It felt like a normal year. After two disrupted years due to the pandemic with a countless number of races behind closed doors, events falling on and off calendars and replacements being organized on a whim, 2022 felt like normal. World championships visited every corner of the globe. Fewer places were off limits. Long celebrated tracks returned to competition. Travel was freer and more drivers competed around the globe.
With another year completed, it is time to recognize the best of the season. Records were broken. Races went to the wire. Contract negotiations took over discussions over the summer, as did budgetary spending. There was heartbreak and jubilation. Surprises arose. New names appeared on top and some of the regulars continued to dominant. Here we will look at the best of the year.
Racer of the Year
Description: Given to the best racer over the course of 2022.
And the Nominees are:
Shane van Gisbergen
Max Verstappen
Kalle Rovanperä
Eli Tomac
Dries Vanthoor
And the winner is... Max Verstappen
After controversially winning the World Drivers' Championship in 2021, Verstappen left no doubt of who was the best driver in the world in 2022.
It was far from a cakewalk though. At least, it didn't start that way. Verstappen retired from two of the first three races. He was sixth in the championship, 46 points behind Charles Leclerc with 19 races remaining, plenty of time to comeback, but a larger hole than anyone would like to find themselves in.
Verstappen responded with three consecutive victories and took the championship lead, one he would not relinquish. First-place in Azerbaijan made it four victories in five, another in Canada made it five in six. Meanwhile, Ferrari continued to stumble. The Scuderia bounced back at the start of summer, but Verstappen proved to be more than up to the task. A five-race winning streak spanning the summer break made the championship effectively his as Formula One made its way to the Pacific rim.
The title was clinched with four races remaining. He ended the season with a record 15 victories, 17 podium finishes, tied for the second most in a single season, 454 points, the most in a single season, and Verstappen ended the year on 35 career victories, good enough for sixth all-time and he is still only 25 years old.
Even when his back was against the wall, Verstappen came out on top. He won three times from starting positions outside the top five, including a drive from tenth to first in Hungary and 14th to first at Spa-Francorchamps. At Spa, it only took him 12 laps to take the lead. In the United States, he overcame a botched pit stop to drive down Lewis Hamilton in the closing laps. The championship was already decided but he still went ten-tenths to pull out a victory.
Far from the most beloved driver on the grid, and far from the best teammate, Verstappen's ability must be acknowledged as one of the best in competition anywhere in the world.
On the other nominees:
Van Gisbergen had another sensational year across multiple different series in the Antipodes. Not only did he win his third Supercars championship, and second consecutive, but he won a record 21 races. In GT World Challenge Australia, he won twice and he made his World Rally Championship debut, finishing ninth overall in Rally New Zealand, scoring him two points and he was the third best WRC-2 entry.
Rovanperä became the youngest World Rally champion this season but the Finn did it in style, six victories, eight podium finishes and ten top five finishes. He became the champion a day after his 22nd birthday and broke the record for youngest WRC champion by over five years. Victories came on three different continents. He won on the snow in Sweden and in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya.
Switching to Yamaha, Tomac had a sensational first season with the manufacturer. It started with a thorough Supercross championship where he won seven races. In Motocross, Tomac scored his fourth championship in a tough fight with Chase Sexton that saw Tomac win 14 of 28 races and come from behind to take the title in the final weekend of the season. To cap the season off, Tomac teamed with Sexton and Justin Cooper to represent the United States at the Motocross des Nations and a victory aided the United States to win the event for the first time since 2011.
Vanthoor and Charles Weerts won the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup championship for the third consecutive season, this year winning five of ten races, but Vanthoor also won his first LMP2 race competing for Team WRT at the 6 Hours of Fuji and he won the 3 Hours of Imola.
Past Winners2012: Kyle Larson2013: Marc Márquez
2014: Marc Márquez
2015: Nick Tandy
2016: Shane van Gisbergen
2017: Brendon Hartley
2018: Scott Dixon
2019: Marc Márquez
2020: Lewis Hamilton
2021: Kyle Larson
Race of the Year
Description: Best Race of 2022.
And the Nominees are:
Rallye Monte-Carlo
Super Formula Round Three at Suzuka
British Grand Prix
Mazda MX-5 Cup Race Two at Watkins Glen
Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix
And the winner is... British Grand Prix
This was the toughest category this year, but this year's British Grand Prix was one for the ages.
