EP 137 - The One Where Karl Refused to Get Naked

<p><em>Hold onto your helmets and unplug the Wi-Fi — Episode 137 of </em><em><strong>The Monkey Seat</strong></em><em> has arrived, and it’s already gone off the rails before the lights have even gone out.</em></p><p>This week Tom and Karl look ahead to the <strong>2026 Formula 1 season</strong>, but before they can pretend to be experts about the future, they first revisit their <strong>2025 predictions</strong>… which age about as well as milk in the Bahrain sun. Turns out predicting F1 is hard when you don’t know what you’re talking about.</p><p>With reputations already in tatters, the lads dive headfirst into their <strong>2026 predictions</strong>: champions, disasters, surprise heroes, and the inevitable chaos that comes with new regs. And yes… <strong>Sergio Perez is back</strong>, which is great news for Checo fans and terrible news for Tom, who reacts with all the calm restraint of a man who has definitely not been ranting about Perez for several years straight.</p><p>But the real scandal? <strong>Karl betrays the audience.</strong><br>After losing a bet, he was supposed to record an episode <strong>completely naked</strong>… and he’s bottled it. The excuses are flimsy, the disappointment is real, and justice may yet be served.</p><p>As if that wasn’t enough, this episode features brand-new podcast tech, experimental setups, and <strong>Irish internet held together with duct tape and hope</strong>. The glitches, dropouts, and audio chaos aren’t problems — they’re <em>features</em>. Think of it as immersive realism: the sound of two grown men wrestling with technology they absolutely should not have bought.</p><p>Expect bold predictions, terrible reasoning, tech meltdowns, and the usual Monkey Seat nonsense — because if the 2026 season is half as chaotic as this episode, we’re in for a classic.</p><p>Looking for serious F1 analysis? Go listen to <em>Grid Talk</em>. But if you want predictions with zero accountability and more technical difficulties than a Ferrari upgrade package, you’re exactly where you need to be.</p><p>Catch Tom and Karl pretending to be professional on the <strong>Grid Talk Podcast</strong> @gridtalkuk on all socials.</p><p>For real motorsport journalism, head to <strong>f1chronicle.com</strong>, and for everything Grid Talk, visit <strong>linktr.ee/gridtalkuk</strong>.</p><p>Find <em>The Monkey Seat</em> on Spotify, Apple Music, Pocket Casts, YouTube, Anchor, Castbox, Radio Public, TuneIn, Breaker — or just shout “CHECO IS BAC