Carlos Sainz after qualifying: “We know exactly what our weaknesses are”
5th fastest in qualifying, the Spaniard will start 4th in Imola due to the penalty imposed on Oscar Piastri. In the interview zone after the Grand Prix, he was rather optimistic and gave many keys to understanding the SF-24's performance.
Carlos Sainz is not the type to show a lot of emotions. Often impassive, the Ferrari driver doesn’t seem to be affected by the shattered hopes of a new pole position in Italy. He shows no surprise about Max Verstappen’s return to the forefront: « When I saw the track, when I did it with the simulator, I always saw Imola as a McLaren track and potentially also as a Red Bull track. »
Never expressive, he is nonetheless optimistic, especially regarding tight corners, where single-seaters must turn sharply: « The positive point is that we know exactly what our weaknesses are in this kind of corner. And now, hopefully, we can focus on improving the car to correct these weaknesses. » This is the type of corner where the McLaren is particularly comfortable.
The changes made have worked well
It was the big question mark before this weekend in Emilia-Romagna: will the developments made by Ferrari be conclusive? Carlos Sainz’s answer is clear: « It’s positive, to the extent that the improvements work, it shows that there is nothing unexpected in the car. Our evolution is good. » However, he refuses to give a numerical estimate of Ferrari’s time gain. Fair play in a world of information and disinformation.
Several explanations for the loss of performance in qualifying.
Carlos Sainz’s technical explanations are very interesting, his feedback must be very valuable for the Scuderia engineers. According to him, there are two main reasons for Ferrari’s underperformance in qualifying: « Another thing we need to focus on, I think, is the soft tire. I think we’ve had ups and downs in qualifying this year with the soft tire, and in sector 1 it ultimately let us down ».
A British colleague then follows up: « Why in sector 1? »
Translate: « The wind was blowing at our backs today. Yesterday, the headwind in turns two, five, and seven was great for our car. Today, with the wind at our backs, we struggled with these specific conditions. And not being able to make the tires work perfectly, added to the wind: you just lost 4 tenths. »
It remains to be seen if these problems will persist in the race. Carlos Sainz will be eager to get a podium at Imola for his last time in red in Emilia-Romagna.
