Change in F1: pole less important in 2022 after new regulations

New aerodynamic regulations in F1

Ross Brawn's team designed new aerodynamic regulations for 2022 with the aim of promoting overtaking. The ground effect should make F1 cars less dependent on downforce from the front wing, allowing them to drive closer behind each other. If you drive closer behind your opponent, the chances of overtaking are also higher. At least, that was the idea.

According to Verstappen, that theory has become a reality in practice. ''I think these new cars, it's quite interesting, because before you really focus a lot on qualifying, because you knew that it was very hard to pass a car. Now even if your qualifying is not amazing, if you have a good race car, you can still fight and you can still actually pass people. So that's the beautiful side of the new cars. And that's why I think, let's say we had that problem last year where you have a problem in qualifying where you’re not as competitive. I think we wouldn't have won the amount of races as we did this year because, yeah, this year, pole was nice, but it doesn't always mean that you're going to win the race,'' the Dutchman stated at the press conference.

Verstappen is right

If we dive into the figures from the two seasons, it turns out that Verstappen is right. In 2021, the man who was also on pole won 11 times. 11 out of 22 and thus in exactly half the number of races. It should be added that one of those 11 races was the Belgian Grand Prix, where Verstappen did not have to race a lap to turn his pole into a win.

Whereas in 2021, in half the cases it was the pole man who also ran away with victory, it is different in 2022. Seven of the 18 races held so far were won by the man on pole (39 per cent). With four races to go, we could end up with exactly 11 out of 22 again, but that does not seem logical given this season.

The fact is that Verstappen saying it is not crazy. With 12 wins out of 18 races, Verstappen has already won more times than he did in 2021, but he cannot get to his number of poles in 2021. In 2021, Verstappen was on the pole 10 times, while now he could only start from the front row five times. So it is clear that pole has become less important in 2022.

Ferrari gambles wrong

In terms of scoring percentage, things remain more or less the same for Verstappen. In 2021, he scored seven out of 10 poles (70 percent), whereas in 2022 he managed to convert four out of five poles (80 percent) into a victory. So this does not necessarily show a difference, but the proportions are different. Of his 10 wins in 2021, Verstappen won seven from pole (70 per cent). In 2022, Verstappen has so far won four from pole of his total 12 wins (33 per cent).

For Ferrari, the figures are completely embarrassing. Indeed, the Italian team has a fast bolide for qualifying, but it will have far less use for that in 2022 than it would have had in 2021. Of the 18 races held, 11 times a Ferrari driver started from the first starting spot. But three times that pole was converted into a victory (27 per cent). Ferrari's fourth victory came in Austria. That was the only time Verstappen failed to cash in on his pole.