After a dramatic Qatar GP, Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finds himself once again at the center of misfortune, and it’s clear: the odds were stacked against him. While Max Verstappen has already secured the 2024 Formula One championship, the focus now shifts to the intense battle for the Constructors’ title. McLaren and Ferrari have emerged as the main challengers, but with McLaren currently leading, Ferrari’s performance in Qatar didn’t exactly help their cause.

While Charles Leclerc put in a solid effort, an unlucky series of events that saw him drop points when he could have gained them marred Sainz’s race. On top of that, it was a solid opportunity to capitalize on Lando Norris’s misfortune. So, naturally, Sainz’s race ended in frustration after what he called “the worst” of all outcomes, especially at such a crucial time in the season!

Carlos Sainz on his disappointing Qatar run

Going into the Qatar race, Ferrari was kind of an underdog. On paper, their cars weren’t exactly built for the tight, hot track in Qatar. In qualifying, Charles Leclerc managed to snag P5, while Sainz ended up P7. Leclerc had a solid race and managed to finish 2nd, but Sainz? Not so much.

Sainz made a solid start, gaining a position early on and staying consistent. But trouble was lurking. On lap 34, he and Lewis Hamilton both got punctures—likely from debris left behind after Valtteri Bottas ran over a wing mirror that had fallen off Alex Albon’s car. Sainz had to pit, and it was a slow stop. By the time he exited the pits, he was down in P10. But he fought back, and by the end of the race, he finished P6.

Given how crucial the constructor’s points are, Carlos Sainz wasn’t thrilled. After the race, he said, “Today we were incredibly unlucky. We were in the middle of a decent race, with the two cars en route to scoring some decent points. But suddenly, around the last corner, the last sector, I had a puncture. Then I had to do a full lap with a punctured tire, which meant I was, losing a lot of race time, a lot of scrubbing along the car on the tarmac because of the puncture for a full lap. And when we come in, we have a slow pit stop because of the puncture. And as I am exiting the pits, they put the safety car, and I lost even more time compared to my rivals because they obviously took the safety car to stop. So we got the worst out of everything.”

Despite the setback, Sainz knew his car still had potential: “And then I obviously try to recover but it wasn’t easy after that. Not easy to overtake here and not easy to do it probably with a bit of damage in the car from the puncture. And in the end, I started the race P6 and finished P6, given everything that happened to us, it’s not a bad result. But obviously frustrated because given the puncture today, we lost quite a lot of points.”

But here’s the good news—Leclerc finished 2nd, and Norris got hit with a stop-and-go penalty that dropped him from P2 to P10. What could’ve been an easy path to the title has now turned into a real battle, with everything coming down to Abu Dhabi. Sainz was at least relieved that his teammate kept the Ferrari flag flying high.

It’s going to be a McLaren vs Ferrari in Abu Dhabi

Here’s the rundown: Verstappen was leading when debris showed up on the track. F1’s rule is clear: slow down for yellow flags. But Norris didn’t, and that earned him one of the harshest penalties the sport has to offer. While McLaren is planning to appeal, Ferrari’s pretty happy with the outcome.

Despite Carlos Sainz being bummed about his own race, he was still pumped about Leclerc’s podium finish. “On the other positive side, Charles managed to get a podium with a very clean race and maximizing everything that was available. And it means that we go into Abu Dhabi with a chance to win the championship. So we are going to give it everything. We are going to maximize our chances in Abu Dhabi. We are gonna go for it. We obviously need McLaren still to do mistakes, but we are going to give it our absolute best.”

After Qatar, Ferrari is now only 21 points behind McLaren going into the final race at the Yas Marina Circuit. With a maximum of 44 points up for grabs in a single race (1st and 2nd place, plus the fastest lap point), it’s all going to come down to this. And Abu Dhabi has been a stronghold for Max Verstappen, who’s won the last four times there. But it’s also one of Lewis Hamilton’s favorite tracks, where he holds the record for most wins (five). For Ferrari and McLaren, though, it’s not about winning the race—it’s about finishing ahead of each other.

Looking at the past, Ferrari had the edge over McLaren in Abu Dhabi. Leclerc has two 2nd-place finishes (2022 and 2023), while Sainz finished 4th in 2022 and DNF’d in 2023. For McLaren, Norris and Piastri both finished 5th and 6th in 2023 and in 2022, Norris was 6th. But don’t get too comfortable with history—it’s a different story now. The McLaren cars have improved leaps and bounds since then, and this race could throw a curveball.

So, who do you think is taking home the 2024 constructors’ championship? Drop your thoughts in the comments below!