Of course, it began with an accident, George Russell clipped Pierre Gasly and Guanyu Zhou, sending Zhou flipping and sliding into the barrier on the outside of turn one. Alexander Albon and Sebastian Vettel were also collected. Yuki Tsunoda and Esteban Ocon also had some damage.
After nearly an hour under red flag conditions, the race resumed and Carlos Sainz, Jr. retook the lead after Max Verstappen went to first on the initial start. On lap 10, Verstappen was back in the lead but soon suffered a tire puncture and dropped down the order.
With a variety of pit strategies, Charles Leclerc took the lead during the middle stages, as did Lewis Hamilton. When Ocon stopped on circuit drawing a safety car, Leclerc stayed out in the lead while the rest of the field made pit stops. Sainz soon retook the lead while Leclerc, Sergio Pérez and Hamilton battled for second place.
While those three tussled, Sainz drove away and went on to score his first career grand prix victory in his 151st start. Pérez ended up second with Hamilton rounding out the podium while Leclerc finished fourth. Nine lead changes occurred over the 52 laps.
On the other nominees:
The 2022 World Rally Championship season opener was a head-to-head match for the ages. Sébastien Ogier was back after winning his eighth WRC championship in 2021, but 2022 would be a part-time season. Also in Rallye Monte-Carlo was Sébastien Loeb with the nine-time WRC champion making his first appearance in the series since 2020. Ogier held the lead through the first four stages, but Loeb won four consecutive stages to take the overall lead. Ogier fought back and the two drivers were tied on aggregate time through ten stages. Ogier retook the lead in stage 11 and he held a 24.6 second lead entering the penultimate stage 16. Loeb won stage 16 while Ogier ended up eighth, 34.1 seconds back, handing the lead to Loeb by 9.5 seconds with one stage to play. A smart final drive saw Loeb hold on to win Rallye Monte-Carlo for a record-tying eighth time and it was Loeb's 80 WRC victory, his first since 2018.
Suzuka was wet for the first race of the Super Formula season. With no pit stop requirements due to the conditions, it was a pure sprint race. Tomoki Nojiri was in control for most of the race but he had Tadasuke Makino and Nobuharu Matsushita both climbing up the order. Matsushita started ninth, but in the difficult conditions but on one of the best drives of his career. An incredible move on Makino got him second. In two laps, Matsushita erased a four-second gap to Noriji and made a move on the outside of turn one to take the lead. It stuck and Matsushita went on to earn his first career Super Formula victory.
Every Mazda MX-5 Cup race is spectacular, but the series had quite a weekend at Watkins Glen. The second race of the weekend was a furious battle from start to finish. Aidan Fassnacht started 29th, dead last in the field and drove to the front in short order. He entered the top three in less than 17 minutes. He was leading at the end of lap 13, with under 18 minutes remaining in the race. However, Fassnacht fell to fourth on the penultimate lap. Bruno Carneiro held the lead as the white flag was shown at the start of the final lap. Fassnacht was back up to second and in Carneiro's slipstream. Entering the chicane, Fassnacht took the lead in the chicane. With still a half lap remaining, Fassnacht drove defensively and held off Carneiro by 0.075 seconds while a half-second covered the top four finishes.
After a three-year hiatus, MotoGP returned to Phillip Island, and what a return it was. In a thrilling race, any of a dozen riders had a shot at the victory. Jorge Martín held the point for the first half of the race, but was quickly dispatched down the order. Álex Rins and Francesco Bagnaia went toe-to-toe while Marc Márquez found himself in the picture. Marco Bezzechi was smelling his first MotoGP victory, as was Luca Marini. On the final lap, Rins and Márquez overtook Bagnaia into the southern loop. Rins and Márquez were each shooting for their first victory of the salons while Bagnaia looked to take a stranglehold on the championship after Fabio Quartararo's accident early in the race. Rins had Márquez on his heels but Rins took the victory while Márquez's consolation prize was his 100th MotoGP podium and Bagania was third. The top seven were covered by 0.884 seconds.
