Five Lights | F1 Podcast: Recent Episodes
Prashast Pittie
Five Lights is a podcast that talks about all things Formula 1. We discuss and debate race strategies, analyse stewarding decisions, address the technical updates, and speculate about the driver market. This is your go-to space post race! Follow us to stay updated with the 2022 Launches & pre-season testing. Lots of new episodes coming your way. Hosted by Prashast Pittie. Follow us on social media. We're on Twitter @fivelights_f1 and Instagram @fivelights_f1
Before the second half of the season takes off, we look back at the first thirteen races and speak of the teams and drivers performances. With the big news coming in from Daniel Ricciardo & McLaren for 2023, we also take a look at the 5 open spots on the grid, and make our predictions for the drivers market.
The second half of the season will see a return to classic tracks like Spa & Monza, and F1 will return to Singapore and Japan after a gap of three years. Will we see a new winner in the second half? Can Mercedes make it to the top step of the podium? And who will claim P2 in the championship?
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
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George Russell's maiden pole, Carlos Sainz starting P2, Charles LeClerc in P3 and Max Verstappen all the way down in P10 due to a loss of power in his RedBull in Q3! The race promised to be thrilling, and the championship fight was on!
But Sunday proved otherwise, with Max charging across the grid to claim his eighth win of the season, and cementing an eighty point lead over Charles in the championship. Ferrari suffered with slow pitstops, and a mind-boggling Hard Tyre call that handed the win to Max, and left both their drivers off the podium.
The gainers in Hungary though were Mercedes who finished 2-3 on the podium for the second race in a row, and are now only 30 points behind Ferrari.
The second half of the season will bring new regulations to combat porpoising coming into place from Spa, announcements on the provisional calendar for 2023, and the final driver lineup, and NINE more races. We can't wait!
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
This week, the F1 circus reached Spielberg for the Austrian GP at the Red Bull Ring. The high speed circuit, the second shortest on the calendar, with this seasons second Sprint was an absolute belter!
We saw both Ferraris duke it out in the sprint, with Max running away with the most points in P1. However come the race, Charles kept him honest by overtaking him three times with ease due to high tyre degradation on the Red Bull. Ferrari almost made it a 1-2, however rotten luck caused an engine failure and a DNF for Sainz just as he was about to make his move on Max for P2. Perez tangled with George on lap 1 around the infamous turn 4 and came away with enough damage to retire from the race.
Behind this drama, Mercedes made the most of the situation with Hamilton and Russel P3 and P4, and Haas had another excellent double points finish. Ocon and Alonso had another strong showing for Alpine while Daniel Ricciardo struggled a little bit for Mclaren. Listen to us talk about all of this and so much more on this latest episode of Five Lights!
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
F1 returned to Silverstone this weekend for one of the most awaited races of the year, and the British Grand Prix did not disappoint.
Ferrari were on pole, with Carlos Sainz and the race promised to be eventful with Max Verstappen in P2, and Charles Le Clerc in P3. But a bit of bad luck for Max and a bad strategy call by Ferrari for Charles meant that Carlos was free to chase after his first win! Lewis Hamilton almost won the race, but had to settle in for a P3 instead, while George Russell's race was over on Lap 1, bringing an end to his Top 5 finish streak.
There were so many events that unfolded in this race, some great overtaking, changes in the lead, interesting strategies and one of the most horrific accidents we've seen in a while. So it was great to see Guanyu Zhou & Alex Albon walk away without any injuries!
F1 heads next to Austria - the home of Red Bull - for its second sprint weekend of the season. And we'll be back again to break down the winners and losers from the Austrian Grand Prix.
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
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Charles LeClerc's Monaco curse is famous. He had never won a race at home before 2022. Setting the pace in practise, charging through qualifying, and starting on pole he seemed all set to win his home race. But the weather gods favoured some drama, and Ferrari employed some questionable pit strategies, so he had to settle for a P4.
