The Complex Race Strategy at the 2022 Canadian GP
Max Verstappen extended his championship lead on Sunday in Montreal, but it wasn't quite as simple at Red Bull would have liked.
The Canadian GP took place this past Sunday in Montreal, where Red Bull driver Max Verstappen took the checkered flag, but only less than one second clear of Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz. Towards the beginning of the race, it was unclear whether a one-stop strategy would be better than a two-stop.
Sergio Perez was forced to park his Red Bull in the run-off area at Turn Three due to gearbox failure, which brought out a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) on Lap Nine. The teams had to decide whether or not to pit their cars for new tires. If they pit under VSC, they save 10 seconds compared to a normal pitstop, but it can be a gamble.
It was early in the race, and most cars started on mediums, which can run for about 30 laps. The race was 70 laps, so pitting for new tires on Lap Nine was risky. Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton took the 10-second advantage and switched to the longer-lasting hard tires. Their teams were maybe hoping for a late Safety Car, to allow them to switch to fresh tires for the final stint.
Most of the medium runners pitted for hard tires between Lap 18-20, except for Fernando Alonso, who extended his stint to Lap 26. Sainz had stayed out during the VSC and got track position on Verstappen, then Ferrari pitted him along with the other medium runners.
At this point, the majority of the midfield were on a one-stop, with the potential for a late Safety Car. Hamilton and Verstappen were on the same strategy, and it was Red Bull that pitted their driver from the lead on Lap 43. Hamilton stopped a lap later, then his teammate Russell came in for his stop a lap after that.
There was a late Safety Car on Lap 49 when Alpha Tauri’s Yuki Tsunoda slid into the barriers on the pit exit; the Japanese driver had cold tires. This was a great opportunity for Carlos Sainz to gain an advantage on Verstappen in the pitlane. Ferrari’s team boss, Mattia Binotto said this after the race,
“At the time, Carlos was leading the race, and the safety car was released when he was just at the end of the main straight coming into the last corner” (Hall, 2022).
The Safety Car bunched up the field, as the drivers awaited the restart. Verstappen got away cleanly into the lead and in clean air, but crucially, didn’t have DRS. Sainz didn’t have DRS either for two laps after the restart, but once he did get it, the Spaniard brought the battle to Verstappen.
“The last 15-16 laps we were flat out, pushing to the limit, and I knew of course that I couldn’t make a mistake … it was good racing you know,” said Verstappen in his post-race press conference.
He appreciates the battle with Sainz and prefers this type of finish over one where he just saves his tires. Verstappen defended well into the main overtaking zone on several of Sainz’s attempts to get past.
To make matters more complicated for Verstappen and Red Bull, the team lost radio communication with their driver. He could hear the team, but they weren’t able to receive his feedback.
It was a close finish, with Sainz only one second behind the reigning World Champion when they crossed the line.
Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc started the Canadian GP at the back due to a penalty for taking a new engine component. The Monegasque stormed through the field on hard tires and completed 41 laps before he stopped for new mediums. The drivers behind Leclerc took advantage of the late Safety car to pit for mediums, but mainly to hold the position on the restart. Leclerc, Kevin Magnussen, Lance Stroll, and Valtteri Bottas all pulled off the one-stop strategy.
This was a great and complex race. For more information about the Canadian GP, check out my article for Belly Up Sports.
My name is Morgan Raynal, and I am a writer for Belly Up Racing and Belly Up Sports. You can find me on Substack and Twitter.