Fred Vasseur clarifies condition of Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari SF24 after qualifying crash in Brazil

In São Paulo, Q2 proved costly for Carlos Sainz: his crash during the flying lap wrecked the #55 Ferrari, casting doubt over the Spaniard’s participation in the race. Will he start at Interlagos? Ferrari Team Principal Fred Vasseur clarified the situation regarding Carlos Sainz’s car after the crash in Brazil in his post-qualifying comments.

The crash during the second qualifying session at Interlagos heavily damaged Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari. The rear end was wrecked, and the car was left damaged, meaning Carlos Sainz’s mechanics will have to put in extra hours in the three leading up to the Brazilian GP.

Repairing the SF24 for the Spanish is the mission for Carlos Sainz’s team. Observing the state of the damaged Ferrari, the question is reasonable: will Carlos Sainz be able to take part in the Grand Prix? In an interview with Sky Italia, Fred Vasseur clarified: “Yes, probably yes. However, we’ll probably also need to start from the pit lane. This will give us time to repair it.”

The Scuderia will be forced to make changes to the car under parc fermé conditions to gain extra time. Last-minute repairs are now critical for Ferrari’s mechanics, who will need to replace multiple parts of the car.

Beyond the gearbox, Carlos Sainz’s car will likely also get a new power unit. “I think we’ll need to replace at least the gearbox and probably the engine as well,” Frederic Vasseur continued.

“The weather forecast for the afternoon is even worse than this morning’s,” the Frenchman said, analyzing the conditions for the race. “It will be important to stay on track; the pace will be completely different,” the French manager concluded at the end of an action-packed qualifying session for the Brazilian Grand Prix in Interlagos.