The race winner? Sergio Perez! Dynamics at RedBull Racing are sure to get more complicated as he emerges as a potential title contender. Will RedBull let them race or will we see team orders come into play again? Only time will tell.
Carlos Sainz was tantalisingly close to his first victory, doing everything he could to secure it, including dictating strategy to Ferrari. But it was not to be. Can he emerge from his teammates shadows to make the 2022 season even closer?
Is this the last Monaco GP for sometime? What is the future of this track as more and more countries are building an interest in F1?
Tune in to listen to us discuss it all!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
The teams came back to Barcelona, three months after the season's first shakedown, and updates were on everyone's calendar. Well, everyone except for Haas!
Ferrari finally brought their long-promised updates, but it was Aston Martin's similarity to the RedBull that everyone was talking about. Mercedes made some movement in solving their porpoising trouble, and are now looking to up their performance. But it was RedBull that went all the way, after Charles LeClerc lost power and had to retire!
After some radio exchanges over team orders, Perez let Verstappen (who was struggling with DRS issues) by to win the race. It's RedBull's second 1-2 this season, and as we head in to Monaco, they have all the momentum. LeClerc will be looking for a win, but he'll also be eager to actually finish this race.
Tune in to listen to us discuss it all!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
F1 headed to the United States of America for the first ever Miami Grand Prix, and Miami brought the heat! The drivers struggled to race in the hot, humid and sultry Miami weather, and although there was a hint of rain, none came.
Ferrari had their first front-row lockout since Mexico 2019, but despite all of RedBull's troubles on Friday, it was Max all the way for the win!
A late safety car following contact between Norris & Gasly led to some drama, and some interesting point scorers with George Russell putting his Mercedes in P5, after being P16 on the opening lap.
We next head to Spain where Ferrari promises to bring some upgrades to their car! Will they have what it takes to beat the RedBull?
Tune in to listen to us discuss it all!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
For the fourth race of the 2022 season F1 was racing in Imola. The season's first sprint meant we had three days of excitement to unpack, and Ferrari had all of the momentum going in to their home race.
But RedBull Racing walked away with all the glory with their first 1-2 since Malaysia 2016, and Ferrari were left out in the rain with a DNF, a slow pitstop and a costly error on track. McLaren made great strides to get their first podium of the season with Lando Norris, while George Russell and Valtteri Bottas finished an impressive P4 and P5. In perhaps the biggest surprise of the weekend Aston Martin had a double points finish which means that all 10 teams now have points on the board!
In two weeks F1 heads to a new track in MIAMI! Who will come out on top? Tune in to listen to us discuss it all!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
Three races down, and that's 2 DNFs for the reigning world champion Max Verstappen. George Russell in his first year at Mercedes finds himself sitting pretty in P2 in the Drivers Standings despite their clear lack of pace. Carlos Sainz's luck runs out at last and a red flag in Q3 prevents him from a chance to start in the top 4. Williams Racing score their first point of the season with Alex Albon! So much happened in the Australian GP that we haven't yet mentioned Charles' dominance in this race, and Ferrari's first grand slam since 2010!
Tune in to listen to us discuss it all!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
Round 2 in 2022 brought us to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit in Saudi Arabia - the second longest F1 track on the calendar, with the most corners - a high-speed adrenaline rush like no other.
Sergio Perez achieved his first ever career pole, while Max Verstappen started in 4th place. Lewis Hamilton was out in Q1 and Mick Schumacher suffered a horrifying crash in Qualifying.
The race had its own share of drama with Charles & Max duelling it out once again for the race win, with Max emerging triumphant. DRS & the tactical use of it is perhaps the emerging story from this race and we bring you all the details!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
The 2022 F1 season is a go with the opening race at Bahrain!
Charles LeClerc starts on pole, with the Ferrari showing some great pace, and the reigning world champion Max Verstappen lines up in second. This race promised to be exciting!
Haas make a strong start to the year, while Mercedes make the most of their limitations; RedBull has a weekend they'd like to forget about, while McLaren treats race one as a test. The triumph from Bahrain though is all red.
