F1

Mercedes has introduced a host of minor tweaks to its Formula 1 car in a bid to help both cooling and the airflow separation that is hurting its ...

Mercedes has also reduced the floor curl ahead of the rear tyre to help "remove a small area of air flow separation and improve flow in the diffuser, which results in an increase of rear load." Red Bull has also made some minor modifications to its car in a bid to try to improve its performance. The team says: "These geometry changes have been introduced in order to remove small areas of separated air flow, and by doing so we improve air flow to the rear of the car."

Formula 1 drivers would favour further modifications to the sprint race weekend format, chiefly to make it a standalone event rather than deciding the grid ...

He said: “I like the way it is. He said: “I think the qualifying idea is a good suggestion. I wouldn't want to see that change.

F1 is back for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Italy. Qualifying is scheduled for Friday and we run through some key details.

+25000 This weekend's Grand Prix is one of six races in the 2022 season with a two-day qualifying format. Formula One is back at it after an off week last weekend.

Toto Wolff says Mercedes' porpoising problem during first practice for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was so severe that a floor stay broke on George ...

“Their porpoising looks a little bit different to ours,” Wolff assessed. The stays attempt to stiffen the floors that are flexing and stalling at top speed, which leads to porpoising. “We were five second off the pace – it’s not the car and not the driver.”

The F1 Sprint races are about to return for the 2022 season after a dramatic hat-trick of events in 2021 when the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen ...

Austria and Sao Paulo will also provide the settings for Sprint races during the 2022 season. That makes the Sprint more likely to prove pivotal in deciding where drivers finish this season. Hamilton won the full British Grand Prix race, where Verstappen did not finish after a hugely controversial collision with the home hero. What does the Sprint race entail? Pit stops are not mandatory, meaning the race lives up to its name by giving drivers the chance to go flat-out for victory from the start. How is it likely to affect the standings, and what time and where can F1 fans watch it?

Max Verstappen persevered through five red flags to triumph over Charles Leclerc in changeable qualifying conditions ahead of the sprint race at Formula 1's ...

With the risk too great to attempt a lap on slicks, both Mercedes drivers were eliminated. Sainz flashed over the timing line in 1m18.990s and he had moved top ahead of Lando Norris. But as he turned in to the second apex of the Rivazza left, the right-rear wheel appeared to run over the painted track border, and he span across the gravel and into the outside wall. The Red Bull driver was quick to confirm over team radio that he had still backed off considerably and changed down a gear to account for a yellow flag in the final sector. On his second and crucial lap on intermediate tyres in Q3, despite a yellow flag for a stricken Valtteri Bottas, the Red Bull driver posted a 1m27.999s to move ahead of Leclerc. Before anyone had set a time in Q3, had brought out a brief red flag after a wet-dry track caught the Haas driver out in the more treacherous second half of the lap.

Max Verstappen claimed pole position in Emilia Romagna GP qualifying and will start at the front for Saturday's Sprint after outpacing Charles Leclerc in a ...

10) Carlos Sainz No time set (crashed in Q2) 3) Lando Norris 2) Charles Leclerc Following complaints from drivers during the Sprints debut campaign last year, there has been a pole position clarification for 2022. He will head the grid for Saturday's Sprint, the shortened race that returns in 2022 after a debut three outings last year.

Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen will start Saturday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix sprint event on pole position after an incident-packed qualifying at Imola ...

Verstappen then grabbed the top spot with 1m27.999s, 0.779s faster than Leclerc, despite being forced to lift off for Valtteri Bottas stopping in the final sector ahead of him, which caused another red flag. Rain fell during the break, meaning there would be no further improvements. Time The session began on a slightly damp but quickly drying track. Time The result of Saturday’s sprint race sets the grid for Sunday’s main event.

Le Monégasque Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), leader au championnat, a réalisé le meilleur temps de la 1re séance d'essais libres du Grand prix...

Avec les courses sprint, les qualifications classiques (contre-la-montre) sont donc avancées du samedi au vendredi. Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) 1:36.464 (17) George Russell (GBR/Mercedes) 1:34.262 (21) Mick Schumacher (GER/Haas-Ferrari) 1:32.988 (23) Après cette première séance d'essais libres, les qualifications suivront. Suivent les deux Haas de Kevin Magnussen et Mick Schumacher.

