2022 Imola Grand Prix Predictions & Race Preview
Track Preview
The fourth race of 2022 season will be held on the legendary track “Enzo e Dino Ferrari” in Imola. This race returned to Formula 1 calendar in 2020 after 14 years of absence, and it was a great move by F1 management.
The characteristic of Imola is that there is not much space for overtaking on the track and only DRS zone at the circuit will be along the main straight. After three races with at least two DRS zones, this will be the first race with only one DRS zone.
What is specific about this Formula 1 weekend is that qualifying were held on Friday and the sprint race was on the program on Saturday. In addition to Imola, sprint races will be held in Austria and Brazil this year.
Max Verstappen finished the sprint race in first place and will have pole position on Sunday, while next to him will be Charles Leclerc. Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz had poor qualifying sessions but climbed to third and fourth place in the sprint race, so there will be two Ferrari and Red Bull drivers in the top 4 again.
Will Charles Leclerc continue to dominate?
In the first three races this year, Charles Leclerc achieved two wins and one-second place. In the championship standings, he is in a convincing first position and currently has 45 points more than his main rival and last year’s champion Max Verstappen.
Not much has changed in-car performances compared to the last race in Australia. Ferrari and Red Bull are still much better than everyone else, while it is noticeable that McLaren is returning after a terrible start of the season. Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo are in the third starting row for tomorrow’s race.
The Tifosi react to @Charles_Leclerc‘s SUPER start! 🤩#ImolaGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/E7zjPZftS5
— Formula 1 (@F1) April 23, 2022
Although everyone expected that Mercedes will show progress, they again completely failed. George Russell will start from 11th and Lewis Hamilton from 14th position. It will be a real miracle if Mercedes finds a way to fight for wins this season.
Weather forecast says we could see rain on Sunday, so if that happens it will certainly contribute to a more interesting race. The track is extremely narrow and every mistake can cost every driver dearly.
Prediction
Pick: Max Verstappen to win
Odds: 1.72
Bookmaker: 22Bet
After two retirements in three races, Max Verstappen no longer has room for error. Truth to be told, both retirements came due to a car malfunction, but Red Bull pointed out that all the problems have been fixed.
The current champion is already far behind Charles Leclerc in standings, so he need to fight back in Imola. In sprint race, he was behind the driver from Monaco to the very end when he managed to overtake him. Red Bull seems to have more than a good pace this weekend.
The first turn will be crucial and if Verstappen manages to keep the first place, it will be very difficult for Leclerc to overtake him because there is very little space for something like that in Imola.
Advices and Tips
Pick: Both Mercedes drivers will be placed between 1 and 10 position – NO
Odds: 1.80
In sprint race on Saturday, Russell and Hamilton failed to overtake almost anyone. Hamilton even lost one position for 21 laps of racing.
The only chance for both of them to end up in the top 10 is to see a large number of incidents in which they will not participate. Otherwise, this will not be a good race for them. One car may finish in points, but it will be tough task for both of them to do so.
Pick: Both Alpha Tauri Drivers Will Be Classified – NO
Odds: 2.75
Both Alpha Tauri drivers had problems with brakes this weekend. Pierre Gasly also had an incident in sprint race, so their cars are quite unsafe in last two days.
It is always risky to bet on whether someone will finish the race or not, but if some car will have technical problems in Imola, it will be Alpha Tauri.
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