It’s the tip of the highway for the 2022 F1 season. Max Verstappen has already received the 2022 F1 Drivers’ Championship and secured the Constructors’ Championship for Red Bull. With his win within the Mexican Grand Prix on the finish of October, he turned the F1 document holder for wins (14) and factors (416) in a single season. He can run up the rating at this time in Abu Dhabi.
Meanwhile, groups are nonetheless preventing for locations within the standings. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc is in a decent battle with Sergio Perez, Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate, in a season-long saga that has come all the way down to the ultimate race. Perez and Leclerc are at the moment tied for second place within the Drivers’ Championship standings. Meanwhile, F1 megastar Lewis Hamilton moved as much as fifth place within the total standings, whereas his Mercedes teammate George Russell sits simply above him in fourth.
The Abu Dhabi Grand Prix begins at this time on the Yas Marina Circuit on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, at 7:55 a.m. ET (4:55 a.m. PT) on ESPN 2.
Those seeking to comply with all of the drama will want entry to ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPNews to catch each second of the motion. The complete race weekend, together with observe classes and qualifying, can be proven within the US on ESPN’s household of tv networks.
No single supplier has unique rights to the community, so there are many methods to get ESPN and watch the races with out cable. We’ve damaged down the whole lot you have to know with a purpose to stream at this time’s race, and all the opposite F1 races this season.
Max Verstappen is the 2022 F1 World Champion.
Dan Istitene/Formula 1/Getty Images
What is F1 and the way is it completely different from IndyCar?
Both IndyCar and F1 are open-wheeled, single-seater racing codecs. This signifies that the vehicles can solely match one individual and have uncovered wheels that protrude from the physique of the automobile. Despite their primary similarities, F1 and IndyCar supply very completely different experiences.
In F1, there are solely 10 groups, with two drivers apiece for a complete of 20 drivers. Most races should go for 305 km, which is about 190 miles. Each driver wants to make use of two completely different tires within the race, so a pit cease is obligatory, although vehicles usually are not allowed to refuel. Races common round two hours in size and are held at venues everywhere in the world.
Teams spend a whole bunch of tens of millions of {dollars} every year growing their vehicles. All vehicles will need to have sure parts — for instance, gearboxes will need to have eight gears plus a reverse and final for six consecutive races — however groups have leeway to tweak and alter some elements of their automotive, together with their engines, within the pursuit of pace.
In distinction, the vehicles featured in IndyCar are extra standardized. They all have the identical aerodynamic equipment and chassis and may solely be powered by considered one of two engines — both a Honda or a Chevrolet. That mentioned, groups are allowed to develop a few of their very own elements, like dampers and a few of their suspensions.
IndyCar races happen on a variety of tracks, from quick ovals to highway and avenue programs. The size of the races additionally varies, with some, just like the Indianapolis 500, lasting 500 laps and taking on three hours to finish. Not surprisingly, refueling throughout pit stops is an enormous a part of the technique throughout IndyCar races. Teams can discipline greater than two vehicles, which means that the quantity of drivers on the grid fluctuates from race to race.
IndyCar is generally thought of an American sport and doesn’t have the identical degree of cash and glamour related to it in comparison with the globe-hopping F1 circuit.
Why ought to I care about F1?
F1 races may finest be described as a type of action-packed chess match that takes place whereas drivers are throttling round a monitor at near 200 mph. Teams want each technique and ability to compete towards among the finest minds in motorsports.
F1 can also be stuffed with robust personalities. The Netflix documentary collection F1: Drive to Survive follows most of the groups and drivers over the course of a 12 months and has helped elevate the profile of the game within the US. Released in March, season 4 of the collection chronicles final 12 months’s tight championship race between rivals Verstappen and Hamilton. It additionally focuses on the interior battles between drivers on the identical workforce, whereas giving viewers a peek into the tense, pressurized world of elite racing.
Does F1 stream on ESPN Plus?
ESPN doesn’t air any F1 protection on its ESPN Plus streaming service. If you wish to watch the practices or races you’ll need a tv supplier of some type or to pay for F1’s $80 per season TV Pro subscription.
