Can Red Bull overtake Ferrari as Sainz heads home?

Formula 1 returns to Barcelona for the Spanish Grand Prix, with all to play for in the fight for the championship.

The sport’s inaugural trip to the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, although quiet for much of the Grand Prix, proved to have a sizable impact on Scuderia Ferrari’s title hopes.

Despite locking-out the front-row with Charles Leclerc leading Carlos Sainz in Qualifying, it was Red Bull Racing’s Max Verstappen who emerged on top following the Grand Prix.

This continued the reigning world champion’s streak of winning every race he has finished in 2022, but still remains 19 points behind title rival Leclerc.

Will home advantage aid Sainz in fight for first win?

The Spaniard has never failed to score points at his home Grand Prix since his debut with Toro Rosso in 2015. His first F1 race in Spain saw him take ninth, most recently finishing seventh in 2021.

However, Sainz has never had a race-winning car at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, but will surely have a strong Ferrari underneath him heading into this weekend.

If he does win, he will become only the second driver from Spain to win a Grand Prix, following in the footsteps of hero Fernando Alonso who has won twice at Barcelona.

The F1-75 proved a strong machine during pre-season testing at the circuit, but with Red Bull closing in through the development race, it may not be clean sailing for Ferrari.

The Milton Keynes-based team has shown a significant advantage in straight-line speed, meaning Ferrari’s strength in corners could help them around the circuit this weekend.

Nyck de Vries’ first official Formula 1 session

On Tuesday morning, Williams announced that Formula 2 and Formula E champion De Vries would take to the track in the FW44 in FP1 this weekend.

The Dutchman is set to replace newcomer Alex Albon during the first practice session, leaving him to be compared to the team’s other driver, Nicholas Latifi.

Many have suggested that this could possibly be the team taking the first step in evaluating De Vries as a possible candidate to race for the team in 2023.

But, given Latifi’s large financial backing of the Grove-based outfit, it may be difficult for De Vries to dislodge the Canadian if he does not perform quickly this weekend.

Alongside De Vries, Juri Vips will be stepping into the Red Bull of Sergio Perez whilst Robert Kubica will take over running duties from Zhou Guanyu at Alfa Romeo.

Hamilton’s fight against the FIA set to continue in Spain

Sir Lewis Hamilton’s campaign against the rules banning jewelry has become a storyline of the 2022 season that has drawn the attention of many.

The seven-time world champion has been vocal in the FIA’s ruling against wearing jewelry while racing to push safety during race weekends.

Other drivers have made their opinions on other topics known as well, leading to Sebastian Vettel wearing his underwear on his race suit as a protest against non-regulation clothing in Miami.

If the war of words continue, with neither side likely to back down, the attention of many will be placed on what outcome this will have on both parties.

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