Lewis Hamilton finished only 18th as Charles Leclerc set the pace in opening practice for Sunday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Charles Leclerc partira lui en deuxième position samedi (16h30). Les pilotes Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton et George Russell, ont été sortis dès la Q2.

Formula One racing is headed to Rome for the Rolex Gran Premio. We'll update qualifying until we've got the full racing grid is set Sunday's race at Imola ...

The first 20 minutes will eliminate five drivers and the next 15 minutes will eliminate five more. Qualifying for this race is different than most of the schedule. 1 1 Yuki Tsunoda, Pierre Gasly, Nicholas Latifi, Esteban Ocon, and Alexander Albon were the five slowest and have been eliminated from qualifying. Carlos Sainz will not partake in Q3 after a wreck.

Max Verstappen took pole position for Red Bull in a nailbiting qualifying session ahead of the inaugural F1 Sprint of 2022 at Imola.

It was very slippery to get the tyre temps to work. Vettel sealed Aston Martin's first Q3 appearance of 2022 in P8 (and emerged for a late intermediate run alongside Leclerc), Ricciardo and Bottas rounding out the top 10. Verstappen then improved to a 1m 27.999s, just after Bottas crashed to bring out a red flag going into Turn 16. “It was tricky out there with the rain… The rain then returned to ensure a damp finish to Friday evening. It was a hectic, long qualifying but of course at the end happy to be here. Dry line now clear, Lance Stroll set the first benchmark for Aston Martin – before the session was red flagged with 12 minutes remaining, Albon’s right-rear brake up in flames and spreading red-hot debris in its wake. Verstappen led Leclerc out but, given how difficult their out-laps seemed, it was clear that neither driver would improve. Nearly eight-tenths off, Leclerc had one last chance to pry provisional pole away from the reigning champion but was left second and 0.799s off after the red flag. The Spaniard went second, 0.197s off then-leader Verstappen, but spun and crashed going into the final left-hander. The umbrellas soon unfurled, and those drivers’ fates were essentially sealed. Tsunoda’s team mate Gasly could only take P17, making it an early elimination for both of AlphaTauri's drivers at their home circuit.

Max Verstappen réalise la pole position devant Charles Leclerc et Lando Norris. Résumé et classement des chaotiques qualifications du Grand Prix ...

En difficulté lors des essais libres, les Français n’ont pas réussi à sortir la tête de l’eau. Esteban Ocon a été victime d’un problème de boîte de vitesses. La plus grosse désillusion est signée Carlos Sainz. L’Espagnol a heurté le mur en deuxième partie des qualifications. Red Bull avait quelque peu caché son jeu en première séance d’essais libres.

Formula 1 drivers would favour further modifications to the sprint race weekend format, chiefly to make it a standalone event rather than deciding the grid ...

He said: "I like the way it is. I wouldn't want to see that change. He said: "I think the qualifying idea is a good suggestion. But that how it is. If the qualifying on Friday meant the grid position for Sunday, and also for the sprint race, that could be quite fun. "It could add a bit of value of excitement for the Saturday. This actually could be a good idea."

Mercedes has introduced a host of minor tweaks to its Formula 1 car in a bid to help both cooling and the airflow separation that is hurting its ...

Photo by: Giorgio Piola Photo by: Giorgio Piola Photo by: Giorgio Piola

Lewis Hamilton feels that “each weekend is a rescue” currently for Mercedes in Formula 1 after the team suffered a double Q2 exit at Imola on Friday.

[It's] not ideal, but we got a chance to recover these positions tomorrow." [We] can only go up." "So let's see what we can do. Each weekend is a rescue." It's going to be a difficult race, but hopefully tomorrow is better weather-wise, and who knows, maybe we'll move our way forwards." There are things that we should have done that we didn't do.

Max Verstappen will start on pole for the F1 sprint race at Imola ahead of Charles Leclerc after a rain-plagued qualifying session that cost Lewis Hamilton.

Qualifying was also stopped with three minutes remaining following an incident for Bottas as Verstappen went quickest. That included Hamilton and Russell. The passionate “tifosi” have been packing out the circuit in their red-colored droves this weekend, with more than 120,000 tickets sold. Ferrari dominated practice and again looked like the team to beat after a one-two in the session. Instead of the usual three practices to get to grips with the car, there was only one practice followed by qualifying on Friday for Saturday’s sprint. “There are things we should have done but we didn’t do.

