The Spanish press continues its crusade against Ferrari’s decisions: according to the Iberian daily newspaper Marca, the management of Carlos Sainz’s race would be a deliberate strategy by the Italian team.
The Spanish press targets Ferrari amid Carlos Sainz strategy
Another lackluster race for Ferrari accompanies yet another questionable race management of the drivers by the Maranello team. This is the opinion of Marca, the well-known Spanish newspaper that, for several weeks, has been strongly criticizing the approach of the Ferrari pit wall towards Spanish driver Carlos Sainz.
“Why does Ferrari hold back its fastest driver?” Marca headlines
The Spanish newspaper wonders: “Carlos Sainz, especially in Austria and Hungary, was faster in the race than Charles Leclerc, but this was somehow ‘corrected’ by the pit wall, why?”
The Spanish article reviews the race stages of the red team, starting from the “brilliant start of Carlos Sainz” to the “first failure” during Charles Leclerc’s slow pit stop. The Monégasque’s stop of over 9 seconds allowed car #55 to gain position on the track.
Marca observes Carlos Sainz’s better performance on hard tires compared to Charles Leclerc: “Little by little, he was increasing the gap with the Monegasque, despite the latter having the DRS advantage. It seemed that from that moment on, the driver ahead would have priority, but it didn’t happen.”
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Marca also raises eyebrows in the analysis of Charles Leclerc’s undercut on Carlos Sainz. The newspaper explains the reason for an undercut that “rarely occurs between two drivers of the same team.”
“The Prince” Charles Leclerc is “allergic to frustration,” while Carlos Sainz is a “gentlemanly English lord”
“The reason was to repair the damage caused by the broken wheel gun during the previous pit stop and to rectify the injustice,” it reads. “The Prince, as he is nicknamed in Italy, is allergic to frustration, whether caused by himself or others, as seen in the Mattia Binotto era.” – the newspaper believes.
Then, there’s room for praise regarding Carlos Sainz’s attitude: “The one who pays the price is Carlos, who has an unwavering team spirit, and whose complaints are akin to those of a nineteenth-century English gentleman.”
Is disadvantaging Carlos Sainz a strategy for Charles Leclerc’s renewal?
Marca finally specifies that Carlos Sainz has not shown great discontent about the situation, but then it launches an attack. According to the Spanish newspaper, Ferrari’s unfriendly treatment of Carlos Sainz is a deliberate strategy: “What is suspected, although not confirmed, is that they don’t want to disturb Charles Leclerc at all. The Italian press and the Ferrari board want to renew him as if he had won several titles, and Carlos Sainz has no intention of fighting alone. With this situation, Carlos is losing some positions (perhaps a podium in Austria), but a head-on confrontation would be unpredictable. His face-to-face and thoughtful expression perhaps speak more about what is going on in his head than his statements.”
This is how the Spanish press concludes, once again criticizing Ferrari for its treatment of Carlos Sainz, this time during the Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest.
