From muscle loss to Ferrari SF-24 car changes: how Carlos Sainz managed to accomplish Australian GP feat

Fifteen days earlier he was in the hospital, and on Sunday, he won in Australia: how did Carlos Sainz manage to accomplish this feat?

Don’t call him a hero: the Spaniard is a professional. He proved it already when, the day after the appendicitis surgery, he showed up at the paddock in Jeddah, against the advice of doctors. He wanted to be there to support Ferrari, his teammate Charles Leclerc, and his substitute Oliver Bearman.

Rehabilitation for Carlos Sainz was by no means easy. El Mundo, the second largest printed daily newspaper in Spain, recounts the details of his recovery, starting right from Thursday at Albert Park. The Ferrari driver showed up in the Australian paddock after losing 2kg of muscle and appeared weakened. His body seemed unable to support him: there are images and videos showing him walking slowly.

His discomfort worsened during FP2, but he still managed to shine during Saturday’s qualifying, which brought him to second place on the starting grid.

Carlos Sainz’s Rehabilitation for Australia
Pierluigi Della Bona, Carlos Sainz’s physiotherapist starting this year, set goals to get the Spaniard back on track as soon as possible. First and foremost, they needed to accelerate healing. In this regard, the hyperbaric chamber was useful, yielding optimal results in terms of oxygen therapy.

With blood richer in oxygen, wound swelling decreases. At the same time, protection against infections increases. In addition to this, Carlos Sainz used another machine that generates radiofrequency waves. It is a non-invasive technique that allows for the reabsorption of edema, also producing an analgesic effect for pain.

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Not just machines: Pierluigi Della Bona monitored the driver’s physical exercises. No weights, and a basic diet, given the loss of muscle mass.

Ferrari also played a role in Carlos Sainz’s rehabilitation process. Engineers made some modifications to the seat, brake pedal, and seat belt to prevent the buckle from rubbing too much on the abdominal wound. Frederic Vasseur’s men also added a kind of soft material, similar to a sponge, to cushion the pressure in the cockpit.

Carlos Sainz, Ferrari