The Ferrari driver from Madrid underperformed his teammate in Bahrain, despite which he fought for pole position and was second in the race. He is now focused on fully adapting to the new car in Jeddah.
When you fight for the title it is vital to be competitive every weekend and, above all, not to lose the rope with your teammate to prevent your team from standing out in the standings to avoid being designated as number 1 driver when the time comes.
That has happened to drivers like Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez in the past when their teams have had to play the championship against each other. AND Carlos Sainz He doesn’t want it to happen this year with Charles Leclerc, who dominated the weekend in Bahrain.
«If with the car from Bahrain I managed to finish second, if I can have it to my liking…»
“In Bahrain I was there in the fight for pole position and it was good news for me because I lacked sensations and I lacked a complete understanding of the car,” acknowledges Carlos Sainz. “The two good laps on Saturday are almost worth a pole, but it is a fact that I have to work on the ‘set-up’ and on the behavior of the carI’ve done the analysis with my team and we have a couple of interesting theories and things to try.”
«I don’t think it’s a race thing, but like last year, little by little, I hope to get there. We need more examples, maybe Bahrain was an isolated event and here I am again as I think I should be », analyzes the Ferrari driver
Saudi Arabian GP
The second race of the year is held at the circuit of Jeddah Corniche, an urban layout that debuted at the end of 2021 and that poses enormous challenges. But Sainz’s main objective will be to advance his adaptation to the Ferrari F1-75.
«For me it is a weekend to focus on the car and try to adapt it to my style, to take small steps forward in driving. Then, circumstances such as the wind can affect us on this track, which is one of the most difficult on the calendar, but whatever has to come from that side, let it come,” says Sainz.
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“It’s a bit specific and technical to explain it to the press,” says Carlos when asked about his problems with the car. «It is knowing what to do in each type of curve to extract the maximum. Then it is to make it a bit more to my liking, to be a bit more comfortable with the car, as I did in the second half of last year. And I have to try to do this as soon as possible.”
Good prospects
Carlos Sainz has good memories of the Arab circuit, where he felt comfortable in 2021. And he hopes that this will be repeated this year.
“Last year here I was really fast. He caught me on a streak that came from some very good races. I finished the year very strong. It will be a very good comparison for me, in relation to where I was in terms of ‘feeling’ with the car. When I climb with this only 100 days later I will be able to see what sensations I have, how close I can get to the walls and how much confidence it gives me, ”explains the man from Madrid.
“If I managed to finish second with the Bahrain car, I am sure that, if I can have it to my liking, good times await us”he reiterates, confident that 2022 will be a great year for him.
engine and reliability
Already on a more technical level, Carlos Sainz has rejected the idea that the Ferrari engine is the reference on the grid at the moment, stating that “The engine is not superior, but it is a good engine. Red Bull had more top speed than us and nobody talks about the Honda engine. It seems that the Ferrari engine is top, but Red Bull was five kilometers per hour ahead of us. You have to talk about others, not just Ferrari.
What he does fully trust is the reliability of the car, which has not given a single problem since its debut in Barcelona in February.
“Reliability? There we can be a little calmer. Everything is very even, even Mercedes has admitted that they had more wings than the others and that is why they were slower on the straights. The engines are freezing this year and I think we have reached a point where the engines are very even », he concludes.