2022 Formula 1 predictions: Title winner, biggest surprises, and more

Formula 1 returns with this weekend's Bahrain Grand Prix, and theScore is getting ready for the wheel-to-wheel action with a series of predictions for the 2022 season. Can Max Verstappen retain his title? Will Lewis Hamilton avenge last year's wildly contentious conclusion and capture his record eighth crown? Will someone new stand atop a podium in 2022? Let's get into it.

Drivers' championship 🏆

There should be more parity on the grid this year - that's the whole point of the sweeping regulation changes - but it's still almost impossible to look beyond reigning champion Verstappen and chief rival Hamilton - even if the latter, in typical fashion, is playing down the mighty Mercedes' chances of success going into the campaign.

"I'm sure everyone can figure it out: We're not the quickest at the moment," the seven-time champion said during preseason testing. "Ferrari looks to be the quickest - and perhaps Red Bull - and then maybe us or McLaren."

The Brit and Dutchman will renew on-track hostilities in 2022.

Don't sleep on Leclerc, either. Impressive showings in preseason testing need to be approached with extreme caution - we've seen this before from Ferrari - but there's no denying the feel-good vibes around the Scuderia right now. The Monegasque has race-winning pedigree, and if the F1-75 is indeed rapid, he'll make the title scrap a three-horse race.

Constructors' championship 🏎

Adrian Newey, Red Bull's chief technical officer, is widely revered throughout the paddock as a true innovative genius, and it seems he's designed another masterpiece in the form of this year's RB18.

James Allison, his Mercedes counterpart, isn't exactly a slouch, either. Allison and his team have a history of delivering upgrades and making huge gains during a season. With the Silver Arrows seemingly on the back foot heading into Bahrain - even if they are sandbagging a little bit - that experience will be vital if the Brackley-based team wants to reel in Red Bull and erase the smile that's been pasted on Christian Horner's face since December.

Biggest surprise 😱

Bradburn: Sergio Perez finishes second in the drivers' championship. Having tasted the blood in the water, Red Bull enters the 2022 season hungry for more and with the same roster as last year. Checo's growing pains were notable last year, but he's now a fixture on the team, while Mercedes may struggle both with its new car - which caused trouble in testing - and with George Russell getting up to speed. Perez earned three podiums in the final seven races last year and finished no worse than fourth when he was able to cross the line.

Desai: Russell will find himself in the title conversation one year into his apprenticeship under Hamilton at Mercedes. Toto Wolff and his charges have downplayed the capabilities of their 2022 racing machine, but that's of little surprise considering the Mercedes-AMG Petronas team's penchant for subterfuge in the preseason. Russell will be ready, and the car will be great, making for a three-way battle at the top.

Nesci: A huge leap from Yuki Tsunoda. The fiery Japanese driver certainly had plenty of rookie growing pains in 2021, too often ending qualifying sessions and races either cursing at his race engineer - he loves a bit of profanity - or apologizing for planting his car in the wall. But Tsunoda, who made it through the gauntlet that is Red Bull's young driver program, is clearly talented and closed the campaign on a high. He was a fixture in Q3 for the final events of the season and capped off the year with a fourth-place finish in Abu Dhabi. If AlphaTauri delivers another quick car, the podium beckons.

Wile: Ferrari's resurgence makes it a three-team race for the constructors' title. While it's easy to get fooled by solid results during testing, the Italian giant looks like it has the pace to get back in the title fight with two of the most talented drivers on the grid. Leclerc had four top-five finishes over the final seven races last season, while Carlos Sainz claimed four podiums during the year. It'll be a huge leap for the pair to compete with Mercedes and Red Bull at the top, but this is the season Ferrari has been building toward in recent years.

Biggest disappointment 😔

Bradburn: The Silver Arrows battle adversity all year. For years, Mercedes has been a shoo-in for the constructors' title, and Hamilton is still the favorite to return to the top of the sport and claim his record-breaking eighth championship. But while Mercedes' new car is giving it early season trouble, every other top-flight team has seasoned drivers they're already familiar with. It's conceivable that Ferrari's Leclerc and Sainz and McLaren's Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo simply gel better than Hamilton and Russell, pushing Mercedes outside the podium for the constructors' title.

Desai: The end for Ricciardo at McLaren is nigh. The fan favorite has found life after Red Bull challenging. After nine podiums in 2017, Ricciardo amassed just five in the last four seasons, including only one last year alongside hotshot Norris. Another disappointing campaign will lead the famed F1 team to look outside the organization for a replacement to pair with the promising Brit.

