Luck has not been on Carlos Sainz’s side in the last three Formula 1 World Championship races. Four accidents and two early retirements have made his physical condition very poor, greatly complicating his career in Miami.
The two initial podiums in the first two races made us predict a good season for Carlos Sainzbut in Australia everything began to go wrong.
First it was the exit of the track in the first lap of the race. Then came two more accidents at Imola, the first in Q2 on Friday and the second on the first lap of Sunday’s race, in which Daniel Ricciardo kicked him off the track.
“I started not feeling 100% towards the end of the medium stint”
Finally, the serious accident at turn 14 of the Miami street circuit, which also caused pain in his neck and other parts of his body.
In total, four accidents in three Grand Prix they have diminished the physical condition of Carlos Sainz and they have hampered his performance, despite which he was able to get on the podium in the first race of the year on American soil.
Problems for Sainz in Miami
During the demanding race in Miami, in which the complexity of the circuit and the environmental heat made life very difficult for the drivers, Carlos Sainz paid for it.
The Spanish pilot dragged pain from the accident on Friday and, to make matters worse, your drinking system did not work during the race. All this made his rhythm slow down.
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“He didn’t feel 100%, but maybe it was also because he didn’t do the last two races.. There were no issues with balance, but for my part, it was more like I wasn’t feeling 100% towards the end of the stint with means (from the start to the stop on lap 27) », explained Carlos Sainz.
“In the last five laps, I started to feel a bit tired in the neck and I couldn’t push 100% due to the accident on Friday. But I won’t use it as an excuse. Perhaps he also lacked mileage in the last two races to get his neck and body used to these Formula 1 cars, ”valued the Ferrari driver.
“I haven’t had a full race distance for a month. And probably that, combined with the accident on Friday, meant that I couldn’t push 100% to the safety car more or less, “he revealed.
Miami, a valuable lesson for Sainz ahead of Barcelona
The race was not easy for Carlos Sainz, and the safety car resulting from the accident between Lando Norris and Pierre Gasly contributed to making it even more difficult.
And it is that allowed Sergio Pérez to fit new medium tires and recover all the distance lost in the previous laps. Despite that, Sainz knew how to put up with the Mexican on his used hard tyres.
“Certainly, it was difficult. Obviously a new medium tire versus a used hard tire is always better, particularly in the warm-up.”Sainz pointed out in this regard.
“The first three laps were crucial in trying to stay ahead, and I almost tripped a couple of times. But I think we did a really good job of managing the battery and the places where he had the opportunity to overtake.”
“He launched a lunge at turn 1 that I managed to counter. To be honest, I expected it to happen to us because the advantage of the tires was too great».
“But you don’t stop believing, you keep trying and in the end the podium was a good result to grow after the last races and maintain confidence in Spain»he reiterated.
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Now, Carlos Sainz faces a crucial moment in the future of his season: the Spanish Grand Prix. There is no doubt that the objective of the Spaniard will be to fight for victory in his home race and having completed the race in Miami will certainly help that.
“The podium in Miami is not a relief, but it is necessary. I think I needed to complete a race distance, get back in shape and also feel the car with used tires and a lot of fuel».
“I made a couple of mistakes during the race, just because I was testing the car and testing myself. The important thing is that we did a complete race, but in some stages of the race I was quite fast.
«The battles and the feeling with the car in the battle with Checo, what to do with the battery, with the tires, I think it gave me a good understanding of what to do in the future»Carlos Sainz concluded.
Source: The Race
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Photos: Scuderia Ferrari