Pre-season testing is never a sure way to determine the performance of Formula 1 teams preceding the first race of the season but the Bahrain runnings can provide some insight as to who is on top and who will start the 2022 season on the back foot.
Mixed results for fastest laps over the three days of pre-season testing resulted in some raised eyebrows but reigning champion Max Verstappen ended the Bahrain runnings with high hopes of a successful title defence after setting a fastest time of 1:31.720. The RB18 received a raft of upgrades for the third day of testing which included a different sidepod design to previous days and ultimately allowed the Dutchman to set the quick time.
The hottest topic of the running was the Mercedes re-interpretation of the sidepods which were revealed to the paddock on Day 1 when the Brackley based team commenced their program. Despite managing 384 laps, neither Hamilton nor Russell managed to provide an answer on the timing sheets as the British rookie only managed a best time of 1:31.759. Teammate and 7-time world champion Lewis Hamilton further downplayed the W13 performance by adding that it ‘won’t be competing for wins’ in its current state.
Prospective 2022 championship challengers Ferrari found consistent pace and good reliability from the SF-75 after both drivers managed to set fast times in the first two days of testing. Charles Leclerc managed a 1:32.415 while McLaren, who were poised to lament a challenge in 2022, seemed to fade into obscurity in the desert heat. Lando Norris stood-in for the duration of the tests after his Australian teammate, Daniel Ricciardo fell ill after testing positive for Covid-19. The British team managed the fewest laps with only 199 tallies.
Haas provided two surprises over the weekend. The first being the announcement of former driver Kevin Magnussen after the termination of Nikita Mazepin’s contract and the second being Mick Schumacher providing the second best time throughout the weekend after crossing the line in 1:32.241. This may signify a shift into the mid-field for the previously ailing team.
While the battle in the mid-field is up for the taking, we will get a more finite understanding of each teams performance in less than a week when the season opening Bahrain Grand Prix signals the start to the highly anticipated 2022 season.
