Fear took hold of the Ferrari garage in the Austrian Grand Prix race when on lap 57, Carlos Sainz’s car said enough, and that is that the Madrid driver’s 066/7 power unit suffered two strong explosions that caused his engine cover dislodged.
As a result of the mechanical issue, the engine caught fire as he chased Max Verstappen in the fight for second position, with the Spaniard opting to head for a loophole to park his car. However, the mountainous nature of the Red Bull Ring circuit made the site where Sainz tried to stop the Ferrari more of a hell.
The British Grand Prix winner saw fire starting to emanate from the rear so he tried to jump out quickly, but as his car had started rolling downhill he was unable to get out. Fortunately, the man from Madrid was able to escape the flames thanks to the help of a commissioner, who tried to wedge the Ferrari with a wedge while using the fire extinguisher.
With the disappointment still palpable on his face, Sainz went to speak to the media and explained what those moments of tension were like from his perspective: “It was not a good situation, nor was it easy, because I saw in my rear-view mirrors that the car was It was on fire.”
“At the same time, I was hitting the brakes, and when I tried to jump, I saw that the car was going backwards, so I didn’t want to let it roll out of control while I was leaving,” said the Spaniard, who was concerned about not endangering the rest. of pilots.
“I was calling the stewards to come help me, to put something in my tires to prevent the car from rolling down,” he continued. “But I think the whole process was a bit slow.”
Although he was able to escape without any physical damage and on his own two feet, the Ferrari driver went through a delicate moment : “At some point there was so much fire that I had to start up and jump independently, and I think that’s when The first commissioner arrived and stopped the car.
“So it’s something we want to review to find out what we could have done a little faster, because it wasn’t the easiest situation to be in,” acknowledged Carlos Sainz after adding his fourth retirement of the 2022 season.
Despite not earning any points in the main race [he took 6 points in the sprint on Saturday when he was third], the man from Madrid had the support of the entire team. Ferrari published a nice message on their social networks to lift the spirits of someone who they have welcomed as one more from the first moment.
“We know that you gave everything yesterday, Carlos Sainz. In good times and bad, we stick together,” said the Maranello team.
