Carlos Sainz was lucky not to have been hit after his mistake in Suzuka
After causing a major accident at the first lap of the Japanese Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz found himself half on the track while other drivers passed him at high speed.
It is a first lap of the race that Carlos Sainz is unlikely to forget anytime soon. On a rain-soaked track, the Spanish driver hydroplaned after driving over a puddle of water at the exit of the first turn, and violently collided with the safety barriers.
“His F1-75 then spun across the track, as the other drivers passed him at high speed. Carlos Sainz considers himself lucky not to have been hit during this very terrifying moment.”
« We all started with the intermediate tires, but by the time we started, the conditions were already extreme. There was aquaplaning and zero visibility,” explained the Ferrari driver after the race. « I drove over a puddle of water while trying to get out of Checo’s (Perez) slipstream, just to see something. I lost control of the car and the worst happened after that, when you’re in the middle of the track and you know that others can’t see you. I don’t know what they (the stewards) plan to do, but the track, with this visibility, was impassable. »
Spanish recounts a great moment of fear that fortunately ended “well”. If drivers can’t see anything, you leave everything in the hands of luck. The drivers behind me didn’t even see me, it’s pure luck that they didn’t hit me.
With this crash into the wall, Carlos Sainz brought advertising boards onto the track. Pierre Gasly hit one, which broke his wing. The race management initially decided to deploy the safety car, before ultimately waving the red flag.
The Ferrari driver also commented on the scare of Pierre Gasly, who came very close to hitting the tractor on the track, which was removing car number 55, even though the race had not yet been interrupted. What people don’t understand is that even behind the safety car that is driving at 100, 150 km/h, you can’t see anything,” said the Spaniard.
So, even if there is a crane on the track and we are behind the safety car and driving at 100 km/h, a driver could make a small mistake, a stupid mistake, go a little too far, not remember that there is a tractor and crash into it. So why take this risk? Carlos Sainz wondered, questioning the decision to release the crane during the safety car intervention.
