This Week in Action Motorsports: April 22-24, 2022
Image via NHRA
Gear up for events from the biggest series in action motorsports with our weekend preview of the most exciting races in the world! From the premier open-wheel circuits in the world to both two and four-wheel events in the dirt, check in here each week to find out who’s running up front and how to watch.
NHRA at Houston (Sunday, 7:30PM ET, FS1)
The NHRA bids adieu to Houston Raceway Park with the final edition of the SpringNationals, and the fifth round of the 2022 campaign still sees the premier Top Fuel class looking for a repeat winner. Perhaps more surprising, though? Steve Torrence, winner of the last four class titles and a total of 11 races last year, isn’t among them; Justin Ashley, Mike Salinas, Tripp Tatum, and Brittany Force are. While he’s the points leader nonetheless, the Texas native will look to change that in his home state as the defending winner.
Robert Hight (Funny Car) and Erica Enders (Pro Stock) are the only repeat winners so far in their classes, and Hight will enter Houston as a defending winner himself. Defending Pro Stock winner Matt Hartford will look to get his season back on track after falling out of the top 10 in points, while Pro Stock Motorcycle runs just its second event of the season after Karen Stoffer kicked things off with a victory at the Gatornationals.
Supercross at Foxboro (Saturday, 3PM ET, NBC)
Eli Tomac enters the 15th of 17 rounds in the 2022 Monster Energy Supercross season with a great chance to lock up his second 450SX title at Gillette Stadium. Jason Anderson’s win at Atlanta Motor Speedway only enabled him to pull within 53 points of Tomac, and the latter needs a 52-point gap leaving New England to mathematically lock things up. A win will obviously do it, but essentially any top-10 finish ahead of Anderson will both do the trick and prevent Justin Barcia or Malcolm Stewart from interjecting themselves back into the conversation.
Jett Lawrence is similarly insulated in 250SX East points with a 47-point advantage over RJ Hampshire, and can also clinch in Foxboro simply by finishing 18th or better. He finished third in Atlanta’s East-West Showdown behind his brother Hunter and Christian Craig, who made it a 1-2 for the West division.
Formula 1 at Imola (Sunday, 8:55AM ET, ESPN)
The fourth round of the 2022 F1 season sees the series visit a classic European circuit for the first time this year. The former host of both the Italian and San Marino Grand Prix, Imola Circuit returned to the schedule in 2020 amid COVID-19 reorganization with the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, and has proven to be a popular restoration to the schedule.
Ferrari remains in control of both the driver’s and constructor’s championships after Charles Leclerc scored his second win of the season in Australia. Leclerc has a 71-37 advantage over Mercedes’ George Russell, and Ferrari has a 104-65 lead on Mercedes in team points. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, meanwhile, will hope for successful defense of his Imola victory last year, as two retirements versus one win have him an uncharacteristic sixth in the standings, three points behind 2021 title rival Lewis Hamilton, whose own early struggles have nonetheless yielded to points-paying finishes in every race.
Additional Broadcasts
· Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Practice 1: Friday, 7:25AM ET, ESPN2
· NHRA SpringNationals Friday Qualifying: Friday, 7PM ET, FS1
· Formula E Rome ePrix 2: Saturday, 6AM ET, CBSSN
· Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Practice 2: Saturday, 6:25AM ET, ESPN2
· Formula 1 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Qualifying: Saturday, 10:25AM ET, ESPN
· Trans-Am Series at Road Atlanta: Saturday, 5PM ET/Sunday, 5AM ET, CBSSN
· FIM Motocross MXGP and MX2 of Latvia: Sunday, 9AM ET/2PM ET, CBSSN
· NHRA SpringNationals Saturday Qualifying: Sunday, 10:30AM ET, FS1