The lowdown on all new cars, overtaking, tyres, weight, sprint qualifying and three-day weekends in the 2022 F1 season
Starting from scratch with this year’s models, the sweeping changes in regulations are based on an attempt to shift a significant amount of downforce generation from aerodynamic parts to the floor of the car, through the use of ground effect. The intent is to push the wash of dirty air upwards, away from following cars so they can better close on one another. Intriguingly, the interpretation of the rules has varied across the paddock, not least with Mercedes’s radical sidepod design, already catching attention and potentially protests at its legality. Some will have got it right, but for those who have chosen the wrong path a long season of furious catch-up awaits.