Despite Harboring a “Very Bitter Feeling” Carlos Sainz’s Smashing Record Can Put Max Verstappen and Co. to Shame

If a new fan starts watching F1 and didn’t know about the previous season, one would feel like Lewis Hamilton is a driver who complains and isn’t able to perform. However, that doesn’t take his legacy away from him. Similarly, despite Max Verstappen and Co.’s dominance at the 2023 GP, you cannot take Carlos Sainz’s record away even if the Spaniard sounded frustrated. Let’s see what the smashing record is that puts Verstappen and Co to shame.

Carlos Sainz had a very unfortunate Austrian GP despite showing immense pace. The Spaniard was P3 behind Leclerc before the first round of pit stops and was the faster of the two Ferraris. However, a slow double stack under VSC meant Sainz lost both time and places. Nonetheless, he performed some brilliant overtakes and regained P3 before losing it to Sergio Perez. Sainz made sure to make it difficult for Checo to overtake and showcased exemplary defense. 

Carlos Sainz was rightfully frustrated after the race as he expected more. Sainz said, “I am not happy with fourth place, I have a very bitter feeling.” Max Verstappen on the other hand had a perfect race, leading from Lap 1, overtaking Leclerc and Sainz who pitted under VSC, and then cruised away to a victory after setting the fastest lap on the final lap. Despite having a perfect race, Carlos Sainz’s record at Red Bull Ring puts Verstappen and Co. to shame. 

Max Verstappen was on a new set of soft compound tires when he set the fastest race lap this year. However, Carlos Sainz still holds the record for the fastest lap with the lap time of 1:05:619 set in 2020. Verstappen’s fastest lap was 1:07:012, around 1.4 seconds slower than the record. 

Read More: “Once in a Generation Talent”: Max Verstappen Breaks the Internet With Supernatural Flex in Red Bull’s Backyard

In the end, Verstappen got the most points out of the race which is the more important thing. But Sainz’s past record just goes on to show what could’ve been if Ferrari did not mess the strategy up. Let’s see what Sainz had to say.

Carlos Sainz was “frustrated” with the outcome of the race. 

Carlos Sainz finished P4 in the race. However, that was before the post-race penalties were applied which saw the Spaniard drop to P6 in the classification. Sainz advised that he had a very strong race pace. Sainz did not overtake Leclerc during the first stint and was thinking about it as a team but didn’t reap the rewards with a podium. 

According to Formula1.com, Carlos Sainz said, “Yeah, obviously frustrated with the final outcome after having such a strong pace on the medium [tires], feeling also like I was playing the team game and not getting rewarded with a good result.”

Watch this Story: Is Carlos Sainz Looking to Move Away from Ferrari?

Do you think Sainz would’ve finished on the podium had Ferrari got the strategy right?