Imperfect Ferrari Strategy
Scuderia Ferrari Spanish driver Carlos Sainz started from sixth place at the 5.807-kilometre Suzuka International Racing Course in the Japanese Grand Prix and immediately overtook the Red Bull of Sergio Perez when the lights went out, moving up behind Charles Leclerc. However, during the second pit stop, the Spanish driver was not called to the pit lane in time to protect himself from Lewis Hamilton’s undercut. Lewis Hamilton stopped when Charles Leclerc entered the pit lane, successfully undercutting Carlos Sainz.
“I’m happy with the start and the race pace,” Carlos Sainz said to Sky Sport at the end of the Japanese Grand Prix. “After a tough day yesterday, today the pace was very good, and I had a lot of rhythm in general. It’s a shame about the last pit stop that cost me the position because we were four seconds ahead, and we came out 8 seconds behind, so we need to see what could have been done. In the end, they pitted with Charles to secure the position, and I was somewhat sacrificed. It was a good race for me; I had the pace and could do what I wanted. I can’t be angry about Mercedes’ teamwork; it’s racing. It didn’t work for them because Charles Leclerc caught up to George Russell. Thankfully, if they had used my same strategy and succeeded, I would have felt bad, but we got them.” – the Spanish driver continued.
In the Drivers’ Championship, Carlos Sainz continues to close the gap to Fernando Alonso, who finished only eighth today and is trapped by an Aston Martin that no longer has the level to compete with McLaren, Ferrari, and Mercedes. In the standings, there are now 24 points between the two Spanish drivers, with six races still to be contested (three of them with Sprint races on Saturdays), giving Carlos Sainz plenty of time to chase fourth place in the Drivers’ Championship.
Leave a Reply