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
The teams have given it a first go in the completely new 2022 F1 cars at the Barcelona shakedown, and despite the 3 day test not being broadcast, there is plenty to discuss.
10 brand new cars, and 10 new liveries. Some classic ones that take our breath away, and some that have just left us asking why?
Porpoising, the phenomenon everyone's been talking about, makes it's re-entrance after the 1970s. New 18" wheels and low profile tyres have led to some visibility concerns, but tyre degradation is a beast that seems to have been tamed. Ferrari & McLaren put on a strong show at Barcelona but who's counting Red Bull & Mercedes AMG out? Not us!
Sai Boddupalli and Sukriti Patny join me as we get into all the details!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
The 2022 F1 Season is upon us!
With less than four weeks to go for the first race of the season at Bahrain, we sat down to discuss the many changes coming in 2022. Completely new cars featuring 18" tyres, significant changes to the aerodynamics, new sprint points, and a big change to the role of the Race Director, there's a lot to unpack.
Join Prateek Mody, Rasesh Patel, Sukriti Patny & me as we get into all the details!
Hosted by Prashast Pittie
Twitter: @fivelights_f1
Instagram: @fivelights_f1
For the 2021 F1 season roundup we have Nikhil Nandakumar, Sai Boddupalli and Sukriti Patny joining in to help me take one last lap around the circus that has been this season!
22 Races, 2 teams fighting it out, and plenty of on & off track action made this year one for the books! F1 returns to racing on 18th March 2022, in Bahrain and we cannot wait. In the meanwhile, tune in to listen to us debate about the best of this year.
From races, and circuits to drivers and teams, we unpack the 2021 year, and list out our wishes for the year to come.
Sukriti Patny joins me to unwrap that absolutely insane season finale at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
With Max Verstappen starting on pole, poised to take home the crown, what could Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes do? Come Sunday, Hamilton had a better start into Turn 1, with a reaction time a tenth of a second faster than Verstappen's and that made all the difference.
Tyre strategies, pit stops, team mates - the two teams threw everything at this race. Until Nicholas Latifi crashed at Lap 53 bringing out the safety car, and the FIA made some controversial decisions to allow racing to resume leading to a one lap shootout between Max & Lewis - for the title.
Max Verstappen took the race win, and the championship, as Mercedes held on to the Constructers Title, bringing a conclusion to this hotly contested season.
But with two protests, and a filing of an intention to appeal, perhaps this season still has a twist to offer?
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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Nikhil Nandakumar joins me to discuss the chaotic 2021 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Jeddah Corniche Circuit was the second new track in the 2021 F1 calendar, the fastest street circuit on the calendar - think Monza meets Singapore. Tension & excitement filled the air as we went into this race. Max Verstappen could be crowned World Champion here - would he be able to do it?
Qualifying had a dramatic finish as Max went into the wall, in a bid to take pole from Lewis Hamilton. The race, started off smoothly, despite all of our collective fears, about any "incidents", but our fears definitely weren't unfounded.
The 50 lap race was peppered with red flags, restarts, virtual safety cars, and more than one incident between the championship rivals - Lewis & Max.
Has this race turned the championship battle nasty? What will happen as we go to Abu Dhabi, level on points, for the final race in this insane championship year? How badly has the FIA handled this race? We break down all this and more in this week's episode.
Join us next week to crown the 2021 champion!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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For the 2021 Qatar Grand Prix, we have Sai Boddupalli joining us.
Losail International Circuit was a new track in the 2021 F1 calendar, peppered with high speed corners and just one long straight. The high kerbs were a big talking point through the weekend, and the many punctures we saw in the race (and that one from qualifying!) changed the course of the evening.
While Lewis Hamilton continued his newfound dominance from Brazil, Max Verstappen drove a flawless race to finish P2, starting P7 on the grid, after a controversial five-place penalty for not obeying double waved yellow flags. A dash of Karma from Austria 2020 anyone?
