The Continental Circus´ last round ahead of the summer break, the Hungarian F1 GP 2022, is coming up this weekend (July 29-31). This is the thirteenth appointment of a world championship dominated at will by Red Bull and Max Verstappen.  

Following his French victory, courtesy of his main rival Charles Leclerc ( Ferrari), the Dutch racer arrives at the appointment in the Hungaroring Circuit full of confidence. Thanks to his overwhelming superiority, the flying Dutchman has extended his lead of the standings to 63 points with the young Monegasque. 

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1551483894163193857

Right behind ‘La Scuderia’ is Mercedes, hoping to be able to catch some fish in troubled waters again. The German team is getting closer to the Italian every day, as an example of this is their double podium in the French appointment. 

The three of them, together with the other seven competing teams, will meet on the slow, technical and unforgiving track in Mogyoród, which is also known as the Monaco of northern Europe. 

Leclerc hopes for a great result at the Hungarian F1 GP 2022 which will help put the French incident behind. Only then he will be able to restore his bruised confidence. It is worth noting that the young Monegasque was quick to take all the blame for the incident in Le Castellet. 

He even said that he was not a deserving title winner if he made these types of mistakes. The truth is that this is not the first time that a victory slips away from him when leading a race. 

https://twitter.com/DAZN_ES/status/1551200666529411073

Having just passed the halfway point of the season, there are still ten battles and many points up for grabs. The trend, however, seems very unfavourable for Leclerc and his team. 

The delicate situation of the #16 and the fragility of the F1-75, together with the lack of a defined team strategy, are jeopardising their title chances. 

Meanwhile, the other half of the red team, Carlos Sainz, seems to be improving by the day. The Spaniard seems more comfortable than ever with his machine and that has given him a lot of confidence. His sensational comeback from nineteenth to fifth in France, which involved 19 overtakes as well as the fastest lap, demonstrates his wonderful state of form.

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1551285839493226497

On top of this, Sainz had his second podium with Ferrari at the Hungaroring last year. The driver from Madrid is currently fourth in the standings with 144 points, one more than George Russell (Mercedes), while Leclerc, second, is only 26 points away and Perez, third, 19 points ahead. Both drivers of Ferrari are obviously going through radically opposite moments. 

Verstappen to claim his eighth victory   

Things couldn’t be better for the leaders of both the driver and team standings ahead of the Hungarian GP 2022. After dealing a very hard blow to Ferrari in France, Red Bull can escape alone in its quest for the F1 crown. 

Propelled by his eighth victory of the season (Saudi Arabia, Emilia-Romagna, Miami, Spain, Azerbaijan, Canada & France), Red Bull’s star Verstappen feels unstoppable. His masterful driving of a now reliable RB18 has made him -for the time being- an almost invincible enemy. 

https://twitter.com/F1/status/1552328962784858117

The only worry clouding the joy in Milton Keynes comes from his teammate Checo Pérez, whose performance is getting worse as the campaign progresses. 

To make matters worse, in the last French appointment he lost a third place that was almost his. Following a confusing end of a virtual safety car period, Russell robbed him of his position in Le Castellet. 

Mercedes, to keep pushing

Speaking of Mercedes, the German team continues to rise. Lewis Hamilton‘s fourth consecutive podium (fifth of 2022) and George Russell’s fourth in France, are proof of it. Catapulted by the performance leap of the W13, both the seven-time champion and his young partner are maximizing their chances of success.

Images of  Hungarian F1 GP 2022: Red Bull Racing.