Formula 1 2022: Assessing key team-mate battles until George Russell holds Lewis Hamilton lead

New cars, new title contenders – and new battles between teammates.

The first half of the 2022 season has been epic with plenty of wheel-to-wheel action between rival teams and drivers, but the ultimate stick in F1 is beating your team-mate, whoever can be crucial at contract time.

There have been some impressive – and somewhat surprising – benchmarks set by the riders so far this year, as shown in the comparisons below as we round up all the key numbers and results from 11 rounds.

Note: Grid penalties are deducted when calculating qualifying head-to-heads, while no race day score is awarded if both cars of a team fail to finish or if at least one car does not start.

Red Bull: Max Verstappen v Sergio Perez

QUALIFICATION
Verstappen 8-3 Perez
Best result: Verstappen 1st, Perez 1st
Posts: Verstappen 3-1 Pérez

SPRINTS
Verstappen 2-0 Perez

RACE DAY
Verstappen 7-3 Perez
Best result: Verstappen 1st, Perez 1st
Wins: Verstappen 6-1 Pérez
Podiums: Verstappen 8-6 Perez
Points: Verstappen 208-151 Perez

WHAT IS THE STORY?
The seat alongside Max Verstappen has been a poisoned gift in recent years and the Dutchman has continued his fine record of team-mate dominance so far – although Sergio Perez is enjoying a much more competitive second campaign with Red Bull.

The new cars for 2022 appear to suit Perez and he took his first pole this year and a first win at Monaco and while the head-to-heads are stacked in Verstappen’s favor the gaps have been much narrower. Still, Verstappen was in great form for the first half of his title defense.

Ferrari: Charles Leclerc v Carlos Sainz

QUALIFICATION
Leclerc 9-2 Sainz
Best result: Leclerc 1st, Sainz 1st
Poland: Leclerc 6-1 Sainz

SPRINTS
Leclerc 2-0 Sainz

RACE DAY
Leclerc 6-4 Sainz
Best result: Leclerc 1st, Sainz 1st
Wins: Leclerc 3-1 Sainz
Podiums: Leclerc 5-6 Sainz
Points: Leclerc 170-133 Sainz

WHAT IS THE STORY?
After being so evenly matched last year, the Charles Leclerc vs. Carlos Sainz battle was eagerly awaited in 2022 – especially with the added bonus of Ferrari’s car being a contender up front.

But Leclerc has been by far the quickest driver in red so far this season, and although both have suffered from reliability and strategy issues, the Monegasque has probably been the more unlucky of the two.

Sainz has recently become familiar with the F1-75, as evidenced by his pole and victory at Silverstone, but only outqualified Leclerc via a grid penalty in Canada and in the rain at the British GP.

Mercedes: Lewis Hamilton v George Russell

QUALIFICATION
Hamilton 5-6 Russell
Best result: Hamilton 4th, Russell 4th
Q3 appearances: Hamilton 9-9 Russell

SPRINTS
Hamilton 0-2 Russell

RACE DAY
Hamilton 4-7 Russell
Best result: Hamilton 3rd, Russell 3rd
Podiums: Hamilton 4-3 Russell
Points: Hamilton 109-128 Russell

WHAT IS THE STORY?
George Russell has surely had the most difficult task on the grid this year entering a Mercedes team alongside Lewis Hamilton – and he has settled in superbly in difficult circumstances amidst an underperforming car.

Russell edged Hamilton in the qualifying head-to-heads – although the two crashed out in Austria – while former F1 star Mr Saturday was excellent on Sunday. Hamilton has had a lot more bad luck, mainly with the Safety Cars, and will be buoyed by a streak of three consecutive podium finishes.

“I wouldn’t say it’s been difficult. It’s been enjoyable,” Hamilton said of working “incredibly well” with Russell. “I really think whether I’m here or not, he has all the qualities to help move this team forward and lead them to success.”

Can Russell continue like this and be the first driver to beat Hamilton in a season since Nico Rosberg?

McLaren: Lando Norris v Daniel Ricciardo

QUALIFICATION
Norris 9-2 Ricciardo
Best result: Norris 3rd, Ricciardo 6th
Q3 appearances: Norris 5-4 Ricciardo

SPRINTS
Norris 2-0 Ricciardo

RACE DAY
Norris 8-3 Ricciardo
Best result: Norris 3rd, Ricciardo 6th
Podiums: Norris 1-0 Ricciardo
Points: Norris 64-17 Ricciardo

WHAT IS THE STORY?
It seems that 2021 was not just a year of installation for Daniel Ricciardo. The eight-time race-winning Australian was once again dominated by Lando Norris as we reach the midpoint of second year at McLaren, with fierce opposition from Lando over one lap and one race distance.

The McLaren car wasn’t as competitive as hoped, but Norris delivered a podium finish and plenty of top 10 finishes. While he has a contract for 2023 and insists on staying, Ricciardo must be nervous about his McLaren future.

