Last December, the city of Jeddah hosted the first Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in the history of Formula 1. And for this first, the locals were spoiled. Because in this penultimate race of the season, they had the right to a fierce fight, sometimes at the limit, between the Red Bull of Max Verstappen and the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton.
After a fierce fight, the Briton rejoined that evening on equal points with the Dutchman in the drivers’ classification. Finally, it was Max Verstappen who was crowned world champion at the last GP of the year in Abu Dhabi. Four months later, F1 is already back on the edge of the Red Sea, for a GP now placed in the second race of the season. Except that in the meantime, the balance of power has radically changed.
In December 2021, Hamilton and Verstappen were torn apart during an anthology mano to mano at the heart of a race marked by two interruptions, several clashes and more than limit overruns between the two rivals For their return to Jeddah, the two world champions will no longer be so alone.
First, because Scuderia Ferrari is back. Rumors of the off-season were confirmed during the inaugural race in Bahrain: the red single-seaters are roaring again. The proof with the double achieved on the first GP of the year, won by Leclerc ahead of Carlos Sainz. A first victory for the Italian team for more than two years and a first double in three years.
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And if other outsiders like McLaren were very far from the mark in Qatar, the revival of Ferrari is very bad news for the behemoths Red Bull and Mercedes. Especially since the two teams are each facing their own problems.
On the side of Red Bull, the drivers Verstappen and Perez had their wings clipped at the Bahrain GP. Weighed down by fuel pressure problems, the Austrian single-seaters were forced to retire in the final laps. Quite a blow when the RB18s had been particularly fast in practice. But velocity does not always rhyme with reliability.
At Mercedes, the problem is the opposite with a reliable single-seater that drags on the track. So much so that the third place snatched by Lewis Hamilton positively surprised his team at the start of the season. The Briton was clear after the race the team still has a lot of work to do.
“If we look at the performance levels, we are very far from claiming one of the two titles. We scored as many points as we could here but, if we are realistic, when you are the third fastest car on the track, you have no chance of winning.
An observation supported by his new teammate, George Russell: “In the first half of the season, we should have quite a few solo races behind Ferrari and Red Bull.“A confession that says a lot about the work that the Silver Arrows engineers will have to do to solve the rebound problems of their single-seater. season.
Despite this combined false start from Verstappen and Hamilton, the rivalry is still there, even if the red cars of Leclerc and Sainz invite themselves into battle. Witness the atmosphere at the start of the Bahrain GP tests, a few minutes after the announcement of the results of the FIA’s investigation into Verstappen’s decisive and controversial victory at the last GP of the 2021 season in Abu Dhabi.
After blowing on the embers all year 2021, denouncing in particular the influence of Red Bull on the race commissioner (who has since been replaced), the Mercedes clan, however, preferred to plan for the rest of the season. Like a calm Hamilton: “I am happy that there is more transparency. Ruminating on Abu Dhabi doesn’t make my life any easier. The trophy is in someone else’s cabinet and the chapter is closed.” Which did not prevent the Briton from setting the tone before the 2022 edition of the world championship: “I’m going to be a more aggressive rider this year, you’ll see“. It promises.