Good afternoon and good day Canada! We are back at the Lenovo Grand Prix De France 2022, for the 12th race of the season. Earlier today we saw FP1 (Practice 1) and we are about to witnessed FP2 (Practice 2).
Practice 2 Brief
Back at the Lenovo Grand Prix De France 2022 Circuit Paul Ricard in the South of France, the track is sizzling. It’s close to 40 degrees celsius with the high today around 58 degrees.
All teams are out on the track. I see teams fitting the cars with medium tyres. Greenlight, and here we go, FP2 is underway.
The pace is picking up. Times are starting to drop off. The track is so hot you could sizzle eggs and bacon on it!
The technical tacticians will start thinking of tire strategies and time management for the race ahead on Sunday and collect a significant amount of data.
There are 2 DRS “drag reduction system” detection zones that could give drivers an extra boost down the straights. As much as 14-16 kph after the “Undercut”. Be on the lookout out for these tricky maneuvers, as it will be key to this race.
It could happen more than you think!
20 mins into the session and Leclerc sets the fastest first sector, as Verstappen sets off on his flying lap.
It’s getting congested and heated out there as the temperature in drivers’ vocal cords rise!
More news from the paddock, both Alpha Tauri drivers receive an upgrade package, their last one before taking on penalties.
25 mins left in the session and we are seeing flying laps out there by Ricciardo, McLaren, Magnussen, and Hass which is encouraging to see by both teams.
The traffic is getting nasty out there, the track is getting slippery and I see a lot of understeering by the drivers … welcome to FP2.
Final minutes … we see the CHEQUERED FLAG, and we have both “Red Prancing Horses” in 1st and 2nd with Sainz on top of the timesheet with a time of 1:32.527 followed by his teammate Leclerc with a time of 1:32.628. In 3rd for Red Bull Racing is Max Verstappen with a time of 1:33.077.
followed by two Silver Arrows of Russell and Hamilton, 4th and 5th to round off the top 5.
Wow! This race is going to be feisty, sensational and cutthroat. Drivers and teams are playing coy!
Quote
“On the first lap I was competitive, on the second lap I just made a couple of mistakes, its wasn’t the track, it was me getting used to the car, I started to push in areas too much that was comprising. That why I was a little bit critical of myself.” Newcomer, Nyck de Vries, Mercedes.
Commentary
That sums it all up, apprentice!
Note: Rookies must complete time sessions in order to advance from Formula 2 when and if they get promoted to F1. It’s an FIA regulation. Its safety and measurement rule to advance to the big time “F1”s. Young drivers are assessed on how they cope with stress, team engineers and the control of the team’s cars.
Stay viewed, see you in 18:24.23 for FP3 and Qualification!
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