The 2022 season has been a tough one for Lewis Hamilton and Mercedes. The Silver Arrows have struggled during the season\’s first half due to porpoising concerns and the lack of face. The problems restricted the German outfit to being the third-fastest team across the circuit after being the constructors\’ champions for eight straight years since 2014. Mercedes are yet to win a race while hamilton struggled to finish in the top five. However, things seem to be falling in place for the Silver Arrows and Lewis Hamilton. While the porpoising is almost gone, Hamilton has recently shown some competitive pace, securing three podium finishes in Canada, Silverstone, and Austria.
Amid all the drama going around Mercedes, Lewis Hamilton has achieved an impressive feat that no other driver has in 2022. After eleven races in 2022, the Briton is the only driver to have finished every single race so far. While Lewis lacked the pace to compete the frontrunner Red Bull and Ferrari, reliability has not become a problem for the Briton yet. The last time Hamilton was forced to retire due to a mechanical issue was back in 2018 at the Austrian Grand Prix. Moreover, the seven-time world champ failed to finish just once in 2021, following his collision with the reigning world champ Max Verstappen.
All teams, including Red Bull and Ferrari, have been dealing with some reliability issues. In almost every race, there has been one driver who failed to finish. Thus, reliability is an advantage that Mercedes have right now, which could prove to be a crucial factor in the championship battle along with Lewis\’ consistency. It would be interesting to see how much longer the Silver Arrows have to wait for their first win. The second half of the championship will kick off with the French Grand Prix in Paul Ricard. So, let\’s take a look at the top f1 teams and how many DNFS they have got so far.
Red Bull, Ferrari & Mercedes\’ Retirements In 2022
The three biggest F1 outfits are the top teams in this year\’s championship. Max Verstappen is leading the drivers\’ championship while Red Bull is in the lead in the constructors\’ champions. While the Dutchman has won seven races in 2022, he retired twice due to some issues with his RB18. Both Max and his teammate Sergio Perez retired during the final stages of the Bahrain Grand Prix. The reigning world champ had to face another retirement due to a mechanical issue at the Australian GP. Elsewhere, apart from Bahrain, a technical issue caused Checo\’s retirement in Canada. He also had to take a DNF in Austria due to the damage caused by contact with George Russell.
Red Bull is not the only front-runner with reliability issues. Ferrari also had some reliability issues, which have resulted in the Italian outfit losing its early lead. Charles Leclerc has won three races this season and failed to finish twice in Barcelona and Baku due to power unit failures. Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz faced back-to-back retirements in Australia and Imola. Then, the Spanish driver was forced to retire in Baku, and his engine went up in flames in Austria. Hence, the 27-year-old has had four retirements already in 11 races.
It is evident that Mercedes has been the most reliable team so far in the championship. The Silver Arrows have faced only one DNF. George Russell made contact with Zhou Guanyu in Silverstone during the opening lap. Russell got off his W13 to check up on Guanyu. Unfortunately, he failed to restart his car and take it back to the pit while the red flag was out. Thus, Mercedes have not had a single disappointment due to technical reasons. If the two drivers continue finishing in the top five, they could make a strong case for the constructors\’ championship this year.