Past Winners
2012: Indianapolis 500
2013: British motorcycle Grand Prix
2014: Bathurst 1000
2015: Australian motorcycle Grand Prix
2016: Spanish Grand Prix
2017: All the races at the World Superbike/World Supersport weekend at Phillip Island
2018: Petit Le Mans
2019: Honda 200 at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course
2020: Turkish Grand Prix
2021: Monaco ePrix
Achievement of the Year
Description: Best success by a driver, team, manufacture, etc.
And the Nominees are:
Will Power becoming the all-time leader in IndyCar pole positions
Team Penske winning the IndyCar championship and the NASCAR Cup championship in the same season
Max Verstappen achieving the most grand prix victories in a single season
NASCAR Cup Series equaling the record for most different winners in a season
Shane van Gisbergen achieving the most Supercars victories in a single season
And the winner is... Max Verstappen achieving the most grand prix victories in a single season
Formula One is the highest level of motorsports in the world. Anytime a driver does the most of anything in the series it deserves recognition. When it is doing the most important thing in motorsports and winning races, it is monumental.
Verstappen and Red Bull were the class of the field even when it wasn't the best team for the first portion of the season. After letting a pair of victories slip through their grasp early on, the team did not make many mistakes for the remainder of the season. The Dutchman went on a tear and took advantage when the competition slipped.
The record was 13 victories, and it wasn't until after the summer break we could take the pursuit seriously. Verstappen had won eight of the first 13 races, on pace for 13.5 victories over 22 races. Of course, a half victory is not possible, but he was on track to at least match the record.
Back from break, Verstappen won three consecutive races to close out the European portion of the calendar and was firmly on track to break the record, needing only three victories in the final six events. Singapore didn't go in his favor, but he won in Japan and clinched the world title. He came from behind to win the United States Grand Prix after a pit stop snafu to equal the record. Then he utterly dominated in Mexico to break the record. He added one more for good measure in Abu Dhabi and set the bar at 15 victories.
Through all the seasons of Mercedes dominance, Lewis Hamilton never got to 13. Neither did Nico Rosberg. Verstappen and Red Bull set its stamp on the 2022 season and it could last for many years to come.
On the other nominees:
Power was always bound to break Mario Andretti's record of 67 pole positions, but until it happens, it only remains a possibility. After a down 2021 season, it looked like it would be a longer wait for Power to achieve 68 IndyCar pole positions, and 2022 didn't start in hot fashion either. But Power caught a heater and when he needed a pole position most at the Laguna Seca season finale while leading the championship, he pulled out #68 and now stands alone looking down at everyone.
Winning an IndyCar championship is difficult. Winning a NASCAR Cup championship is also difficult. Winning both in the same season as an organization? Team Penske is the only one shooting at such a possibility, but it is not easy to win either series. Team Penske does win in both quite regularly, but championships? Those are harder to earn. This year, Penske pulled both out with Will Power on top in IndyCar and Joey Logano on top in NASCAR, a true testament to a team's capabilities at two high level championships.
In the inaugural season of a new car, the NASCAR Cup Series was in a nervy position. Part shortages and unknowns clouded the start of the season. No one was sure how the car would race. There were many stunning events, but also a few snoozers and safety concerns overshadowed parts of the season, but what cannot be missed is 19 drivers won a Cup race this season, equaling the Cup Series record but it is the most in NASCAR's Modern era. Ten different teams won a Cup race. Non-playoff drivers swept the first round. Two organizations got their first Cup victories. Race winners claimed 15 of 16 playoff spots. It felt like everyone became a contender in 2022.
Van Gisbergen might be the best driver competing in Australia, but Supercars isn't a pushover series. There are plenty of difficult guys competing. Van Gisbergen has accomplished quite a bit, but most victories in a season is a mighty task to achieve. For any driver to get it, he had to win 19 races. Van Gisbergen won 21 for good measure. He swept four weekends and won the Bathurst 1000 in the process. He took the championship by over 600 points.
Past Winners
2012: DeltaWing
2013: Sebastian Vettel for winning nine consecutive races on his way to a fourth consecutive title
2014: Marc Márquez: Setting the record for most wins in a premier class season.
2015: Justin Wilson Memorial Family Auction
2016: Jimmie Johnson for his seventh NASCAR Cup championship
2017: Jonathan Rea: For becoming the first rider to win three consecutive World Superbike championships.
