© Getty ImagesEurope? Completed It, Mate!With all the European venues chalked off, we look back at the 11 races before the season ends with the fly aways.
Outofthe22racesonthecalendarforthe2022FormulaOneWorldChampionshipexactlyhalfofthemhavebeenheldinEurope.MonzarepresentedthelastEuropeanraceoftheyearbeforetheteamsallheadofftoSingaporeforthefirstoftheflywaysthatwillcapofftheseason.Withthatinmidwethoughtwe’dlookbackatthehighlightsfromEurope.
The first race in Europe was round four at Imola. The first three rounds were a mixed bag for the Bulls. A double DNF at the season opener put the Team on the back foot, and although Max won at the second round in Saudi Arabia, he had to retire in round three.
Imola was the first glimpse of what was to come. Max took pole position with Checo qualifying in P7. It was also the first Sprint Race of the season. Max won the Sprint with Checo moving up to P3, so he would start Sunday’s race on the second row of the grid. Checo was able to get in front of Charles Leclerc at the start and the pair were able to pull away from the pack to claim the first one-two finish for the Team since Malaysia 2016.
The Start Of Something Beautiful In Imola© Getty Images
After a trip to the inaugural Miami Grand Prix, the Bulls returned to Europe for three races: Spain, Monaco and Azerbaijan.
The Bulls claimed another one-two finish in Barcelona with Max taking the top step.
Monaco was to be an historic affair. Checo out-qualified Max to start P3 with the Dutchman just behind him in P4. The Circuit de Monaco is notorious for being nearly impossible to overtake, so it often comes down to qualifying position and pit strategy.
Heavy rain gave way to a rolling start, but by lap 17 and sitting in 3rd, Checo was the the first to pull the trigger and switch to inters. It was going to be a tense few laps to see if the undercut had worked. The Ferraris stayed out on the wet, but then decided to go straight to slicks just a few laps later on lap 21. Confusion over the radio saw the Ferrari team double-stack their drivers, costing valuable time. The Bulls then covered the Ferrari drivers with their own double-stack pit stop, switching both drivers to slicks on lap 22. When Checo returned to the track he was 0.3s ahead of Leclerc and Max came out in P3 ahead of Sainz. That was to be the final positions, with another double podium for the Team, meanwhile Checo became the first Mexican driver to win the historic race.
Before a trip to Canada, Azerbaijan was next on the European list. Max was keen to eliminate the memories of the 2021 race where he had a tyre failure while leading the race. It was a controlled race from the Team. Max took his fifth win of the season with Checo in P2 – the Bulls’ third one-two of the season so far.
A Historic Monaco Moment© Getty Images
After Canada the last seven races in Europe were back-to-back. Great Britain was up first. Sergio claimed a stunning podium finish, rising from last place after having to pit early to change his damaged front wing to take P2 behind first-time race winner Carlos Sainz. Max was leading the race when he ran over some discarded carbon fibre, which caused floor damage to his RB18. This left the Dutchman down on power and struggling for grip, however he was able to claim P7.
The Team’s home race in Austria was next and after Max had won the last two outings at the Red Bull Ring he was hoping to make it three in a row and his fifth win at the track. However, Max narrowly missed out on victory, with the Dutch driver losing out to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc by just 1.5s at the end of a tense Austrian Grand Prix. Checo exited the race after just 25 laps due to damage sustained in a lap-one collision with Mercedes’ George Russell. These two races were to be the worst results for the Team in Europe.
A Stunning Second Place In Silverstone© Getty Images
The last five races on the continent were France and Hungary before the summer break, and then rounded off with Spa, Zandvoort and Monza.
It was to be five races of pure dominance, with Max showing that it doesn’t matter where he starts on the grid, success for the Dutch Lion is almost inevitable.
Max won in France from starting second on the grid and Checo crossed the finish line in P4.
The next two races showed the strength of the team and the RB18. Starting in P10 at the Hungaroring, Max bagged another win but the best was yet to come in Spa.
Due to taking new components in his car, Max started down in P14, but was at the front of the pack by lap 12. At Spa he took his ninth win of the season and with Checo in P2, it was the fourth one-two-finish for the Team – equalling the team’s record set by Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel in 2013.
Next up was Max’s home race in Zandvoort where he took pole position – his first since the Austrian Grand Prix – and also the win with Checo in P5 in front of 305,000 orange army fans.
The final European battle was in Ferrari’s own back garden, with Charles Leclerc on pole and Max down in P7 due to a grid penalty for a new ICE, it looked all set to be a great weekend for The Tifosi, but Max once again ruined the part by taking the win. Checo, due to his front right brake catching fire, dropped to the back but delivered an excellent recovery drive to climb back up to P6 and claim the point for fastest lap, capping off a brilliant European campaign.
Should We Get The Crowd Some New Flags...?© Getty Images
The Team are heading off to the final six races of the year in an extremely strong position. Going to Singapore Max is top of the Drivers’ Championship with 335 points, 116 ahead of Charles Leclerc in second place, Checo currently sits just 9 points off Leclerc with 210 points. The Team has collected 545 points, 139 ahead of Ferrari in 2nd.
Despite such a commanding lead in both championships, the job isn’t done yet and with so many races still left to come the team will be fighting hard until the chequered flag in Abu Dhabi.
Next stop, Singapore! 🇸🇬
The Singapore Skyline At Night© Vladimir Rys
