2022 Bahrain Grand Prix

The 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix 2022) was a Formula One race that was held on 20 March 2022 at the Bahrain International Circuit. Contested over 57 laps, it served as the season opener of the 2022 Formula One World Championship and was the eighteenth running of the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc won the race after starting from pole position, his first win since the 2019 Italian Grand Prix. He led all but two laps and scored a hat-trick with pole, race win, and fastest lap, falling just short of a grand slam. Teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. finished in second with Lewis Hamilton in third, as reigning champion Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez both retired from podium positions with fuel problems late in the race. It was Ferrari's first win and 1–2 finish since the 2019 Singapore Grand Prix. The race also saw the debut of Zhou Guanyu, who became the first Chinese driver to race in Formula One and the first to score points.

Background

2021 season

The 2021 Formula One World Championship saw Red Bull driver Max Verstappen win his first Drivers' Championship, following a season-long battle with Lewis Hamilton. The championship changed hands multiple times throughout the year, and was controversially decided at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the final race of the season, where a final-lap restart enabled Verstappen to overtake Hamilton to win the race and become champion.

By winning the championship, Verstappen denied Hamilton a record-breaking eighth title and made himself first driver other than Hamilton to win the Drivers' Championship since Nico Rosberg in 2016, and the first non-Mercedes driver to win the championship since Sebastian Vettel in 2013, who also won it with Red Bull.

Mercedes won a record-extending eighth Constructors' Championship, securing the title by 28 points at the final race of the season. It marked the first season in which the champion driver did not drive for the champion constructors since 2008, when Lewis Hamilton narrowly won his first Drivers' Championship, also through a last-lap overtake at the final race of the season.

Driver changes

Valtteri Bottas left Mercedes after five seasons, moving to Alfa Romeo to replace Kimi Räikkönen, who retired following the 2021 season. George Russell replaced Bottas, vacating his seat at Williams, which was filled by former Red Bull driver Alex Albon. Antonio Giovinazzi also departed Alfa Romeo at the end of 2021, with Zhou Guanyu taking his seat after a third place finish in the 2021 Formula 2 Championship. Zhou became the first Chinese driver to compete in Formula One, and the first Chinese driver to score points.

Nikita Mazepin was originally contracted to drive for Haas for the 2022 season, but had his contract terminated following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which also saw Haas cancel their title sponsorship deal with Uralkali. Mazepin was replaced by Kevin Magnussen, who had previously competed with the team from 2017 to 2020.

Aston Martin's Sebastian Vettel tested positive for coronavirus and was replaced by reserve driver Nico Hülkenberg. This was Hülkenberg's first race since his one-off appearance at the 2020 Eifel Grand Prix. Vettel returned for the Australian Grand Prix.

Tyre choices

Tyre supplier Pirelli brought the C1, C2, and C3 tyre compounds (designated hard, medium, and soft, respectively) for teams to use at the event. This was a step harder than 2021 where the C2, C3 and C4 tyres were used. This race was also the first race where the 18-inch tyres were used as the 2022 regulations began.

Report

Practice

Three hour-long practice sessions were held at the Grand Prix, with two on Friday and one on Saturday before qualifying. The first session started at 15:00 local time (UTC+03:00), and was red flagged when Esteban Ocon's Alpine shed its sidepod bodywork on the main straight. After a restart, the session ended with Pierre Gasly of AlphaTauri fastest, on soft tyres.

Max Verstappen topped the second and third sessions, with Charles Leclerc narrowly behind in both outings. Reigning Constructors' Champions Mercedes struggled for pace throughout the free practices and placed no higher than fourth on the timesheets, with Lewis Hamilton describing the team as being "a long way off" from the front of the grid. Yuki Tsunoda did not set a time in the third session, being forced to return to the garage with a hydraulic leak before he could complete a lap.

Qualifying

Qualifying started at 18:00 local time on 19 March and lasted for one hour. Both Aston Martins were eliminated in Q1, along with Yuki Tsunoda, Daniel Ricciardo, and Nicholas Latifi. The session also saw Valtteri Bottas unexpectedly place his Alfa Romeo in fourth position, with Kevin Magnussen of Haas one place behind him. Fellow Haas driver Mick Schumacher placed 13th, which gave the team their first Q2 appearance with both cars since the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix. In his first qualifying outing for Williams, Alex Albon sent his Williams 15th fastest, completing a lap time almost a second faster than that of his teammate, Nicholas Latifi.

In Q2, Verstappen was quickest, closely followed by the two Ferraris. Sergio Perez was behind them, ahead of the Mercedes drivers in fifth and sixth. Before he was forced back to the garage with a hydraulic issue, Magnussen managed to place seventh, securing his team's first Q3 appearance in over two years. A late lap from Bottas saw him knock Esteban Ocon out of Q3 by just 0.065 seconds. McLaren and Williams both failed to make Q3, with Lando Norris and Alex Albon being eliminated at the end of the session.

Charles Leclerc of Ferrari won pole position, ahead of Verstappen and teammate Carlos Sainz Jr. Mercedes could only manage fifth and ninth place, with their two cars split by Bottas, Magnussen, and Fernando Alonso. AlphaTauri's Pierre Gasly completed the top ten.

Race

The race started at 18:00 local time on 20 March and lasted for 57 laps. Leclerc led through turn one, ahead of Verstappen and Sainz. Pérez was passed by Hamilton and Magnussen, and Bottas, who started sixth, fell to 14th within the first lap. Ocon collided with and spun Schumacher on the first lap, earning a five-second penalty. Pérez passed Magnussen and Hamilton to return to fourth position.

Hamilton entered the pit lane on lap 9, becoming the first driver of the race to do so, and reentered the race 12th. Verstappen, still behind Leclerc, pitted on lap 14, along with Sainz, while Leclerc pitted a lap later. Verstappen passed Leclerc on lap 17 using DRS, but Leclerc regained first soon after. On lap 19, Verstappen attempted to pass again, but he locked up and overshot turn 1, allowing Leclerc to build a lead.

Leclerc maintained his lead, with Verstappen entering the pit lane on lap 31, followed by Leclerc a lap later. Sainz and Pérez both pitted on lap 34, followed by Verstappen pitting for a third time on lap 44, and then by Sainz and Hamilton. On lap 46, Gasly's car caught fire, which prompted the safety car until lap 51. When the race restarted, Leclerc maintained the lead over Verstappen, who radioed the pit crew to notify them he suspected he had a power unit issue. He was passed by Sainz and Hamilton, and he entered the pit lane to retire his car on lap 54. On the final lap, Pérez suffered a fuel system issue causing his power unit to switch off, with the resulting blockage of the rear axle as he was negotiating the first corner causing him to spin his car and retire. Leclerc and Sainz maintained first and second position, followed by Hamilton in third, through to the end of the race. Russell finished fourth with Magnussen of Haas in fifth.

Classification

Qualifying

Race

Notes

• ^1 – Includes one point for fastest lap.
• ^2 – Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen were classified as they completed more than 90% of the race distance.

Championship standings after the race

• Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

See also

• 2022 Sakhir Formula 2 round
• 2022 Sakhir Formula 3 round

Notes

References