2018: Robert Wickens for winning IndyCar Rookie of the Year despite missing the final three races.
2019: Joe Gibbs Racing setting single-season record for most Cup victories by a in NASCAR's modern-era.
2020: Donald Davidson for 55 years of service to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indianapolis 500
2021: Team WRT's championship success across multiple series and disciplines
Moment of the Year
Description: The Most Memorable Moment in the World of Racing during the 2022 season.
And the Nominees are:
July 12
Ross Chastain's final corner at Martinsville
Red Bull's Cost Cap Penalty
Bubba Wallace-Kyle Larson Incident
Scott Dixon speeding at the Indianapolis 500
And the winner is... Ross Chastain's final corner at Martinsville
The penultimate race of the NASCAR Cup season is a pivotal moment of the season, and in 2022, three spots remained in the Championship Four.
In the closing laps, every position became more critical as seven drivers were fighting for those final eight spots. With how close the drivers were in the standings, there was little margin for error and one mistake would prove to be costly.
The closing laps set up Chase Briscoe and Christopher Bell battling and both drivers in a must-win situation to advance. Neither could make it on points. Chase Elliott was sitting in a comfortable position for one of the points spots, but the final spot was down to Denny Hamlin and Ross Chastain.
As the final 24 laps played out, Chastain started drifting backward as Hamlin moved forward. Bell took the lead from Briscoe. The final four appeared set.
At the start of the final lap, Bell led while Elliott was seven points clear and Hamlin was two points ahead of Chastain. Hamlin ran fifth while Chastain was tenth but over a second behind the car in front of him. Entering the final corner, the picture appeared set.
However, Chastain had other plans and stabbed the throttle to the floor while turning into the wall. Using momentum, Chastain ran nearly 60 mph faster than the cars in front of him and came out of turn four fifth on the road, ahead of Hamlin and with more than enough points to elevate him into the championship four while eliminating Hamlin in the process.
A pure video game move that bordered on psychotic in real life, Chastian's move became a global phenomenon in the motorsports world. Drivers from all categories were sharing it and it became something that transcended the motorsports bubble.
It had everyone's attention because nobody ever thought anyone would have the audacity to try it.
On the other nominees:
July 12 started out as any old blistering hot afternoon in the United States. It was a Tuesday. Not much should happen. Then Tyler Reddick announced he signed for 23XI Racing for the 2024 season, not long after he confirmed he would drive for Richard Childress Racing in 2023. This caught everyone by surprise, including RCR. That same day, Chip Ganassi Racing announced it was exercising its option on Álex Palou for the 2023 season, a sensible decision considering the Spaniard won the 2021 IndyCar championship and appeared set to be one of the best of the 2020s. However, that evening, while Trackside with Curt Cavin and Kevin Lee broadcasted over the airwaves, Palou tweeted he did not accept Ganassi's decision and had plans to join McLaren for 2023 with Formula One ambitions. And so kicked off a contractual dispute that lasted the rest of the IndyCar season.
With Formula One introducing a cost cap for the 2021 season, the teams were going to be faced with tougher decisions than years prior. Teams couldn't spend like they once did on car development and once they maxed out, they would be in trouble. When the FIA looked into the budgets for the 2021 season, it was found Red Bull would be over the limit, causing many to call for hard sanctions on the organization. While less than 5% over the cap, many wanted a strict penalty. What was decided? A $7 million fine and 10% reduction in wind tunnel testing. We will find out how that affects the 2023 season, but this breach had everyone on the edge of their seats wondering how hard the book would be thrown at Formula One's most polarizing team.
There is plenty of contact at NASCAR races that most incidents are forgotten quite quickly. At Las Vegas this September, one incident had everyone speechless. After Kyle Larson bumped Bubba Wallace into the wall exiting turn four early in the race, Wallace turned down and spun Larson head-on into the outside wall and collected Christopher Bell in the process. Wallace and Larson were both out of the race. Out of their cars, Wallace approached Larson and shoved him. In the aftermath, Wallace was suspended for one race, but further questions were raised about where the limit is in NASCAR Cup competition.
