The problem with sports is that there can’t be multiple winners in the same race or in the same event. We want to see the best compete, but we are typically sad when one of those best has to lose. Unfortunately, the nature of sports is that there must always be a loser and a winner.

A small difference is at the Olympics, where athletes can opt to share medals with their peers, if the results are close enough. 

However, in F1, there are only the best and the ones who want to compete and challenge them, hopefully. Here are the best F1 teams of 2021 that we had the privilege of seeing.

Red Bull

Red Bull has one of the best racing teams and they have been slowly but steadily dominating the sport. Red Bull is of course, the energy drink, but are also nowadays known for their extreme sports series, whether dropping a person from outer space, such as Felix Baumgartner, or having one of the best if not the best F1 racing team.

With driver Max Verstappen who won the 2021 season, Red Bull has a winning combination even without the second driver, Sergio Perez.

They work as a team and Perez makes sure that Verstappen has the right opportunities to take the lead and dominate the races. The Red Bull racing team is going to be interesting in 2022.

Mercedes

Mercedes had one of the best teams in 2021, but it wasn’t enough to beat Verstappen. Hamilton was third and then Mercedes driver and now Alfa Romeo driver, Valtteri Bottas, finished third. This would be good enough for everyone, but not for Mercedes who wants to take it all.

They parted ways with Bottas and welcomed racing prodigy George Russell, who previously drove for Williams. He is 24 years old and has enough skill to make Hamilton say that they are, without a doubt, the best team. We will have to watch the remainder of the 2022 season to judge that.

Ferrari

Ferrari has always been a great name in the world of F1 racing, built mainly around the success of Michael Schumacher. Ferrari nowadays has Charles Leclerc, who has the third-fastest time behind Schumacher. Leclerc is joined by fellow racer Carlos Sainz, who is also known for his amazing driving in all sorts of conditions. 

Both were great in 2021 and are looking more than just competitive in 2022. While Ferrari didn’t have as great of a showing in 2021 as Red Bull and Mercedes had, they are looking very competitive in 2022 and are likely to present an obstacle for any of the top teams and racers.

McLaren

McLaren is a great team that was competitive throughout 2021. What has them tailing the others in 2022 is a rather slow development cycle and one of their drivers, namely Daniel Ricardo, getting a positive Covid test prior to the races. 

This left the other driver, Lando Norris, driving alone, which isn’t as much of an issue, as much as were the brakes which were giving him issues. McLaren didn’t have a great start to the 2022 season, but they should never be counted out, as one of the most competitive teams in the league. 

These are the best teams that we had in 2021 and are likely to be the most competitive ones in 2022, in order in which they were presented. The 2022 season is already underway and we can monitor these teams and see which one, if any of them, will end the season as the victor, whether with the best driver, or the best constructor.