There was a lot to unpack from this race! Listen to us chat about Fernando Alonoso's P3 finish, the Number 2 drivers at Redbull & Mercedes, the championship battles and more.
Gear up for Saudi Arabia & Abu Dhabi! With just two races to go to wrap up this season, both the drivers & the constructors championships are still up for grabs.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
Instagram: @l8nightdrivespodcast
For the 2021 Sao Paolo Grand Prix, we have Sukriti Patny joining us. Interlagos was the destination for the third & final sprint weekend in 2021, and it did not disappoint!
The weekend saw one shocking development after another unfold - the Merecedes qualifying pace, the subsequent DRS investigation, Hamiltons DSQ from qualifying, Max's fine, a spectacular drive from Hamilton in the sprint & the race, and of course, that Turn 4 incident between the championship rivals.
If anyone had written off this championship fight as done and dusted, Interlagos showed us that it's still very much up in the air!
Listen to us chat about the chaotic weekend, the FIA investigations, the championship battles and more.
See you at next week at Qatar!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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For the 2021 Mexican Grand Prix, we have Nikhil Nandakumar joining us. Mercedes made a surprising recovery in qualifying at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez to claim their first front-row lockout of the 2021 season, but RedBull with championship leader Max Verstappen and home hero Sergio Perez made a resounding comeback on Sunday to seal a double podium finish.
A 19 point difference now stand between Lewis Hamilton & his dreams of an eighth world title, and Mercedes who were pipped to win the Constructors Trophy this year, lead only by a single point. This season is giving us one twist after another!
Listen to us chat about that insane start, Drive to Survive and the role it's playing in attracting new fans to the sport, and of course the FIA stewards and their penalties (or lack of!)
See you at Brazil!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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For the 2021 U.S. Grand Prix, F1 came back to the Circuit of the Americas. With championship rivals Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton lining up on the front row, the start promised to be exciting.
Would they crash? Would they race cleanly? Who would take the championship lead going into Mexico? These questions raced through our minds!
COTA gave us a memorable US GP. Lap 1 was clean and exciting, and Lap 2 saw McLaren & Ferrari battling it out, all in a bid to maximise points to gain that coveted P3 in the constructors. Fernando Alonso and track limits clashed again, Perez was denied the drink!
Listen to us break down the strategies deployed and we'll catch you again soon for the upcoming race at Mexico!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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For the 2021 Turkish Grand Prix, we have two guests joining the discussion. Ashwin Maheshwari & Rasesh Patel join me, as we break down everything that happened in the race. (Spoiler Alert: It wasn't much!)
Turkey gave us one of the few boring races of the 2021 F1 calendar, marked with poor pitstops, terrible tyre strategies, and a no-show from the rain. BUT it also had a mind-boggling tyre choice by four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, Mercedes & Hamilton at loggerheads over when to pit, and Esteban Ocon going the entire race on a single set of tyres. Something we've never seen in F1 before in our lifetimes!
Listen to us defend our favourite drivers & debate the future champions of F1! We'll catch you again soon for the upcoming race at COTA!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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We're discussing the 2021 Russian Grand Prix at Sochi in this 14th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast,
It was an unexpectedly exciting weekend at Sochi. Listen to us discuss that surprise Qualifying Top 3, the chaos that ensued in the race, more rain and THAT heartbreaking crazy finish to the Race.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In the 13th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 Italian Grand Prix at Monza.
What an exciting race all the way from start to finish! Listen to us discuss McLarens 1-2, Bottas's incredible drive from P19 to P3 and of course THAT lap 26 incident.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In the 12th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 Dutch Grand Prix.
While the race may have been a tad bit boring, and while the crowd may have been all for Max, the team radio was definitely the star of this weekend!
Listen to us talk about the big moments from this race, the championship battle, and the driver market for 2022.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
Instagram: @l8nighgtdrivespodcast
In the 11th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix.