It looked to be in Scott Dixon's control. The New Zealander had led 95 of the first 175 laps and was entering the pit lane for his final stop. One clean stop and the Indianapolis 500 would seem to be his. Patricio O'Ward and Felix Rosenqvist had pushed Dixon all day but it didn't look like either was going to top him. However, Dixon locked up his tires entering the pit lane, and by the finest of margins, Dixon was over the pit lane speed limit on entry. A drive-through penalty was issued and Dixon went from having a hand on the BorgWarner Trophy to outside the top twenty in a soul-crushing end to what was otherwise a phenomenal race.
Past Winners
2012: Alex Zanardi
2013: 24 Hours of Le Mans
2014: Post-race at the Charlotte and Texas Chase races.
2015: Matt Kenseth vs. Joey Logano
2016: Toyota Slows at Le Mans
2017: Fernando Alonso announcing his Indianapolis 500 ride
2018: Kyle Busch and Kyle Larson battle at Chicagoland
2019: Kyle Kaiser and Juncos Racing knocking out Fernando Alonso and McLaren and Penske Purchasing Hulman & Co.
2020: March 12-13
2021: The entire Formula One season
Pass of the Year
Description: Best pass of 2022.
And the Nominees are:
Colton Herta on Louis Delétraz into the chicane at the 24 Hours of Daytona
Colton Herta on Patricio O'Ward in turn nine at the Grand Prix of Indianapolis
Will Stevens on in the final corner of the European Le Mans Series race at Spa-Francorchamps
Nobuharu Matsushita on Tomoki Noriji in turn one at Suzuka
Ross Chastain's final corner at Martinsville
And the winner is... Ross Chastain's final corner at Martinsville
This one was obvious. Chastain went from tenth to fifth. The world was captivated by it. It is a move we may never see again strictly because how could it happen again? In the immediate aftermath, questions were raised if such a move should be allowed because it pushes the limit of what is acceptable danger and pushes what should be considered acceptable racing.
Chastain broke the Martinsville track record on that lap simply driving into the wall. He was four seconds faster than the rest of the field. It opened Pandora's box, the equivalent of dropping the atomic bomb. It should never happen again. Whether such a move is legislated out of competition remains to be seen but the fact it is a possibility speaks to how transcendent it was.
On the other nominees:
The LMP2 class at the 24 Hours of Daytona proved to be competitive from start to finish and in the closing hour the #8 Tower Motorsport Oreca held the lead with Delétraz at the wheel. But Herta was clawing back time in the #81 DragonSpeed Oreca and late in the race, Herta threw his car up the inside entering the chicane. Delétraz attempted to turn in as well but took evasive action and went off the road. Herta took the lead and went on to take the victory.
It isn't so much the pass Herta made but what happened prior to it. On slick tires but in damp conditions, Herta was hounding Patricio O'Ward as O'Ward had just made the switch to slicks. Herta had more heat and if he passed O'Ward he would be the de facto leader as a dozen more cars were still on wet tires. Entering turn eight, Herta was on O'Ward heels, but the backend stepped out on Herta's car. The car drifted through the corner and he caught it in turn nine. Meanwhile, he stuck the throttle down and was able to slide up the inside of O'Ward in turn ten. What started out looking like calamity ended with a powerful pass that would see Herta take the end and ultimately wind up with victory.
Spa-Francorchamps is known for many of its corners, and the high speeds through Blanchimont make the final chicane a prime passing zone before the start/finish line. In the Pro/Am battle for the LMP2 class, Alessio Rovera held the lead on the final lap but Will Stevens was in Rovera's tracks for the entirety of the final lap. As the cars approached the final chicane, GT traffic also played a part. Stevens couldn't make a move on the inside entering the chicane, but he ran a little wide and diamond the corner on exit, taking the inside and that extra power allowed him to nip Rovera at the line by 0.042 seconds.
The outside in turn one at Suzuka is tricky enough in the dry, but in the wet, it is almost unfathomable. But in the closing laps of the April Super Formula race from Suzuka, Nobuharu Matsushita had already chased down Tomoki Nojiri, overcoming a four-second gap in two laps. With the moment presenting itself, Matsushita went for it on the outside of turn one and the pass stuck. He ran off into the distance and in turn earned himself his first career Super Formula victory.
