The F1 2022 season kicks off in Bahrain as current World Champion Max Verstappen looks to retain his title after controversially beating seven-time Champion Lewis Hamilton in the final race of the 2021 season
The first and second practice takes place on Friday, March 18, followed by final practice and qualifying on Saturday, with the race commencing at 15:00 on Sunday.
Red Bull’s Verstappen will be looking to begin his season as it ended with a win, as he looks to retain his Championship status for the 2022 season. The reigning champion ended the final day of pre-season testing with the fastest lap time of 1:31.720, 0.695 quicker than second place Charles Leclerc.
The Red Bull team came out on the final day with adjustments to the car which allowed the two drivers to unlock more speed and pose the biggest threat to rivals Mercedes as they head into the first weekend of the season.
Eight-time Constructors’ winners Mercedes will head into the weekend with their new driver line-up as former Williams’ driver, George Russell partners the seven-time World Champion Hamilton.
However, as they look to retain their title, Hamilton has admitted that he doesn’t believe their current car will be competing for wins for early part of the season. During testing, the Mercedes seemed to struggle with porpoising the most – the bouncing motion of the car along the straights.
Both Russell and Hamilton seemed to struggle with unlocking its full potential with speed as Hamilton was only able to secure a lap time of 1:36.217 on the final day of testing, a whole 4.497 seconds behind title rival Verstappen. Partner driver Russell was able to get closer with a lap time of 1:32.759 but the drivers admit there is work to be done heading into the season.
The biggest threat throughout pre-season testing seemed to be Ferrari after Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz secured some blistering lap times across the three days. The two drivers secured a P2 and P3 finish in day one of Bahrain testing with Sainz setting a lap time of 1:34.359, just 0.457 seconds off AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly.
The Spaniard set the time to beat on day two after finishing with a lap time of 1:33.532 and the strong showing across testing led many drivers on the grid to believe that Ferrari is the quickest car, but the team have played down their chances and claim the car ‘isn’t a race winner just yet.’
Ferrari’s long term rivals McLaren will welcome back driver Daniel Ricciardo for the opening race after the Australian missed the three days of testing due to Covid. His teammate Lando Norris sat through the duration of testing and was able to put the car through its paces, completing 200 laps across testing days.
However, the team seemed to have an issue with the braking system but will be looking to quickly rectify the problem, ready for the weekend ahead.
Most teams have demonstrated their issues with porpoising throughout testing, but Alpine Sporting Director Alan Permane claimed his team have found a way to deal with the problem: “we know what makes it happen and what stops it.”
Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll will be accompanied by reserve driver Niko Hulkenberg for the weekend after teammate and four-time World Champion, Sebastian Vettel, tested positive for Covid 19.
Alex Albon and Kevin Magnussen will be hoping their return to F1 will end successfully after the pair were without a seat in the 20-driver line up last season. Albon replaced Russell in the Williams seat and Magnussen returned to Haas after replacing Nikita Mazepin following his contract termination.
Alfa Romeo will debut their brand-new lineup for the 2022 season after securing the signings of 10-time race winner Valtteri Bottas and rookie Guanyu Zhou, following the departure of the ‘Ice Man’ Kimi Raikkonen and Italian driver Antonio Giovinazzi.
Previous Race Winners:
Last time out, Hamilton beat rival Verstappen to claim the victory despite the Dutchman qualifying in first place. Mercedes’ teammate Bottas came home in third to complete the podium and secure the points for his team.
Hamilton also secured the win in 2020 after beating Verstappen once again but it was Red Bull driver Albon who claimed the final podium place.
2019 saw Hamilton once again claim the victory with his teammate Bottas in second and Leclerc secured a third-place finish for his team.
After back-to-back losses against Hamilton in Bahrain, will the new number one seek revenge and secure the first victory of the season, or will Hamilton be able to find that extra power in his car to come away with a third win?
The season will commence on Friday, March 18 with first practice at 12:00 live on Sky Sports F1.
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