To finish fifth and still stand on the Formula One podium made for an unusual end to George Russell’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

On the other side of the rostrum was Charles Leclerc, the Ferrari driver who had already been on the podium on Sunday evening after recovering from 19th on the grid to finish third behind Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz.

In between Russell and Leclerc in his white and black race suit was Sonny Hayes, the veteran racer from APXGP.

Hayes is the fictional character played by Brad Pitt in “F1,” the movie produced by Warner Bros. and Apple that has embedded itself within the F1 world for the past two seasons. APXGP, Pitt’s fictional team owned by Javier Bardem’s character, has received a full garage setup at races and lined its Mercedes-designed cars up on the starting grid, so committed has the sport been to making this the most realistic racing film ever.

On Sunday after the race in Abu Dhabi, a second podium ceremony was staged to capture some scenes, all in front of fans who had been told to stay in their seats after the race for a chance to be caught in the movie.

Abu Dhabi marked the end of on-site filming for “F1.” Due for release on June 27 in North America and June 25 in the rest of the world next year, the project is steadily nearing completion.

“We’ll stay here for the rest of the week doing pick-ups, and then we’re in the editing room,” Jerry Bruckheimer, the producer of “F1,” said on Sunday in a select media roundtable including The Athletic. “About two-thirds of the movie is already cut. This will be the last race that we have (to) cut this together, and we’ll take a look at it.”

The immersion within the F1 world has given Bruckheimer and director Joe Kosinski, who worked together on “Top Gun: Maverick,” the perfect opportunity to make it as close to real life as possible. A teaser trailer debuted ahead of the British Grand Prix in July, featuring a number of the current drivers and team principals and giving a taste of what the in-car footage might look like. Similar to the fighter jets in “Top Gun: Maverick,” a lot of the footage in “F1” tries to give the audience as close an experience as possible to driving an F1 car.

Input from the drivers — particularly Lewis Hamilton, who is a producer on the film — was crucial, said Bruckheimer.

“They were very open about their experiences, what they went through getting to F1, (even their) superstitions,” Bruckheimer explained. “We took little things that one driver did about this superstition, and Brad has that in his character.

“Lewis keeps us honest. Lewis looks at every race and goes, ‘You wouldn’t be in second gear in this turn, you would be in first.’ He comes in there, and he can hear the engine and the shifting and everything like that.”

“One of the big things that we’re doing as part of this is that we wanted the racing to be real,” added Eddy Cue, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Services. “Lewis has helped tremendously. It’s always about the story because that’s what it is, but we wanted the racing scenes to really be legit and be the real thing, and I think that’s what we’ve captured. Lewis has been great about that.”

Pitt and Damson Idris, who plays Hayes’ young teammate Joshua Pearce, went through extensive training and testing to pilot the APXGP cars used in the movie, which are bulked-up versions of F2 cars. Pitt and Idris were on-site in Abu Dhabi for the last round of at-race filming and even photobombed some of the teams’ end-of-year photos in the pit lane on Thursday. The paddock has embraced the project of filming within a living, breathing sporting environment.

One consequence of operating during a grand prix weekend, particularly in front of fans, is that clips of filming taking place have inevitably made their way online. Scenes such as the podium in Abu Dhabi or Pitt’s celebrations with the Mexican flag in front of the Foro Sol stadium section in Mexico have already surfaced. But both Bruckheimer and Cue were comfortable that nothing had emerged that would give away details central to the plot.

“If you’re on the set of a movie, and you get a clip of it, you would have no idea what the hell is going on,” Cue said. “It’s not like it’s shot in sequence, right? These little things… I saw this thing on YouTube of Brad fainting in Vegas or whatever, but you have no idea what the context of that is or before. I actually think all of it helps.”

The nature of that scene in particular, where Pitt ‘fainted’ onto a crash mat on the main straight in Las Vegas last month, was not something Cue felt had pushed the dramatic element of the movie too far.

“I saw a guy walk out of a fire in real Formula One,” he said, referring to Romain Grosjean’s 2020 crash in Bahrain. “I think passing out is pretty real.” Be it for crash sequences or even the on-track scenes, the producers said everything in “F1” took inspiration or reference from moments through the sport’s history.

“A lot of the incidents in the movie are taken from real events,” Bruckheimer said. “Everything that Brad does on the track, the little tricks that he does, drivers have done through the decades in various races. Because he doesn’t have the fastest car and he’s not the fastest driver. He has to use clever tactics to stay up with these other drivers.”

Brad Pitt, playing Sonny Hayes, greets Damson Idris, playing Joshua Pearce, after the Abu Dhabi GP. (Sipa USA)

The conclusion of on-site filming in Abu Dhabi was later than planned after last year’s actors and writers’ strike in Hollywood put things on hold. But Bruckheimer said there was never a moment when the project looked to be in jeopardy.

“We’re very fortunate because we had a whole section of the second unit photography that we hired, the second unit director,” he said. “So when both strikes hit, we didn’t need the writers. We didn’t need the actors. Joe Kosinski, who is our director, shot all of the second unit during the strike. So when we came back, we just had to shoot the actors. We were very fortunate that it worked out this way.”

Cue said that while it “delayed things a little bit,” there was “never any question about this,” even feeling the added time had been beneficial. “You can make an argument that having more time always helps,” Cue said. “We were able to come here twice, as an example, and we were able to film more than we would have.”