Past Winners
2012: Simon Pagenaud at Baltimore
2013: Robert Wickens at Nürburgring and Peter Dempsey in the Freedom 100
2014: Ryan Blaney on Germán Quiroga
2015: Laurens Vanthoor from 4th to 2nd on the outside in the Bathurst 12 Hour
2016: Scott McLaughlin on Mark Winterbottom at Surfers Paradise
2017: Renger van der Zande: From second to first on Dane Cameron at Laguna Seca
2018: Alexander Rossi for all his passes in the Indianapolis 500
2019: Álex Rins on Marc Márquez in the final corner at Silverstone in the British motorcycle Grand Prix
2020: Pipo Derani on Ricky Taylor into turn one at Road Atlanta
2021: Shane van Gisbergen from fourth to second at Sandown
The Eric Idle Award
Description: "When You're Chewing on Life's Gristle, Don't Grumble, Give a Whistle, And This'll Help Things Turn Out For The Best, and... Always Look On The Bright Side of Life."
And the Nominees are:
Colton Herta
Linus Lundqvist
Scuderia Ferrari
Wayne Taylor Racing
Martin Truex, Jr.
And the winner is... Linus Lundqvist
Every junior formula series driver has hopes that one championship will launch a career into something greater. In Indy Lights, one championship comes with a prize of competing in IndyCar, enough of a slice of the pie to make a full-time ride achievable for a young driver.
Lundqvist drove brilliantly in Indy Lights. Five victories, nine podium results, 13 top five finishes and his worst result all season was sixth. All signs pointed to him being destined for IndyCar. With HMD Motorsports' partnership with Dale Coyne Racing, there was a natural landing spot.
The prize was thought to be over $1 million, a good chunk of a full season, enough to cover at least a handful of races. When it came time to receive the check, Lundqvist had far less than $1 million. He was handed $400,000.
It may buy him a race or two, but it isn't even enough to cover an Indianapolis 500 entry. What happened to the $1 million prize? Apparently, the teams received a memo at the start of the season that the distribution of prize money would change and decrease the reward paid for a full season result and award more funds for race results. The problem is that message never quite got through to the teams until the season was already over.
The biggest loser is Lundqvist. He went from IndyCar hopeful to a borderline afterthought as the offseason slowly verges into the preseason and the Swede remains without a ride with no sense of where he will land.
On the other nominees:
It felt like 2022 was going to be Herta's breakout year. After Formula One ties emerged in late 2021, Herta needed a standout year to qualify for a FIA Super License. There were a few breathtaking days, but too many poor ones, some out of his control and some mistakes that could only be planted at his feet. He didn't finish high enough in the IndyCar championship to achieve the 40 Super License points, though that didn't stop him from pursuing a ride. Looking to squeeze into AlphaTauri, a request to waive the requirement was issued, but denied, and Herta ends this year no closer to Formula One than when he started.
Ferrari started the Formula One season with the best car. It looked ready to match Red Bull and give it a challenge all the way to Abu Dhabi. But Ferrari kept finding ways to lose races. Red Bull outmatched them in one race. Then Ferrari had a reliability issue in the next. Then the strategy woes entered the picture. Ferrari couldn't get a race winning strategy down if the company depended on it. Soon Red Bull and Max Verstappen were in control and Ferrari couldn't loosen that grip. It went from hopeful to laughingstock in less than eight months.
Arguably the best team in IMSA, Wayne Taylor Racing entered this year off the back of consecutive runner-up finishes in the DPi championship. Hoping the third time would be the charm, it won four races and led the championship into the Petit Le Mans finale. All it needed was a solid finish and Meyer Shank Racing not stealing the show. It was looking good until the final hours. Then MSR came on. Wayne Taylor Racing needed a push at the end, but suspension failure cost the team and handed the title to its Acura counterparts. It was another runner-up result.
Truex, Jr. was good in 2022. The problem is good wasn't close to enough. It was good enough if you could win one race, but Truex didn't have that go his way. There were plenty of close calls only for cautions or pit strategy to go against him. It put Truex on the playoff bubble despite being in the top five of points. At the regular season finale in Daytona, Truex was caught in the accident as rain hit the circuit, but he was able to continue. However, with a significantly damaged car, Truex was a glorified spectator as Austin Dillon won the race and Truex was knocked out of the playoffs despite having been in the top ten of the championship after 25 of the first 26 races and having been no worse than 11th on points all regular season.
