Formula 1: Ferrari look to bounce back while Mercedes bring in upgrades for Miami GP

Racing action from the Formula One 2022 season is all set to shift to Miami as the city will become the 11th venue in the United States (US) to witness an F1 race weekend. After years of hard work, the inaugural Miami Grand Prix will kick off on Friday with the first practice session and has the potential to become one of the highlights of the ongoing season.

The addition of the brand new circuit to F1’s calendar is expected to excite motorsports fans as all the team and drivers have limited knowledge and information about the track. 

The Emilia Romagna GP on April 24 ended with Max Verstappen returning to the top spot in the podium for the second time in the season, as he has suffered DNFs on other occasions. Ferrari had a rather average outing at Imola as Charles Leclerc spun at the ending moments of the race while fighting for P2 against Red Bull’s Sergio Perez and ended up finishing sixth in the wet race.

Leclerc’s teammate on the other hand had a horrific weekend that started with him crashing out of qualifying, followed by a DNF in the main race after contact with McLaren’s Daniel Ricciardo.

Ferrari picked up 12 points at Imola in total, while Leclerc’s lead over Verstappen in the 2022 Drivers’ championship standings was cut down to 27 points. Having said that, Ferrari will now look to recover from the tough weekend and fight for the win at Miami. It is worth noting that Ferrari also lead the 2022 Constructors’ championship standings with 124 points, as Red Bull follow with 113 points, ahead of Mercedes.

Mercedes to bring in upgrades at Miami

Mercedes are also bringing in some more upgrades to their car in the fifth round of the 2022 season in order to turn things around for them.

As per the official website of Formula 1, speaking about the possible upgrades, Mercedes’ Trackside Engineering Director Andrew Shovlin said, “Being realistic we think this will be something we approach in steps rather than one big moment where the whole thing vanishes. But we are seeing encouraging signs … we are hoping to bring parts to the car soon, maybe even Miami where we can hopefully see progress on this issue.”

(Image: AP/@mercedesamgf1/Instagram)