It wasn’t the qualifying session Carlos Sainz anticipated. The earlier 12 months’s winner crashed into the boundaries on the final nook early in Q3, severely damaging the rear of his Ferrari and inflicting a crimson flag.
Luckily, he wasn’t bodily affected, solely feeling disappointment. Carlos Sainz acknowledged that the error was his and attributed it to a number of components: the dearth of grip, a bump, and a contact of misfortune.
The Madrid-born driver defined that having to let some vehicles go on the finish of the circuit hindered his lap preparation, leaving him with chilly tires as he approached the final nook.
“I used to be already on the chilly aspect after I began my lap, and because it was Q3, I needed a very good exit from the final nook. The issue was that I used to be a lot slower getting into in comparison with Q2 and Q1, and I needed to speed up earlier to make up that point; in any other case, I might lose a tenth within the first straight earlier than even beginning the lap. I underestimated the dearth of grip with chilly tires there.”
“I used to be below stress, with one other automotive approaching from behind, and I knew from the out lap that I might be slower in my lap.”
One other key issue, Carlos Sainz stated, was a bump on the curb at flip 17 that caught him off guard. He takes accountability and apologizes to the crew for his misjudgment. This weekend has been utterly completely different in comparison with 2023, because the Ferrari driver famous: “It’s unusual how issues can change from one 12 months to the following. However as we’ve seen many occasions this 12 months, getting the tires into the suitable window on a lap with our automotive is… fairly troublesome.”
“I had a few respectable laps this weekend, however total I used to be very inconsistent. Yesterday, I had points with the brakes, which didn’t assist my weekend preparation. Right here, it’s about constructing confidence, making good laps from FP1 to Q3, and I didn’t try this this weekend. I struggled. I couldn’t discover my rhythm yesterday, and at present it was powerful to get the tires and brakes into the window.”
It’s been an uncommon weekend in some ways: Carlos Sainz identified that McLaren appeared to be hiding on Friday, with Norris enhancing by a second in FP3 in comparison with FP2, whereas “in Q3, they had been solely a tenth quicker than in FP3, which is sort of unusual.”
“There’s one thing odd, most likely, in tire preparation and the way a lot might be extracted from the tires this weekend, as a result of it’s not regular for there to be only a tenth between the quickest lap in FP3 and Q3.”
It’s been a day to neglect for the Maranello crew, particularly since Charles Leclerc will begin ninth attributable to his time being canceled for a monitor restrict violation. So, it’s a fifth row all in crimson, with each drivers hoping for a flip of occasions to contend for prime positions.
“The automotive appears fairly broken, and I don’t know what we’ll do. I simply hope to have a traditional race tomorrow, discover the rhythm I had in Baku, and present good tempo. I imagine that when we discover our rhythm through the race, we needs to be effective. It solely took one lap with the tires’ magic to make all the things work—I imply, the error I made isn’t typical and exhibits that there’s a really, very effective line between having grip and never having it. This weekend has been like that. So tomorrow, as soon as I discover my rhythm, we’ll be there.”
Carlos Sainz additionally mentioned the much-debated tire subject, expressing confusion about what’s taking place at some tracks the place the tires have been tough to handle. “5 to 10 levels beneath the optimum stage means zero grip. And sure, even 5 to 10 levels above, there’s no adhesion. So, discovering the suitable window is essential.”
Regardless of the blow (each ethical and in any other case), he stays optimistic for tomorrow’s race, particularly with the added DRS zone in comparison with final 12 months.
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