In recent races, the Ferrari team has been criticized for strategic decisions, something that has cost it great results, as happened during the safety car at Silverstone with Charles Leclerc by not changing the tires, or in Monaco , where an error in his stop cost him the victory.
However, in qualifying for the French Grand Prix, the Maranello team launched a plan before starting the weekend, which consisted of Carlos Sainz giving the Monegasque a slipstream in the final Q3 to alleviate the disadvantage with respect to Red Bull on the straights.
The plan worked to perfection, and Leclerc, who admitted his team had screwed up at the first attempt of the final round, snatched pole position from Max Verstappen by more than three tenths. Sainz, who will start from the back of the grid for changing components on his power unit, said the tactic showed how “solid” Ferrari is as a team.
“I think we have received a lot of criticism in terms of strategies,” said the Spaniard. “And I think it’s a bit unfair, because all the teams are going to make mistakes with the tires and with the choice of tires.”
“But I think this year, the team has been very solid on the strategy side, at least it shows today,” Sainz continued. “In addition, the relationship with Charles [Leclerc] and the way everyone works shows that we are working well, that we work well together.”
“It’s good to see, I think you have to admit that both we and Ferrari had a good day,” said the Spanish driver.
Ferrari chose to penalize the man from Madrid on the grid for the race in France, since the track was ideal for his comeback options. Asked what the acceptable level would be on Sunday, Sainz replied: “I don’t have a reference, and we still have half the season left.”
“With the performance I’m having on the track right now, with how fast I was in Q2, just like in Austria and Silverstone, I don’t think it’s worth thinking about,” he said. “I’ll keep thinking about what I’ve been doing lately, which is getting back to last year’s level.”
“I think I’ve shown that, and obviously, I’m going to go for it until the team decides [otherwise]. For me, with half the season still to go, and with everything that’s happened to me, there are still [options]. ]”, sentenced the Spaniard from Ferrari.
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