Formula 2 in 2022: A title-winning reunion alongside an epic F1 debut

Celebrating 10 seasons of Formula 2 with a look back to the 2022 campaign where Felipe Drugovich and MP Motorsport dominated to win both titles

As we continue to celebrate 10 seasons of Formula 2, we are also looking back on each year of the championship’s great history.

Today is all about 2022, and how Felipe Drugovich and MP Motorsport came back together to put a dominant title-winning campaign together.

In addition to that, we had a previous champion make his Formula 1 debut in Monza, while Logan Sargeant earned promotion to the next level…

DRUGOVICH’S DOMINANT TWO ROUNDS

The Brazilian driver and MP’s title-winning campaign was built on consistency but it truly started in Barcelona and Monaco.

Drugovich won three out of the four races across both rounds, starting with an impressive win in the Sprint Race at the Spanish venue.

The MP driver would achieve the fabled double on Sunday, making his Soft tyres last longer than his rivals on the first stint, allowing him to come through the field late on with fresher Hards.

Drugovich claimed both wins in Barcelona before winning again in Monte Carlo

Once Drugovich overtook Jack Doohan on Lap 27 of 37, he would drive off into the distance, winning by 5.5s, having started in P10.

But the winning did not stop in Barcelona, it continued at the Principality a week later.

After taking Pole Position for the Feature Race, Drugovich lined up P10 in the Sprint, but suffered a puncture on the opening lap.

Both driver and team opted to try their hand on the Wet tyres with rain hitting the track, but once they decided it was not wet enough, he came back in for slick tyres before later retiring the car.

The next day, Drugovich would claim victory in epic style, having had to hold off title rival Théo Pourchaire for the final few laps.

Those were two massive weekends for Drugovich, who went from trailing Pourchaire by two points at the start of the Barcelona round, to leading by 32. It was a lead he would not relinquish.

Nyck de Vries made his Formula 1 race weekend debut at Monza in 2022

DE VRIES MAKES ICONIC F1 DEBUT

Monza was a massive weekend for Formula 2, as a champion was crowned but across the road in the F1 paddock, an alumni was making memories of his own.

2019 champion Nyck de Vries took the place of four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel at Aston Martin for Free Practice 1 at the Italian Grand Prix.

He was expecting to be on the sidelines for the rest of the weekend, but on Saturday morning, with Alex Albon ruled out with appendicitis, Williams called up De Vries to replace the Thai driver for the rest of the weekend.

De Vries qualified 13th, but with penalties applied he was promoted to P8 on the grid, and he impressed on Sunday to finish in ninth.

He joined Yuki Tsunoda and Zhou Guanyu by becoming the third F2 alumni to score points on their Formula 1 debut – with Oliver Bearman and Andrea Kimi Antonelli having also joined this list.

Sargeant had to secure a good result in Yas Marina to get enough superlicense points in F1

SARGEANT’S SUPERLICENSE POINTS

De Vries would go on to race for AlphaTauri the next season, and he was joined on the grid by Logan Sargeant – who became Alex Albon’s teammate at Williams.

But the American driver had to work for the opportunity, as he was told he needed enough super license points for the chance to race in F1.

For that to happen going to Abu Dhabi, Sargeant had to finish fifth or higher in the championship or sixth without any penalty points.

Sargeant drove with that pressure at the final round, but he handled it well, crossing the line sixth in the Sprint Race, and fifth in the Feature.

That result saw him finish fourth in the Standings, earning him a spot on the Formula 1 grid.

Drugovich celebrated his title victory in the Monza pitlane

TITLE-WINNING MOMENT AND RESPECT BETWEEN RIVALS

After a Feature Race win in Zandvoort, Drugovich had a chance to win the title in Monza with a round to spare.

The MP driver put one hand on the trophy by qualifying in fourth with rival Pourchaire down in P14.

Drugovich sustained suspension damage on the opening lap of the Sprint Race that forced him to retire and he was had to watch on from the pitwall as Pourchaire made his way through the field.

But after running wide at Turn 2, following a battle with Liam Lawson, the French driver dropped down the order from P11.

Pourchaire would finish in P17, meaning that Drugovich and MP would celebrate their title success at the chequered flag.

Gracious in defeat, Pourchaire would go into the MP garage to congratulate each team member. He would only have to wait one more year to be crowned champion.

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