- Max Verstappen, the 2021 Formula One Champion, would not be trailing Charles Leclerc by 27 points if it weren’t for reliability issues
- Vettel’s bad luck started before the season did, with the German testing positive for COVID-19 before the first race weekend, causing him to miss two races
- Alonso’s most significant dose of bad luck came in Australia when a hydraulics failure caused him to crash out on his flying lap
They say fortune favours the brave, but that hasn’t been the case for a few drivers in the first few rounds of the 2022 season.
We look at the five Formula One drivers who have been unlucky so far since the start of the 2022 season.
MAX VERSTAPPEN
Max Vestappen retired at the Bahrain GP. Photo: PlanetF1
The bad luck Max Verstappen has had is self-explanatory. If it weren’t for reliability issues, he’d be leading the standings instead of trailing Charles Leclerc by 27 points.
The Dutchman was running in P2 and challenging his rival for the win with only a handful of laps remaining in the first round of the year when he was forced to retire due to a fuel pump issue. Eighteen points, possibly more, down the drain.
Then, two rounds later, it was revealed that lightning could indeed strike twice. While he wasn’t in contention for the win in Australia, he was almost sure to finish second.
So far this year, the Red Bull driver has done very little wrong and should have two wins and two P2 finishes to show for it.
CARLOS SAINZ
Carlos Sainz retired at the Australian GP. Photo: Getty Images
Carlos Sainz hasn’t had the best start to the season, having to withdraw from the two most recent races due to poor qualifying results. While he has made some errors, the Ferrari man is not entirely to blame.
The F1 gods seemed to be against him from the start, especially in Australia. Fernando Alonso’s crash in Q3 resulted in red flags, preventing him from completing a flying lap.
When the session resumed, he didn’t have enough time to warm up his tyres for his final run due to a start-up issue.
That caused him to start in P9, and things didn’t improve the next day.
Due to an issue, the team was forced to change his steering wheel just before the start, and with its different settings, he had a poor getaway, dropping him down the order.
He crashed while attempting to make up for the lost time.
When he did it again in qualifying at Imola, the Spaniard only had himself to blame, but the same cannot be said for what happened at the start of that race.
His driving hasn’t been great so far this year, but his luck has been even worse.
FERNANDO ALONSO
Frnando Alonso says his bad luck is unbelievabie aftter his retirement at the emilia romagna GP. Photo: Planet F1
“I think we are extremely unlucky in this first part of the championship. It is unbelievable we only have two points in the Drivers’ Championship because I think it’s a little bit unfair now,” said Alonso after he was forced to retire in Imola. It’s hard to disagree with him.
With Alpine making good progress over the winter, the Spaniard has had a strong pace in the first four races, but only two points to show for it, scored in the first round.
He appeared to be on track to finish in P7 or higher in Saudi Arabia before a mechanical issue ended his race. He was forced to retire last time out in Imola after being hit by Mick Schumacher.
His worst run of bad luck, however, came in Australia.
He was in the running for pole position and appeared to be on his way to claiming it provisionally in Q3 when a hydraulics failure caused him to crash out on his flying lap.
Things got even worse the next day when a Safety Car appeared at the wrong time for him, effectively ending his chances of scoring points.
As a result of all of this, despite being one of the fastest drivers at every round thus far, he is now ranked P15 in the standings.
SEBASTIAN VETTEL
Auston Martin’s Sebastian Vettel spins into the wall at the Australian GP 2022
Vettel’s bad luck began before the season began, when the German tested positive for COVID-19 just before the first race weekend, causing him to miss both that race and the next.
He returned to Australia, but it wasn’t a happy reunion. After missing FP2 due to a power unit failure, he crashed in FP3 after a last-minute decision to remove the fourth DRS zone exacerbated Aston Martin’s oscillation issues.
He crashed again, ending a terrible weekend that also saw him fined twice by the stewards. He had minimal run under his belt in a pretty poor car going into the race.
VALTTERI BOTTAS
Alfa Romeo’s Valtteri Bottas. Photo: MARCA
Bottas has made an excellent start to life with Alfa Romeo, scoring 24 points in his first four races, but it could have been even better.
After finishing sixth in Bahrain, he fought for sixth again in Saudi Arabia when he pulled into the pits with a few laps due to a cooling issue.
The bad luck continued in qualifying, with Frederic Vasseur admitting that the team “messed up” with their setups in Q2, causing the Finn to start P12.
He was able to fight back and finish the race in P8, but he would have scored even more points based on his pace if it hadn’t been for his team’s error.
At Imola, it was a similar story. He finished fifth, just behind George Russell, but he would have easily beaten the Brit if he hadn’t lost so much time in the pits due to a slow stop.
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