2022 F1 Dutch GP Preview: Racing in the Dunes
The 15th round of the 2022 F1 World Championship will be held this weekend at the Zandvoort Circuit in the Netherlands, a historic location surrounded by dunes on the North Sea coast.
Returning to the F1 calendar after more than 30 years in 2021, the Dutch Grand Prix was a huge success, in part due to the tricky nature of the Zandvoort circuit. The circuit has gained popularity due to its large changes in elevation and its banked corners that add to the theatricality of the race.
The course is only 2.64 miles long, and its proximity to the ocean means that strong land breezes tend to disrupt the handling of the cars. In addition, the course is narrow and twisty, so overtaking is not a simple task. In other words, proper qualifying is essential.
The straights are not long, so the power units take a break here. Because many of the corners are flowing, the tires do not wear as much as at other circuits. Pirelli will use the C1 compound as white hard, C2 as yellow medium, and C3 as red soft for the teams.
The cars tend to run high-downforce setups. In fact, only the Hungarian and Monaco races have high-downforce specifications. The track has two DRS (drag reduction system) zones, one between turns 10 and 11 and the other on the main straight, where drivers can adjust the aerodynamics of their cars to make them easier to overtake.
According to the weather forecast, both Saturday's qualifying and Sunday's race will be sunny.
Mercedes-Benz AMG's George Russell set the top time in Friday's practice session, ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton. Meanwhile, local favorite and reigning world champion Max Verstappen set the fastest time early on, but his Red Bull was stopped on the track with a suspected gearbox problem.
Heading into the weekend, Verstappen leads the 2022 drivers' championship with 284 points. Sergio Perez, also of Red Bull, is second with 191 points and Charles Leclerc of Ferrari is third with 186 points. In the constructors' championship, Red Bull leads with 475 points to Ferrari's 357 and Mercedes' 316. Last year's Dutch GP winner was Red Bull's Verstappen.