Red Bull Racing Formula 1 boss Christian Horner is confident that Honda has fixed the fuel line issue that stopped Max Verstappen in Melbourne.

We can't afford the gap to grow again to Ferrari, so we need to start eroding it rather than seeing it grow.” “I mean, there's a lot points available this weekend, and we want to make sure that we're there to capitalise. The broken parts were quarantined after the race, and returned to the Japanese company’s base in Sakura.

World champion won the right to lead Saturday's 21-lap dash to decide P1, while Lewis Hamilton criticised his mishandling Mercedes after only managing 13th.

Leclerc set the pace on his opening hot lap in Q3, mighty through the second and third sectors but he was only two-hundredths clear of Verstappen with a time of 1min 28.778sec. Pole gives Verstappen the chance to claw back points in the title fight which Leclerc leads on 71, with the world champion, who has retired twice this season, in sixth on 25. The drivers kept lapping as the clock ticked down and Verstappen pipped his rival with a 1min 27.999sec lap just before another red flag as Valtteri Bottas ground to a halt on track. It really punishes you if you make a mistake you can go in the wall. By its close Red Bull’s Max Verstappen had earned “pole position” but such is the equally painful structuring of this format, while his pole counts statistically in the record books it is only for Saturday’s sprint race which will decide the literal pole for Sunday’s GP. Hamilton only narrowly made it into Q2 and finished in 13th place with his teammate George Russell in 11th.

Carlos Sainz felt he wasn't pushing hard prior to his Imola Formula 1 qualifying crash which he fears will cost him “quite a lot” through the rest of the ...

The car surprised me in that corner, [and] I missed it. Sainz acknowledged the damage on his car “looked bad” after the shunt and that it was “not going to be easy for the guys tonight” to get the repairs completed. Sainz explained that he was surprised to lose the car in the fashion that he did, but took full blame for the mistake.

Sur les terres de Ferrari, Max Verstappen (Red Bull) a arraché sa première pole position de la saison lors des qualifications du Grand Prix d'Emilie-Romagne ...

Comme en 2021, la catégorie reine du sport automobile reconduit le temps de trois Grands Prix cette saison son format de course sprint qualificative le samedi. Une potentielle aubaine pour Ferrari et Leclerc, qui pourrait empocher 34 points en cas de double victoire et de meilleur tour en course. Pour Sainz, contraint d'abandonner après avoir terminé sa course dans le mur en Q2, cette 10e place est un coup dur. Ça va être une course difficile, mais qui sait ? Peut-être que nous pourrons progresser", a déclaré Hamilton. "C'était délicat, sec, (puis) pluie, très glissant. Derrière le duo Verstappen-Leclerc, le Britannique Lando Norris (McLaren) et le Danois Kevin Magnussen (Haas-Ferrari) héritent de la deuxième ligne, l'Espagnol Fernando Alonso (Alpine) et l'Australien Daniel Ricciardo (McLaren) de la troisième.

After three entertaining and incident-packed Sprint weekends last year, the format returns at Imola for the Emilia Romagna GP. But what are the benefits of ...

The Sprint had its critics before debuting in 2021 in Silverstone, Monza and Interlagos - but nobody can dispute that the new format provided entertainment to the weekends. While not responsible for controversy directly, the Sprint also had its part to play in hugely dramatic moments last year. Again at Monza, the pair collided a day after the Sprint. Plus, if a driver wins all three Sprints in 2022, that almost adds up to a race win on its own (24). Handy. The winner will collect eight points, second place will score seven, with this continuing in descending order down to eighth (one point). It starts at 3.30pm and is live on Sky Sports F1 and Main Event, with build-up from 2.30pm.

World champion Max Verstappen secured pole position on Saturday for Sunday's sprint race at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix after outpacing Charles Leclerc by ...