Nesci: Look away, Lawrence Stroll. The Canadian billionaire will demand significant changes after Aston Martin flatters to deceive once again in 2022. Struggles in the first year of his stewardship could be passed off as learning experiences, but another year toiling in the midfield will force the ambitious owner to re-evaluate whether his team is on the right path to becoming a legitimate title contender. An apparent difference of opinion already led to the departure of former team principal Otmar Szafnauer. Sebastian Vettel, one of the sport's good guys, could be the next domino to fall - Stroll's son, Lance, isn't going anywhere, after all.

Wile: Hamilton was robbed of winning his eighth drivers' championship last year, and it'll be a shame when he finishes runner-up for a second consecutive season. With the rest of the field catching up to Mercedes, and Verstappen reaching his enormous potential, 2021 was likely the 37-year-old's last chance to break a tie with Michael Schumacher. Hamilton will go down with almost every major record in the sport, and it'll be too bad that he can't claim that elusive No. 8.

Driver moves going into 2023 🔄

Bradburn: Alex Albon rejoins Pierre Gasly at AlphaTauri. After a return to the grid in a Williams this forthcoming season, Albon is looking to position himself for a return to a top-tier team. There's a very good chance Red Bull is already looking to fill Perez's seat with one of its own prospects, but if everything clicks for Verstappen and Checo in 2022, the latter will likely be back for at least one more year. Get Albon in the same car as Gasly for 2023, and may the better driver win that coveted Red Bull seat.

Desai: Mick Schumacher's time at Haas can be described as a learning experience. The team hasn't produced a competitive car and remains unsettled following its split from main sponsor Uralkali and driver Nikita Mazepin. Schumacher needs to find a new home to hone his craft - and the rest of the circuit would love the marketing splash that'd accompany his arrival. If Fernando Alonso decides to call it quits, Alpine, with Esteban Ocon as a teammate, would be a treat.

Nesci: Oscar Piastri to McLaren. After another year watching Ricciardo play second fiddle to Norris, Zak Brown will be forced to concede that his high-profile signing didn't quite work out as planned. In his stead, the papaya-clad team will opt for another Aussie. Piastri, 20, captured the Formula 2 title last year and recently joined McLaren's pool of reserve drivers. The wheels are in motion - no pun intended - for the Alpine academy graduate to secure a full-time seat on the grid in 2023.

Wile: Pivoting off two predictions above, Ricciardo does flame out at McLaren but remains in F1 at Haas - his fourth team in six years. Despite diminishing results on the track, few drivers are as likeable - and marketable - as the 32-year-old. Haas is always hungry for sponsorship dollars - we still don't know if Rich Energy is real - and making Ricciardo the face of the team would encourage investors to jump in. For all his inconsistencies, Ricciardo does have talent, and he's running out of teams to drive for. Considering F1's further expansion into the U.S. with races in Miami and Las Vegas, having Ricciardo as the face of the team would serve Haas well.

Miscellaneous predictions 🔮

Bradburn: Every team scores at least one point. Last year, only Haas was shut out, and Kevin Magnussen brings a veteran presence that can hopefully also push sophomore Schumacher into his first top-10 finish in F1. The new cars are designed to create more parity, and Williams might struggle by losing Russell, but expect the British constructor, as well as Alfa Romeo - led by Valtteri Bottas - to at least accrue some points, especially with sprint races now offering more point-scoring opportunities in 2022.

Desai: Ocon was the only first-time winner in 2021, capturing the Hungarian Grand Prix in stunning fashion. It says here there will be three (!) first-time winners in 2022.

Nesci: Norris claims the first win of his career. On the back of his breakout year, in which he earned high praise from Hamilton and notched multiple podiums, it's simply a matter of when, not if. The eminently likeable Brit came painfully close to achieving this feat in 2021, only for some ill-timed rain in Russia - and Belgium, for that matter - and team orders in Monza to scupper his chances. The flourishing 22-year-old said his best is "yet to come" going into the new season. That's bad news for the rest of the grid.

Wile: Bottas claims a race win for Alfa Romeo. The 32-year-old played support man to Hamilton for years at Mercedes and looked liberated after the announcement that Russell would take his seat at the end of last season. Bottas won't have the luxury of driving a rocket ship anymore, but the confidence of being a team's No. 1 driver will hopefully help take him to a different level mentally. With Ocon, Gasly, and Ricciardo claiming surprise wins over the last two seasons, why not Bottas in 2022?