The 2022 Formula 1 season is proving to be very complicated for Ferrari, and especially for its driver, Carlos Sainz, who has seen how the new F1-75 did not adapt to his driving style in the first races, and although with time of time found some affinity with the behavior of the Maranello single-seater.
From the Monaco Grand Prix, which he could have won if it hadn’t been for a lap that bothered him on the crucial lap out of the pits, the Madrid native managed to take a step forward with respect to his rivals, even equaling the points scored by Max Verstappen, the overall leader, for parts of the year, but retirements and power unit change penalties took their toll on Sainz’s options.
After almost an entire course suffering, both in reliability and in strategic failures by Ferrari, both he and Charles Leclerc, arrive at a Japanese Grand Prix that could mean the end of the fight for the title for the Cavallino Rampant . Despite the fact that the Spaniard no longer has mathematical options to reap the world crown, he can act as an assistant to extend the start of Verstappen’s party, although, as he acknowledged on Thursday in Suzuka, he prefers to focus on winning and not on delay what seems inevitable.
After a second and sixth position in Friday’s free practice sessions that were washed out, Sainz hopes to have a positive weekend as the top flight returns to the Land of the Rising Sun.
“It was a very rainy Friday, which would normally mean little riding, but today the conditions were stable,” said the Ferrari driver from Madrid. “We have been able to test both the extreme rain tire and the intermediate one.”
“We have learned a couple of things in these conditions, so in general I would say that it has been a productive Friday. Now it’s time to prepare for tomorrow’s classification,” explained Carlos Sainz, fifth in the drivers’ standings, although he still has options. of being runner-up, a result that would leave a good taste in his mouth in his second year with the Maranello team.
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