Much as Netflix’s “Drive to Survive” docuseries helped F1 reach a younger, more mainstream audience upon its debut in 2019, the sport hopes that “F1” will have the same impact. Bruckheimer thought that desire from the paddock and wider sport had led to such a collaborative effort in the past two years.

“The fans have been phenomenal, they really have,” Bruckheimer said. “They’ve embraced us and been really gracious to Brad and to the movie itself, the stuff that they’ve tweeted about the movie. They’ve realized the impact that a movie can have on a sport.

“The drivers haven’t been exposed to certain markets. I mean, these guys are rockstars, let’s face it, they’re the 20 best drivers in the world. And they’ll be exposed to not just the ‘Drive to Survive’ audience, but everybody.”

While Joe Burrow was helping the Cincinnati Bengals snap their losing streak on “Monday Night Football,” his home was reportedly broken into. 

According to WLWT, a Cincinnati-based TV station, police were called to Burrow’s home in the area after a report of a break-in. 

“Someone is trying to break into the house right now,” a woman who called 911 said to the operator, per WLWT. “My daughter is there. This is Joe Burrow’s house. She is staying there. He’s at the football game. She’s wondering what she should do, if she should be hiding or if she should go outside.”

The report adds that the woman’s daughter also called 911 saying someone broke in. 

This reported break-in comes after the NFL recently sent out a memo following burglaries at the homes of Kansas City Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce. 

The league cautioned players to be on high alert after homes were hit last month that were believed to be tied to international organized crime. 

NFL ISSUES SECURITY WARNING AFTER BURGLARIES AT MAHOMES, KELCE’S HOMES LINKED TO ‘ORGANIZAED’ GROUP: REPORTS

The Associated Press obtained the memo, which warned that professional athletes in different sports have become “increasingly targeted for burglaries by organized and skilled groups.”

NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported last month that the FBI is investigating the crime spree, “which is believed to be tied to a South American crime syndicate.” According to the report, at least one other NFL player had his home burglarized as well.

In the memo, the league also urged players to take special precautions, including installing home security systems. They were also encouraged not to post live updates of their comings and going on social media, as well as expensive items. 

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow walks off the field after his team’s loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers, Dec. 1, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

Burrow did recently reveal on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” that he purchased a replica Batmobile, which is worth $3 million. He said he had to wait a year before the vehicle was given to him, but after signing a $275 million extension last year, Burrow can certainly afford many other things that may be in his home. 

What is unavoidable, though, is the fact that thieves know professional athletes’ exact schedules, which was seen during the Mahomes and Kelce break-ins. 

Mahomes’ house in Belton, Missouri, was reportedly broken into just after midnight on Oct. 6, and Kelce’s Leawood, Kansas mansion was hit on Oct. 7 – the same day the Chiefs were playing the New Orleans Saints on “Monday Night Football.”

“Obviously, it’s frustrating, disappointing,” Mahomes said last month when talking about the break-in. “I can’t get into too many of the details because the investigation is still ongoing, but, obviously, it’s something that you don’t want to happen to really anybody, but obviously yourself.”

Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow watches from the sideline during the Washington Commanders game, Sept. 23, 2024, in Cincinnati. (AP Photo/Jeff Dean)

It’s unknown if anything was stolen from Burrow’s home at the moment. 

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UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond’s contract extension that runs through June 30, 2029, calls for incremental raises rising to an annual salary of $2.1 million.

The contract, signed in May by recently departed chancellor Gene Block, took effect July 1 and superseded his previous contract that was set to expire in the summer of 2026. As part of his new contract, Jarmond will receive $1.55 million in Year 1, $1.6 million in Year 2, $1.8 million in Year 3, $2 million in Year 4 and $2.1 million in Year 5.

Those amounts in the first two years represent significant raises over the $1.25 million Jarmond was set to make this year and the $1.31 million he was set to make in 2025-26 under his previous contract.

Jarmond, 45, will be owed the full amount of his remaining contract if he is terminated without cause, though that amount would be offset by compensation received from future employment. If Jarmond were to leave for another job before July 1, 2026, he would have to pay UCLA a $375,000 buyout. After that date, the buyout drops to zero.

Jarmond will receive a $511,500 signing bonus that will be paid in full by June 30, 2025. (Should Jarmond leave UCLA prior to June 30, 2026, he would have to repay the bonus.)

Jarmond also stands to make yearly retention bonuses of $300,000 as of every June 1 he remains on the job. He’s entitled to up to 10 tickets to UCLA sporting events in addition to suite access for football games at the Rose Bowl for business purposes.

Jarmond can be reimbursed for family membership at a mutually agreed upon country, social or athletic club of his choice, subject to chancellor approval and university policy. Jarmond also receives a yearly $5,400 vehicle stipend and an annual allotment of Nike athletic apparel.

Should UCLA finish in the top 25 of the Director’s Cup awarded to the nation’s best overall college athletic programs, Jarmond would receive yearly bonuses ranging from $14,520 to $28,690.

Jarmond’s contract also provides potential yearly bonuses ranging from $8,300 to $20,455 for athlete academic excellence. There are yearly bonuses for meeting unspecified financial goals ranging from $20,750 to $25,220 and matching yearly bonuses for new revenue generation. There are also annual “overall accomplishment incentives” ranging from $186,200 to $226,320.