Carlos Sainz triumphs in the F1 Australian Grand Prix at the Albert Park circuit, but Gian Carlo Minardi, the founder and managing director of the now-defunct Minardi Formula One team, criticizes Ferrari. The satisfaction is great, and Melbourne’s double victory reignites the Red enthusiasm, but some considerations on Maranello’s choices are inevitable. According to the entrepreneur, a historical figure in Formula 1, the Spanish driver should have been retained at least until 2026.
Three one-two finishes in three Grand Prix races since the beginning of the 2024 Formula 1 season. This time, however, the first two to cross the finish line were the SF-24 cars. Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc fully exploit Red Bull’s problems and achieve a hoped-for but perhaps unexpected result. Precious points that, two weeks before Suzuka, bring Maranello closer to Milton Keynes in both championship standings.
For now it’s still too little to speak of a fight for the championship or to hope for a long-term battle against the RB20, but it is enough to reignite the spirits of the Tifosi. For Carlos Sainz, then, it’s a result worth double: the Spaniard is looking for a seat for the next season and, with a string of victories, could emerge as a highly sought-after candidate for top-tier seats.
Gian Carlo Minardi, while enthusiastic about the one-two finish, dampens the Ferrari celebration by regretting the team’s decision to do without the Spaniard at the end of the season: “I’ve been a supporter of Carlos Sainz for ten years,” the entrepreneur said in an interview for Italian daily newspaper Corriere dello Sport. “He has always been a very fast and solid driver. I would have bet on continuity and kept him at least until 2026.” – he pointed out.
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“It’s not fair [that he doesn’t receive the same recognition for natural talent as Leclerc],” Gian Carlo Minardi continues. “He has innate natural abilities. Then with work, you can improve performance, and he does it, he is also very methodical. He is among the six drivers capable of aiming for the championship: Max Verstappen, Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, Oscar Piastri, and George Russell.”
One cannot help but notice the absence of Lewis Hamilton, in Ferrari since 2025, among the mentioned drivers. “I have always preferred young drivers,” justifies the founder of the Minardi team, the precursor to the current Racing Bulls.
Source: f1ingenerale
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