Several drivers improved their starting position for Sunday’s race. But Mercedes’s struggles continued on Saturday.
IMOLA, Italy—Charles Leclerc beat Max Verstappen for the lead at the start of Saturday’s sprint race, which was held at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola. But 2021’s defending champion regained his composure to pass the Monegasque late to win the right to be on the front row for Sunday’s Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Leclerc ended up second, while Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate, Sergio Perez, finished third.
Max Verstappen: The start was very bad. I don’t know exactly what happened after that, but I knew we had to stay calm. Initially, it looked like Charles had more pace. I think he ran out of tires, and I was able to close the gap.
Despite the short 21-lap event, the sprint event enabled several drivers to improve their position for Sunday’s race. Perez was one example. He began the event in seventh and finished on the podium. Carlos Sainz Jr. benefitted, too, going from 10th to fourth.
Saturday’s outcomes reinforced the growing belief that 2022 will be a battle between Red Bull and Ferrari, with Mercedes seemingly out of contention. Mercedes has lagged so far this season, and it lagged again on Saturday, with George Russell finishing 11th and Lewis Hamilton 14th. The tandem failed to quality in Friday’s qualifying session, the first time in a decade that the Silver Arrows failed to advance.
For the rest of the field, Lando Norris placed his McLaren in fifth place, following an excellent performance in qualifying, where he took third. His teammate, Daniel Ricciardo took sixth, while seventh went to Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas. Kevin Magnussen, who began fourth in his Haas, faded following the start but picked up the final point of the sprint race by taking eighth.
The only retirement of the day occurred when Alfa Romeo’s Zhou collided with Alpha Tauri’s Pierre Gasly on lap one. The incident put Guanyup out while Gasly continued and finished 17th on the day.
Rain is possible on race day for an event that ESPN will televise starting at 9a Eastern time.
