After wrapping up the Las Vegas race, Formula 1 immediately packs up to head to Losail. For the penultimate GP of the season, Scuderia Ferrari arrives as clear underdogs: Carlos Sainz’s outlook for the upcoming weekend is far from optimistic.
Las Vegas, the “best” of the final three rounds of the championship, didn’t go Ferrari’s way. Mercedes dominated, with the George Russell – Lewis Hamilton duo sweeping up points and outmaneuvering Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, who had arrived in Nevada with higher ambitions than a third and fourth-place finish. Up next for the paddock is Qatar, a track that, on paper, appears decidedly unfavorable for Ferrari.
The Maranello team boards the plane to Losail with dim expectations for the final Sprint weekend of the 2024 Formula 1 campaign. The forecast predicts a strong McLaren and a struggling Ferrari: Carlos Sainz agrees with this view and goes further: “I think it will be a really tough weekend for us.”
Speaking at the post-race conference in the U.S., Carlos Sainz emphasized that Ferrari must “maximize everything we can.” His analysis of recent races, however, isn’t entirely negative: “In the last few weekends, I think we’ve done a good job. In Las Vegas qualifying, the maximum was P2; in the race, it was P3.”
Carlos Sainz: Ferrari’s best hope in Qatar is far from the podium
Turning his attention to the Qatar round, Carlos Sainz openly shares his concerns. “In Qatar, our best goal might be fifth or sixth place.” – the Spanish driver pointed out – “With this car, on a track like that, I think we’ll struggle. I expect McLaren and Mercedes to be very strong, and probably Red Bull as well, given their performance in Austin qualifying.”
Carlos Sainz’s remarks aren’t mere superstition. George Russell, too, agrees with the Ferrari driver. According to the #63, who triumphed in Nevada, Mercedes “will have another opportunity in Qatar. At the start of this final triple-header, my focus was always on Losail.” – the future Williams driver concluded.
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