In the event that Lewis Hamilton or George Russell is unable to participate in the 2022 season, who will be the driver on the Mercedes F1 2022 reserve list
Who is on standby for each squad, and what exactly does a reserve driver do?
A Formula 1 driver will occasionally be unable to participate in a race weekend due to injury or illness, and their team’s designated reserve driver will step into the cockpit.
Know Who Is Mercedes F1 2022 Reserve Driver Who Be The Replacement Of Lewis Hamilton If He Misses Canadian GP Due To Back Pain Injury
They are usually either a new driver on the verge of breaking into Formula One or a seasoned campaigner who has lost his full-time position but is still a safe pair of hands to have around the garage.
Lewis Hamilton complained of back strain during the Azerbaijan Grand Prix and was slow to exit the Mercedes in parc ferme following his fourth-place finish due to his discomfort.
Hamilton declared himself fit to run in the first Canadian Grand Prix since 2019, but who would Mercedes rely on as its F1 reserve driver if Hamilton or George Russell were forced to miss a race in the 2022 season?
What does a reserve driver do?
Esteban Ocon was the Mercedes reserve for the 2019 season after losing his Racing Point seat and being unable to find a replacement.
He spent a lot of time in the simulator at Brackley over the year, helping the team with set-up work on Friday nights before heading to the European races on Saturday morning. He was on-site all weekend for the flyaway competitions.
A reserve driver will assist with sponsor engagements in addition to assisting with car development. Talking to a driver that advertises your company all over the world 20 times a year is always entertaining.
The third driver will come in to substitute the main driver when needed. This occurred in the first two races of the 2022 season at Aston Martin, where Nico Hulkenberg was driving the AMR22 when Sebastian Vettel was hit by the COVID-19.
In 2022, who will be the Mercedes F1 reserve driver?
Mercedes has two F1 backup drivers lined up for the 2022 season to take Hamilton’s or Russell’s spot. Nyck de Vries and Stoffel Vandoorne are the Formula E drivers for the manufacturer.
To Mercedes’ delight and Red Bull’s chagrin, de Vries is the 2019 Formula 2 champion and the 2021 Formula E champion, becoming the first Dutch global champion.
Vandoorne was a full-time McLaren F1 driver from 2017 to 2018, with a one-off participation at the 2016 Bahrain Grand Prix in place of Fernando Alonso. After being thrashed by Alonso in the painfully slow and uncompetitive MCL32 design in 2018, the Belgian retired from F1.
The other teams’ backup options
In 2022, Mercedes will have another F1 reserve driver, however, this is unofficial. Paul di Resta, a former Force India and one-time Williams racer will step in if Mercedes needs a fresh driver on a weekend when FE is racing.
Di Resta, who has 59 Grands Prix under his belt, is normally at races in his job as a Sky Sports broadcaster. Other teams, like as Red Bull and Ferrari, have ex-F1 drivers like Sebastien Buemi and Antonio Giovinazzi as reserves.
Buemi is also a four-time winner of the Le Mans 24 Hours and frequently tests current Red Bull F1 cars. If necessary, Red Bull can call on its collection of junior drivers, which includes F2 racer Liam Lawson. Mick Schumacher, who is presently with Haas, is also on the Ferrari reserve driver list.
F1 reserve drivers in 2022:
- Mercedes – Nyck de Vries, Stoffel Vandoorne, Paul di Resta
- Red Bull – Sebastien Buemi, Liam Lawson (below)
- Ferrari – Antonio Giovinazzi, Mick Schumacher
- McLaren – shares de Vries, Vandoorne and di Resta with Mercedes
- Alpine – Oscar Piastri – can also go to McLaren if required (below)
- AlphaTauri – shares Lawson with Red Bull
- Alfa Romeo – Robert Kubica
- Williams – Jack Aitken
- Haas – Pietro Fittipaldi