F1 2022 preview: driver line-up, team liveries, race calendar and how an all-new car could mix things up

New car to allow closer racing

NOT EVEN the thrilling season that had gone before could have prepared us for the dramatic finale of the 2021 F1 championship, which saw Max Verstappen snatch the title from Lewis Hamilton in jaw-dropping and controversial style. This season, however, could be even better still.

While 2022 will undoubtedly be a series of hard-fought grudge matches between Verstappen and Hamilton, the car has also been redesigned to allow for the kind of closer, more aggressive racing beloved by fans and drivers alike. This, as well as making the headline drivers even more exciting to watch, could also make for some interesting battles further down the field with drivers such as Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly champing at the bit to realise their full potential, and old chargers such as Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel as keen as ever to prove they still have the instincts that netted them multiple world championships.

The politics of the season too will be fascinating to watch. How will a talented and hungry young driver such as George Russell fare at Mercedes playing second fiddle to Hamilton, the driver that many regard as the greatest of all time? How will Valtteri Bottas manage his new role as lead driver at Alfa Romeo? Will Haas earn a single point?

It may take until the end of the season in November to find out the answers to some of these questions. Others, however, may be answered by the time the first race finishes in Bahrain on March 20.

F1 2022 calendar

Though dates and locations may be subject to change depending on the Covid-19 situation around the world, for now the 2022 F1 season is due to begin on March 20 in Bahrain and finish on November 20 in Abu Dhabi.

The 2022 season sees the inclusion of one new track — Miami — scheduled for May 8, marking the first time since the US Grand Prix at Sebring in 1959 that F1 has gone to Florida.

China is not on the calendar this year due to Coronavirus restrictions, and it will, organisers say, be restored once the situation allows.

Pre-season testing

Pre-season testing for the 2022 F1 season will take place on February 23-24 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya followed by an official pre-season test in Bahrain on March 10-12.

For now, the 2022 season looks like this:

2022 and 2021 F1 cars compared

Racing in “dirty air,” such as when running closely behind another car, can result in a huge loss of downforce in an F1 car. That loss of downforce partially disincentivises the kind of hard, close racing loved by audiences and drivers.

Research has shown that the 2021 F1 cars lost 35% of their downforce when running three car lengths (20m) behind a leading car, while closing up to one car length (10m) resulted in a 47% loss.

That’s why the 2022 F1 car is getting a whole suite of aerodynamic upgrades aimed at increasing downforce and decreasing aerodynamic wake. The new cars rely more on ground-effect than before, with less of an emphasis on disruptive aerodynamic aids such as wings. This, it is claimed, reduces downforce loss to just 4% at 20m and 18% at 10m.

These changes had all been originally slated for the 2021 season, but were delayed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. Here are a few of the highlights:

1. The front wing and nose have been completely redesigned to reduce the aerodynamic wake thrown out by each car, allowing following cars to get closer without worrying so much about disrupted airflow.

The 1.6-litre turbocharged hybrid engines may be the same (though running on more sustainable E10 fuel), but the c

2. The same has been done with the new winglets set back from the nose, the new 18-inch wheels and the return of wheel covers, all tweaked to keep airflow smooth and tight.

3. New floors featuring fully shaped tunnels have been created to increase ground-effect-related downforce, helping the cars stick more closely to the road, reducing the reliance on the rear wing for downforce.

4. The rear wings gets a more curvaceous, sculpted shape to create a less disruptive mushroom-shaped vortex behind the car. 5. The 1.6-litre turbocharged hybrid engines may be the same (though running on more sustainable E10 fuel), but the changes to the aerodynamic array will, in minimising airflow disruption and increasing downforce, potentially lead to much more exciting on-track action.

Will F1 sprint qualifying races return in 2022?

Sprint qualifying races made their debut during the 2021 season and they are, in essence, races that determined the grid position for Sunday’s Grand Prix. At 60 miles long, they are shorter than a normal 190-mile-long Grand Prix race, though the rules are the same.

How does sprint qualifying work?

The starting grid for the sprint qualifying race on Saturday is determined on Friday afternoon, after Practice 1, by the usual three-session knockout qualifying session, whereby the slowest five drivers are eliminated in Q3, followed by five more drivers in Q2, leaving the final ten to battle for pole position in Q3.

With the fastest times all set, the starting grid for the sprint race is determined.

Grid formation and start procedures are identical to the full-length Grand Prix, though drivers do not have to pit for tyres during the qualifying sprint race.

The final result of the sprint qualifying race then determines the starting grid for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Will sprint qualifying return in 2022?

In November 2021, F1’s sporting director, Ross Brawn, confirmed that there would be six sprint qualifying sessions in 2022 and that the first of these would take place at the season opener in Bahrain followed by others at Imola, Montreal, Spielberg, Zandvoort and Sao Paulo.