Past Winners
2012: Ben Spies
2013: Sam Hornish, Jr.
2014: Alexander Rossi
2015: McLaren
2016: Toyota
2017: Nick Heidfeld
2018: Brett Moffitt
2019: Dennis Lind
2020: Marc Márquez
2021: Liam Lawson
Comeback of the Year
Description: The Best Comeback in the 2022 season.
And the Nominees are:
Memo Gidley
Robert Wickens
Sébastien Bourdais at Long Beach
Matthew Brabham
Max Verstappen at the United States Grand Prix
And the winner is... Robert Wickens
In the aftermath of the 2018 Pocono 500, despite learning about the severity of Wickens' injuries, we all believed he would get behind the wheel of a race car someday. As he rehabilitated from his spinal injury and carried the hope of walking again, Wickens displayed the determination and resolve everyone should replicate in all walks of life.
For Wickens, he continued to work hoping to walk again. Simultaneously, he worked to get himself back in race shape. He drove an adapted Corvette ahead of an IndyCar weekend at Toronto, but it wasn't until the spring of 2021 he tested a race car again.
From that test, Wickens announced he would return to competition in the Michelin Pilot Challenge series driving a Hyundai in the TCR class with Bryan Herta Autosport. Returning to competition is an accomplishment, but Wickens did more.
At Daytona, Wickens and co-driver Mark Wilkins contested for the race victory only to finish third. A few tough results followed only for Wickens and Wilkins to win at Watkins Glen. It was followed by a second victory at Mosport. The season ended with Wickens sixth in the championship.
The first act of the return could not have gone any better for Wickens. From what we have seen, he will only obtain loftier heights in the years to come.
On the other nominees:
Gidley started his comeback in 2021, over seven years after a brutal accident in the 24 Hours of Daytona left him with a broken back and leg. He underwent eight surges in three years to rebuild his body. After running a few sports car races late last year, Gidley signed up to run a full season of IMSA Prototype Challenge. He won pole position at Daytona and finished second. Then he won at Mid-Ohio. Four podium results in five races netted him second in the championship with co-driver Alexander Koreiba. Gidley also won the European Le Mans Series season opener in the GTE class with Rinaldi Racing at Circuit Paul Ricard.
Bourdais is a talented driver, but even talented drivers make mistakes. At Long Beach, the Frenchman started on pole position but put the car in the wall exiting the hairpin on lap six and dropped to last in the DPi class. Bourdais was over 21 seconds behind the lead with an hour and 32 minutes remaining. Over the next 23 laps, Bourdais clawed his way forward and in less than a half-hour, Bourdais was back to the lead. He handed over the car to Renger van der Zande, who led the race to the checkered flag and the #01 Cadillac won by 3.761 seconds over its teammate in the #02 Cadillac.
Once the hottest prospect in the Road to Indy, Brabham's career took a detour when funding disappeared. After a handful of seasons dominating in Stadium Super Trucks, Brabham put the money together for another Indy Lights season with Andretti Autosport, nearly six years removed from his last efforts in a single-seater car. With a little bit of fortunate, he won on his return at St. Petersburg. It was a bumpy season, but he won again at Gateway and Brabham was third in the championship, a spot better than his only other full season in Indy Lights back in 2014.
It was a dominant Formula One season for Max Verstappen, but a few races were harder fought than others. Verstappen looked set for victory in Austin when it came for his final pit stop, but for the first time in a long time, Red Bull botched a pit stop. Verstappen went from the lead to over nine seconds behind Lewis Hamilton with 19 laps remaining. However, Verstappen put his head down and ate into the Mercedes' lead. He didn't even need all the laps. Verstappen was back in front with seven laps remaining and took the victory 5.023 seconds clear of Hamilton.
Past Winners
2013: Michael Shank Racing at the 24 Hours of Daytona
2014: Juan Pablo Montoya to IndyCar
2015: Kyle Busch
2016: Max Verstappen from 15th to 3rd in the final 18 laps in the wet in the Brazilian Grand Prix
2017: Kelvin van der Linde: From third to first after a botched pit stop in the final 20 minutes in the 24 Hours Nürburgring
2018: Billy Monger: Returning to racing after losing his legs and finishing sixth in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship with four podium finishes and a pole position at Donington Park.
