Binotto pleased with Sainz in Montreal
Close to victory at the Canadian Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz convinced his boss Mattia Binotto. The Spaniard is getting comfortable with the F1-75, even though he is still missing that little something to consistently come out on top.
Carlos Sainz is having a difficult start to the 2022 season. The Spaniard is clearly falling behind his teammate Charles Leclerc, and despite a highly performing F1-75, he already has no chance of winning the World Championship title at the end of the year.
After nine Grand Prix races, Sainz is still ranked behind George Russell, even though Russell’s Mercedes is much less performant than the Scuderia’s race car. Despite this slight lack of pace, the former McLaren driver still has five podium finishes but is still chasing his first victory in the premier category.
This first success in F1 could have happened this weekend in Canada, where Sainz was able to play in Verstappen’s field and could have attacked the Red Bull towards the end of the race. He ultimately finishes 2nd, less than a second behind the Dutchman.
Mattia Binotto, director of the Scuderia, was not surprised by Carlos Sainz’s pace this weekend. The Italian also believes that the Spaniard continues to adapt and gain confidence with the car.
« Honestly, it wasn’t a surprise that Sainz was the fastest man on track. If you look at the race simulations from Friday, Carlos was already very fast and we were very close to the Red Bulls. So, we knew that we could fight. How close it would have been after Friday, I have no idea, but we know that our car is competitive. Carlos is gaining confidence with the car, he’s getting faster and it’s good to see that. He was surely as fast, if not faster, than Max. »
Carlos Sainz is under contract with Ferrari until the end of the 2024 season. The Spaniard must quickly find the key to reassure himself after a difficult start to the season, filled with mistakes and disappointing pace.
