The incident occurred when the Spaniard made contact with Oscar Piastri of McLaren on the exit of the first corner during the opening lap. Although the impact was minimal, Piastri’s MCL38 car caused a puncture in the left front tire of the Ferrari.
Sainz continued for a while before locking up at Casino corner, causing him to drop to the back of the pack. However, he was fortunate to have a major incident involving Kevin Magnussen and Sergio Perez further back, which resulted in debris scattered on the track and the race being temporarily halted.
As a result, Sainz was able to rejoin the race from third position on the restart. Despite constant pressure from Lando Norris behind him, the 29-year-old driver managed to hold his position for 76 laps on a single set of hard tires.
In the end, it was Sainz’s teammate, Charles Leclerc, who emerged victorious, winning the Monaco Grand Prix in his seventh attempt and becoming the first Monegasque to do so in 93 years. Piastri held onto second place, while championship leader Max Verstappen could only manage a disappointing sixth place.
In a post-race report, Sainz acknowledged that he was lucky to have a second chance after his initial incident with Piastri. He described the race as tactical and praised his good start at the beginning. However, he admitted that the contact with Piastri resulted in a puncture, and he thought his race was over. Fortunately, the subsequent accident allowed him to restart from third position.
Sainz also expressed his happiness for himself, the team, and Leclerc for achieving a fantastic combined result. He mentioned that the restart with new hard tires was crucial to manage the pace and ensure Norris didn’t have the opportunity to pit. Although he tried to overtake Piastri in the final laps, he acknowledged the difficulty of doing so when both cars were on the same strategy.
In conclusion, Sainz expressed his joy for Leclerc’s victory and the opportunity to celebrate with him on the podium. Ferrari will now seek another win in the upcoming Grand Prix in Canada, scheduled for Sunday, June 9th, at 19:00 BST (14:00 local time).
