Motorsports
Formula 1: Ferrari’s great comeback and Nikolas Tombazis’ recipe for success
These are the most important findings from the Shakir Grand Prix, the first race of this year’s Formula 1 championship.
The lights went out on the stunning Bahrain circuit, the engines and tires cooled and the teams handled the outcome and data of the race in very different ways.
Ferrari is still celebrating, Red Bull is looking to see where it comes from, Mercedes is smiling worriedly, Haas and Alfa Romeo are dreaming of the turn of the year. The first Grand Prix has given us five very useful takeaways for the extremely exciting year that has just begun.
- 01. Ferrari’s great comeback
Everything shows that Scuderia is the best prepared team for the 2022 F1 Championship. Charles Leclerc was the undisputed leader of the race. Also, on the few occasions he was chased by Max Ferstappen, he showed too much self-control and experience and pushed him away with complete success. Even in the unbelievable duel with the majority, the Monegasque reacted to every move of the Dutchman and left no doubts in the end. The highlight was overtaking Carlos Sainte towards the end of the race for second place, just before Max finally left the race for an incredible one-two for the Italian team!
- 02. Nikolas Tombazis’ recipe is successful
The new design regulations for this year’s cars, a work by Nikolas Tombazis, proved absolutely successful when the goal was the easiest overtaking. It really often happened that during the race we saw a car closing in on the leader and overtaking him much easier compared to last year. See all about the changes to this year’s cars in the ultimate 2022 Formula 1 guide we’ve prepared here.
- 03. Tire question marks
Although the Shakir track has always been challenging with the tyres, we have noticed increased wear this year compared to previous years. Whether this is due to the conditions prevailing on the track this year (e.g. rough asphalt) or the increase in their diameter from 13” to 18” or ultimately due to the cars themselves and to the extent that the tires are under stress remains unknown . We will have more data on this in the next races.
- 04. Red Bull is better, Mercedes is luckier
It was clear on all three days that Red Bull was faster than Mercedes – Lewis Hamilton had also claimed that. To win a match, however, you must first finish, and Red Bull hasn’t seriously achieved victory, nor is it finished! The Austrian team will need to resolve the reliability issues they faced as they saw both cars pull away on the final laps while securing podium finishes. Let’s not forget that Pierre Gusli’s Alpha Tauri also had an engine – the same one used by RBR and made by Honda. At Mercedes, however, they have a lot more to lose. The lack of speed is 99% due to the porpoising phenomenon.
- 05. Haas and Alfa Romeo have risen, McLaren is still being sought
It looks like Ferrari has a very powerful engine on the ground – maybe the most powerful! Not only the Scuderia showed power and speed on the straights, but also the other two teams that use the same engine. Haas and Alfa Romeo had good pace and climbed up the final standings, with Magnussen (Haas) in 5th place and Botas (Alfa Romeo) just behind him.
Remarkable was the performance of the newcomer Wangyu Chou, who came to the finish Alfa Romeo in 10th place! In addition, the appearance of the two McLarens on all three days was an absolute disappointment. It is clear that the problem they encountered with the brakes during the winter tests cost them a lot and essentially lost the ability to collect data on the development of the car. It remains to be seen if the Ricciardo and Norris engineers can improve anything before the second Grand Prix next Sunday, March 27th in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.
Thomas Berman, the younger brother of Haas Formula 1 team driver Oliver Berman, will officially take part in Italian Formula 4 and Euro 4 in the 2026 season.
Thomas will represent the VAR team colours.
The 16-year-old Briton spent last year in British Formula 4, where he scored one win and finished eighth in the final season standings.
But the ones that are considered the most prestigious and promising are the Italian and European Formula 4 championships. They are often chosen by young pilots for further career advancement. In addition, Thomas’ older brother Oliver Berman also competed in these series and became the Italian Formula 4 champion in 2021 with 11 wins.
Let us also remind you that Ukrainian Alexander Bondarev will compete in the same championships with the Prima Racing team in the 2026 season. The Ukrainian pilot does not hide his ambitions and has repeatedly expressed his intention to fight for the championship title.
Bondarev now participates in Middle East Formula 4 in preparation for the European leg of the season. After the first stage, he took first place in the general rankings and became the leader in the rankings.
Thomas Berman will compete in the Formula Winter Series as part of his preparations.
The competition between the current “four” promises to be extremely high, and the appearance of the younger brother of the Formula 1 pilot will only increase interest in the series.
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Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
Former Ferrari boss Ross Brawn said the team was at a disadvantage due to the FIA’s changes to the rules.
The Scuderia was virtually unbeatable in the early 2000s. Michael Schumacher single-handedly won 48 of 85 races in the first half of the decade, while Rubens Barrichello added nine more victories.
In an interview with F1.com, Brown named the 2004 Ferrari car as his favorite. That year the team won not only three races but confidently won its sixth consecutive title in the Constructors’ Championship.
The legendary designer and strategist admitted that Ferrari was stopped after that due to changes in tire rules and that the team had become too dominant.
“Every year we put in extra effort and every year we did things a little better. That made the 2004 car, in my opinion, the best ever.”
“We were disappointed by the changes to the tire rules after that, but I think we did so well and had to be stopped somehow. This incredible car could not have been stopped any other way because everything worked so well for us.”
“Having lived on the other side of the fence ever since, I can understand Bernie’s frustration. [Экклстоуна, тогдашнего руководителя Формулы-1]Max [Мосли, тогдашнего президента FIA] and supporters. It was a shock when we didn’t win, not a shock when we won. “It was a very special car.”
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
Formula 1 is preparing to enter a new era of regulations. Starting from the 2026 season, the aerodynamics and power plants of the vehicles will change significantly. Many people are already calling these innovations the biggest in the history of the championship.
In addition, the physical parameters of the machines will also change. The cars will become smaller: 10 cm narrower, 20 cm shorter and also 32 kg lighter; minimum weight will drop to 768 kg.
However, reaching this new cap will be extremely difficult for most teams. New power plants include a significantly larger share of the electrical component – with the internal combustion engine the ratio will now be 50/50, which will make the unit heavier. From the new season, there will also be a rule requiring at least 55% of the vehicle area to be painted, and new active aerodynamic features with real-time mode switching will be introduced.
All of this increases the weight of the car, and teams will need to simultaneously work to increase efficiency, reliability and reduce the weight of the cars. Audi is reportedly already the first team to reach the minimum points mark. Earlier, information also appeared that the German manufacturer replaced the mechanism for switching active aerodynamic modes with an electronic one.
There have been recent reports that Alpin can also reach a minimum weight of 768 kg. Of course, the lower the mass, the faster the car. But the question remains whether this will compromise reliability in the early stages of the new regulation. We will learn the answer to this very soon.
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
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