The Haas VF-22 is a

Formula One racing car A Formula One car (also known as an F1 car) is a single-seat, open-cockpit, open-wheel formula racing car with substantial front and rear wings, and an engine positioned behind the driver, intended to be used in competition at Formul ...

designed and constructed by the

Haas F1 Team Haas Formula LLC, competing as Haas F1 Team, is an American-licensed Formula One racing team established by NASCAR Cup Series team co-owner Gene Haas in April 2014. The team originally intended to make its debut at the start of the season b ...

to compete in the

2022 Formula One World Championship The 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship was a motor racing championship for Formula One cars which was the 73rd running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), th ...

. The VF-22 is Haas' seventh car entry into Formula One. It has been driven by

Kevin Magnussen Kevin Jan Magnussen (born 5 October 1992) is a Danish racing driver currently competing in Formula One for Haas F1 Team. He is the son of four-time Le Mans winner and former Formula One driver Jan Magnussen. Kevin Magnussen came up through McLa ...

Mick Schumacher Mick Schumacher (; born 22 March 1999) is a German racing driver who is the current reserve driver for the Mercedes-Benz in Formula One, Mercedes AMG Formula One Team. Schumacher began his career in karting in 2008, progressing to the German ...

, and

Nikita Mazepin Nikita Dmitryevich Mazepin ( rus, Ники́та Дми́триевич Мазе́пин, p=nʲɪˈkʲitə ˈdmʲɪtrʲɪjɪvʲɪtɕ mɐˈzʲepʲɪn; born 2 March 1999) is a Russian professional auto racing, racing driver who competes in rally ...

, the lattermost who was replaced by Magnussen before the season-opening

Bahrain Grand Prix The Bahrain Grand Prix ( ar, جائزة البحرين الكبرى), officially known as the Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix for sponsorship reasons, is a Formula One motor racing event in Bahrain. The first race took place at the Bahrain Internat ...

. The car runs on power units supplied by

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...

. The VF-22 was the first Formula One car of 2022 to be revealed pre-season. Due to the major change to the Formula One regulations which affected the appearance of the cars, development on the

VF-21 Fighter Squadron 21 (VF-21) ''Freelancers'' was an aviation unit of the United States Navy. Originally established in 1944 as VF-81 it was redesignated VF-13A in 1946, redesignated VF-131 in 1948, redesignated VF-64 in 1950 and redesignated VF- ...

used in the 2021 season was cut short, and the team instead focused on the 2022 season. This car is notable for being the first ever Haas Formula One car to take a pole position, in the hands of Magnussen, at the

2022 São Paulo Grand Prix The 2022 São Paulo Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Heineken Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2022) was a Formula One motor race that was held on 13 November 2022 at the Interlagos Circuit in São Paulo, Brazil. Mercedes F1, Mercedes d ...

at Interlagos. Haas had an overall improved season, moving up from 10th in the constructors championship to 8th and back to scoring points regularly.

Development

Haas did not develop its previous car in 2021 and instead focused on the VF-22 during the whole 2021 championship due to a regulation change. For a seventh consecutive year, Haas selected a

engine for its car. On 4 February, the VF-22 became the first 2022 car to be revealed.

Livery

The car was revealed and initially tested in a livery similar to the previous season's

, with the title sponsorship from Russian company

Uralkali Uralkali ( rus, Уралка́лий, p=ʊrɐɫ'kalʲɪj) is a Russian potash fertilizer producer and exporter. It is traded on the Moscow Exchange using the symbol, URKA. The company’s assets consist of five mines and seven ore-treatment mills ...

and designs across the car, particularly on the front wing, resembling the

Russian flag The national flag of Russia (russian: Флаг России, Flag Rossii), also known as the ''State Flag of the Russian Federation'' (russian: Государственный флаг Российской Федерации, Gosudarstvenny fla ...

. Following the

2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

on 24 February, Haas removed the Uralkali branding from their car and website. The final day of the first pre-season test on 25 February was run with the car carrying a modified black-and-white livery. The sponsorship was later terminated along with Mazepin's contract on 5 March. An updated livery with the color red replacing the Russian flag stripe, was used during the second test in Bahrain.

Competition history

Magnussen drove the car to 7th in qualifying and finished 5th in the

. In the same race, Schumacher placed 12th in qualifying and 11th in the actual race. The following weekend in

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

, Magnussen qualified 10th and finished 9th. Schumacher's VF-22 lost back end control after hitting a curb in Q2, and hitting a wall. While Schumacher sustained no injuries, the damages to the VF-22 were estimated at $1M. Only one VF-22 raced the following day. At

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical re ...

, Magnussen scored points in both the sprint race and full Grand Prix with an 8th and 9th-place finish respectively. The following races would prove barren for both drivers, including a large crash for Schumacher at Monaco where his car split in two after an incident in the Swimming Pool section of the circuit. At the

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor race organised in the United Kingdom by the Royal Automobile Club. First held in 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 and has been a round of the FIA Formula One World C ...

Mick Schumacher scored his first Formula One points driving the VF-22 finishing in 8th place. Magnussen was 10th. At the following round in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, Schumacher finished in 6th. Teammate Kevin Magnussen also scored points in Austria in both sprint and Grand Prix races. At the São Paulo Grand Prix, Kevin Magnussen took the team's as well as his first

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the rac ...

. Haas became the first US-based constructor to take pole since

Shadow Racing Cars Shadow Racing Cars was a Formula One and sports car racing team, founded and initially based in the United States although later Formula One operations were run from the British base in Northampton. The team held an American licence from ...

at the

1975 British Grand Prix The 1975 British Grand Prix (formally the John Player Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone on 19 July 1975. It was race 10 of 14 in both the 1975 World Championship of Drivers and the 1975 International Cup for Formula O ...

Complete Formula One results

(

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

)

References

External links

Official website
{{Dallara, state=collapsed 2022 Formula One season cars

VF-22 Fighter Squadron 22 or VF-22 was an aviation unit of the United States Navy. Originally established as Bombing Fighting Squadron 74A (VBF-74A) on 1 May 1945, it was redesignated VBF-74 on 1 August 1945, redesignated as VF-2B on 15 November 1946, re ...