When, the place and what time are the races?
Races are held on Sunday and are normally spaced two weeks aside. Here’s the complete schedule, all instances ET:
F1 2022 schedule
| Date | Race | Time |
|---|---|---|
| March 20 | Bahrain GP | 11 a.m. ET |
| March 27 | Saudi Arabian GP | 1 p.m. ET |
| April 10 | Australian GP | 1 a.m. ET |
| April 24 | Romagna GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| May 8 | Miami GP | 3:30 p.m. ET |
| May 22 | Spanish GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| May 29 | Monaco GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| June 12 | Azerbaijan GP | 7 a.m. ET |
| June 19 | Canadian GP | 2 p.m. ET |
| July 3 | British GP | 10 a.m. ET |
| July 10 | Austrian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| July 24 | French GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| July 31 | Hungarian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Aug. 28 | Belgian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Sept. 4 | Dutch GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Sept. 11 | Italian GP | 9 a.m. ET |
| Oct. 2 | Singapore GP | 8 a.m. ET |
| Oct. 9 | Japanese GP | 1 a.m. ET |
| Oct. 23 | United States GP | 3 p.m. ET |
| Oct. 30 | Mexican GP | 4 p.m. ET |
| Nov. 13 | Brazilian GP | 1 p.m. ET |
| Nov. 20 | Abu Dhabi GP | 8 a.m. ET |
Best choices for streaming with out cable
Race weekends usually begin on Friday with a number of observe runs and proceed on Saturday with qualifying. The races themselves happen Sunday. ESPN sometimes airs practices and qualifying on a mixture of ESPN 2 and ESPNews, whereas the races are likely to air on ESPN. F1 occasions in North America typically land on ABC.
Here are among the finest methods to catch the complete race weekend with out cable.
You can catch the complete race weekend with a subscription to YouTube TV. ABC, ESPN, ESPN 2 and ESPNews are all included within the bundle, which implies you may have all of the channels you want with a purpose to watch each second of the motion.
Hulu Plus Live TV is a bit more costly than YouTube TV, nevertheless it additionally provides all of the channels you have to watch each second of race weekend. As an added bonus, Hulu Plus Live TV comes with the remainder of the Disney Bundle, which features a subscription to Disney Plus, in addition to ESPN Plus. F1 races do not air on ESPN Plus, however the service provides a ton of different content material for die-hard sports activities followers.
Sling TV’s $35 Orange plan may be a good selection for F1 followers who’re primarily seeking to simply watch the races on Sundays. This plan is without doubt one of the least expensive methods to get entry to ESPN and ESPN 2. Those searching for ESPNews must go for the $11 Sports Extra ad-on. Sling TV lacks ABC, which might be an issue for followers hoping to catch the F1 races in North America.
FuboTV prices $70 per 30 days and contains ABC, ESPN and ESPN 2. The base bundle lacks ESPNews, however you possibly can add it for an additional $8 a month with the Fubo Extra Package or pay for the $80-a-month Elite streaming tier that features Fubo Extra. Check out which native networks FuboTV provides right here.
DirecTV Stream is the costliest dwell TV streaming service. Its least expensive, $70-a-month Plus bundle contains ESPN, ESPN 2 and ABC, however you may want to maneuver as much as the $90-a-month Choice plan to get ESPNews. You can use its channel lookup software to see which native channels can be found in your space.
For gearheads seeking to get each angle on the motion, F1 provides its personal streaming service. F1 TV Pro prices $80 per season and offers followers entry to all races from F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. You’ll have the ability to livestream each monitor session from all F1 Grands Prix and have entry to all driver onboard cameras and workforce radios. You’ll additionally have the ability to watch full on-demand races, replays and highlights, together with F1’s historic race archive.
F1 additionally provides a TV Access Plan for $27 per 12 months, which solely offers you on-demand entry to races as soon as they’ve been accomplished. Users will nonetheless have the ability to view all F1 onboard cameras, together with full replays of F1, F2, F3 and Porsche Supercup. It additionally contains the historic race archive.