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“There’s been venting in the McLaren garage about next year”: Daniel Ricciardo’s personal trainer shares his concerns over a ‘hectic’ 2022 F1 Calendar

Somin Bhattacharjee
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"There's been venting in the McLaren garage about next year": Daniel Ricciardo's personal trainer shares his concerns over a 'hectic' 2022 F1 Calendar

McLaren driver Daniel Ricciardo’s performance coach Michael Italiano says he’s not looking forward to the busy 2022 F1 Calendar.

The 2022 F1 calendar will have a record-breaking 23 races starting from March and ending in November. Bahrain will be hosting the first round and the season finale will take place in Abu Dhabi yet again.

The season will end earlier than it did this year to avoid clashing with the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. But, there is one extra race that has been added to the calendar, which makes the schedule more condensed.

A lot of employees within the F1 teams have expressed their disappointment over such a calendar. However, the organizing authorities insist that the season will go ahead smoothly, without any problems for the teams or their staff.

Earlier this year, 4-time World Champion Sebastian Vettel criticized the F1 bosses for scheduling such a calendar. He called them out for ‘not thinking of the staff as people.’

Recently, Daniel Ricciardo’s personal trainer Michael Italiano also admitted that the McLaren garage isn’t happy about the frantic 2022 season.

Also read: Sebastian Vettel is looking forward to partnering up with Mick Schumacher at the 2022 Race of Champions

It will be crazy from a logistics and recovery point of view, says Italiano

There are just three standalone races in F1 next season. The Australian, Emilia Romagna and Miami GP are the only races that don’t have one preceding or succeeding them. With so many double and triple headers, 2022 is expected to be a tiring year for all involved in the sport.

“There’s been a bit of venting in the garage about next year,” said Italiano when talking about the McLaren employees.

“I think there are two triple-headers and only three races that are on their own. The rest are double-headers. We start in February but finish in mid-November, so that’s earlier, but we are still doing one extra race. They have condensed the season.”

“There’s one triple-header where we go from Singapore to Russia to Japan, which will be absolutely crazy from a logistics and recovery point of view.”

“It’s exciting because the sport is growing so rapidly, but from a drivers’ perspective it’s becoming a lot more difficult physically and mentally based on the calendar F1 keep dishing out,” he added.

Also read: Daniel Ricciardo tells how he paid McLaren back after sluggish 2021 start

About the author

Somin Bhattacharjee

Somin Bhattacharjee

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Basketball Editor Somin Bhattacharjee first discovered the game during the 2014 FIBA World Cup. Not long after, he turned to the NBA and found himself drawn to the Golden State Warriors — right at the start of Stephen Curry’s rise. Over time, the admiration turned into full-blown support for the team, one that continues even as the Curry era approaches its twilight. A true hoophead, Somin also follows EuroLeague basketball closely and enjoys exploring the game beyond the NBA. Though holding a bachelor's degree in marketing, Somin discovered his true calling in writing. Since 2021, he has penned over 3,000 articles for TheSportsRush, covering everything from breaking news to sharp opinion pieces and detailed exclusives. He thrives on writing about in-game moments and the reactions that make basketball a uniquely emotional sport. Beyond basketball, Somin plays different sports including soccer and remains a passionate fan of Spanish football giants Real Madrid

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