9th row: Pierre Gasly (FRA/AlphaTauri) Nicholas Latifi (CAN/Williams-Mercedes) 7th row: Lewis Hamilton (GBR/Mercedes) Zhou Guanyu (CHN/Alfa Romeo) 6th row: George Russell (GBR/Mercedes) Mick Schumacher (GER/Haas-Ferrari) 5th row: Sebastian Vettel (GER/Aston Martin-Mercedes) Carlos Sainz (ESP/Ferrari) It was Verstappen’s first pole this season and the 12th of his career. 2nd row: Lando Norris (GBR/McLaren-Mercedes) Kevin Magnussen (DEN/Haas-Ferrari)

Hamilton in 'testy' exchange with boss as Mercedes crash to 10-year F1 low.

“I think we underperformed as a team. “Naturally, it is disappointing. We will just keep working hard.

Max Verstappen's brilliant pole position lap for Formula 1's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix raised some eyebrows as it came after he passed through a yellow flag ...

With just a single warning flag out, the FIA demands: "Drivers should reduce their speed and be prepared to change direction. It must be clear that a driver has reduced speed and, in order for this to be clear, a driver would be expected to have braked earlier and/or discernibly reduced speed in the relevant marshalling sector." "In order for the stewards to be satisfied that any such driver has complied with these requirements it must be clear that he has not attempted to set a meaningful lap time, for practical purposes any driver in a double yellow sector will have that laptime deleted."

Max Verstappen has taken pole position for Red Bull at the Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix sprint race on Friday. Here's how and when to watch the ...

For the entire 2022 F1 season, Channel 4 will broadcast highlights of every qualifying and race of each event. The starting order for the sprint race will be decided by a traditional qualifying session held on Friday afternoon. Live streaming through NOW is also available in the UK. F1 has long been looking to make changes to the traditional race weekend format and while other options like reverse grid races were considered, they were ultimately unfancied compared to sprint races. In F2 the sprint race is 120km and the feature race covers 170km, though are usually no less exciting. They’re used in many other series, though perhaps most notably for Formula 1 is their inclusion in the Formula 2 race weekend.

IMOLA, Italie — Max Verstappen a décroché la position de tête en vue de la course sprint qui se déroulera samedi, dans le cadre du Grand Prix de Formule 1 ...

La course sprint s’étalera sur 21 tours, et les huit premiers pilotes à la compléter obtiendront des points de classement. C’est décevant, mais je reste optimiste pour demain (samedi)», a déclaré Stroll par voie de communiqué. De son côté, le Québécois Lance Stroll, n’a pu faire mieux que le 15e temps. Les conditions de piste ont joué en notre faveur aujourd’hui, car si ç’avait été sec, alors nous n’aurions jamais terminé en troisième position», a expliqué Norris candidement. C’est une belle piste, et je sais que les conditions seront différentes demain et dimanche, mais c’est un bon départ pour le week-end», a déclaré Verstappen, qui a du même coup signé sa première pole position cette saison. J’aurais pu faire encore mieux, mais j’ai trop poussé lors du tour de préparation. Nous aurions pu chauffer Charles, car la voiture était bonne et que j’étais confiant.

Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen will start Saturday's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix sprint event on pole position after an incident-packed qualifying at Imola ...

Verstappen then grabbed the top spot with 1m27.999s, 0.779s faster than Leclerc, despite being forced to lift off for Valtteri Bottas stopping in the final sector ahead of him, which caused another red flag. Rain fell during the break, meaning there would be no further improvements. Time The session began on a slightly damp but quickly drying track. Time The result of Saturday’s sprint race sets the grid for Sunday’s main event.

Imola plays host to the first F1 Sprint race of the 2022 season. Here's how you can watch the session that decides the starting grid for the Emilia Romagna ...

Viewers from selected countries can subscribe to F1 TV to stream the Imola Sprint race on a device of their choice. - Denmark - TV3 / TV3 Sport / Viaplay Can’t find your country or region in the list?

Carlos Sainz felt he wasn't pushing hard prior to his Imola Formula 1 qualifying crash which he fears will cost him “quite a lot” through the rest of the ...

The car surprised me in that corner, [and] I missed it. Sainz said the target at Imola was now “to move forward and try and rescue some good points” over the sprint race and grand prix. Sainz acknowledged the damage on his car “looked bad” after the shunt and that it was “not going to be easy for the guys tonight” to get the repairs completed.

Remarkably Friday's Formula 1 qualifying session in Imola was the first time since Japan 2012 that Mercedes did not have a car in Q3.

