The 2022 F1 season kicks off this week with the first pre-season testing taking place at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona.
A new season of Formula 1 racing is just over a month away. The buildup to the upcoming campaign has been more intriguing than any in recent years. This is because, 2022 will see F1 cars go through major changes in regulation.
Aerodynamic alterations in particular, are expected to bring the field closer. The main aim of these changes is to promote closer racing action during Grand Prix weekends.
On top of that, the 2022 cars look radically different from their predecessors. As a result, car reveals have been of massive interest leading up to the new season.
Before the first GP in Bahrain on 20th March, all ten F1 teams will go through two separate pre-season testing events. The first one kicks off at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 23rd February and will go on for three days. It will be followed by a similar pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit on 10th March.
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Where will the F1 testing in Barcelona be shown?
Unfortunately, the first F1 testing in Barcelona will not have live TV coverage of any sort. It also won’t feature any live timing, which leaves fans disappointed.
With new regulations and new cars, many wanted to catch a first hand glimpse at what to expect from the 2022 challengers ahead of ‘lights out’ next month.
For the Barcelona test, fans have to rely on live text coverage from F1 teams and websites to get an understanding of what’s going on. However, the subsequent test at Bahrain will feature live TV coverage and live timing, similar to what we see on a Grand Prix weekend.
Formula 1 haven’t given any official statement as to why the Barcelona test is being held behind closed doors.
Why is there no TV coverage for the F1 testing in Barcelona?
Pre-season testing times were reduced to just three days in 2021. The previous installment of F1 testing took place in Bahrain and featured live coverage along with timing.
However, with new regulations taking shape this season, F1 teams are being provided with an additional three days of ‘private testing’, that will take place in Barcelona.
This is done to give the outfits some additional time to check out their machinery and to make necessary changes to their cars ahead of the next outing in Bahrain.
The first race of the 2022 season will take place on 20th March at the Bahrain International Circuit.
