Twenty drivers, ten teams, the usual tussle and the unputdownable F1 unpredictability but a really great track; the twisty and spine bending Hungaroring is a venue where cars lacking in downforce may have a tough day out there.
To make things interesting, we’ve also got a bit of a weather condition. It did rain yesterday; it may or may not today. Now add to that the constantly changing track temperatures and not to forget, the soaring heat drivers contribute to, at times with tempers flying high and on other occasions, when maintaining a cool head.
In all, the last race before the summer break and before F1 returns- though not before- August 28 could be a cracker of a contest. But which drivers need to deliver a strong Hungarian Grand Prix of 2022?
Esteban Ocon
Esteban Ocon had, arguably speaking, the time of his life here at the Hungaroring last year when he won a thrilling, unpredictable and needless to say, action-packed Grand Prix.
Who’d have imagined an Alpine reigning supreme over the likes of the Mercedes’ and Red Bull?
But that’s F1. And here’s the young French driver, who enters the 2022 Hungarian GP at the back of a bit here and there sort of performances such as the DNF at Silverstone, followed by the P5 at Spielberg, which still was a massive return of sorts given Great Britain’s disappointing saga.
Ocon was also outperformed by Fernando Alonso at the last F1 race, which was the Circuit Paul Ricard-bound French Grand Prix; the Spaniard scoring a fighting sixth.
Charles Leclerc
Leclerc has never won here in Hungary. Leclerc didn’t win at Silverstone or Le Castellet while on both occasions, he looked certain to taste the winning feeling. That is when a thrilling and dominant Austrian victory brought Verstappen down and spurred Ferrari, something that the Italian stable so badly needed.
But again, the DNF at France did hurt Leclerc’s fortunes, so much so that he finds himself 63 points shy of the Dutchman, which by no means is a scant margin.
Therefore to say that Leclerc must deliver a strong drive at the Hungaroring is a no brainer; it’s understood. But the key thing is, can he usurp not one but two drivers who are glowing in rich form given Russell’s the pole sitter and Sainz in second?
Sergio Perez
Sergio Perez’s qualifying performance wasn’t the one to remember. He first had his lap time deleted in Q2, only to see it reinstated not long after, before finally failing to progress to Q3.
Resultantly, he begins the Hungarian challenge from eleventh on the grid. And truth be told, qualifying here hasn’t really been his thing so to speak.
But can he change things around the Grand Prix? To make things difficult, he’s got Max Verstappen right in front of him on tenth and while his battling abilities cannot be doubted, the thing is, will Checo be allowed to race his teammate?
Sebastian Vettel
Vettel’s decision to leave F1 at the end of the ongoing season has spurred those who plan to get to the highest levels of F1 (think Piastri, Herta, Nyck de Vries, Theo Pourchaire and the likes), saddened die hard fans and brought about a shocker of sorts in the sport.
The four-time world champion has only a handful of races left before he brings curtains to what has been an exhilarating career to say the least.
He won here at the Hungaroring in 2017 in those halcyon Ferrari days in what was a terrific Ferrari 1-2 finish Kimi in second proving he’s not finished yet.
Next year, Vettel pulled off a brave second at the Hungarian GP as Lewis clinched the race.
And that was that; he’d never win or come second at the famous Mogyorod ever after, although he did gather a third for Ferrari in his final season with the Scuderia (at Hungary) in 2019.
This time around, Vettel enters the 2022 Hungarian GP at the back of lowly finishes as seen with his seventeenth at Austria followed by an eleventh at Frnce.
Can he turn things around? The chances seem pretty bleak given the Heppenheim-born begins his 70-lap run from eighteenth on the grid.
Valtteri Bottas
The last time that Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas scored points in Formula 1 was on June 19, 2022 at the Canadian Grand Prix.
A strong seventh was Alfa Romeo’s best performance at Montreal and it helped that young Zhou Guanyu ended eighth at the Gilles Villenuve territory.
But ever since the Montreal-bound race, Bottas has run into a wall of sorts. And it’s not a wall of champions; it’s a barricade of non finish in points.
How’s that?
With results like the DNF at Great Britain (Silverstone), followed by an eleventh at Austria (Spielberg) and his very recent fourteenth at the French Grand Prix (Le Castellet), Bottas hasn’t been in form.
Of lately, his performances do not quite mirror the usually peppy and brave drives as seen at events like the P6 at Bahrain or the P5 at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, which happens to be his personal-best thus far.
The Finn must end the drought of points and come back much stronger.