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The 2022 F1 Brazilian GP will be the penultimate race of the season, bringing us closer to the end of the first season with these new regulations. The season has produced some impressive wheel-to-wheel racing, a metric in which the regulations have been a success. What it did not deliver on, however, is the kind of championship battle we witnessed last season.
Unlike last season, this time around we reach the F1 Brazilian GP without a championship up for grabs. Both Max Verstappen and Red Bull have already sealed their respective titles this time around.
Having said that, there's still so much to look forward to as the 'F1 circus' is yet to stop providing intrigue to its fans. The upcoming race weekend, with championship stakes or not, has always been one that can't be missed. What do we have in store this time around? Let's find out as we preview the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP.
2022 F1 Brazilian GP: Preview
Key Storylines
#1 The Impending rain disruptions
The forecast for the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP is not very complex and can be described in one word: rain. It is expected to play a role on all three days, with the worst of the showers experienced on Friday. Now, the track in Sau Paulo is beautiful and is meant to have F1 cars attacking it at full steam. There is, however, concern about the wet weather, especially with these new cars.
What these new cars tend to do is spray a lot more than the previous iterations and don't aid much in terms of wet weather visibility. After a bit of a debacle in race management in Japan, it will be interesting to see how this is tackled.
#2 Ferrari's sudden drop in performance
Ferrari was the third-best car on the grid in Mexico and it was shocking to see the sudden drop. The team has not come out and provided any clarification as to what happened, but it's safe to say that the elevation surely had a role to play. In Brazil, elevation does not play as big a role as it does in Mexico, so the situation should not be as adverse.
Having said that, the proof is in the pudding and it still needs to be seen how Ferrari performs in Brazil.
#3 Lewis Hamilton: The Brazilian
Lewis Hamilton took the opportunity at the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP to accept honorary citizenship of the South American nation. The Mercedes driver has surely come a long way from getting vociferously booed by Brazilian fans in 2008 to becoming the country's beloved.
A Brazilian is yet to win the home event since 2008 and it will be interesting to see if Lewis Hamilton, the honorary Brazilian citizen, can bring a win to the country.
Form Guide
In Form
It's hard to look beyond Max Verstappen at the moment as the Red Bull driver picked up his record-breaking 14th win of the season in Mexico. The Dutch driver will be arriving at the F1 Brazilian GP with the same motive that he's had for every race this season: to win.
The situation will be chaotic should rain become a disruptor, but it will be interesting to see if Verstappen can tackle the challenge and win the race this weekend.
Out of Form
Ferrari needs to sort itself out as the team has seen its lead in the championship standings against Mercedes shrink to 40 points. In Mexico, Ferrari was a distant third. While there wasn't much of a gap in Austin, tire degradation was a serious concern.
How the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP race weekend will fare for the Scuderia is a question to which everyone will be searching for an answer.
2022 F1 Brazilian GP: Predictions
Who wins the race?
Whenever it rained in the turbo-hybrid era, it often meant a Lewis Hamilton win. Things have changed in the last few years as Max Verstappen has taken over the mantle. The Red Bull driver is something special and possesses a key quality of hardly making any mistakes.
Having said that, it's a wet weekend with multiple variables at play. It wouldn't be a surprise to have a different race winner. The frontrunner, however, has to be Max Verstappen.
Surprise of the weekend (Team)
Bumpy track, long straights, and low temperatures. Surely a recipe for disaster for Mercedes, right? Wrong. While the car should ideally struggle during qualifying (as well as the sprint), their long-run pace will not be a crucial factor this weekend.
Mercedes displayed impressive pace in the wet weather in Japan, but a lack of overtaking opportunities and no DRS left them stuck in traffic. Brazil is more conducive to overtakes and the famed Mercedes tire life will play a role in the wet as well.
Surprise of the weekend (Driver)
Sebastian Vettel has been a bit of an F1 Brazilian GP specialist. The German has won the race multiple times. Not only that, but he also sealed one of his most intense title fights in 2012. The wet weather is going to level the playing field to an extent but expect Vettel in his last race in Brazil to deliver something special.
Disappointment of the weekend (Team)
Ferrari has struggled with tire wear in the second half of the season and expects the same issues to plague it in Brazil. The second sector of the track is a tire killer and for Ferrari, a car that is very hard on its tires, it's a huge issue. While the team will regain its overall form and will join the lead group once again, it's the final finishing touches that are going to hurt.
Disappointment of the weekend (Driver)
Daniel Ricciardo was back to his old self in Mexico. The strategy that brought him onto the front foot brought back the swag that was missing for so long. Sadly for the Australian, Sau Paulo is not a track where Ricciardo will be able to work his magic or continue to build on the momentum. Expect a disappointing second-last outing for the Australian at the 2022 F1 Brazilian GP.
