Sainz: Lack of confidence was key

Carlos Sainz is normally pretty confident driving in changeable weather, but this time it was a little different. However, the Spanish Ferrari driver hopes the Singapore Grand Prix, where he finished third, will remain somewhat of an exception in this regard..

Q: Looks like you actually had to go alone during the race. How hard was it?
Carlos Sainz: Yes, unfortunately it turned out that way, because I just didn’t have enough pace. On intermediate tires I lost a lot to Charles and Sergio, I couldn’t keep up with them.

I had big problems with this rubber, the front wheels often blocked when braking, this often created dangerous moments and every situation like this affected my confidence, so it was difficult to recoup.

At a certain stage of the race I had to slow down a bit because I still couldn’t ride at the pace of the leaders – but this gave me the confidence back. When I switched to slicks, I rode more confidently and showed good speed in the last 10-15 laps. But it was already too late.

Q: Were you surprised that the track dried up for so long? On Saturday qualifying was in similar conditions, but you would expect it to be faster during the race…
Carlos Sainz: Yes, she really has dried up insanely long. We drove lap after lap, constantly monitoring the tarmac condition, and it seemed that in some places the dry track never appeared. The car continued to skid violently. Going forward, it will be necessary to keep this in mind as the Singaporean is quite unique in this regard.

Q: Not only were you fast at the end of the race, you started well. How was it and what happened before the first corner between you and Lewis Hamilton?
Carlos Sainz: I had a good start – to be honest, on a wet track it was impossible to achieve more, and it even seemed to me that at one point I almost overtook Sergio Perez. In general I was ahead of Lewis but then of course he tried to overtake along the outer radius but in my case it’s not that easy.

By then I already had an advantage, and I’m just glad my car didn’t get damaged. At least I didn’t feel it, and we were able to hold our position. After that it was just to control the distance to his car as I already realized that I would have to take too much risk to overtake the leaders.

Q: For the first time since the Miami Grand Prix, both Ferrari drivers have taken the podium. Do you agree with your partner that the team did a good job this weekend?
Carlos Sainz: Yes, it’s nice to see that the crews that worked on both our machines did a good job. But I’m sure we still have some catching up to do on certain points. Still, the team has made an important step forward.

We try to learn from every situation and I agree with Charles who believes the remaining races of the season will be a good preparation for next year. After all, it’s clear we have a fast car, the racers are up to the task, but we need to run races better overall and try not to miss the chance to succeed when they show up.

Q: Usually one of your strengths is flying an airplane in varying weather conditions. In addition to tire problems, did you feel that high physical activity and difficult conditions are also affecting your confidence?
Carlos Sainz: No, I didn’t feel any excessive strain at all, especially when the track was still wet. It is usually quite warm in the car here, but precisely because the physical activity was a bit lower, this was not a problem. All that was missing was speed and confidence.

I think a lack of confidence is an important factor because when you get into difficult situations, one thing attracts the other. Difficulties arise, you are forced to take fewer risks and this leads to a partial loss of pace. On this track there is a danger that next time you could stand in the wall in similar circumstances, and then you will look stupid through your own fault, agree?

I will continue to work so as not to lose confidence; in addition, we will figure out together with the engineers, which made it possible to add. I agree that I usually fly well in such conditions, this is one of my strengths. I think this race will remain the only exception.