“So the remit of the power unit people is to focus on that, and look at any fine tuning that we can do to find gains. “We're constantly doing analysis on that,” says Shovlin. “There's areas that we think we can improve in terms of managing the deployment. “But as an aside, we're still working hard to try and understand, get on top and solve the bouncing. We just didn't have the grip that we needed to be quick.” One is, could we could we have run the earlier part of the session better? The developments we brought here, we were aware that they're not going to affect that. But we should be able to perform in the same position that we're racing, which is realistically third-quickest team." “As I said, we still need to understand why we can't match some of the mid-grid teams, even. As I said, we don't know whether there's something else in terms of how we're setting the car up, or how we're approaching the way that we're generating heat in the tyres. “And we've not got to the bottom of it. “On a single lap, a lot of the midfield teams are better than us. In Bahrain it doesn't really cost you, and all the other tracks, it's actually been a bit of a difficulty in qualifying.

Formula 1 world championship leader Charles Leclerc says the wrong run plan choice for qualifying at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix left him unhappy to be ...

So let’s keep pushing, but for now we have the potential to do so [win].” “P2 is not bad in the end. So it is like this.

Remarkably Friday's Formula 1 qualifying session in Imola was the first time since Japan 2012 that Mercedes did not have a car in Q3.

“So the remit of the power unit people is to focus on that, and look at any fine tuning that we can do to find gains. “That doesn't stop us looking at what we can do within the modes, and how we can use those better, and whether there is anything more we can gain in how we're deploying the modes that are available. “We're constantly doing analysis on that,” says Shovlin. “There's areas that we think we can improve in terms of managing the deployment. “But as an aside, we're still working hard to try and understand, get on top and solve the bouncing. “To be honest both of them are annoying issues at the moment,” Shovlin admitted. We just didn't have the grip that we needed to be quick.” “Lewis would have liked to have stayed out on one of the runs earlier on,” he said. One is, could we could we have run the earlier part of the session better? But we should be able to perform in the same position that we're racing, which is realistically third-quickest team.” “And we've not got to the bottom of it. “As I said, we still need to understand why we can't match some of the mid-grid teams, even. As I said, we don't know whether there's something else in terms of how we're setting the car up, or how we're approaching the way that we're generating heat in the tyres.

Remarkably Friday's Formula 1 qualifying session in Imola was the first time since Japan 2012 that Mercedes did not have a car in Q3.

“So the remit of the power unit people is to focus on that, and look at any fine tuning that we can do to find gains. “We're constantly doing analysis on that,” says Shovlin. “There's areas that we think we can improve in terms of managing the deployment. “But as an aside, we're still working hard to try and understand, get on top and solve the bouncing. We just didn't have the grip that we needed to be quick.” One is, could we could we have run the earlier part of the session better? The developments we brought here, we were aware that they're not going to affect that. But we should be able to perform in the same position that we're racing, which is realistically third-quickest team." “As I said, we still need to understand why we can't match some of the mid-grid teams, even. As I said, we don't know whether there's something else in terms of how we're setting the car up, or how we're approaching the way that we're generating heat in the tyres. “And we've not got to the bottom of it. “On a single lap, a lot of the midfield teams are better than us. In Bahrain it doesn't really cost you, and all the other tracks, it's actually been a bit of a difficulty in qualifying.

As F1 returns to Imola, BEN EDWARDS recalls how this delightful but unforgiving circuit has been a hotspot for discord and tragedy.

But has Ferrari banished the problems of the recent past as it seeks a first Formula 1 drivers' title since 2007, or could the woes that thwarted Sebastian Vettel return to plague the Scuderia once more? MARK GALLAGHER looks at why the cryptocurrency exchange providers are desperate for market share, and how F1 is cashing in Team-mates often attempt to combine forces in the early part of a season, especially when new technical rules shift the sand and working together creates more opportunity for the team to move forward.

Première course en Europe de la saison, à Imola (Italie), pour la quatrième manche du championnat du monde. Avant la course de dimanche du Grand Prix ...

La course sprint sera diffusée sur Canal +, qui détient les droits pour la saison de Formule 1. Avant le traditionnel Grand Prix du dimanche, la course sprint fait son apparition pour la première fois cette saison. Avant la course de dimanche du Grand Prix d’Émilie-Romagne, la course sprint va départager les pilotes sur 100 km de piste.