2019: MotoE: For getting to the grid after fire destroyed every motorcycle prior to the first round of the season
2020: The #7 Acura Team Penske: Coming from last in the championship to winning the IMSA DPi championship
2021: Kyle Busch's victory at Pocono
Most Improved
Description: Racer, Team or Manufacture Who Improved The Most from 2021 to 2022.
And the Nominees are:
Scott McLaughlin: From 14th on 305 points to fourth on 510 points with three victories in IndyCar
Felix Rosenqvist: From 21st on 205 points to eighth on 393 points in IndyCar
Enea Bastianini: From 11th on 102 points to third on 219 points with four victories
Ross Chastain: From 20th on 729 points to second with two victories in the NASCAR Cup Series
Sheldon van der Linde: From 11th on 55 points to champion on 164 points with three victories in DTM
And the winner is... Scott McLaughlin
McLaughlin's sophomore season in IndyCar saw the New Zealander make a massive leap forward and it started in the first race of the season. After starting no better than 13th on a street course as a rookie, he won pole position at St. Petersburg. From pole position, he took his first career victory in his 18th career start.
At the second race of the season at Texas, McLaughlin qualified second but took the lead from the jump and led 186 laps only to have teammate Josef Newgarden overtake him exiting the final corner of the final lap. The first two races set the tone for McLaughlin's season.
He had a bit of a slip at the end of spring, but won for the second time at Mid-Ohio and then went on a run of five consecutive top five finishes ending with a dominant victory at Portland that kept his championship hopes alive, albeit by the slightest of margins.
It should be noted how significant of a career change McLaughlin has made moving to IndyCar. His single-seater career consisted of a single season of Formula Ford in Australia over a decade before the IndyCar move. He spent his entire career in tin-tops and became one of the best drivers in Supercars history. In year two of IndyCar he became a title contender. He might be driving for Team Penske, but plenty of other drivers in his position would not come close to matching these results.
On the other nominees:
Rosenqvist appeared to be a dead man walking entering the 2022 IndyCar season. After a few notable drivers had been kicked to the curb due to poor performances, it was tough imaging the leash was long from McLaren. The season didn't start out well, but Rosenqvist had a stellar Indianapolis 500. He matched Patricio O'Ward at many races and ended up only finishing one position behind the Mexican in the championship. Now, Rosenqvist will be back for the 2023 season, something that looked unlikely at the start of the year.
Expectations are low for a rider on a year-old bike, but Bastianini was on the right bike as Ducati had to work out some kinks in the newer model. On the older Ducati, Bastianini won the season opener. He was a regular contender. He won three of the first seven races. Results became a little more jumbled up as the season went along, but Bastianini kept himself in the title picture into the penultimate race of the season. His four victories were second most only behind champion Francesco Bagnaia.
Chastain had a staggering Cup season. Absorbed into Trackhouse when the team purchased Chip Ganassi Racing's NASCAR assets, Chastain scored the team's first victory at Austin. He followed it up becoming the second repeat winner of the season at Talladega. Chastain was a contender for most of the season. There was a slip in the summer, but when the playoff started he was up there again and forced his way into the final four after that Hail Mary effort in Martinsville. He ended up second in the championship.
The other van der Linde, Sheldon was already in his brother Kelvin's shadow. The 2022 season was the year Sheldon broke out. He swept the races in the second round at Lausitz. He won later at the Nürburgring. While taking on Lucas Auer, René Rast and Mirko Bortolotti, three stout GT drivers, van de Linde ended with a flourish, a pair of podium results to take his first DTM championship.
Past Winners
2012: Esteban Guerrieri
2013: Marco Andretti
2014: Chaz Mostert
2015: Graham Rahal
2016: Simon Pagenaud
2017: DJR Team Penske
2018: Gary Paffett
2019: Cooper Webb
2020: Joan Mir
2021: Francesco Bagnaia
And that will do it. We have settled 2022 and soon 2023. There will be plenty of competition soon enough as the New Year begins. More exciting new events await us. Rivals will continue and some will emerge. Old familiar faces will remain at the front and a few will stake their claim on a piece of the history book. We have the holidays to enjoy first. Racing can wait but it will return in no time.
Before that, we will a few sets of predictions and Christmas presents to hand out to close the year.
