Column
Young drivers in FP1: Who can we expect to see in F1 2022?
In 2022, many changes will be made to the cars in Formula 1. In addition to these changes, there are plenty of alternations to other areas. For example, every driver must give up their seat to a young driver at least once a season during a first free practice session. GPBlog.com has listed the drivers you can expect to see.
There are some rules attached to who can actually be in the car during the FP1 sessions. For example, the drivers must have less than two Grands Prix and the driver must have at least 25 super license points.
Mercedes, McLaren and Aston Martin can share
McLaren and Aston Martin seem to share drivers mainly with Mercedes. The German brand currently has two drivers attached to it who are eligible to compete in free practice: Frederik Vesti and Nyck de Vries. Vesti will drive in Formula 2 at ART Grand Prix in 2022, after finishing fourth in Formula 3 for the second year in a row. De Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne are the two reserve drivers for the team, but because Vandoorne has already driven F1 for two years, he is not considered a rookie. The Dutchman has done no more than a few tests for Mercedes, so he can still compete in free practice.
McLaren's expansion into IndyCar means that it has one more driver behind it who qualifies for the new FP1 rule: Patricio O'Ward. The Mexican was already seen during the Young Drivers Test in Abu Dhabi and it could be that he will get behind the wheel of an F1 car again in 2022.
Ferrari, Haas F1 and Alfa Romeo
Ferrari has been giving young drivers chances with Haas F1 and Alfa Romeo for several years. The two teams both drive engines from the Italian brand. Currently, Haas still has Mick Schumacher on the team as a young driver from Ferrari. Alfa Romeo has no Ferrari juniors since the departure of Antonio Giovinazzi.
During the FP1 sessions, the expectation seems to be that Robert Shwartzman will join at least one of the three teams. Arthur Leclerc, the little brother of Charles Leclerc, may also have a chance. In addition, Haas can still call on reserve driver Pietro Fittipaldi, as he has only driven two Grands Prix in 2020. Alfa Romeo itself has another junior driving in Formula 2: Theo Pourchaire. The young Frenchman showed in 2021 that he could win there and will fight for a permanent place at Alfa Romeo in 2022.
The Red Bull Juniors
Red Bull Racing has an incredibly strong junior team with no less than five drivers in Formula 2. Four of them seem to have a serious chance at one of the FP1 sessions. Juri Vips and Liam Lawson are no strangers anymore, as they have already driven some tests for Red Bull and AlphaTauri. Chances are, then, that they will also be in the RB18 in 2022.
Dennis Hauger and Jehan Daruvala are not so familiar with F1 cars yet. For those two drivers, AlphaTauri seems to be the better option. Then the team also has Ayumu Iwasa in F2, but of the four juniors, he seems to be the driver with the least chance at the moment.
Not a tough choice for Alpine
For Alpine, it's a no-brainer. The team could not offer super talent and F2 champion Oscar Piastri a permanent place in Formula 1 and will have to do with a year of watching. It would therefore be crazy if the team put another driver in the A522 in 2022.
Although Piastri seems the logical choice for the French team, the other two talents of the Alpine Academy should be named. Both Olli Caldwell and Jack Doohan will drive in Formula 2 in 2022 and may hope for a spot during a FP1 session. Doohan chose Alpine over Red Bull earlier because he 'can actually become a better driver' with the French.
Williams has plenty of choice
Williams has confirmed that Roy Nissany will be a test driver as in previous years. He has driven the Williams cars several times in previous years, but has some competition this year when it comes to the FP1 sessions. Thus, Williams may ensure that we see an American in an official Formula One session for the first time since 2015 when it puts Logan Sargeant in the car.
The team may also choose to give Jamie Chadwick a chance. Chadwick already has two W Series titles to her name and is going on for a third. Should Williams put Chadwick in the car, she will become the first woman since Susie Wolff in 2012 to compete in an official Formula One weekend. Wolff also drove a Williams back then.
View this post on Instagram