Formula One racing is in Italy this weekend for the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The race will take place on Sunday at the Imola Circuit, ...

Max Verstappen has the best odds to win the sprint at DraftKings Sportsbook installed at -105. The points received from finishing in the top eight will be applied to both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships. A secondary benefit is that points will be awarded to the top eight drivers from the sprint.

The drivers and teams report back on all the action from the opening day at Imola, for the Formula 1 Rolex Gran Premio del Made In Italy e ...

“The combination of mixed conditions and the Sprint format is very tricky and today we did not rise to the occasion. It was a bit of a shame with how the red flags panned out today but if there is a weekend to not be where we want to be, a sprint weekend is the one to do it. Hopefully we can move forward in the F1 Sprint tomorrow and secure a better starting position for the race on Sunday.” “Having missed the wet running in Barcelona shakedown, today was the first running on the 18" wet and intermediate tyres, so we had plenty to learn in FP1. Our wet performance was good, but the Inters struggled to warm up. We were moving towards a schedule of longer runs but with the red flags we couldn’t get the laps that we needed and once the rain came, we were left in 11th and 13th with no chance to improve. It was my first time in Q3 in 2022 and the first time this year for both cars in Q2, which is a great effort by the team. “Our objective before the session was to have at least one car in Q2 and one in Q3, and in this regard, we accomplished it. There was a chance we maybe could have done a little bit better, I think there was a bit left in it at the end and it would have been nice to go for that lap and attack one more time, but I just made a mistake and caught the white line. “It was a really strong session for us until we had to stop the car for a technical issue. It’s all to play for tomorrow and hopefully we have a bit of luck on our side to be able to maybe get into the points.” “It feels good to be in the top five after a messy qualifying with all of the changing conditions and red flags. I’m happy we had good pace and happy we’re in a good position and up the pointy end.

Ferrari Formula 1 team boss Mattia Binotto concedes that Carlos Sainz has to learn to manage the pressure of having a frontrunning car for the first time.

And together with that line-up, I think it's the best we can do.” A shame, because when he went off, I think it was not the right time to push to the limits. But nevertheless, I think that he is improving himself, he is going faster and faster.

Ferrari says that its Russian tester Robert Shwartzman will drive under an Israeli licence during any outings with the Formula 1 team this year.

"So, at the moment, he is still our test driver and he will remain for that. In 2020, he drove a SF1000 at the Yas Marina circuit, while last year he drove for both Ferrari and Haas at the post-season young driver and tyre test. Shwartzman has been a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy since 2017, and showed his potential to the Maranello squad by winning the 2019 FIA Formula 3 championship, as well as finishing runner-up in last year's F2 championship.

Formula 1 world championship leader Charles Leclerc says the wrong run plan choice for qualifying at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix left him unhappy to be ...

So let’s keep pushing but for now we have the potential to do so [win].” We'll learn from it and, at the end, P2 is not a disaster.” So it is like this.

Valtteri Bottas was forced to miss Saturday's FP2 session at Imola as his Alfa Romeo Formula 1 team worked to build up the spare chassis for the Finn.

“I trust him on the fact that the adaptation will be quite quick, and he will have a look at the data from Zhou, and have a good understanding,” he said. "We expected yesterday to have to do it, but the car is sealed. The loom is going inside the chassis, and it's easier to change it.

Mercedes racer George Russell topped the second practice session ahead of Formula 1's 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix to head Red Bull's Sergio Perez and ...

Leclerc's run plan was offbeat by comparison, as he stuck to the yellow-walled compound for the early part of the session as part of a near-20-lap stint on the Ferrari. Valtteri Bottas was also on the sidelines for the duration of the hour as Alfa Romeo sought to remedy the exhaust issue that forced the Finn to park up and cause a red flag in qualifying. But as the final quarter of an hour approached, he returned to the track on soft tyres for a quicker stint and buzzed over the timing line in 1m19.740s to land second, ceding 0.2s to Russell but pipping third-fastest Perez by 0.05s as Carlos Sainz settled in sixth place. By comparison, Max Verstappen was in the high 1m20s for the bulk of his soft tyre run and occasionally nudged the 1m21s to suggest a simulation more akin to the full grand prix. Perez appeared to be on a one-third-capacity low-fuel dash to mimic the shorter afternoon sprint race as he consistently turned in a run of laps in the high 1m19s and low 1m20s. But then it was Perez who moved and, for a large chunk of the early afternoon run, remained at the head of the leaderboard as he completed a stint on the C4 compound soft Pirellis.

