“Playing the team game and not getting rewarded,” Carlos Sainz left with a ‘sour feeling’ after Ferrari’s strategy deprived him of the podium at the Austrian GP

Team orders, a botched pitstop and a penalty inhibited Sainz from reaching the podium at the Red Bull Ring.

“Playing the team game and not getting rewarded,” Carlos Sainz left with a ‘sour feeling’ after Ferrari’s strategy deprived him of the podium at the Austrian GP

Carlos Sainz(Credits: Car and Driver)

At the start of the enthralling Austrian GP, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz initially held P3, trailing behind Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc. As the race progressed, Sainz closed the gap and approached his teammate, Leclerc, with the possibility of challenging for second place. However, the Ferrari pit wall intervened and instructed Sainz to maintain his current position, preventing any internal team battle for the time being.

When speaking to the media post-race, Carlos Sainz expressed frustration with the race outcome, despite showcasing a strong race pace. He felt he had played the team game, but the result didn’t reflect his performance. Sainz was left with a bitter taste in his mouth, acknowledging his speed, overtaking, and defensive skills, but ultimately P4 was not the desired outcome, as he strove for better.

https://youtu.be/UPdQQvTikhU

“Yeah, obviously frustrated with the final outcome after having such a strong pace on the medium [tyres], feeling also like I was playing the team game and not getting rewarded with a good result. It leaves you always with a sour feeling. I’ve been very strong today, very quick, very fast, good overtaking, good defending, but in the end P4 is not what I want,” said a frustrated Carlos Sainz.

With the pace he demonstrated in stint one being superior to Charles Leclerc, an argument can be made that the Spaniard had a potential P2 finish on the cards, as he desired a podium finish as a reward for his brilliant pace on race day.

Related: Ferrari FORBIDS Carlos Sainz from overtaking Charles Leclerc at Austrian GP gives him number 2 driver treatment yet again

Carlos Sainz believes his race was compromised after his first pitstop

Carlos Sainz (Credits: Essentially Sports)
Carlos Sainz (Credits: Essentially Sports)

After following the team’s instruction to stay behind Leclerc, Sainz’s race was further impacted when he pitted under the early Virtual Safety Car. Unfortunately, being second in the Ferrari double-stack, this decision caused him to lose crucial time and fall behind three other drivers. The combined effect of these factors further compromised Sainz’s afternoon performance.

In his effort to gain the positions back, the Spaniard accumulated multiple track limit violations, earning him a five-second time penalty. Thus, as a result, he was unable to beat Sergio Perez. After a thrilling battle between the pair, Perez edged out Sainz for the final step on the podium. Speaking on the botched pitstop, Sainz believes his podium endeavors were crushed after he got held up.

He said, “I think I lost six or seven seconds of race time, three positions which I had to recover then, using my tyres, track limits… From the first stop onwards my race was quite compromised, especially a shame after having such a good pace.”

Carlos Sainz expressed his satisfaction with the car’s performance throughout the weekend and his connection with it. He felt confident in his driving abilities and understanding of the car, especially during the race. However, he expressed disappointment that the team couldn’t capitalize on these positive factors and achieve the desired result. Despite his progress and the car’s performance, the missed opportunity unsatisfied Sainz.

In case you missed it: