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As F1 returns from its three-week summer shutdown, the championship protagonists face an uphill battle before they have even turned a wheel. Bad luck in the early races has led to penalties at Spa.
Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc’s battles on track in the early races entertained F1’s fanbase as Mercedes discovered their car was no longer the benchmark. Both championship protagonists suffered early reliability problems. Verstappen retired on the final lap at the season opener, then again two races later in Australia.
Leclerc meanwhile has been beset by problems. His F1-75’s Ferrari power unit failed at the Spanish Grand Prix, with the replacement engine then failing while again leading in Baku. While Verstappen’s failures occurred at the start of the season, Leclerc’s have impacted his championship campaign, with a string of other failures and driver errors setting the Monegasque almost 100 points behind Verstappen.
The result of both Red Bull and Ferrari suffering these failures was that grid penalties were inevitable later in the season. As the season enters its second half, early race reliability problems are now beginning to hurt.
Verstappen and Leclerc to battle through the midfield
Formula1.com is reporting Verstappen will see a change of gearbox components, internal combustion engines, turbochargers and an MGU-H. Leclerc will fit several different gearbox components only. As all of these components fall outside the allowed allocation for teams, both Red Bull and Ferrari have opted to start from the back of the grid. Spa Francorchamps is an ideal track for drivers to take penalties, as there are multiple opportunities for passing at the legendary circuit. The penalties present the the prospect of an exciting race, as the championship contenders will have to battle through the field.
Following a team decision to use new power unit elements, Lando will unfortunately take a grid penalty on Sunday.#BelgianGP ?? pic.twitter.com/hLZOq3OkEh
— McLaren (@McLarenF1) August 26, 2022
Sunday’s race could have even more excitement, as the championship contenders are not the only drivers opting to start from the back of the grid. Lando Norris, Esteban Ocon, Mick Schumacher and Valtteri Bottas have all opted to take engine penalties as Spa. Norris, Ocon and Bottas are fitting new internal combustion engines, turbochargers and MGU-Hs. Bottas and Schumacher will take on multiple new gearbox elements. Schumacher will also take on a new control electronics unit. The unfortunate Esteban Ocon is replacing every element of his power unit.
With two of its main rivals sent to the back of the grid, and competitors like McLaren also losing one car, Mercedes will be hoping for a strong result. The Silver Arrows have yet to win a race in 2022, with the W13 not on the pace of either Red Bull or Ferrari. Although comfortably the third fastest car, the loss of one Alpine and one McLaren will no doubt help its efforts in reaching the top step of the podium.
Feature Image Credit: Formula1.com: Getty Images