Live updates, highlights and results from the first Formula 1 Sprint race of the season, at F1's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

15 mins to lights out: There are a few drivers who will be looking to make up places as they qualify for the full length race tomorrow. Of the cars with medium tyres, Magnussen is the furthest forward. He came together with Gasly, who gets new parts in the pits and will rejoin the back of the pack. Some teams struggled to get heat in their tyres yesterday, and they'll be hoping for a more driveable circuit today. Lap 12: Sainz gets past Magnussen, to cheers from the home fans. Perez is up to P4, and it's Lando Norris separating Perez from his teammate in P2. Formation lap: A mix of soft and medium tyres, as the teams begin the formation lap. Fernando Alonso is slow off the mark, with a couple of cars overtaking him. It was an interesting choice from Haas to go with the medium tyres. Lap 19: LeClerc's tyres have looked in poor condition for the last few laps. The Haas strategy might be paying off, as Mick Schumacher gets past Vettel. Lap 20: Verstappen takes the lead!

Valtteri Bottas was forced to miss Saturday's Formula 1 FP2 session at Imola as his Alfa Romeo team worked to build up the spare chassis for the Finn.

“I trust him on the fact that the adaptation will be quite quick, and he will have a look at the data from Zhou, and have a good understanding. "We expected yesterday to have to do it, but the car is sealed. The loom is going inside the chassis, and it's easier to change it."

Formula One racing is headed to Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. We'll update qualifying until we've got the full racing grid is set Sunday's race ...

He is followed closely by Charles Leclerc at +110. Lando Norris (+1200), Carlos Sainz (+2000) and Sergio Perez (+2000) round out the top-five drivers with the best odds to win the sprint and the pole position for the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. The points received from finishing in the top eight will be applied to both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships. Additionally, the top eight drivers from the sprint will receive points toward the season-long points title. Max Verstappen won Friday’s sprint qualifier so he will start in the front for the sprint. Final update: Max Verstappen claimed the pole position for Sunday’s race when he passed Charles Leclerc on lap 20. It has been craned away, and racing will restart soon.

Max Verstappen said the Emilia Romagna Formula 1 sprint turned into a 'waiting game' for him once it became clear race leader Charles Leclerc was suffering ...

But yeah, clearly, we had a bit more pace at the end of the race." "My start was just terrible. "Of course with these cars, it is better to follow.

World champion will start P1 on Sunday and claimed championship eight points, while Lewis Hamilton struggled with his Mercedes and will begin in 14th.

With the victory Verstappen has secured pole for Sunday a potentially vital achievement at Imola where overtaking is difficult. It was a bravura move, perfectly executed and the sort of racing the sprint race has long needed. He was third several laps later, an impressive run and vital for Red Bull so he can play his part in the race tomorrow. Max Verstappen won the sprint race for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola and in doing so secured pole for Sunday’s race. Out front however while Leclerc was in control, Verstappen closed in the final four laps to within a second. Both Hamilton and Russell struggled to make any headway through the field, unsurprisingly with a tricky can on a track where overtaking is far from easy.

Red Bull's Max Verstappen overthrew polesitter Charles Leclerc late on to win the first sprint race of the 2022 Formula 1 season at the Emilia Romagna Grand ...

And Perez kept putting the slipstream out of the final corner for the run into the chicane to good use as he then copied the manoeuvre on Norris with the help of DRS to climb to third. Leclerc had not made an error, as Verstappen brought the gap below a second and then used DRS and the slipstream out of the final corner to bring the difference down to half a second. Leclerc gave his rival space at the first apex, and Verstappen kept within the painted lines to make the move stick before romping to a 1.5s lead before sealing the win by 2.9s. Leclerc settled a little over the 1s threshold for three tours and then on lap seven, set what was at the time the fastest lap of the race to stretch his cushion to 1.5s over the RB18. With the aid of DRS and as his Ferrari rival battled oversteer, Verstappen dived around the outside into Tamburello and kept his car on track to take the win and pole for the full GP on Sunday. Leclerc had nailed his launch and with the kink on the main straight placing him on the inside, he could sprint past a wheel-spinning Verstappen to seize first into Tamburello.

