Emilia Romagna Grand Prix is a Formula One Racing Event taking place at the Autodromo Internationale Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The race takes its name from the Italian principality it is located in. The Grand Prix is also known as Imola Grand Prix after the town it is situated in. The 2022 edition will mark the third Imola Grand Prix with Lewis Hamilton winning the inaugural one in 2020, Max Verstappen winning the second one in 2021. Emilia Romagna Grand Prix along with Austria and Brazil will feature the three sprint events of the 2022-2024 Championship.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing had the pole position for the Sprint Race with Charles le Clerc of Ferrari and Lando Norris of McLaren trailing him in the second and third positions. The nail-biting qualifying was succeeded by one last practice session and then went down one of the most exhilarating Formula One sessions ever. The First Sprint of the year 2022 where Max Verstappen won the race after a tussle with Charles Le Clerc.
Race Details
Dates: 22 April – FP1 and Sprint Qualifying
23 April – FP2 and Sprint Race
24 April – Feature Race
Time: 06:30 p.m.
Venue: The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari
Where To Watch: F1 TV, Disney + Hotstar
Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Sprint Event 2022: What happened on Saturday
F1 Sprint involves the grid competing a 100 kilometers in a speed race which takes up about just half hour mostly. The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix consisted of 21 laps. The Grid was led by Max Verstappen (Red Bull Racing). After a poor start from Max in the beginning, Le Clerc passed him, gaining the lead. In the second lap, Zhou Guanyu crashed into a wall after getting chipped by Pierre Gasly’s car provoking an elimination for the former. Lewis Hamilton collapsed and struggled to get into the top ten as he jumped between 13-15 positions. George Russell also put out a poor performance thus creating a bad day at the office for Mercedes-Benz.
The race was so exciting at certain points that we wished that the race would progress for ten more laps. Carlos Sainz who started 10th in the grid climbed up six positions to give Ferrari yet another major victory at the home circuit. On Another Fernando Alonso of Alpine Racing started fifth but skidded down to P9 as he could not match the veracity of the rivals. Haas had another good day with Kevin Magnussen hanging to the final point at P8. Even when many thought he wouldn’t climb into the point as criticism rose over the soft tires he raced with. His teammate Mick Schumacher piped Sebastian Vettel into P11 as he earned a P10.
McLaren also had a great day at the office, as Lando Norris finished at P5 after starting behind Charles Le Clerc at P3. At P6 was his teammate Daniel Ricciardo, thus giving McLaren a day to sigh and relief. Sergio Perez clocked the fastest lap at the fifteenth lap as he finished at the P3rd position, giving Red Bull a great race session.
Key Highlight of the Emilia Romagna Sprint Event 2022
The highlight of the race was the tussle between the Monegasque Charles Le Clerc and The Dutch Max Verstappen. The former led the race for the most part as the latter stalled in the beginning which gave a poor start for the defending champion. Max struggled during the middle laps to pass le Clerc as the Ferrari driver never left a turn unshielded. The box went wild when Max finally crossed Le Clerc in the penultimate laps of the sprint. Max Verstappen thus got eight points and pole position for Sunday’s feature race and Le Clerc got seven points as he extended his lead over 40 points.
Circuit Details and Weather
The Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, or Imola, is a 4.909-kilometer motor racing track in Imola, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is one of the few big international circuits that runs in the opposite direction of the clock. The track is named after Enzo Ferrari, Ferrari’s late father, and his son, Alfredo “Dino” Ferrari. It was known as Autodromo Dino Ferrari before Enzo’s death.
The Circuit was host to 1980 Italian Grand Prix. It also played hosted San Marino Grand Prix from 1981 to 2006. The most controversial one happening in 1994 where the legendary driver Ayrton Senna succumbed to his injuries he suffered in the crash.
A sunny morning is expected on Sunday. There is no forecast for rainfall. The highest temperature expected on Sunday will be 23 degrees Celsius
Who will win?
Currently, Le Clerc is at the top of his game scoring 78 points from the three races and a sprint happening this year. He won two of them (Australian Grand Prix, Bahrain Grand Prix). Additionally, he came second in another (Saudi Arabian Grand Prix) and also the Imola GP Sprint Event.
Max Verstappen held the Pole Position in this race as he secured the fastest lap in the Friday Qualifying. He went on to win the first sprint event of the Championship. He also won the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2022 and has 33 points in his bag already.
Lewis Hamilton though not scoring anything major on the drivers championship this edition is a force to reckon with. With just a single podium so far in the season, he has 28 points. He will be aiming at a comeback to the old form and shed bad memories of the petty performances
Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz are two other figures who might end up in a podium finish on Sunday. Both of them have shown tremendous efforts this season for their respective constructors
