Formula 1
Alonso: “No guarantee” top F1 teams will nail 2022 regulations
Alpine Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso is expecting the all-new regulations for 2022 to throw up "many surprises" when the new generation of cars are unveiled at winter testing.
Filip Cleeren Jonathan Noble
Edited: Feb 11, 2022, 5:56 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
After a one-year delay F1 will introduce a brand-new set of regulations featuring cars that generate more downforce from the floor and are therefore more racy and less reliant on clear air.
That overhaul means that teams have shifted focus to 2022 earlier than usual, having to effectively start from a clean slate.
The rule changes, in combination with F1's decreasing budget cap of $140 million, offer an opportunity for the pecking order to change.
Alonso says he has no information yet on how next year's Alpine car will turn out but thinks we will see some surprises when cars are first unveiled.
"We are working on next year's project but it's very early days and no one knows what the numbers are, because you have nothing to compare against," the double world champion said.
"So, we are all a little bit realistic and waiting for February because we will see many surprises when the cars are uncovered for everyone.
"We will see different philosophies, we will see different ideas and will be time to be sharp and react if we see something interesting."
Read Also:
- Red Bull could never accept 2021 F1 development sacrifice
- F1 plans to focus sprint format on "historical" races from 2022
- Wolff: F1 teams upgrading now need ‘magic wand’ to avoid 2022 deficit
While observers have pointed out that top teams Mercedes and Red Bull are still best placed to make the most of 2022's ruleset, Alonso believes there are no guarantees for any team to get it right, and that teams who do get ahead might be hard to catch for the competition.
"I think there is no guarantee, no feeling that you can put on the future on any team, basically," Alonso said.
"Probably even the top teams that are dominating the sport now, they are rightly concerned about the new rules and how they will interpret those cars.
"What you see next year in the first couple of races is the first year of that set of regulations. Eventually, you will see the same results for four or five years as we saw, a team that is dominant at the beginning of one set of rules, they seem to keep that advantage for year; everything gets closer and closer, but the same one is winning.
"So next year is going to be interesting, especially for the younger drivers, how they decide the future. Because no one, no team has a guarantee that they will perform well."
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article How F1's token spend helped charge Red Bull's title push
Next article F1 announces new overtaking award
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Filip Cleeren
Five key takeaways from F1's big African Grand Prix reveal in Rwanda
Formula 1
Formula 1
Five key takeaways from F1's big African Grand Prix reveal in Rwanda
F1 signs historic 10-year Rwanda deal to host African Grand Prix
Formula 1
Formula 1
F1 signs historic 10-year Rwanda deal to host African Grand Prix
More from
Fernando Alonso
“Am I confident? Probably not” – The unprecedented challenge Singapore is throwing at F1 drivers
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
“Am I confident? Probably not” – The unprecedented challenge Singapore is throwing at F1 drivers
Fernando Alonso set for Dakar Rally comeback with Aston Martin
Dakar
Dakar
Fernando Alonso set for Dakar Rally comeback with Aston Martin
More from
Alpine
‘I’m sideways all the time’ – How Alpine’s feral F1 car plagued Pierre Gasly in Singapore
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
‘I’m sideways all the time’ – How Alpine’s feral F1 car plagued Pierre Gasly in Singapore
Could Alpine-Geely deal to save WEC hypercar programme fall through?
WEC
WEC
Barcelona
Could Alpine-Geely deal to save WEC hypercar programme fall through?
Latest news
Max Verstappen risks penalty after FP1 clash at Portimao GTWC finale
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
WCEE GT World Challenge Europe Endurance 3 min
Max Verstappen risks penalty after FP1 clash at Portimao GTWC finale
Marc Marquez will have to perform his "juggling act" in coming MotoGP races, says Alex
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP
Indonesian GP
47 min
Marc Marquez will have to perform his "juggling act" in coming MotoGP races, says Alex
F2 rebuffs suggestion its title race might be over because of the Iran war
FIA F2
F2 FIA F2 1 h
F2 rebuffs suggestion its title race might be over because of the Iran war
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe