown room, the 24-year-old will be able to reflect on that unflattering interaction for many years to come.

George Russell has often found himself in the cooldown room having unsuspectingly benefitted from the misfortune of his rivals.

His second career victory was delivered in shock fashion after he looked set to achieve no higher than P3. Thanks to an inevitable late-race collision from Verstappen and Norris however, the two championship rivals took each other out of contention for the win, making way for Russell to sail through and claim victory, leading to even more cooldown room entertainment.

What is the F1 cooldown room?

In F1, the top three drivers are required to head to a room at the end of each grand prix before walking out onto the podium to celebrate their success in front of thousands of adoring fans.

This procedure acts as an optimal time for drivers to not only reflect on their own achievements but also ensure they are feeling up to attending the podium. With a sport as physically demanding as F1, it is vital the drivers are given an opportunity to rehydrate following their grueling fight for a podium position.

Amongst the drama, drivers will often be seen sipping on bottles of ice-cool water, if they can have the sponsored energy drink prized out of their hands that is, using towels to mop their brows, appreciating the cool breeze of the fans provided and taking a seat on the chairs to ensure they recuperate.

During this time, race highlights are displayed on the big screen for drivers to reflect on, or in some cases, observe whilst enduring a painfully awkward silence.

Each driver must adorn a Pirelli cap when stepping out onto the podium, meaning another staple of the cooldown room is the cap table- but we'll come back to the caps later.

Whilst carrying out this procedure, drivers often get a chance to reflect on some of the race's most controversial moments- hence why having these opinionated stars still mic'd up for these interactions has produced some of the most iconic bust-ups in the sport's history.

Best F1 cooldown room moments

F1 fans welcomed back the cooldown room filming with open arms in 2022 after it took a disappointing hiatus due to the constraints of COVID-19.

Prior to its break, the cooldown room delivered some of F1's spiciest discussions, with drivers known for their strong personalities often dividing opinions on the manner in which they chose to carry out these debates.

Fernando Alonso angry with Felipe Massa

In the mid-2000s, drivers such as Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso were two of the most controversial figures on the grid, often appearing as brash in the aftermath of an unsatisfactory race. Both drivers appear on our list of the most memorable cooldown room moments for that very reason.

Following his 2007 victory at the European Grand Prix, Alonso directed the cameraman to the wheel of his McLaren, wagging a finger in disapproval at the marks that were left as a result of his contact with Felipe Massa.

The two had banged wheels on Turn 5 at the Nurburgring as Alonso took the lead, but when it came to the cooldown room, the pair were at each other's throats over the incident almost instantly.

Alonso greeted Massa with a passive-aggressive handshake, accusing the Brazilian of intentionally making contact, a claim the Ferrari driver vehemently denied in an expletive-filled rant, leading to what is perhaps the most vocally aggressive argument the cooldown room has ever seen.

Sebastian Vettel and multi 21

Vettel is also no stranger to the cooldown room thanks to his illustrious career which saw him claim four consecutive championship titles with Red Bull from 2010 to 2013. He is also no stranger, however, to a cooldown room bust-up and is the subject of two of the most infamous incidents in the procedure's history.

In 2013 at the Malaysian Grand Prix, Vettel was instructed over team radio to succumb to team orders and hold his position in second behind Red Bull team-mate Mark Webber.

After ignoring the order to carry out 'Multi map 21', Vettel initiated a scrap between the pair which eventually saw him bring home the win instead of Webber. If you think McLaren's 'papaya rules' are bad, let us introduce you to the controversy of Multi 21.

The Aussie driver was furious and in the aftermath, the cooldown room provided an iconic spat. Webber, although visibly seething, cooly delivered the line: "Multi 21 Seb. Yeah, multi 21" before slamming his can of Red Bull down onto the table beside him.

Adrian Newey even made an appearance, perhaps to keep the two team-mates from tearing each other apart, although whether he would have been as effective at stopping a scrap as he is at designing cars is yet to be determined.

A few years down the line in 2016, Vettel inserted himself into a heated exchange yet again, this time as the accuser.

A chaotic start to the Chinese Grand Prix saw Vettel take out his Ferrari team-mate Kimi Raikkonen thanks to a cheeky squeeze from Daniil Kvyat. Vettel finished the race P2 with Kvyat rounding off the podium in P3, Raikkonen on the other hand only managing P5 after the incident.

Poking the bear in the cooldown room, Kvyat queried Vettel over what happened at the start, to which the German driver retaliated: "If I don't go to the left, you crash into us and we all three go out.

"You came like a torpedo," the German infamously remarked.

Kvyat responded: "Well, that's racing", leading to a lecture from Vettel, having seemingly matured from his Multi 21 days.

Lewis Hamilton cooldown room bust up

Perhaps F1's most famous team-mate breakdown occurred between Lewis Hamilton and his childhood friend Nico Rosberg.

The pair were set to be lifelong buddies and in 2022, Rosberg revealed they still lived in the same building in Monaco. In 2016, the German driver won his first and only championship before retiring from the sport completely, his friendship with Hamilton rumored to have been irreparable ever since that title fight.

The Mercedes team-mates often fought like an old married couple, with the cooldown room catching proof of this in 2015 at the Circuit of the Americas. Remember those Pirelli caps from earlier? Yeah, we're back to those.

Following a dramatic incident in Austin where the pair went wheel-to-wheel at the first turn, Rosberg was shoved off the track by Hamilton who took the lead; one which Rosberg was never able to regain.

In the cooldown room following the race, Hamilton chucked the Pirelli P2 cap across the room into the lap of Rosberg, to which he responded by childishly tossing it back, striking the champion, all the while not exchanging a single word. Perhaps the pettiest cooldown clip to this day.

The Max Verstappen cooldown room podcast

During the 2023 season, Verstappen became such a regular in the cooldown room that Norris even joked that it felt like Verstappen was hosting a podcast with different guests each week.

Taking home an astounding 21 out of 22 race victories over the most successful season in F1 history, the Dutchman likely felt at home. It hasn't always been this way, however. On two memorable occasions, Verstappen faced an embarrassing early exit from the cooldown room thanks to a post-race time penalty demoting him from the podium and therefore the cooldown room.

After the Mexican Grand Prix in 2016, the now three-time champion was left in disbelief after being instructed to leave following a 5-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage. His move on Vettel pushed him to deliver the now infamous finger wag of disapproval as they crossed the line at The Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez, but Vettel eventually got his flowers with a P3 promotion thanks to Verstappen's punishment.

Verstappen’s cooldown farewell to Rosberg and Hamilton: “It’s been good guys, see you later!”

As if this wasn't bad enough, a very similar scenario occurred once again the following year at the US GP, this time for a move against Raikkonen.

In the spirit of perfect irony, Verstappen was in the middle of gloating about that very move to Vettel when Raikkonen appeared in the cooldown room to take his place. An awkward face-off ended with the Dutchman delivering a defeated: "Again?" before exiting the room with a wry smile plastered across his face, yet again in disbelief.

With F1 continuing to produce on track in 2024, the cooldown room continues to produce spicy moments. The next one is surely just around the corner.

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