Charles Leclerc leads the Championship by a considerable margin.
2022 seems as good a season as ever to stave off challenges from other teams at their home Grand Prix.
Red Bull are expected to bring a big upgrade to the first Italian Grand Prix of the season where they can only hope to upstage the Scuderia’s dominance in their own backyard. Here is what to look out for ahead of the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix which will feature the first sprint race of the season.
Charles Leclerc leads the Championship by a considerable margin.
Important times to look out for:
Practice 1 (22 April) – 13:30 – 14:30
Qualifying (22 April) – 17:00 – 18:00
Practice 2 (23 April) – 12:30 – 13:30
Qualifying (23 April) – 17:00 – 18:00
Race (24 April) – 13:30 – 14:30
Yes you read that right, this will be the first race of the three this season which will host the sprint race format ahead of the main feature race on Sunday. The 4,9 km Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, commonly known as Imola will be abuzz with action from today ahead of the feature race on Sunday.
Ferrari, in phenomenal form at the moment, have won two of the three Grand Prix so far, featuring on the podium on each occasion. Team boss Mattia Binotto has stated that they will not be implementing any big upgrades at the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix amidst fears that the weekend format of only two practice sessions will not provide enough time to fettle the changes.
2022 seems as good a season as ever to stave off challenges from other teams at their home Grand Prix.
A total of 34 points are up for grabs this weekend. 8 can be achieved in the sprint race, with the Sunday feature race offering up a total of 26 points (25 for a race win and 1 for a fastest lap). What this means is that Red Bull title defender Max Verstappen, who is currently sitting in sixth position in the 2022 standings, can greatly reduce the deficit of 46 points to Charles Leclerc if he looks to retain the lucrative #1 on his car for the 2023 season.
The Dutchman has been plagued with reliability issues from the season onset, with his only points being scored in an exciting Saudi Arabian Grand Prix where he and Charles Leclerc battled wheel-to-wheel for the win.
Moving further afield from Europe, 7-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton has reaffirmed his commitment to a race in Africa after the Briton stated: ‘The one I really want to see is South Africa’ when asked about potential races in the future. Prior to Covid-19, rumours were circulating that the top tier of motorsport would make a return to our country by next year but there seems to be strong impetus to continue where it left off before. We can only hope this materialises!
Keyword: Formula 1: 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix – what to expect