This week marked the start of the 2022 season opener with the first race of the new era taking place in Bahrain under the lights. It was the first real indication of which teams would be at the center for this year’s title fight. There was also some new information surrounding the controversial end to last season.
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The FIA released a list of recommendations and findings from the analysis of last season’s controversial Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The report lists multiple recommendations such as splitting the race director’s duties between multiple people to reduce workload and restriction direct communication between teams and the race director to allow duties to be performed without disruption. The report also calls for the creation of a remote team that will help assist the race director in the decision making process, similar to a Video Assistance Referee in football.
The safety car rules that were at the root of controversial end to the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix have been tweaked ahead of the 2022 season opener. The rule previously read “any cars that have been lapped by the leader will be required to pass the cars on the lead lap and the safety car”. The use of the word “any” led to a lot of debate over whether or not former race director Michael Masi followed the rules when allowing only some cars to unlap themselves and it was a core reason Mercedes failed their appeal over the race results. The rule has been modified to use the word “all”, helping to make the rule clearer.
Lewis Hamilton has made a donation to charity in lieu of a fine for skipping out on last year’s FIA prize giving gala in Paris after the controversial race in Abu Dhabi. Hamilton met with the FIA president in Bahrain this week to discuss his absence from the gala. The donation of €50,000 will help “youth from underprivileged backgrounds getting into motorsport engineering”.
Lewis Hamilton revealed plans to incorporate his mother’s family name into his name. Hamilton, whose full name is Lewis Carl Davidson Hamilton, announced his intentions during his appearance at Expo 2020 in Dubai, although he had little details other than that he was “working on it” and the change would happen “hopefully soon”. His mother, Carmen Larbalestier, and father, Anthony Hamilton, separated when he was a child, although his mother has appeared at a number of his races and his knighting ceremony. Hamilton wants his mother’s name to “continue on with the Hamilton name”.
Modifications to the Jeddah Corniche Circuit could lead to higher speeds in this year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The circuit received some criticism from drivers after the inaugural event in December last year, particularly about poor visibility. While the only major change to the circuit is the widening of the final corner – where Max Verstappen crashed during qualifying, losing out on pole position – steel guards have been added to some of the walls so that cars won’t be damaged if the driver drags the barrier slightly. Some barriers and track side objects have been moved to improve visibility as well. However, there are still some areas that the event organizers didn’t have time to address in time for this year’s event, having been given just 3 months to make changes.
Sebastian Vettel was forced to sit out the opening round of the 2022 season after testing positive for COVID-19. He was replaced by fellow German driver Nico Hulkenberg, who has been a familiar face in the paddock since leaving his full-time seat at the end of 2019.
Despite having missed the final pre-season test, Daniel Ricciardo was cleared to race in the Bahrain Grand Prix. The McLaren driver had tested positive for COVID-19 during pre-season testing, leaving his teammate to pick up some extra shifts during the test. He tested negative ahead of the Bahrain Grand Prix.
McLaren had some new branding on their car at the Bahrain Grand Prix, partnering with technology giant Google. The car featured the Android logo on the engine cover. The team also became the first to rent out sponsorship space on the wheel covers of the new car, sporting the Google logo.
The FIA decided to keep three DRS zones for the season opener in Bahrain, as they were not sure if their overhaul of the technical regulations had solved the core problem with overtaking that has plagued the sport for years. The drag reduction system (or DRS) was added back in 2011 to help cars overtake by opening the rear wing of the car in designated areas. While the regulations originally only allowed DRS in two areas of the circuit, the FIA added a third DRS zone at some tracks to make the races more exciting.
Pierre Gasly set the pace in the first practice session of the weekend on Friday, leading the Ferrari drivers. The session was red flagged early on when Esteban Ocon’s car lost a cover on the sidepod. Valtteri Bottas struggled with mechanical issues throughout the session, failing to set a time in his Alfa Romeo. Defending World Drivers’ Champion finished in P5 a little more than 0.5 seconds off the pace of the leading AlphaTauri.
Verstappen topped the time sheets in Friday evening’s practice session, but he was only narrowly ahead of Charles Leclerc. Valtteri Bottas bounced back after spending most of the previous session in the garage. He set a time worthy of the top 6. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton complained about Mercedes’ porpoising issue as well as a front brake problem. He was only capable of setting a P9 time, splitting the two Haas cars.
Verstappen was again the car to beat in the final practice session on Saturday, although Leclerc was again less than a tenth of a second adrift. George Russell finished P4 on the time charts for the third time in the weekend, again managing to outpace his teammate. Alfa Romeo showed that their car had good pace, finishing P8 and P9 on the timing charts. Kevin Magnussen also showed the strength of the Haas car, finishing P7.
Qualifying was a tight battle between Leclerc and Verstappen, although it was Leclerc who claimed the first pole position of the season. The Mercedes cars were only Mercedes-powered cars to make it into Q3, with Hamilton out-performing his teammate for the first time in the weekend to claim a P5 starting position. Bottas put his Alfa Romeo into the top 10 with a comfortable P6 starting position ahead of Kevin Magnussen in the Haas.
On race day, it was a battle between Verstappen and Leclerc. Leclerc maintained an early lead, but Verstappen would be on the rear of his car again after each of the first two pit stops. The battle for the lead showed some good potential for the quality of the racing this season. While the race was originally forecast to be a two-stop race, some teams opted to try the three-stop strategy in the closing stages of the race. A late safety car for a fire at the back of Pierre Gasly’s car bunched up the pack. Late in the race, Verstappen began complaining about heavy steering, but at the end of the race came ever closer he started losing power. Just a few laps from the end of the race, he was forced to crawl back to the pit lane to retire the car, forfeiting a potential P2 finish. His teammate followed suit on the final lap when his engine locked up in the first corner. Red Bull’s misfortune saw Ferrari earn a 1-2 finish led by Leclerc with Hamilton claiming the bottom step of the podium. You can read the full race report by clicking here.
The Weekly F1 Recap on Racing Clothesline is a series published every Monday. Each article breaks down the previous week's Formula One headlines into bite-sized pieces, perfect for casual fans to keep themselves in the loop.
