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5 Things To Look Forward To In 2022As we gear up for the 2022 season, it’s time to get you excited for the year ahead!

InthemoderneraofFormulaOne,youreallydon’thavemuchofanopportunityforreminiscence.Whilethedusthasbarelysettledonthe2021Championshipitis,nevertheless,rapidlydisappearingintotherear-viewmirror,withthechallengesofthe2022seasonloominglargeonthehorizon.

Freight has been despatched to the first races, plans have been made for the winter tests and designs for the RB18 launch car long-since frozen, with production parts in manufacturing and attention turned to the first tranche of updates. The off-season, as usual, is the busiest time of year for an F1 team.

With a new aerodynamic philosophy in play, calculated to produce closer racing, there’s a hope that 2022 will allow the drama and intensity of the 2021 season to roll on. Admittedly, seasons like that don’t come along very often, but even if we don’t see a last-lap title fight, there’s plenty to look forward to in what promises to be a very different season of Formula One.

Charging On Into 2022© Getty Images

1.NewCars

A new F1 season means new F1 cars, but all things are relative and, this year, ‘new’ takes on a very different meaning. We are a sport given to hyperbole, and so it’s not uncommon for revisions to the technical regulations to be heralded as game-changing or revolutionary.

Sometimes those statements can be taken with a pinch of salt; this year, they can’t. F1’s new aero regs aren’t a tweak or an update, it’s a wholesale reworking of F1 from the ground-up. The sport has been around for 72 years, and this is without question the single biggest off-season change it has witnessed in that time. Revolutionary? Absolutely. Game-changing? Quite possibly.

While change is a constant in F1, there’s a strong familial resemblance through the generations of Red Bull Racing car from 2009’s RB5 up to last season’s championship-winning RB16B, reflecting a set of aerodynamic regulations that, while poked and prodded every year – including a fairly hefty revision for 2017 – have remained largely intact.

This year, however, we have a return to a ground-effect philosophy, intended to promote closer racing. Coupled with a move to an 18-inch tyre, the cars will look entirely different and respond in different ways also. It’s a blank sheet of paper for design, and that, traditionally, has heralded a change in the pecking order, with inspiration getting its rare chance to outweigh perspiration. Interesting times…

The Reigning World Champion© Getty Images

2.ChampionshipDefence

Max Verstappen hasn’t had long to get used to the idea of being an F1 World Champion before having to embark on a defence of that title. Over the last few years, we’ve seen Max-the-opportunist and Max-the-hunter. Max-with-a-target-on-his-back may be a different proposition. For some, it brings added pressure; more often it leads to a more confident, more assertive style, though it’s difficult to imagine Max lacking in either of those departments to begin with…

3.Miami

As has become commonplace in the last two years, we can’t really know quite what shape the calendar in 2022 will take: this obviously depends of matters beyond the ability of F1 to control – but we do have the prospect of at-least one new venue for F1, with a visit to Miami scheduled for May.

This is the first time in almost four decades we’ve had a calendar featuring two races in the USA, though unlike the trips to Detroit and Dallas in ’84, this time around Miami and COTA are kept at opposite ends of the season.

A New Track Means A New Challenge For 2022© Getty Images

While every new race adds something to the spectacle of F1, the race at the Miami International Autodrome, a temporary circuit built around the Hard Rock Stadium in the suburb of Miami Gardens, 16 miles to the north of the Miami CBD, is going to attract extra scrutiny.

This is the race that Liberty Media have been pursuing since they took over the sport, and it reflects the vision they have often promoted for the future of F1, with races in accessible places rather than on established permanent circuits. We’re hoping the new Miami Grand Prix, and it’s 5.41km venue, is going to be a success.

4.OldFriends

The 2022 calendar also offers up the prospect of sorely missed races returning for the first time since 2019. Melbourne, Montreal, Singapore and Suzuka all feature on the schedule, and each adds something F1 has been lacking over the last two years.

Racing in Mugello, Losail and Portimão, going back to the Nürburgring and Istanbul have all been positive experiences and we’re all very grateful those venues were able to step into the breach and provide both good races, and talking points regarding the future of the sport. However, equally it’s nice being able to look forward to getting back some of F1’s tentpole grands prix.

If things go to plan, this will also be the busiest season of F1 on record, with a mammoth 23-race calendar packed into a schedule finishing three weeks earlier than 2021.

Singapore In All Its Glory© Vladimir Rys

5.RedBullPowertrains

As F1’s newest powertrain manufacturer, this season is a voyage into the unknown. Honda have left us in great shape, but the new world is as daunting as it is exciting. We’re F1’s first new engine maker in 20 seasons, gearing up for a fight with the three established marques who have around 630 F1 victories between them. And while no-one expects horsepower to dominate proceedings this year, powering the defending Drivers’ Champion isn’t the sort of low-key feel-your-way introduction a new engine manufacturer usually opts for. There’s a great deal riding on this season.