The 2022 Formula 1 season got underway with the Bahrain GP where Ferrari claimed a 1-2 finish and Red Bull struggled for pace and reliability.
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After a long wait, Formula 1 is back. And if you thought the 2021 Bahrain GP was an exciting race with plenty of wheel-to-wheel action, 2022 was arguably even more eventful.
The race saw Ferrari claim their first race win – and 1-2 finish – since the 2019 Singapore GP. Charles Leclerc led home teammate Carlos Sainz in a dominant showing for the Scuderia.
Mercedes, who had been off the pace all weekend, saw Lewis Hamilton claim third place while new teammate George Russell finished fourth.
However, not all of the frontrunners had a good time at Sakhir. Red Bull Racing saw both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez retire from the race towards the end, thus claiming zero points from the season opener.
Also read: Five times Formula 1 teams aced the new regulation changes
It was an eventful race, and featured plenty of talking points. Here we are going to take a look at some of those talking points.
When Leclerc led Sainz home for a Ferrari 1-2, it felt like years of work finally beginning to bear fruit. Ferrari had been off the pace from the top cars for two seasons now. 2020 was a year of struggle after their power unit had to be stripped back due to legality concerns. And 2021 saw them finish third, but miles off the pace set by Mercedes and Red Bull.
However, they were dominant all through the weekend at Bahrain and it showed. Leclerc led pretty much from start to finish; even the rare times Verstappen challenged him, he found ways to come back in the end. It was a cool and composed drive from a man who was always seen as a future championship contender, and who now has the car to prove it.
As far as title defences go, having two cars retire just before the end of the race – three if you include Pierre Gasly’s AlphaTauri – was hardly an ideal start to the 2022 season. To make things worse, Verstappen and Red Bull were out-strategised besides being out-sped by the Scuderia.
The defending world champion’s mood ranged from terse to livid on the radio, and his misery was compounded when his car shut down with two laps to go. Teammate Sergio Perez spun off on the final lap after his engine failed. Afterwards, the team believed it was a fuel pipe issue that plagued the cars. The good thing is the car has pace. But if the reliability issues aren’t sorted, Red Bull are in for a slog of a season.
It was quite the mixed night for defending constructor’s champions Mercedes. On one hand, a 3-4 finish for Hamilton and Russell was the absolute best result they could have hoped for. On the other, this came about only due to Red Bull’s double retirement. Without that, Mercedes were heading for a non-descript 5-6 finish on the night.
The team believe the new car has pace, but it needs to be unlocked at this point. One thing that is stopping the car’s true potential being unlocked is the insane porpoising i.e. bouncing on the straights. The team had to adjust the car’s ride height for the race, but doing that comes at the expense of downforce. The Silver Arrows will need solutions – and fast – to stop the season becoming a slog for third in the championship.
To say 2019 and 2020 have been seasons of struggle for Haas would be an understatement. The small American team have faced a raft of issues, largely of their own making. And things looked destined to continue ahead of the 2022 season; they lost both driver Nikita Mazepin and title sponsors Uralkali due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
However, the re-signing of Kevin Magnussen and putting together a very good car paid dividends at the Bahrain GP. Magnussen finished fifth in a car that looks set to be a consistent points contender in 2022. In many ways, this justified their decision to forego the 2021 season and focus on 2022; Haas finally look like the midfield force on 2017 and 2018 again.
Besides the all-new aerodynamic regulations, one of the biggest talking points ahead of 2022 was Pirelli’s new 18-inch rims. The new wheels were meant to produce a tire that was more robust and would aid drivers to consistently be on the tail of the car ahead. And while following wasn’t an issue at Bahrain, tire degradation certainly was.
Most teams opted for a three-stop strategy, even though early predictions were for a two-stop race. Granted, some of this was down to a late Safety Car period and the resultant ‘free stop’. But there were indications even beforehand that many teams would change tires an extra time before the race ended. This is because most teams absolutely ate through their tires. There’s definitely work to be done by the French manufacturer’s as the season wears on.
