A new era of F1 is underway, and has seen a pretty good shuffle of the pack with it. With the huge changes, we have seen the return of a giant to the front, and Mercedes finally coming unstuck in a sport they have dominated for so long!
From the minute testing began, it was clear that Ferrari had brought themselves a weapon in 2022, in fact, there was even a feeling last year, with the effort they were putting into the new regulations, that it could be great for them. It is great to see a team like Ferrari back where they should be, although we must be careful, as this is just qualifying for the first race. Leclerc was right where he needed to be all weekend, hounding Verstappen, and was able to get one up on him when it counted. It is too early to say if he is a favourite for the title, but he will surely be in the hunt. Sainz did pretty well, and almost got Max for 2nd, given his struggles all weekend, he should be pleased.
We all assumed, that Red Bull focusing on 2021 would hurt them this year, however, they have somehow been able to maximise both years. Their car looks be on par with the Ferrari, we will have to wait and see how they do in the race. Verstappen is as bullish as ever, and given his history with Charles especially, it could spell fireworks tomorrow. Perez was where he needed to be, roughly in the mix, and in position to help Max tomorrow. With the strength of the driver line ups at Mercedes and Ferrari, he needs to be near to Max.
No one really believed Mercedes throughout testing, when they didn’t seem confident, maybe something to do with a boy who cried wolf! 2022 was the year where the jaws came down on them though, as their issues with bouncing have come to severely hamper their pace. If they can fix that, the car does have plenty of potential. Hamilton is in a good headspace, which is great given how they have fallen back, and will undoubtedly help them to climb back to the front. Russell was performing well all weekend, but an issue on his final run left him towards the back of the top 10, hopefully he can recover tomorrow.
It is rather funny to see that Bottas was as close to Hamilton in an Alfa Romeo, as he was in a Mercedes, which shows have fortunes have changed for the two teams. I am glad to see how well Valtteri has settled into the new team, and regular points may be on the cards for them. Zhou too had a promising first qualifying, and will look to get nearer to Bottas in the future.
Undoubtedly, besides Ferrari, the stars of qualifying were Haas, who have made an unfathomable step forwards in the off season. They alone have shown how huge the changes are in the sport, and caught most people by surprise. The drivers too were great, as Magnussen showed his talent once again, to end up 7th on the grid, in his second life in F1. Schumacher couldn’t match him, however given his lack of experience, still did a solid job to nearly make Q3.
Alpine and AlphaTauri have stayed roughly where they were last year, on those fringes of the points. We should be seeing more from Alpine really, as a manufacturer should not be being overtaken by Haas. McLaren maybe had the worst day today, as despite fixing the braking issue, they still have no pace. It is unclear whether the issues are related or not, but either way, this is not what they wanted to see.
Williams and Aston Martin have stood still too over the winter, which could leave them as the backmarkers of this season, which would be a tough pill to swallow for them, but someone has to be there. It was good to see Albon and Hulkenberg doing well on the return though.
With so many unknowns for the race, anything could happen, reliability will be a major concern, especially for the teams who still have porpoising. Also, the tyres are a complete unknown as well as the effect of dirty air. That’s even before we talk about pitstops, and raw car pace. I just can’t wait!
-M
Meaning of Motorsport 