Alpine: Fernando Alonso vs Esteban Ocon

QUALIFICATION
Alonso 7-4 Ocon
Best result: Alonso 2nd, Ocon 5th
Q3 appearances: Alonso 9-5 Ocon

SPRINTS
Alonso 1-1 Ocon

RACE DAY
Alonso 3-8 Ocon
Best result: Alonso 5th, Ocon 5th
Points finishes: Alonso 7-8 Ocon
Points: Alonso 29-52 Ocon

WHAT IS THE STORY?
Alpine has provided one of the most competitive and thrilling team-mate duels this season, with Fernando Alonso generally showing a more outspoken pace but having more bad luck on a Sunday than Esteban Ocon, who continues to improve in F1.

Both drivers have been consistently in the top 10 this season, and with Alpine and McLaren locked on the points, their form will be key to who takes fourth in the championship.

Alfa Romeo: Valtteri Bottas v Zhou Guanyu

QUALIFICATION
Bottas 8-3 Zhou
Best result: Bottas 5th, Zhou 9th
Q3 appearances: Bottas 5-2 Zhou

SPRINTS
Bottas 2-0 Zhou

RACE DAY
Bottas 9-1 Zhou
Best result: Bottas 5th, Zhou 8th
Points finishes: Bottas 7-2 Zhou
Points: Bottas 46-5 Zhou

WHAT IS THE STORY?
A driver entering 2022 fresh out of his head against Hamilton at Mercedes against a driver entering the sport as a rookie was always likely to be a little off, and Valtteri Bottas has been dominant at Alfa Romeo so far, managing a beautiful results in a much improved car.

Zhou Guanyu has been showing signs of form recently, impressively qualifying 8th at the British GP before his frightening crash. The Chinese driver would definitely need a few more points given the Alfa Romeo’s pace.

Haas: Kevin Magnussen vs. Mick Schumacher

QUALIFICATION
Magnussen 9-2 Schumacher
Best result: Magnussen 5th, Schumacher 6th
Q3 appearances: Magnussen 6-3 Schumacher

SPRINTS
Magnussen 2-0 Schumacher

RACE DAY
Magnussen 4-6 Schumacher
Best result: Magnussen 5th, Schumacher 6th
Points finishes: Magnussen 5-2 Schumacher
Points: Magnussen 22-12 Schumacher

WHAT IS THE STORY?
Drafted only a few weeks before the start of the season, Kevin Magnussen marked his comeback with a fabulous fifth at the Bahrain GP. The Dane has been a much better measuring stick for Mick Schumacher after taking on Nikita Mazepin as a rookie, and Mick – who even as a junior was a better-than-qualifier runner – has started to find his feet in recent times. weeks.

His first F1 points came at Silverstone before a better F1 finish of sixth at the Austrian GP.

AlphaTauri: Pierre Gasly vs. Yuki Tsunoda

QUALIFICATION
Gasly 7-3 Tsunoda
Best result: Gasly 6th, Tsunoda 8th
Q3 appearances: Gasly 4-2 Tsunoda

SPRINTS
Gasly 1-1 Tsunoda

RACE DAY
Gasly 5-5 Tsunoda
Best result: Gasly 5th, Tsunoda 7th
Points finishes: Gasly 3-3 Tsunoda
Points: Gasly 16-11 Tsunoda

WHAT IS THE STORY?
It’s been difficult for AlphaTauri so far this season with Red Bull’s sister outfit slipping back into midfield – but at least Yuki Tsunoda looks to have improved since his rookie campaign.

Tsunoda has been much closer to Gasly this season and although the Frenchman has the headlines, Tsunoda may have earned himself another year with the team.

Aston Martin: Lance Stroll v Sebastian Vettel / Nico Hulkenberg

QUALIFICATION
Vettel ride 7-2 / Hulkenberg ride 1-1
Best result: Vettel 9th, Stroll 10th, Hulkenberg 17th
Q3 appearances: Vettel 2/9, Stroll 1/11, Hulkenberg 0/2

SPRINTS
Vettel 1-1 ride

RACE DAY
Vettel ride 5-4 / Hulkenberg ride 1-1
Best result: Vettel 6th, Stroll 10th, Hulkenberg 12th
Arrivals at points: Vettel 4/9, Stroll 3/11, Hulkenberg 0/2
Points: Vettel 15-3 Stroll (nine races) / Stroll 0-0 Hulkenberg (two races)

WHAT IS THE STORY?
Despite missing the first two races of the season with Covid-19, Sebastian Vettel was the fastest Aston Martin driver this year on a Saturday and Sunday, with a brilliant sixth at the Azerbaijan GP and the showpiece result of the team of the year.

Stroll has never beaten a season-long teammate in qualifying – and the drought doesn’t seem to end in 2022.

Williams: Alex Albon vs Nicholas Latifi

QUALIFICATION
Albon 8-2 Latifi
Best result: Albon 12th, Latifi 10th
Q3 appearances: Albon 0-1 Latifi

SPRINTS
Albon 2-0 Latifi

RACE DAY
Albon 8-3 Latifi
Best result: Albon 9th, Latifi 12th
Points finished: Albon 2-0 Latifi
Points: Albon 3-0 Latifi

WHAT IS THE STORY?
Alex Albon has been named to replace Russell as Williams’ team manager – even though he’s actually less experienced than his team-mate – and has done a great job so far, landing points ending in Australia and Miami.

Nicholas Latifi’s solace is that he is the only Williams driver to take the car to Q3, in the wet at Silverstone.