2022 United States Grand Prix – Free Practice 1 & 2

Formula 1 heads stateside as the paddock gets in gear for the iconic United States Grand Prix. How did the drivers adapt to the heat of Austin, Texas? And who had the bragging rights after FP1 & FP2? Join us as we take a look at the first day of the 2022 United States Grand Prix.

Free Practice 1

The first practice session at the Circuit Of The Americas saw the debut of some new faces. In total, the session saw five substitutions as per the 2022 F1 regulations. Last year’s Indy Car Champion Alex Palou took the place of Daniel Ricciardo in his McLaren, while F1 Academy driver Robert Shwartzman substituted in place of Charles Leclerc. Valtteri Bottas’s place was taken by Theo Pourchaire, while Logan Sargeant and Antonio Giovinazzi took the places of Nicholas Latifi and Kevin Magnussen respectively.

Speaking of Giovinazzi, the former F1 driver had a weekend to forget. Only seven minutes after the session started, the Italian spun out and hit the barrier, damaging the clutch in the process. A few drivers are en route to taking grid penalties due to powertrain component changes, including Sergio Perez and Zhou Guanyu.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz recorded the fastest time of the session. He was followed by the newly crowned 2022 World Champion, Max Verstappen. Behind him was another former winner at COTA, Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton.

Carlos Sainz 1:36.857
Max Verstappen 1:37.081
Lewis Hamilton 1:37.332

Free Practice 2

The 2023 Pirelli tire test which was originally scheduled to take place at Suzuka, was rescheduled to be conducted during the second practice session of the 2022 United States Grand Prix. As a result, the usual 60-minute time limit was extended up to 90-minutes, and the tires lacked the colored outer rings we are so used to seeing.

However, the viewers weren’t the only ones who did not know which tires were in use. The drivers, as well as the teams, had no clue either, as per the nature of these tests. The pur[ose of this tire test was to gather important data, that will later be used in the manufacturing process of the all-new 2023 Pirelli F1 tires.

The session was topped by Leclerc, followed by Bottas and Ricciardo respectively. It is important to note that these three were the only ones running the current 2022 spec tires. Carlos Sainz was the fastest test-tire runner, coming in at P4.

The Haas mechanics worked their magic to get Kevin Magussens’ car fixed, as it crashed in the previous practice session. However, the Danish driver had some complaints, as did Alpine driver Fernando Alonso.

Charles Leclerc 1:36.810
Valtteri Bottas 1:37.525
Daniel Ricciardo 1:37.627

With a three-way battle for P2 in the championship, getting a great result in Sunday’s race would surely be the highest ambition for Leclerc, Sainz, and Perez. Join us tomorrow to find out how the drivers fared at FP3 and the qualifying sessions of the 2022 United States Grand Prix. For more F1 news, stay tuned on our website and social media pages.