Yesterday’s Lusail sprint race will be remembered for Max Verstappen’s third world championship title and Oscar Piastri’s first victory. These historic events overshadowed the chaos caused by the track modification, even if it was just a few centimeters, and the fragility of the Pirelli tires, which will force the teams to make more pit stops during the race.
Like other teams, Scuderia Ferrari chose to preserve a set of new medium tires for today’s race, aware that using the red-banded tires in the sprint race would not pay off. The repeated interventions of the Safety Car helped extend the life of the softer tire compound, but in the final laps, the Ferraris were struggling compared to the other drivers who had used the soft tires. Sainz’s sixth place finish and the 5-second penalty imposed on Charles Leclerc, which pushed him out of the points zone, are meager results in relation to the Maranello team’s declared goal: second place in the Constructors’ Championship.
Once again, a close duel between Carlos and Charles took place, certainly not functional to the goal declared by Frederic Vasseur. The internal rivalry between the two top-class drivers is very intense, even though their respective positions in the drivers’ standings are far from satisfying (fifth place for Carlos Sainz and sixth for Charles Leclerc). Currently, the drivers are separated by just 8 points, but finishing the season ahead of their teammate seems to be the primary goal for the pair of red-clad drivers. The primary reason is that both drivers are approaching the end of their contracts (2024). They intend to bring evidence of their superiority over their teammate to the negotiation table.
In recent months, there has been talk of a long and grand contract extension for the Monegasque champion. But if Carlos Sainz manages to finish ahead of his teammate for the second time in three Formula 1 seasons, with a minimal difference in victories in favor of Charles (3 to 2) over the same period of “coexistence,” the contractual position of the Spaniard would be much more solid. At the same time, Charles’ rumored five-year extension at a figure of 185 million euros, equivalent to 37 million per season, discussed during the summer break, would be unwarranted compared to the current 25 million euros already earned by the “Chosen One.” Until 2024, Carlos Sainz has a contract with Ferrari that binds him to the team on an economic basis that is half of his teammate’s salary.
At this point, it is easy to understand that the Ferrari drivers need to score points for themselves. However, in some races, their conduct has not favored the team’s cause, which is currently a priority for the team principal of the historic Italian Scuderia.
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In a few hours, one of the most unpredictable Grand Prix of the season will begin, where Charles and Carlos will be far apart on the starting grid. The goal will be to survive in what seems to have the characteristics of an elimination race, and to exploit the unpredictable fragility of the Pirelli compounds to achieve a better result than expected on a track that is hostile to the characteristics of the SF-23. The predictable entry of the safety car, multiple pit stop strategies, and teamwork are the only chance to leave Qatar without broken bones.
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