Have 2022 new F1 rules already made Formula 1 more exciting?

“Following was definitely easier. We spotted that in testing,” said Fernando Alonso after the Bahrain Grand Prix. “Overtaking is still not as easy as it seems on TV. All the overtakes we saw today were because one car had two seconds more pace and newer tyres than the others. The tyre is the biggest differentiating factor still, not the following.”

F1 changed from 13in to 18in wheel rims this year and Pirelli was tasked with making its new low-profile tyres less prone to overheating and allow drivers to push harder with reduced management. 

Driver feedback was positive during testing, but the races have shown the old limitations have perhaps not been improved by as much as hoped.

“Here, it felt very similar to last year on this track,” said Alfa Romeo driver Valtteri Bottas of the tyres after the Saudi Arabian GP. “In Bahrain, it felt very similar. 

“When you’re closer, when you’re pushing, you overheat them and you lose time. I’m not feeling big improvements. In the first two races, the feeling was that they weren’t that much better than last year’s. There’s always room to improve and let’s see in a couple of races.”

More data is needed before definitive conclusions can be drawn on the tyres. Bahrain is a heavily rear-limited track with plenty of low-speed traction zones that, in hot conditions, takes a lot out of the tyres. The Jeddah circuit in Saudi Arabia is a bizarre, unrelenting high-speed challenge that is also atypical. The next two races at more conventional Melbourne and Imola will give us a clearer picture.