Max Verstappen came out on top in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after an entertaining race. The Dutchman, along with Charles Leclerc, gave the fans a show to watch as they battled wheel to wheel towards the end of the race. Meanwhile, Carlos Sainz finished third behind his teammate. The result satisfied him, but the safety car incident early in the race crash left him frustrated.
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After a crash involving Nicholas Latifi, lap 15 saw the introduction of the safety car. Sainz used this opportunity to change tires, along with Leclerc and Verstappen. At the same time, Sergio Perez, who led the race earlier, had already changed tires just before the safety car incident.
As a result of pitting early, Perez lost his position to both Leclerc and his teammate Verstappen. However, just when Sainz was exiting the pit lane, he converged with the Mexican who squeezed the Ferrari and went past the Spaniard. Hence, race control was involved and the Red Bull driver had to give up his place to Carlos.
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Nonetheless, Checo Perez did not give back his position immediately. He waited for the restart until lap 21 as he let Sainz past him. The Ferrari driver clearly wasn’t happy with it and complained on the radio. He also gave his thoughts on this decision by race control after the race.
Sainz is not with the Checo incident
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Carlos Sainz showed his frustration in the post-race interview. He believes it hampered his race and gave an unfair advantage to Perez. The Spaniard said, “Of course, the safety car was happy for us, but rules are rules. I was just ahead, that was my position. I don’t understand why we didn’t swap positions right away. That would have been much easier.”
Formula One F1 – United States Grand Prix – Circuit of the Americas, Austin, Texas, US – October 21, 2021 Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz Jr. during the press conference FIA/Handout via REUTERS
Many, including Sainz, feel he had an opportunity to race Verstappen if he passed Perez before the restart. The former McLaren driver believes that Formula 1 needs to consider changes regarding the safety car restarts. He also added, “That was very strange, as a sport we have to look at it. This mess was completely unnecessary. We had six laps behind the safety car. There were millions of opportunities to swap positions.”
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Nevertheless, Sainz ended up on the podium after the safety car incident. He continued his fine form after a 2nd place finish in Bahrain. Can he challenge the likes of Verstappen and Leclerc for the Championship this season? We will have to wait and watch.
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