Rumours, however, suggest that top teams are unhappy with the proposal. Although F1 has agreed to pay teams more money to offset the extra cost of more racing, it has rejected demands from some of the bigger teams to increase the £140 million budget cap as a result.

It seems both the sport’s directors and the top teams are currently at an impasse regards sprint racing, and a meeting on February 14 will decide their fate. In the meantime, F1’s owner, Liberty Media has put forward a proposal for three sprint qualifying races this season as a compromise on the previously mooted six. If the three biggest teams reject this — Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari — it is likely that sprint qualifying will be scrapped altogether.

What’s the F1 team line-up for 2022?

Mercedes

Mercedes retains Lewis Hamilton but Valtteri Bottas is gone for 2022, replaced by British driver George Russell, formerly of Williams.

Russell briefly deputised for Hamilton at the end of the 2020 season, after the seven-times world champion tested positive for Covid-19. Russell put in an impressive performance that, for a while was looking like a debut victory, or at least a podium. That was until a puncture put an end to his hard charge.

Russell has repeatedly proven his ability in qualifying with Williams, and it’ll be exciting to see the team dynamics at play once he’s paired with Hamilton.

Red Bull Racing

The driver line-up remains the same at Red Bull. Sergio Pérez’s performance in 2021 was solid rather than spectacular, but he has proven himself to be a great team player capable of skilfully defending positions, such as was seen in Abu Dhabi where he kept Hamilton behind for a time, allowing Verstappen to catch up.

Honda is retiring from F1 so Red Bull has bought the intellectual property rights to its engine, meaning that the team will continue with an update of the same hybrid powertrain — no bad thing as, not for the first time, Honda is leaving the sport having finally developed front-running components.

Ferrari

No changes at Ferrari with Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz Jnr. remaining. Leclerc has two F1 victories to his name and Sainz has finished second twice, so both are potential race winners.

The Scuderia will be hoping that the substantial shake-up to the car design and consistency in the driver line-up will help catapult it to the front of the grid.

McLaren

Consistency at McLaren, too, with Daniel Ricciardo and Lando Norris both staying at McLaren. Norris is a superstar of the future, so securing him is great news for the team. Ricciardo took a while to warm up at McLaren, following his move from Renault, but the second half of the season saw him score some stunning results, including a sensational win in Italy.

Alpine

A decent 2021 performance for the old campaigner Fernando Alonso sees him stay at Alpine alongside Esteban Ocon.

Alpine improved throughout 2021 and Alonso scored a brilliant podium in Qatar, so the team will be hoping it can be at the top of the chasing pack in 2022.

AlphaTauri

AlphaTauri will, like Red Bull, be running what was formerly Honda’s F1 hybrid powertrain.

Both Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda remain. Gasly is no surprise as he showed superb form throughout 2021, but Tsunoda performed well below expectations so to have secured a seat for 2022 suggests he brings moto the team than results. He’ll be hoping form and consistency comes with experience if he wants to continue beyond the coming year.

Aston Martin

Sebastian Vettel and Lance Stroll are staying with Aston Martin. Four-times world champion Vettel, having earned Aston Martin its first podium position at Baku in 2021, is a good choice for a team that needs an experienced winner right now.

Stroll is the son of the billionaire team owner, which helps, but he has also shown good speed and has shone on track from time to time.

Alfa Romeo

A new line-up at Alfa Romeo that sees the retiring Kimi Räikkönen and Antonio Giovinazzi (heading over to race in Formula E) replaced by Lewis Hamilton’s old Mercedes team-mate, Valtteri Bottas and the first Chinese F1 driver, Guanyu Zhou.

Bottas has proven himself more than capable of winning races, so his performance at Alfa Romeo will be an interesting one to watch. Zhou finished third in the 2021 F2 championship and won the 2021 F3 Asian series, so there’s plenty of talent there. Alfa, sadly, hasn’t often been in contention in 2021.

Haas F1

Ferrari-powered Haas will see the return of Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin for 2022.

The 2021 season was an embarrassment for the team, with the inexperienced drivers battling to keep the worst car of the F1 paddock on track, so you’d hope things can only get better.

Haas said early in 2021 that it was halting development of that year’s car to concentrate on 2022, so let’s hope that focus pays off over the next 12 months.

Williams

With George Russell at Mercedes, Williams’ new lead driver is the returning British-Thai driver Alex Albon, backed up by Nicholas Latifi.

Williams has had a number of lacklustre seasons, to say the least, but George Russell showed that the 2021 car could battle mid-pack. British fans will be hoping the local former world champions can continue to turn around its fortunes.

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