PREVIEW: 2022 FIA Formula 2 Round 4 – Barcelona

Next up on the calendar for the FIA Formula 2 championship is the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya where the grid will battle it out in the fourth round of the 2022 season.

The F2 circus convened at the track no less than five weeks ago for a series of in-season testing where the teams managed to gain some valuable data across a weather-disrupted three days.

The Story So Far

Théo Pourchaire heads into the weekend as championship leader following his victory in the Imola Feature Race in the previous round. He became the first double-winner of the season after his first Feature Race victory in the opening round at Bahrain International Circuit.

The Imola weekend started off with Jüri Vips proving to be the fastest in tricky conditions as he took pole position on a rainy Friday evening, ahead of the two rookies in Ayumu Iwasa and Jack Doohan.

Vips’ Hitech Grand Prix team-mate, Marcus Armstrong was the first man of the weekend on the top spot of the podium, taking the lead on lap one of the Sprint Race and leading all the way to the chequered flag.

However, the performance of the weekend went to Charouz Racing System’s Enzo Fittipaldi. The Brazilian driver made up thirteen positions in the Feature Race to take the first podium of his F2 career in astonishing style.

What Happened Two Years Ago?

The last time F2 went racing around the Catalonian tarmac was in the 2020 season where PREMA Racing’s Mick Schumacher ended up as the eventual champion. The championship runner-up, Callum Illot took pole position after a blistering lap set of the soft-compound Pirelli tyres.

MP Motorsport’s Nobuharu Matsushita won the fifth and final race of his F2 career in the feature race in a super charge from the P18 on the grid. The Japanese driver’s strategy featured an opening twenty-five lap stint on the hard tyres followed by a ten -ap stint on the softs to finish the race.

It was a dominant weekend for the Dutch racing outfit as Felipe Drugovich also took glory in the Sprint Race which was the second victory of his rookie F2 season.

As well as Drugovich, Jehan Daruvala, Marcus Armstrong, Roy Nissany and Marino Sato are all drivers on the 2022 grid who also competed in Barcelona during the 2020 season.

Track Facts

Distance: 4.675km (2.905 miles)
Total Turns: 16
DRS Zones: 2
Available Tyre Compounds: Hard/Soft
Lap Record: 1:27.024 by Nyck de Vries in 2019 (ART Grand Prix)
2020 Pole Position: 1:28.381 by Callum Illot (UNI-Virtuosi Racing)

Weekend Schedule

Free Practice: Friday – 10:35 BST (11:35 Local)Qualifying: Friday – 17:30 BST (18:30 Local)Sprint Race: Saturday – 16:40 BST (17:40 Local)Feature Race: Sunday – 10:35 BST (11:35 Local)