2022 F1 Austrian GP FP2: What did we learn?

The second practice session for the 2022 F1 Austrian GP concluded with the two Ferrari drivers at the top of the charts. Carlos Sainz led the way for the team with Charles Leclerc behind him.

In a session where teams primarily focused on long runs with an emphasis on getting to know the behavior of the tires for the race, some interesting observations could be made about the relative order that the team might find themselves in for the sprint today and the Austrian GP tomorrow. So, what were these observations? Let's find out!

---

F1 Austrian GP FP2: What did we learn?

#1 Max Verstappen holds the edge at the front

Every time Max Verstappen was out on track in the session, he looked completely in tune with the car. There wasn't much fighting with the car, which was evident yesterday when he was trying to pull off the fastest lap.

In the long run, Verstappen looks the most comfortable of any driver out there. Perhaps even as a safety net, although he might not need one, the top speed of Red Bull and the car's superiority in the first sector make the car raceable if the Dutch driver gets stuck in the field.

Although, yes, let's admit it, the gap is not massive and it is roughly around 2 tenths of a second, but if we are fair, it looks like Verstappen's race to lose at the F1 Austrian GP.

#2 It might need to be "elbows out" for the two Ferrari drivers at the start

As we mentioned earlier, the gap between Ferrari and Max Verstappen is not too much. The problem faced by the two Ferrari drivers is the lack of speed in the first sector, which is more or less dependent on their straight-line prowess.

Even if Verstappen faces tire troubles during the 2022 F1 Austrian GP sprint, the Ferrari drivers do not have the straight-line speed to jump him on the straights. If there is any chance of an overtake, it has to be at the start of the race. Both Ferrari drivers will have to ensure they attack Verstappen at the start of the 2022 F1 Austrian GP sprint and keep him behind for the duration of the race.

#3 Alpine is not going to be a sitting duck for the Mercedes drivers

If there was one key takeaway from the practice session then it was the surprising form of the Alpine. Both the drivers were right up there on the timing sheets. While it does look obvious that they won't have legs on the top 3 teams over the stint, it did however reveal that the two Alpine drivers are not going to be sitting ducks for the Mercedes of Lewis Hamilton trying to make his way through the field.

If there is a big accident at the front, watch out for the Alpine drivers capitalizing on it at the 2022 F1 Austrian GP.

#4 McLaren has strong race pace but the team might regret the poor qualifying slots

McLaren showed impressive long-run speed from both the drivers during the session. It's not as strong as the Alpine drivers, but McLaren could contend for the 5th or 6th fastest team in the field.

The problem for McLaren is somewhat similar to Ferrari as the team will find it tough to pull off overtakes with the kind of straight-line speed deficit it suffers from.

#5 Haas is the wildcard for the Sprint

The two Haas drivers were surprisingly near the bottom of the timesheets, something that was a sharp contrast from the qualifying result they had achieved yesterday. Should it ring alarm bells for the 2022 F1 Austrian GP? Probably not, because unlike the rest of the grid that ran a fuel load identical to the requirement for the sprint, the Haas drivers could have run the fuel load commensurate to what is needed for the full race.

Still, it will be interesting to keep an eye on the two Haas drivers. The team has shown a tendency to falter from a strong qualifying position, let's see how they fare this time around.