Carlos Sainz failed to attract attention during the ongoing Chinese GP race weekend. He has been the closest driver to the duo this season, and fans had high hopes that he would challenge the dominant team. However, his Chinese Grand Prix weekend went from bad to worse as he spun his SF-24 at the final corner of Q2 and hit the barriers.
Carlos Sainz was hoping for a strong performance during the Chinese GP Sprint race and to continue his streak of podiums in recent races. Unfortunately, the Sprint race did not go as planned for him. He collided with his teammate, creating tension between the Scarlet duo.
Sainz finished his 19-lap Sprint race in fifth place. During the main Grand Prix qualifying session, he spun his car while completing his quick lap in Q2.
What’s going on, Carlos Sainz? pic.twitter.com/wXpV2XP7mN
The 29-year-old driver was looking to maximize his performance in qualifying for Sunday’s race. However, he risked it by coming out of the final corner and ended up in the gravel trap on the outside of the turn. This caused Sainz to slide across the track and hit the barriers, resulting in a red flag.
After the accident, Sainz’s session came to an abrupt end and it seemed like he would have to retire. Realizing the inevitable and feeling guilty, the Spanish driver apologized to the team for his mistake.
Carlos Sainz relayed the following message through the radio of his Ferrari team.
Carlos Sainz’s accident in Q2 🙃 “Sorry guys.” pic.twitter.com/B9Ay4lpdNX
Facing the wrong direction, the 29-year-old driver said “Sorry guys” on the team radio. He then managed to restart the engine with the help of the MGU-K and limped back to the Scarlet garage.
Fortunately, Sainz managed to return to the session and made it through Q2. He ended up securing the seventh place on the grid for tomorrow’s race, just behind his teammate. With all that in mind, we can expect intense action during the 53 laps of the Chinese GP.
