Carlos Sainz: “Every point is important and I have lost a lot of them”
After retiring after only two laps in Melbourne, Carlos Sainz appeared very disappointed and frustrated. The Spaniard knows that even though the season is long, every mistake can be costly in the fight for the title.
At the start of this season, it’s difficult to recognize the Carlos Sainz of last year. So often neck and neck with his teammate in 2021, the Spaniard appears completely dominated by Charles Leclerc. Three times ahead in qualifying and in the race, the Monegasque has established himself as the natural number 1 of Scuderia Ferrari. Sainz’s poor weekend in Australia already gives Leclerc a 38-point lead over his teammate.
Sainz was not helped by technical issues on his car, as he confided to Speedweek.com. Just like on Saturday, we had another problem with the steering wheel, some buttons were not working. We had to change the steering wheel and that’s why it was not properly configured for the start, so the anti-stall system kicked in twice. I was behind and wanted to gain as many positions as possible in the first three laps. That’s why I took risks with the hard tires and apparently the rubber was not ready yet, explained the Spaniard.
Ninth-placed after a failed qualifying, Sainz completely botched his start and found himself in 14th place at the end of the first lap. While attempting to overtake Magnussen at turn 9, the Ferrari driver missed his turn and ended up in the gravel trap, ending his race. « I misjudged the grip and made a driving error, which hasn’t happened to me in a while. But it was a clear mistake that cost me the race. Everything certainly wasn’t perfect, I wasn’t perfect, and neither was the team,” explained Sainz.
The Madrilène missed the opportunity to secure his fourth consecutive podium, as his car was dominant this weekend. « I could have finished in the top 4 and without the issues on Saturday and Sunday, I could have even fought for the win,” raged the Spaniard. « Every point is important and this time we lost a lot. But we still have 20 races left and now we must perform well. ».
Known for his consistency, Carlos Sainz also Put an end to his series of 17 consecutive points finishes. He will have to bounce back next Sunday in Imola to try to maintain his chances of winning the world title, and not allow his teammate to take too much of a lead.”
