The 2022 season has brought plenty of excitement and controversy. This weekend’s headlines will focus on how well teams respond to sweltering weather in France.
With the French Grand Prix inching closer this weekend in the high temperatures in the country’s south, it marks the halfway point of an interesting 2022 Formula One season. At this point, it has been dominated not by one team but two (Red Bull and Ferrari), with a third team improving (Mercedes) but still not challenging.
The new car setups for 2022 have made for a lot of controversies, especially with one word standing out.
Porpoising involves the car bouncing up and down at high speeds, especially when going down the straights. It has affected Mercedes more than any other team. And because of that, the Brackley team has not, at least at this point, won one Grand Prix race, which is the first time that has happened since 2011.
With Mercedes struggling, the season has been a dual between the defending champions from Red Bull, and the surprising team from Ferrari. The Italian crew came out of the box quickly, winning the opener in Bahrain with Charles Leclerc before Max Verstappen won the next round in Saudi Arabia. Leclerc responded by taking Australia, and then Verstappen won the next round by winning at the Emilia Romagna at Imola. But the Scuderia did not make a counterpunch.
When the competition came to Miami, Florida, problems arose for the Prancing Horse as Leclerc and his teammate, Carlos Sainz Jr., failed to finish races. Spain went to Verstappen again, and his teammate, Sergio Perez, took Monaco. Verstappen answered by winning in Canada and Azerbaijan. The Ferrari’s finally recovered in Great Britain with a long-awaited victory by Sainz Jr., followed by another hard-earned win for Leclerc at Red Bull’s home race in Austria.
Besides excitement on the track, an annual circumstance, widely known as “Silly Season,” is upon us. Rumors abound about who will go where in 2023. It could take another month, including the three-week summer break, for some, if not most deals, to be finalized.
Alpine is the team targeted with the most rumors. Will Fernando Alonso stay for one or two years? He could remain with Esteban Ocon, who has a contract for another two seasons, but waiting in the wings is Australian Oscar Piastri, a tester for the team. If Alonso moves on, Piastri is sure to replace him. But if the Spaniard stays, Alpine will have to fit Piastri into another team, which could be Williams, or he could even take over the McLaren spot for Daniel Ricciardo.
That said, it seems that Ricciardo will remain for another season, despite many news reports that his performance will change the team’s minds to replace him. For the rest of the grid, many drivers should return for another year, with some negotiations going on for Sebastian Vettel, Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou Guanyu, and Nicholas Latifi.
Back on the track, this weekend’s French Grand Prix will be run in scorching weather, making for challenging driving. The tarmac is always hot this time of year, but with Europe’s extraordinary heatwave the temperatures will likely be the top topic of the weekend, with tires becoming a danger for the teams.
After France, comes Hungary, a three-week break, Belgium, and Italy. The European version of the world championship will wrap up in mid-September. Appearances in North America, South America, and the Middle East follow. All the while, the sport needs to keep things exciting while avoiding the controversy that plagued the end of Formula One 2021.
