Formula One fans can finally put whatever dissatisfaction they felt about the conclusion to the 2021 season to bed as the F1 circus is ready to take the green flag on the 2022 season at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain.
This will be the 18th F1 race held at the 3.363-mile, 15-turn circuit, which has seen eight different winners since its first Grand Prix in 2004.
Last year it was Max Verstappen and Red Bull who took the pole at Sakhir but Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes who captured the race win, and with pre-season testing concluded following a six days of running at Bahrain last week, it looks like the top four teams from 2021 will once again be the top four teams in 2022, but perhaps with some changes in order.
Verstappen would get his revenge on Hamilton at the season-ender in Abu Dhabi, where he finished first to claim his first F1 crown.
How to watch F1 Grand Prix of Bahrain
- Date: Sunday, March 20
- Location: Bahrain International Circuit - Sakhir, Bahrain
- Time: 11 a.m. ET
- TV: ESPN
- Stream: fuboTV (try for free)
What to watch
The big news for the grid are the new cars that are 5 percent heavier than the previous edition due to changes to the front and rear wings, undercarriage, safety modifications and tire size increase (from 17 inches to 18).
The new nose and rear wing designs, combined with new underbellies, are supposed to help cars in traffic draw up on a car ahead of them as the trailing car should not lose as much downforce in traffic, and that in theory should equate to more passing opportunities.
Of course, all of that sounds great on paper, and Bahrain will be the first real test of whether that theory will be proven true.
The biggest visual difference between the cars are the side pods, as teams have taken different approaches to interpreting the rules, particularly the Mercedes. Ferrari has stated they would like a clarification on what is and is not legal, but have not filed anything official with the rules brokers as of yet. So stay tuned.
What we learned from pre-season testing
Teams on the back foot:
- Alfa Romeo: Looks to have speed but reliability issues.
- Alpine: Another team suffering from porpoising, but they say they've solved it.
- Williams: Going backwards.
Running in place:
- Alpha Tauri: Completed the third-highest mileage in pre-season testing, but they say they still have a lot to learn.
- Aston Martin: May not be showing its full capability.
- Haas: Flashed speed in the final test at Bahrain, but were those runs on low-fuel loads?
Best foot forward:
- McLaren: Battled brake issues at the Bahrain test, but was quick during the earlier tests, and did complete 90 laps on the final day of testing at Bahrain.
- Mercedes: Sand bagging? That's what many watchers say. Regardless, they have not shown the pace that Red Bull or Ferrari have, and Hamilton was quoted as saying that Mercedes will not be fighting for wins early in the season, but may still spring a surprise or two.
- Ferrari: The Prancing Horse was always around the top of the charts and had few issues during the six-day Bahrain test. Mercedes driver and apparent odds-maker Hamilton likes Ferrari's chances to win at Bahrain., and the power unit looks the equal of Red Bull.
- Red Bull: Once again looks poised to get out of the gate fast, particularly as, regardless of what compound they were running, they looked fast. Very fast. But the horsepower margin to Ferrari is smaller than it was last season and should make things interesting.
