Carlos Sainz disappointed with Sergio Perez’s crash: “I couldn’t go for pole”
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Carlos Sainz was left frustrated due to the late red flag in the session due to Sergio Perez's crash.
With the qualifying session concluded, the race grid for tomorrow is now set. Charles Leclerc is on pole position in his hometown race for the second year in a row, and he is joined on the front row by his teammate, Carlos Sainz. Behind them sit the Red Bulls of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen, and the Dutchman seems to be having a tough weekend. All looks bright for tomorrow’s race for the Prancing Horses of Ferrari.
Charles Leclerc has looked dominant in qualifying all season, and supreme all weekend, but Carlos Sainz has not been much far behind this weekend in particular. The Spaniard has certainly looked competitive in qualifying and in the practice sessions this weekend. However, as always, it is hard to predict what may happen in tomorrow’s race, even if you keep Monaco’s reputation in mind.
The qualifying session was disrupted right at the end when Sergio Perez lost the rear of the on-turn 8 at Portier, just before the tunnel. Carlos Sainz was unable to stop after he only saw the yellow flow at the corner, and Sergio Perez’s Red Bull was sprawled across the road. As a result, Sainz crashed his rear into Perez’s car.
Carlos Sainz: “It’s a shame”
The session was not resumed as there was only about a minute left, and drivers would not have been able to make the line in time before the chequered flag. Apart from Sainz and Perez, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, and Lewis Hamilton were all on flying laps. Charles Leclerc was 0.165 upon his previous time in the first sector of the lap. Carlos Sainz feels that he could also have competed for pole with his lap if the red flag had not been brought out.
Speaking after the qualifying session, Sainz said:
“Perez crashed in front of me. I saw the yellow flag at the corner. I hit the brakes and spun.” which implies that he would have been unable to stop himself from colliding with Perez in any case, even if he slowed down. It is yet to be seen if Carlos Sainz would be reprimanded after he has already been handed one due to impeding both Aston Martin cars in FP3. In case of another reprimand, he would be given a grid penalty.
“It’s a shame. Another year that the red flag ended the session, and I couldn’t go for pole.”
Of course, Sainz is pointing to his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc’s crash in qualifying last season, when Leclerc had been on pole and Sainz was on a flying lap. The Spaniard was clearly frustrated with this, as it has now been two times in a row in Monaco that his final run in qualifying has been disrupted through no fault of his own. Despite this misfortune, Sainz remains optimistic:
Carlos Sainz felt comfortable this weekend and felt he had the pace. He now wants to complete ‘the job’ in tomorrow’s race, clearly stating that he intends to go for the race victory. It remains to be seen if he can better his 2nd place at Monaco last season in this edition.
Also Read: Carlos Sainz and Ferrari handed out a €25000 fine for impeding in FP3
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