2022 F1 Dutch GP: Preview and Predictions

The 2022 F1 Dutch GP will be the first time the F1 circus goes to the Netherlands with Max Verstappen as the reigning F1 world champion. Additionally, the Red Bull driver is already 98-points ahead in the championship and is right on course to win his second world title.

We reach Zandvoort on the back of a dominant win by Max Verstappen at Spa, where he blew the opposition out of water. So, what can we expect to happen this weekend? Let's find out in our preview and predictions for the F1 Dutch GP.

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2022 F1 Dutch GP: Preview

Key storylines

#1 Ferrari and Mercedes' form

Ferrari and Mercedes are at a crossroads as they head to the Dutch GP. What happened at Spa last weekend was a complete and utter domination by Red Bull. The new technical directive was supposed to help Mercedes. Spa was probably not the best indicator, but a 1.8 secs gap to pole position should ring the alarm bell for the German squad.

Ferrari's poor strategic execution was on display again and will be under the spotlight at the Dutch GP as well. This weekend's race and the relative performance of these two teams against Red Bull will determine what path Mercedes and Ferrari take for the rest of the season.

#2 The Alpine/McLaren/Oscar Piastri saga

Contrary to expectations, the Contract Recognition Board has not given its verdict on the whole Oscar Piastri saga. This means that it drags the proceedings for another week and increases speculation around the future lineup of the teams.

Who will end up at Alpine? What financial implications will there be for McLaren? Also, will we see a few more shots fired by Otmar and Zak Brown during the Dutch GP weekend? This is certainly going to keep everyone interested.

#3 The Ghosts of the F1 Austrian GP

One of the rather ugliest instances of crowd nuisance occurred in the Red Bull ring earlier this season when there were reports of s*xual, homophobic, and racial abuse from the crowd.

A chunk of it was contributed to the "orange army," the famed supporters of Max Verstappen. The Orange Army will be out in full force at the Dutch GP this weekend. F1 administrators will be on the edge of their seats regarding crowd behavior this weekend.

Form Guide

In Form

Max Verstappen is doing something special this year, and the way he's doing it, he's making it look like it's far too easy. The race in Spa should not have been as easy as Verstappen made it look. Neither should the race in Hungary have been as straightforward as Verstappen made it out to be.

At this moment, it's the car, the driver, and most importantly, the operations unit that is firing on all cylinders. Verstappen looks unbeatable at the moment, and the Dutch GP, his home race, could witness something special this time.

Out of Form

Away from the spotlight, McLaren suffered a rather humiliating defeat at the hands of Alpine at Spa. The car was not competitive on the straights, and as a result, while Alpine scored a P5 and P7 in the race, McLaren scored nothing.

The two teams are fighting a battle on and off the track. While McLaren might secure the off-track win by getting a hold of Oscar Piastri, Alpine is gaining the upper hand over McLaren on the track.

Zandvoort should suit the Woking-based squad a bit more, but it would be interesting to see where McLaren ends up compared to Alpine at the F1 Dutch GP.

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2022 F1 Dutch GP: Predictions

Who wins the race?

Based on track layout and car characteristics, Zandvoort should favor Ferrari and Charles Leclerc. The problem with making this pick is that there seems to be some uncertainty in whatever Ferrari does right now.

The team can't go through an F1 race weekend without making a questionable strategic choice. Because of this, it again hands the advantage to a driver for whom the Dutch GP will be his home race. At the end of the day, we're backing Max Verstappen to win the F1 Dutch GP this weekend.

Surprise of the weekend (Team)

Regardless of the impact the technical directive has on the cars, Zandvoort should ideally be more similar to Hungary than Spa. Those track requirements saw Mercedes excel as George Russell scored pole position, and then the team scored a double podium. At the Dutch GP, the track conditions should play a role in bringing Mercedes back into contention and could see the team having a competitive weekend this time around.

Surprise of the weekend (Driver)

Esteban Ocon put together another performance that was somewhat under the radar but far too impressive. The Alpine driver was comfortably quicker than Fernando Alonso (not an easy feat by any means) and pulled off some sensational moves throughout the race.

What was, however, more impressive from Ocon was his ability to make his way through the field and finish within touching distance of Alonso. Alpine should once again be there or thereabouts at the Dutch GP, and we're backing Esteban Ocon to be the best of the rest this weekend.

Disappointment of the weekend (Team)

Alpha Tauri's car is not suited to high downforce tracks like the one in Zandvoort. The car was still able to scrape through with a P9 result at Spa, but on a track like Zandvoort, this looks highly unlikely. This time around, expect a tough weekend for Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda.

Disappointment of the weekend (Driver)

If there was one thing that was evident throughout the weekend in Spa, it was the fact that Daniel Ricciardo did not look like his confident self. The news of his split with McLaren had become official, and Ricciardo had also posted his message on social media.

One thing that can be seen quite clearly in Ricciardo's demeanor right now is that the Australian has mentally checked out from McLaren. The car does not suit him. It's almost mystifying why that is the case, and with only a few races left, there's not much to gain.

Spa was somewhat disappointing. Expect the Dutch GP to be more of the same.

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