The rain was the absolute star of this race! Another big lap 1 incident & lots of chaos resulted in multiple retirements from the race, a red flag & one of the most interesting restarts to an F1 race ever. Listen to us dissect the good & bad from this race, and make our predictions for what the second half of the season will bring.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In the 10th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 British Grand Prix. F1 had their first sprint qualifying format this weekend, which we've covered in a special-mini episode available on Instagram.
The race started with an absolute bang & there's a lot to unpack from a championship perspective. Hear us talk about that one big incident from lap 1 and unpack the good & bad from this race.
As always, we end with predictions for the next race, two weeks from at Hungary.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
Instagram: @l8nighgtdrivespodcast
In the 9th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 Austrian Grand Prix . Two back to back races at the same track, meant we could have been in for a bit of a snooze fest, but the stewards handed out a flurry of penalties making this race one to debate over for the years to come.
Listen to us chat about the big moments and unpack the good & bad strategies from this race, and we make some bold predictions for Silverstone in two weeks.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In the 8th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the 2021 Styrian Grand Prix. The second race in the triple header had all the potential for some intense championship fights, the promise of rain, and perhaps some exciting new names in the points.
But it was more like a firecracker that fizzled out.
Listen in to hear us round up the winners & losers from the race & unpack the big moments.
As always we end with our predictions for the next race, at the Red Bull Ring, with different tyre compounds coming in to mix it up.
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In this 7th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're discussing the French Grand Prix. Paul Ricard wasn't the boring race everyone thought it was going to be. And while we think Pirelli are the true winners because no tyres gave way, listen in to hear us round up the winners & losers from this years French GP.
We go over the race, pit stop strategies, and what this race meant for the Championship battles! As always we end with our predictions for the next two Austria races!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In this 6th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're talking about the Azerbaijan Grand Prix! Baku brought us some intense drama as usual, with 4 red flags at Qualifying and multiple retirements on race day. #WellDoneBaku
Listen to us talk about the race, pit stop strategies, and what this race meant for the Championship battles! As always we end with our predictions for France in 2 weeks!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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Welcome to The Late Night Drives Podcast - a space for fellow petrolheads!
In this episode we go beyond petrol and take a look at the evolving market for electric vehicles, the challenges faced in India w.r.t the infrastructure and what the government is doing to drive adoption with its FAME & FAME-2 programs.
Bhuvan Prasad, a serial car-modifier & bonafide petrolhead joins me for this conversation, and we inevitably get around to the discussion of modifications, and what they mean with EVs coming in.
Stay tuned for more next week!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
Instagram: @l8nighgtdrivespodcast
In this 4th episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we're talking about the Monaco Grand Prix, specifically speaking about the championship, pit stop strategies, and the heartbreaks from race day.
This one race has changed everything around in the points table. Listen now to hear our thoughts and our predictions for Baku in 2 weeks!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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In this week's episode of The Late Night Drives Podcast, we talk about a very taxing situation! The MoRTH (Ministry of Road Transport & Highways) has a new plan for vehicle registrations in India, which aims to eliminate the hoops you have to jump through if you decide to move within India.
Jayant Ramanand, a close childhood friend, and a seasoned re-locator, joins me as we talk about the woes he's faced & break down this proposed policy initiative.
Stay tuned for more next week!
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All things Formula 1 for this second episode.
We take a quick look back at Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix, talk strategy & make our predictions for the next race on the calendar - Monaco!
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Twitter: @l8nightdrives
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Welcome to The Late Night Drives Podcast - a space for fellow petrolheads!
In this episode I look at car design and its evolution over the years, what consumers are seeking & interview Ashwin Maheshwari - a fellow car-enthusiast who's in the business! Listen to us mostly ramble on the bygone era of vintages, moan over the abysmal use of chrome, and talk all things cars. Stick around till the end to hear our restomod wish-lists.
Stay tuned for more next week!
Follow me on Twitter & Instagram at @l8nightdrives