Despite a frustratingly slow pit stop midway through the British Grand Prix, Carlos Sainz said his P6 finish at Silverstone was “still a positive result” – but couldn’t help but look wistfully at Ferrari team-mate Charles Leclerc’s podium finish.
Sainz pitted from P2 on Lap 29 but a stubborn front left tire change meant his stop lasted 12.3s and the Spaniard lost 37.5s in the pit lane, 2.5s shy of Lewis Hamilton in the pit lane spent 10 seconds stop and go penalty. The Ferrari driver was asked if he was disappointed after the race.
READ MORE: Leclerc ‘50% happy, 50% frustrated’ after narrowly missing out on Ferrari’s first win since 2019
“Yes, of course, when you have such a strong pace and do the fastest laps and are basically as fast as we are today, of course it’s hard to take,” he said. “But if you think about it [on Lap 1 of the F1 Sprint (below)] I was last and was able to finish P6 [in the Grand Prix] with a very slow pit stop it’s still a positive result.
“I think the team has been great with the pit stops this year and that’s the first mistake we make. It is what it is; It will always happen throughout the year and congratulations to Charles for putting the car where it belongs today.”
2021 British GP F1 Sprint: Russell and Sainz make contact on Lap 1
The British GP marked a third consecutive double-point win for Ferrari and a huge turnaround in form after they failed to score at all at the French GP four races ago.
“I mean, it was very positive to see that the car was as quick as it was today in clean air,” said Sainz. “I think like you said, at some point I did the fastest lap on 25-[lap]-old means so it shows tire grade and setup and car balance is improving.
READ MORE: How Hamilton and Mercedes negated the effects of the 10-second penalty to win at Silverstone
“We are actually still trying to improve all areas but today at this track we thought it wasn’t going to be very good for us; We delivered and the car was very comfortable to drive.”
Scuderia left Silverstone with plenty to smile about as Leclerc had clinched his first podium since the 2020 British GP after 49 laps in the lead – and Sainz’s points helped the team keep McLaren in the hunt for P3 in the Constructors’ Championship.
