What time is the French GP? And where exactly is the race?

As Charles Leclerc crossed the line to take victory at the Austrian Grand Prix a fortnight ago, we officially reached the halfway stage of the 2022 F1 season. 11 races done, 11 races to go. Provided of course that the Covid-19 pandemic doesn’t cause any more issues later in the year…

Heading into this weekend’s French Grand Prix, Red Bull’s Max Verstappen enjoys a comfortable lead at the top of the drivers’ standings, with the 208 points he’s amassed so far 38 more than main rival Leclerc in second place.

The reigning world champion has also won six grands prix in that time compared with Leclerc’s three victories, although it’s the Ferrari driver who’s grabbed pole position more often. So how the battle unfolds from here is anyone’s guess.

Here’s everything you need to know about the French GP in advance of the race. Let the scrolling commence…

What time is the French GP? And what time is qualifying?

For British viewers the French Grand Prix is due to start at 2pm (3pm local time) on Sunday 24 July. At least that’s when the formation lap normally begins before lights out, so you’ll have a minute or so to rush to the loo beforehand if you’re desperate.

Qualifying starts at 3pm on Saturday 23 July, and all being well we should know who’s on pole an hour later. Provided there are no red flags to hold things up of course.

Meanwhile, the first practice session (FP1) starts at 1pm on Friday, followed by the second (FP2) at 4pm. A third and final shakedown (FP3) takes place at noon on Sunday shortly before qualifying.

Note that this weekend Lewis Hamilton won’t be taking part for Mercedes in FP1. And no he isn’t simply bored, every team has to give up at least two practice sessions a season to give young drivers a chance, and they’ve picked this weekend to run reserve driver Nyck de Vries.

Where is the French GP taking place?

The French Grand Prix is being held at Circuit Paul Ricard in the south of France. It’s famous for its brightly coloured run-off areas (look it up on Google maps, it’s seriously trippy) and a multitude of possible track layouts. This last bit makes it ideal as a testing venue, although drivers and fans aren’t too keen on it as it’s a) very flat, and b) quite hard to tell where you’re meant to be going. Which isn’t ideal at the best of times, never mind in an F1 car at 200mph.

How many laps is the French GP?

The French GP will consist of 53 laps. The track itself is 3.63 miles long (5.842km) and F1 races are normally set at just over 300km. Do the maths and you’ll see how they arrived at that number.

Last year’s race was won by Max Verstappen with a race time of 1 hour 27 minutes 25.770 seconds, but this year’s cars are fractionally slower. So if you’ve got other plans allow for about an hour and a half on Sunday, possibly more if there are safety car periods or red flag stoppages along the way.

What’s the weather going to be like?

At the time of writing the weather forecast suggests it’ll be hot and sunny for the entire weekend, so don’t expect any rain showers to shake things up.

Who are the favourites for the French GP?

Depends what you mean. If it’s race favourites you’re after Red Bull and Ferrari have split every single win between them this season (seven versus four), so it’s hard to see anyone other than Verstappen and Leclerc taking the chequered flag. However, both their teammates (Sergio Perez and Carlos Sainz) have a win apiece to their name as well in 2022, so it’s entirely possible one of them could prevail instead.

Failing that, it looks like Mercedes are the only other team in with a shout at Paul Ricard. They’ve been plagued with excessive bouncing all year but at the last race in Austria their pace wasn’t too far off that of the frontrunners, and further aerodynamic upgrades could bring Hamilton and George Russell into the fight. We’ll see.

However, if it’s home favourites you were asking about then there are two drivers for whom the French Grand Prix is their home race. Alpine’s Esteban Ocon and AlphaTauri’s Pierre Gasly are both French, and will no doubt get a lot of support from the local fans. No amount of cheering is going to help them fight for the win though. Just being realistic here.

How can I watch the French Grand Prix?

In the UK your options are pretty simple: subscribe to Sky Sports to watch their F1 channel, or sign up to Now TV to get access to Sky Sports via their sports package.

Otherwise, qualifying and race highlights will be free to view on Channel 4: you can tune in at 6.30pm for both on Saturday and Sunday respectively. Do your best to stay away from anything connected to the internet to avoid spoilers.

What’s the Top Gear view on the French GP?

Do you really want to know? The French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard returned to the F1 calendar in 2018, and it’s reliably produced very dull racing. Last year’s battle between Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton was quite good, but if you prefer wheel-to-wheel action over pitwall strategy, this isn’t the grand prix for you. Sorry.

That said, there are rumours suggesting that the future of the French GP is in doubt and could fall off the F1 schedule in 2023, so this might be the last time you have to endure it. And you never know, this season’s racier cars might just deliver a classic race. Here’s hoping.