The 2022 Formula One Season is nothing but a memory. Another season written into the F1 history books. Now all eyes are reigning down upon 2023. Can Max Verstappen win a third consecutive championship? Can Ferrari provide their drivers with better strategies? And, will anyone emerge as a surprise title contender?
In no way, shape or form is this any kind of a prediction. I'm not gifted in that way. But, I'd like to look back on this post at the end of the 2023 season and see which of these actually happened.
Below, I have listed five things I'd like to see happen in the 2023 Formula One season. I've tried to keep them as realistic as possible but sometimes you just can't help one's imagination!
Carlos Sainz World Champion!
It's not impossible.
But, with the likes of Leclerc, Hamilton and Verstappen on the grid it wouldn't be an easy task. That's not to say Carlos isn't capable of it. Of course, he would need to up his game a bit, have more luck and, most importantly, have Ferrari on his side, which may be difficult with Leclerc being the supposed "number one driver" and the younger protégée in the team. But, anything can happen in motorsport. Just look at Interlagos in 2008 when Felipe Massa won the championship on home soil for a mere 30 seconds before a slow Timo Glock allowed Lewis Hamilton to pass giving him the championship instead. Heartbreak. But that's motorsport.
We all love the element of surprise in motorsport and it's about time that an underdog took the crown. As a Carlos fan, you may call me biased, but I'm all for him to win the 2023 Formula One World Championship.
More Winners!
Remember the 2012 season? It was one of my favourites, for sure. What stood out for me that year was the amount of drivers to win a race in the first half of that particular season. There were seven different winners in the first seven races including Williams' and Pastor Maldonado's infamous and surprise win at that year's Spanish Grand Prix.
To see this in Formula One again would be magnificent. At times the sport can be too predictable and although some rules and regulations were changed for 2022, as a way to help induce more competition, it hasn't exactly worked as everyone hoped. Red Bull and Max Verstappen ran away with both championships in 2022. They got everything right. From car development to strategies. Maybe, in 2023, other teams will have learnt from their mistakes in car developement and strategies amongst other things. Maybe they could challenge Red Bull. Maybe, just maybe, we could have seven different winners in seven different races?
End of the Sprint?
It's been nearly 2 years since the Sprint Race format first replaced qualifying at some F1 events and I STILL can't understand why it's a thing.
Like a lot of things in F1, qualifying became too predictable and the sprint was drafted in as a way to make it more exciting and create a more mixed up grid for the main race on the Sunday. But again, like a lot of things in F1, it hasn't worked as everyone hoped. The majority of sprint races haven't been exciting and the final grid has remained pretty predictable. I say the "majority" because the 2022 Sprint Race in Brazil was fascinating. With a Haas on pole and overcast weather, it was a good one but still, what was the point? I'd rather have seen the main race with overcast weather and a Haas on pole.
For me, the sprint isn't about the racing. It's another piece of the entertainment puzzle and another money maker. And, looking on social media, a number of F1 fans agree. Even Max Verstappen has been vocal about his doubts. Will F1 and their management finally listen? Could this be the last season of the sprint race?
Less Controversies, Please!
Controversies have ALWAYS been a thing in Formula One. They include the 2007 espionage controversy (or Spygate) - where teams such as McLaren, Ferrari and Renault were passing confidential, technical information between one another. There was also "Crashgate" at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. Here, Renault driver; Nelson Piquet Jr, deliberately crashed on lap 14 in order to aid his then teammate; Fernando Alonso, to victory. And then, in more recent times, we have the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix where a controversial safety car restart decided who won the that years championship. The list of controversies is pretty much endless.
However, controversies in F1 are starting to become more frequent. In 2022 alone there were at least 3 different controversies compared to the years between 1999 and 2001 where zero were recorded. (Information from Wikipedia.) Surely, social media has a play in this? Somewhere, somehow? The sport is more prevelant on social media than ever before and people like drama. But still, you cannot dismiss the incompetence of the FIA at times.
It, in my opinion, would be great if the controversies were kept to a minimum in 2023. A lot of the racing had been overshadowed by such events in 2021 and 2022. I just want to enjoy racing without the drama. But then again, sometimes it's fun.
Nail-Biting, Gripping, Unpredictable Races!
This one is pretty self explanatory. And, in all fairness to F1, in recent times, we've had some pretty decent races. Take the 2022 British Grand Prix for example. No one had an idea as to who was going to win that one after a late safety car. Would it be home favourite; Hamilton? Or underdog, Perez? Sainz was the eventual winner. As a Sainz fan, this race stressed me out but that is racing and it's the adrenaline that fuels us and keeps us hooked. This is what we need more of!
Unfortunately, with the amount of new tracks that seem to be added every year, I don't think will be getting many "nail-biting, gripping, unpredictable races" often. Why? Because they're badly laid out street circuits and my expectation on them is quite low. I hope I'm wrong.
So, there we have it. The five things that I would love to see happen in the 2023 F1 season! The likelihood of any of these happening is probably quite low but you never know! Do you agree with me, or, do you have different opinions or expectations? Let me know in the comments below!
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