The VF-22 was the first Formula One car of 2022 to be revealed pre-season. Due to a major change in Formula One regulations affecting car appearance, development on the VF-21 was cut short to focus on the VF-22. The car features Pirelli tires and weighs 795 kg.
This car is notable for being the first Haas F1 Team Formula One car to achieve a pole position, which was secured by Kevin Magnussen at the 2022 São Paulo Grand Prix. The VF-22 contributed to Haas improving its position in the constructors' championship from 10th to 8th, and the team began scoring points regularly.
Haas focused on the VF-22 during the entire 2021 championship due to a regulation change. For a seventh consecutive year, Haas selected a Ferrari engine. The VF-22 was the first 2022 car to be revealed, on February 4.
The VF-22 is the first entry from the Haas F1 Team's design office in Maranello, Italy, led by Technical Director Simone Resta. The car incorporates new aerodynamic regulations designed to promote closer racing, including a ground-effect floor, simplified front-wing, and a dramatically shaped rear-wing. It also features Pirelli's 18-inch wheel rims and low-profile tires. The VF-22 is powered by the Ferrari 066/7 turbocharged 1.6-liter V6 power unit running on E10 fuel.
The car was initially revealed and tested with a livery similar to the previous season's VF-21, featuring title sponsorship from the Russian company Uralkali and designs resembling the Russian flag. Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Haas F1 Team removed the Uralkali branding. The car ran with a modified black-and-white livery on the final day of the first pre-season test. The sponsorship was subsequently terminated, along with driver Nikita Mazepin's contract, on March 5. An updated livery, with red replacing the Russian flag stripe, was used during the second pre-season test in Bahrain.
Kevin Magnussen drove the VF-22 to 7th in qualifying and finished 5th in the Bahrain Grand Prix. In the same race, Mick Schumacher qualified 12th and finished 11th.
The following weekend in Saudi Arabia, Magnussen qualified 10th and finished 9th. Schumacher's VF-22 suffered significant damage in Q2 after hitting a curb and then a wall. While Schumacher was uninjured, the damages were estimated at $1 million, resulting in only one VF-22 competing in the race the next day.
At Imola, Magnussen scored points in both the sprint race and the main Grand Prix, finishing 8th and 9th respectively. Subsequent races proved challenging, including a major crash for Schumacher at Monaco where his car split in two after an incident in the Swimming Pool section.
Mick Schumacher scored his first Formula One points driving the VF-22 at the British Grand Prix, finishing 8th. Magnussen finished 10th in the same race. At the next round in Austria, Schumacher finished 6th, while Magnussen also scored points in both the sprint and Grand Prix races.
At the São Paulo Grand Prix, Kevin Magnussen secured the team's and his own first pole position. This achievement made Haas F1 Team the first US-based constructor to take pole position since Shadow Racing Cars at the 1975 British Grand Prix.
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