The final day of the 2022 F1 Hungarian GP dawned on us and unlike the Saturday, I tried to leave early in the morning. However, it wasn't early enough and once again I was at the mercy of errand taxi drivers quoting absurd fares to ferry me to the circuit. Thankfully, a couple decided to join me and the price seemed acceptable after negotiating with one taxi driver

Sunday morning and welcome to Raceday! Enroute to the circuit :

Due to the traffic snarls caused by the flurry of vehicles into the circuit, the taxi dropped us at an alternate entry and I had to walk almost around the length of the track to make it to the Paddock Club. The Vlog on my Youtube Channel, shared further on on this page, has a segment dedicated to that.

Coffee and Croissants to kickstart the Sunday in the Paddock Club :

The hosts at the Ferrari F1 Club obliged me with a paddock pass but asked me to return in time for the Charles Leclerc interview in the Club, scheduled around midday.

A quick visit to this very narrow and small paddock :

The story of meeting those from the F1 Fraternity began again!

Pat Fry, a Legend of F1 and Chief Technical Officer for Alpine F1 Team :

Pierre Gasly, Scuderia Alpha Tauri F1 driver :

Yuki Tsunoda, Scuderia Alpha Tauri F1 driver :

Fernando Alonso, Double F1 World Champion and Alpine F1 Driver :

It was time to head back and grab a vantage point to see Leclerc up close in the Ferrari F1 Club.

Charles Leclerc joining the guests in the Ferrari F1 Club for an interview :

The menu for Sunday :

Lunch is served :

With Lunch complete, it was time for the final pit lane walk of the weekend.

Shots from the Pit Lane walk on Sunday :

The Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team getting prepped and ready for the Race and pitstop practice is a must!

Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team Pit Stop Practice ( Video Link ) :

The Oracle Red Bull Racing F1 Team mechanics practiced some stops of their own :

I had the opportunity of meeting some more famous people from the F1 circle.

Andrea Stella, Executive Racing Director for McLaren with a glorious career in F1 :

Jock Clear, Senior Performance Engineer for Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team :

Ralf Schumacher, Ex-Williams and BMW Williams F1 Driver, brother to Michael Schumacher and now an F1 Presenter :

I rushed back to the club and it was time to put the Headsets on, grab a good view and buckle up for the race!

The drivers leaving the pits for sighting laps :

Pit Lane opens for Drivers to leave the garages ( Video Link ) :

Carlos Sainz Jr leaves for sighting lap ( Video Link ) :

Obliging with interviews and legging it to the front of the grid for the pre-race formalities :

The drivers line up at the front of the grid for the Hungarian National Anthem :

The guests and dignitaries with grid access make their way back to the pit lane :

Time for the formation lap and the Race start :

Counting down to the Formation Lap ( Video Link ) :

Time for the Formation Lap ( Video Link ) :

A Video of the Race Start :

A Photo Dump of photos from the Race :

Virtual Safety Car period in the Race ( Video Link ) :

A Daniel Ricciardo Pit Stop in the Race ( Video Link ) :

Scuderia Ferrari drivers battling hard during the Hungarian GP :

Charles Leclerc pitting for Hard Tyres ( Video Link ) :

The Red Bull and Mercedes mechanics celebrate victory and podium finishes for their drivers from the Pit Wall. Max Verstappen won the race for Red Bull, while Lewis Hamilton and George Russell completed the podium for Mercedes. A strategic blunder left Sainz and Leclerc in P4 and P6, respectively.

Chequered Flag gets waved at the Hungarian GP ( Video Link ) :

Celebrations in Parc-Ferme :

The crowds invading the track to have a closer look at the podium celebrations and the pit lane :

Soon, it was time for the paddock club to close and I decided to head to the Paddock for some signatures and some selfies before we would get asked to leave from there too!

Roaming through the Paddock, post-race :

Kevin Magnussen, Haas F1 Driver :

Valtteri Bottas, Alfa Romeo Orlen F1 Driver :

Guenther Steiner, Haas F1 Team Principal :

Sebastian Vettel!! Quadruple F1 World Champion and Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant F1 Team Driver :

Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing Team Principal :

Tom Kristensen, a Record Nine-time LeMans winner!

The team trucks getting loaded up with equipment as they make their way back to the team factories :

The sun sets on the 2022 Hungarian GP weekend :

Back at my Hotel in Budapest :

As promised, here is the Vlog of the Sunday Experience at the 2022 Hungarian GP :

It was a memorable weekend, despite the results for the Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team from the race. Finally, after a three-year break, I had the privilege of attending a race, live! A big thank you to Scuderia Ferrari F1 Team for hosting me over the weekend. 

This wouldn't be the last post from "The Paddock Club Diaries" in 2022. The Belgian GP experience will follow soon! So watch this space!