Le Néerlandais Max Verstappen (Red Bull) a remporté la course sprint qualificative samedi et partira en pole position pour le Grand Prix d'Emilie-Romagne de ...

Leclerc (78 points) garde son rang et devance désormais son coéquipier espagnol Carlos Sainz Jr (38), George Russell (37) et Sergio Pérez (36). Au classement des pilotes, Verstappen, 6e avant ce sprint, remonte à la 5e place, avec 33 points, devant Lewis Hamilton (28), très loin des points samedi. La deuxième ligne reviendra à leurs coéquipiers, le Mexicain Sergio Pérez (Red Bull) et l’Espagnol Carlos Sainz Jr (Ferrari), respectivement 3e et 4e samedi.

Alpine's engine reliability problems at the start of the Formula 1 season have been a consequence of porpoising rather than any inherent design weakness, ...

“We cannot put the engine on the dyno without breaking the seal. “We see that we are not the only one in having small reliability issues. And our problem is that we cannot fully understand the problem without breaking the seal. “The problem we had in Jeddah with Fernando's engine [water pump failure], we already asked for a modification to the FIA. That has been accepted. “The cars are very stiff, are very low, and they have some quite big impact on the car. “The ICE itself is very good.

Charles Leclerc reckons he can retaliate against Max Verstappen and “fight for the win” in Formula 1's Emilia Romagna Grand Prix if Ferrari can “cure” its ...

If not, it's going to be a bit more difficult.” “I tried to push at the beginning to get a bit of a gap and for Max to not be in the DRS zone because I knew that I would have been vulnerable if it was the case. “But I paid the price a little bit later on in the race and had some graining and then really struggled in the last two, three laps.”

Live coverage of Saturday's F1 Sprint ahead of the the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola in Italy.

Max Verstappen won the first Sprint of 2022 having passed Charles Leclerc with two laps remaining, to ensure a first-place start for Sunday's Emilia Romagna ...

The championship leader skated away, Verstappen in tow. Green-flag racing would resume on Lap 5, Leclerc leading Verstappen then Norris at the time. Friday's wet qualifying session set the grid for this Sprint, Verstappen having taken pole position over Leclerc with Lando Norris leading Kevin Magnussen off the second row. Gearbox issues put Esteban Ocon 19th for the start of the Sprint and he made up three places for P16 in the Alpine, keeping Gasly – who collided with Zhou at the start and pitted for a nose change – 17th. Magnussen held on for the final point, finishing ahead of Alpine's Fernando Alonso in P9 – who started fifth but couldn't contend with his rivals' pace on the softs – and the other Haas of Mick Schumacher, who took P10 on mediums. It was Leclerc, to a rapturous reception from the tifosi, who took the lead off Verstappen as the lights went out – only for the Safety Car to interrupt proceedings as Zhou Guanyu (DNF) and Pierre Gasly (P19) made contact through Turn 9 on Lap 1.

Mercedes Formula 1 chief Toto Wolff says the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix weekend is a write-off for the team after George Russell and Lewis Hamilton were ...

That will give us an opportunity to fight and move up the grid but I am sure we'll understand a bit more tonight, but it is going to be tricky. The race just isn't long enough to get some tyre degradation there and have some differences between the drivers and the cars, but we have got work to do. We've shown it today but not quickly and therefore beyond the fact that we are learning it's another humbling experience."

Lewis Hamilton has compared his Mercedes W13 with the 2009 McLaren MP4-24, the Formula 1 car he regards as the worst he has ever experienced.

"And unfortunately, we got on track and we didn't see that... And we got there." "But I didn't have the experience at the time. "The new rules said that we would have 50% less downforce in 2009, so they designed the car to have 50%, less downforce! And I have the utmost faith that my team can do that here too." "And I can assure you I have.

Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has dismissed talk of friction with Lewis Hamilton over their Formula 1 struggles, despite intrigue following an animated ...

And this team, we've done it in the past and we just need to dig ourselves out of that hole." "It's obvious that we are not anywhere near the fight at the front. But it was basically the same point of view and just sheer anger.