Sainz topped the prize lists, Verstappen double champion and Alonso, in Aston Martin

At Scuderia Ferrari, they are promised a lot of fun this 2022 by an important change in the aerodynamic regulations aimed at making the races closer and more exciting. Since the Ferrari F1-75 raced on the track in the preseason, it showed great performance and reliability, a car to consider reclaiming the crown that has escaped since 2007.

After his first season as a Ferrari driver, in which he surprised and managed to beat his teammate Charles Leclerc, Carlos Sainz faces 2022 with great motivation. The first thing is to open the box of achievements and then, regularly by, consider the leadership of the championship and opt for the title. But unfortunately for him, lack of reliability and errors in strategy caught up with him. That first, and only, win did not come until the tenth Grand Prix of 2022 at Silverstone when he was fourth in contention, after team-mate Leclerc took the lead between Bahrain and Miami before Verstappen put his legendary direct. Six retirements began in the classification.

But at Silverstone, his GP 150, he signed the first victory of the Spaniard since Fernando Alonso in the 2013 Spanish GP, a rough race beating Checo Pérez and Lewis Hamilton, after a pit stop that took advantage of a ‘safety car ‘ twelve laps from the end. when Leclerc was in charge. Along the way he left the famous ‘Stop Inventing’ (Stop inventing) message on the radio to his people in order to create the great strategy that brought him success.

Despite that top-5 of the championship, just ahead of champion Lewis Hamilton, 2022 has been the key to Madrid’s race. In a car to win races (one), add podiums (nine) and take pole positions (three) that he was ahead of, he grew into a top driver. He just needs to recapture that Carlos who was so consistent in 2021.

Alonso changes his ‘Plan’

Fernando Alonso He ended his two-year spell at Alpine with a bad taste in his mouth due to the behavior of the team managers, who never lived up to the ‘Plan’, and the unreliability of the A522. He finished ninth in the championship, but ensures that at the age of 41 he signed one of his best campaigns in terms of performance as a driver. He has a rhythm, you can see him driving to the limit, sometimes he is ‘Magic’ again, like in Canada, Spa or Jeddah. But on the first day of summer vacation he announced his new ‘Plan’, he was going to Aston Martin to build a new car, Alpine missed out.

Palou debuted in an F1 Free Practice

2021 Indycar champion Alex Palou lived through one of the most difficult experiences of his life when he found himself in the middle of a legal dispute between his IndyCar team, Chip Ganassi, and McLaren, who finally solved in the best way for the driver. Catalan by 2023. He will continue to pursue all things IndyCar with Ganassi, and at the same time he can be a reserve driver for McLaren F1, where he already made his debut in Free Practice 1 of the last United States GP in Austin with the 17th best time and second fastest among the ‘rookies’ -“It’s a dream to drive F1, a new league”, said the first Indycar champion to debut in F1-. The option of three Spanish drivers in F1 is approaching.

Verstappen, on the list of two-time champions

the dutch Max Verstappen he slipped from the list of two-time F-1 champion in a campaign that had little to do with the previous one, deciding at the last turn of the last race after a controversial decision. After closing a 46-point deficit on Leclerc after three races due to two retirements, 2022 has been the most successful ride in memory for an F1 driver and at over 25 years old he already has 74 podiums, 32 victories, 18 poles position and the two crowns. 15 wins out of 22 possible, a new record, were scored this 2022.

Red Bull had only rivals in the beginning in Ferrari and in the end in Mercedes, but they lacked regularity against Mad Max who scored 146 points for Leclerc and 149 for Pérez in the end.

Mikel Azcona, pioneer

In other four-wheel pursuits Mikel Azcona became the first World Touring Car Cup world champion with Hyundai Motorsport.

In the new hybrid era of the WRC Dani is deaf He was one of the key figures in his ninth WRC campaign with Hyundai Motorsport, winning three more podiums for his record, third in Portugal, Italy and Greece, in five contested rallies and earning the confidence of the sporting leadership of South Korea by offering him a renewal for 2023. The third Hyundai i20 N Rally1 will be shared between Dani Sordo and Irishman Craig Breen. Sordo will compete in eight rallies, three more this year and Breen the rest.