F1 2022 Pre-Season Preamble

Obviously events in the wider world have far more significant consequences than affecting sport, but one of the secondary impacts of the war against Ukraine has been the dropping of Mazepin from Haas. The not necessarily popular driver got his gig due to his oligarch billionaire father, making it ironically fitting that he lost the seat for the same reason. The financial question for Haas is how to make good the shortfall now that they’re not involved with Mazepin senior.

This also makes it less than ideal for Mazepin’s successor at Haas, who will get the seat with quick short notice, although one suspects Mick Schumacher will find almost anyone else easier to get along with.

 

Thoughts on the cars comes from the pre-season track days of 23-25 February.

There’s an interesting degree of variance between the teams when it comes to suspension setup. This is intriguing not only because of assorted answers to the same regulatory questions but also because it’s not the kind of thing that can be easily changed, or copied. Teams that get it wrong are stuck for the year, but those who went for an unorthodox approach that works will likewise have the advantage for the season.

The tyres also change significantly this year, shifting to 18”, so we’ll see whether this alters their race characteristics and if more stops are needed/desirable.

Another matter is the unexpected porpoising of cars (suspension bouncing at high speed), which can easily be mended at the cost of performance. The Ferrari, it appears, suffers less from this phenomenon than some other cars. Mercedes had it bad early on in the first ‘not-really-a-test’ running but it improved somewhat thereafter.

Alpine had some teething problems, but nothing too major. Or so it seems. The McLaren, meanwhile, was looking quite good (be interesting to see if Ricciardo can hit the ground running after a tricky season with the team in 2021). The Aston Martin seemed more of a handful, while AlphaTauri looked alright (except for when Gasly put it into the only not-a-test crash). Gremlins meant that Bottas didn’t get much track time, so the Alfa Romeo is not easy to assess (Zhou did, but he’s new to the sport which makes rating the car difficult as we don’t know his capabilities as yet). Williams put in more laps but also had a few setup problems to overcome. Probably looking ok for them.

Haas ran the fewest laps of anyone, although the car seems ok (and should benefit from the team focusing entirely on 2022 and shunning 2021 development).

 

There’s a proper test 10-12 March in Bahrain, which is also the location of the first race 18-20 March.

Betting so far (all odds Ladbrokes) has Hamilton title favourite at 2.4, with Verstappen 4. Leclerc and Russell are both 6, Sainz 11 and Norris 15. For the Constructors, Mercedes are 1.6, Ferrari and Red Bull 4, McLaren 15.

I’ve had free bets on Norris, Sainz, and Russell to win (each way) in Bahrain, and for Ferrari to take the title. Also put dinky sums early on for Norris (29), McLaren (29), and Ricciardo (46) for titles, but not inclined to bet more at this stage.

 

The loss of the typically tedious trundle around Sochi is no bad thing, as the calendar is overstuffed. Plenty of races this season, although disruption due to the plague returning or war-related matters is always possible.

 

Morris Dancer